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Meiji Jingu ShrinevsShitamachi Museum
Both are recommended by professional travelers. Overall, Meiji Jingu Shrine scores significantly higher than Shitamachi Museum. Meiji Jingu Shrine is ranked #1 in Tokyo with praise from 11 reviews including Departures, Condé Nast Traveler and Travel + Leisure.
Meiji Jingu Shrine
Fodor's
Concierge
Travel + Leisure
Michelin Guide
Condé Nast Traveler Travel + Leisure
Departures
On the Grid
The Telegraph
Afar Magazine Show All Reviews
1-1 Yoyogikamizonocho, Shibuya, Tokyo 151-0052
From $0/night
Fodor's "A wonderful spot for photos, the mammoth entrance gates (torii), rising 40 feet high, are made from 1,700-year-old cypress trees from Mt. Ari in Taiwan." Full review
Concierge "The shrine is an impressive sight—austere wooden buildings surrounded by greenery."
Travel + Leisure "On New Year's Day, eat osechi (a special feast of seafood and vegetables) and join the happy crowds huddling outside the Meiji-Jingu Shrine to get good tidings." Full review
Michelin Guide 3 Stars
"One of the most important Shinto buildings in Tokyo and it is where newly-weds come to seek spiritual transformation ... access is via a majestic gate." Full review
Condé Nast Traveler "Meiji Shrine, a peaceful, wooded haven dedicated to Emperor Meiji (1852-1912)." Full review
Travel + Leisure "The souls of Emperor Meiji and Empress Shoken are enshrined here at one of the city's most famous sacred sites." Full review
Departures "The two enormous Japanese cypress torii (shrine gates) that guard the grounds are particular highlights—and they teem with tourists accordingly—but the site is serene and worth a visit." Full review
On the Grid "The Meiji Shrine was built in honor of Emperor Meiji, the 19th-century emperor who opened Japan to the West." Full review
The Telegraph "In typical Tokyo style, one of the city’s most peaceful forest shrines is just a stone’s throw from the 21st-century Harajuku crowds." Full review
i
Wear comfortable shoes if possible, avoid taking baby strollers (the path is long and gravelly), and once you arrive, look out for silent wedding processions led by the billowing white kimono of a Shinto bride.
Afar Magazine "The serenity of the Meiji Jingu Shrine is a notable contrast to the crowds of Harajuku hipsters just beyond the giant torii gates." Full review
Shitamachi Museum Fodor's
Time Out Michelin Guide
Atlas Obscura
Frommer's
1-2 Uenokoen, Taito, Tokyo 110-0007
From $0/night
Fodor's "Japanese society in the days of the Tokugawa shoguns was rigidly stratified. Some 80% of the city's land was allotted to the warrior class, temples, and shrines." Full review
Time Out "This museum presents the living environment of ordinary Tokyoites between the pivotal Meiji restoration of 1868 and the Great Earthquake of 1923." Full review
Michelin Guide 1 Star
"This museum takes you back to a lost world by recreating the working-class district of Shitamachi, which was razed to the ground by the 1945 bombings." Full review
i
The visit can take a funny turn when you are given the chance to try on traditional clothes.
Atlas Obscura "A museum dedicated to the history of Tokyo's often-overlooked working-class district. " Full review
Frommer's "Shitamachi means "downtown" and refers to the area of Tokyo in which commoners used to live, mainly around Ueno and Asakusa." Full review
