Customer Reviews

The Little Tokyo Subway Guidebook: Everything You Need to Know to Get Around the City and Beyond

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

With the release of IBC's "Little Tokyo Subway Guidebook," there are now three distinctly separate volumes designed to help us navigate through the maze of Tokyo's underworld. The first, published by Kodansha in 2002, holds up surprisingly well and boasts a distinct advantage in having maps for about 50 of the stations most likely to be used by visitors, showing how each station, and its numbered exits and entrances, relate to the street system and noteworthy buildings above. The guide published by Tuttle in 2005 does have about 13 area maps, but these are far less detailed than the Kodansha volume. The latest entry from IBC (2007) is the first to acknowledge a 13th line (due to open in June of 2008), though the map shows only one short segment between Ikebukuro and Kotake-mukaihara, stations already served by the Yurakucho line. The unique benefits of the IBC volume are sections that explain the ticketing system (with illustrations), airport connections (for Narita and Haneda), and several pages of bilingual phrases (that could come in handy).

If you feel that a guide book is needed, I'd suggest investing in both the Kodansha and IBC books. They're compact (about 4"x 6" each) and complement each other nicely, with the Kodansha supplying station and area maps and the IBC providing the latest information and helpful ticketing guidance.

I just returned from a week in Tokyo, and was very glad I bought this book.
I like to explore, and bought two resources in advance: This subway guidebook, and Kodansha's Tokyo City Atlas with very detailed street maps.
Honestly, you only need two things: this little subway book and a general street map that the hotels provide (we stayed at the Imperial Hotel, in the heart of Ginza). Kodansha's City Atlas is way too detailed for the average tourist. It is more appropriate for a businessman or a new transplant.
This little subway book was INDISPENSIBLE. The subway system in Tokyo is very complicated, and this little book clearly detailed all of the stops along a specific line. I used it constantly; you will too!

Even after traveling to Tokyo on a regular basis for over 15 years, this is the quickest way I've found for figuring out how I was going to get from one place to another on the fly. Small enough to keep in a pocket, it makes the less Eigo friendly secondary subway systems a lot easier to navigate. Now if they'd just put out a digital version...

If you are going to Tokyo, you definitely want this book.

From my first attempt to get around via train, this book was helpful. After a few weeks living in Tokyo, I was able to only take it with me when I was heading somewhere new. It's also small enough to fit into a pants pocket, which is nice.

Buying the first train ticket is something that could have been covered better, but honestly I can't deduct a star because the information here was 100% helpful to me on many occasions.

A lot of people gave this a good review so I decided to buy it. But honestly, it was not of a help for me. I'd rather search online for the subway exits and grab a map. Online software downloaded to my iPhone is more helpful

If you're planning to use the subway system in Tokyo, this is the book for you. It's very easy to follow and its small format makes it easy to carry. I don't know what I would have done without it!