Touring around Yokohama!
Many people love travelling to Tokyo. Personally, I know many people who do; in fact, I’m one of those people! Tokyo has something for everyone. There’s food (of course), entertainment, sightseeing spots, and even amazing hot springs are only a train ride away. But nearby there’s Yokohama, a city that’s smaller than Tokyo but still has its own fair share of personality and identity. After all, it was the first city to open a harbour for foreign trade after Japan’s 220-year long isolationist policy known as sakoku (鎖国), and it was here where Japan began adopting Western cultures. You can say that Yokohama is a city in Japan where ‘east meets west’!
I first visited Yokohama 6 years ago, and it’s one of my favourite getaway destinations from Tokyo. Accessible in less than an hour from Tokyo by train, Yokohama is also geographically close and therefore convenient. I always try to make time for Yokohama whenever I’m in Tokyo, and I would implore anyoneーespecially first-timersーto pay a visit there even for half a day. Here are some of the highlights of things to do in Yokohama.
Chinatown (横浜中華街)
Temple in Chinatown. (Image credit: JR East / Nazrul Buang)
There are 3 Chinatowns in Japan altogether, and Yokohama is home to the biggest one (the other two are in Nagasaki and Kobe). It is here where visitors can experience the culture of the Chinese diaspora in Japan, a place where Chinese traders began commercial businesses here since the city opened to foreign trade in 1859.
Temple in Chinatown. (Image credit: JR East / Nazrul Buang)
Visitors both local and foreign would flock here primarily for two reasons: sightseeing and food. Every Chinatown throughout the world is said to be different from one another, and the one in Yokohama is no different. Apart from witnessing the many larger-than-life temples found throughout the district, visitors can also experience some of the best Chinese cuisine in Japan here.
Steamed buns in Chinatown. (Image credit: JR East / Nazrul Buang)
I don’t get to visit many Chinatowns around the world; the only ones I’ve visited apart from the one in Yokohama, is the one back home in Singapore and the other in Manhattan, New York City. Every Chinatown has a unique identity; throughout history, the vast Chinese community has spread across the globe and fused their own culture with their newfound homes. The one found in Yokohama is worth visiting multiple times throughout the year; it’s always a feast for the senses!
Minato Mirai 21 (みなとみらい 21)
Minato Mirai 21 is a seaside commercial area in central Yokohama. Translated as ‘Harbour of the Future’, it used to be a large shipyard area until the 1980s when it was gradually transformed into a commercial hub. With a panoramic sea view, Minato Mirai 21 is a favourite hangout spot for every visitor to Yokohama as it has something for everyone, from entertainment venues and shopping malls, to restaurants and museums.
Minato Mirai 21 skyline. (Image credit: JR East / Nazrul Buang)
One of the outstanding features of Minato Mirai 21 is the Landmark Tower, a 296m structure of spectacle that used to be Japan’s tallest structure from 1993 to 2014. The must-visit spot in the tower is the Sky Garden, located at 273 metres and offering a mesmerising view of the entire seaside.
Red Brick Warehouses. (Image credit: JR East / Nazrul Buang)
The first time I came to Minato Mirai 21 six years ago, I felt like I was stepping into Tokyo’s Odaiba. Modernistic and picturesque, it has just about everything for everyone (there’s even a Ferris wheel on top of a shopping complex!). One of the iconic structures that caught my attention is the Red Brick Warehouses (赤レンガ倉庫 akarenga-sōko), a place that provided shipyard services when area was still in the maritime services and has since been converted into a chic shopping complex. My visit to Yokohama was brief, and if I ever had the time to come here again, I would without hesitation.
Harbor View Park & Yamashita Park (港の見える丘公園・山下公園)
Harbor View Park. (Image credit: Hipnos / CC BY 2.0)
For visitors who are fans of unforgettable views, Harbour View Park and Yamashita Park are two places they don’t want to miss. The Harbour View Park offers an amazing panoramic view of the entire Yokohama harbour, and at night transforms into a romantic observation post. Visitors can also see the Yokohama Bay Bridge on a clear day from here.
Yamashita Park. (Image credit: Marcin Chady / CC BY 2.0)
Whilst the Harbour View Park is ideally a night park, Yamashita Park is perfect for daytime. Stretching across the Yokohama Port, this park isn’t just any ordinary park; it has a rose garden, a water guardian statue gifted by Yokohama’s sister city San Diego, and the Seagull Sailor (鴎の水兵さん kamome-no-suiheisan) monument. Visitors can have a relaxing moment of escapism right here, away from the bustling city.
Shin-Yokohama Raumen Museum (新横浜ラーメン博物館)
I’ll be honest: the main reason for me to visit Yokohama, above everything else, was to visit the Shin-Yokohama Raumen Museum (I mean, should you be surprised at this point?). I’m not a fan of museums per se, but when it’s a ramen museum, I’ll make a big exception. But even for a non-ramen fan, it would surprise them to see how much history and culture go into a bowl. At the Shin-Yokohama Raumen Museum, you will experience the entire history behind the unassuming dish that has carved its own identity in the world of Japanese cuisine.
Shin-Yokohama Raumen Museum. (Image credit: JR East / Nazrul Buang)
Not only does the museum detail the historical lineage of ramenーfrom its humble beginning in Hakodate to its renaissance in the 20th centuryーvisitors can also learn about all the fundamentals and the various styles of ramen they can find throughout Japan, from the hearty tonkotsu ramen in Hakata to the salty-buttery miso ramen in Sapporo.
Ramen street at basement of museum. (Image credit: JR East / Nazrul Buang)
Another point worth taking note: there is a ramen street at the basement of the museum styled after Shitamachi of 1958, the old town of Tokyo. Here visitors can choose from a variety of ramen joints that have gathered from all over Japan. It’s only befitting that a trip to a ramen museum ends with a bowl of ramen, isn’t it?
Yokohama is just one of the many other short getaways that traveller can consider while based in Tokyo. For these getaways, taking the train is a cinch: JR East's railway network makes these getaways seamless and even enjoyable. Compared to Tokyo, I feel that Yokohama is chicer and worth spending a day. If you’ve never been there, give it a try; it’s a place you won’t forget!
How to get to Yokohama from Tokyo
Yokohama is in central Kanagawa, a prefecture that lies in the south of Tokyo. There are many ways to get to Yokohama from Tokyo, and here are some of the common ways:
① Chinatown / Harbour View Park / Yamashita Park: the closest station to Chinatown is JR Ishikawacho Station (JR石川町駅駅 Ishikawachō-eki). You can take any of the following JR ordinary lines from JR Tokyo Station (JR東京駅 Tōkyō-eki) or JR Shinagawa station (JR品川駅 Shinagawa-eki) until JR Yokohama Station (JR横浜駅 Yokohama-eki): JR Tokaido Line (JR東海道線 Tōkaidō-sen), JR Yokosuka Line (JR横須賀線 Yokosuka-sen), or JR Keihin-Tohoku/Negishi Line (JR京浜東北線・根岸線 Keihin-Tōhoku/Negishi-sen). Also, you can take the Narita Express from JR Tokyo Station to JR Yokohama Station. From JR Yokohama Station, switch to the JR Negishi Line and alight at the JR Ishikawacho Station (Chinatown is a 5-minute walk from the station; for Harbour View Park and Yamashita Park, it's 20 minutes). The whole train journey takes around 40 minutes and costs ¥570 per adult.
② Shin-Yokohama Raumen Museum: the closest station to the museum is the JR Shin-Yokohama Station (JR新横浜駅 Shin-Yokohama-eki). You can take any of the following JR ordinary lines from JR Tokyo Station or JR Shinagawa Station until JR Yokohama Station: JR Tokaido Line, JR Yokosuka Line, or JR Keihin-Tohoku/Negishi Line. Also, you can take the Narita Express from JR Tokyo Station to JR Yokohama Station. From JR Yokohama Station, switch to the JR Yokohama Line (JR横浜線 Yokohama-sen) and alight at JR Shin-Yokohama Station (the museum is a 5–10-minute walk from the station). The whole train journey takes around 45 minutes and costs ¥570 per adult.
③ Minato Mirai 21: the closest station to Chinatown is JR Yokohama station (JR横浜駅 Yokohama-eki). You can take any of the following JR ordinary lines from JR Tokyo Station or JR Shinagawa Station until JR Yokohama Station: JR Tokaido Line, JR Yokosuka Line, or JR Keihin-Tohoku/Negishi Line. Also, you can take the Narita Express from JR Tokyo Station to JR Yokohama Station. From JR Yokohama Station, switch to the JR Negishi Line and alight at JR Sakuragicho Station (JR桜木町駅 Sakuragichō-eki). Minato Mirai 21 is a 5-minute walk from the station. The whole journey takes around 35 minutes and costs ¥570 per adult.
(INSIDER TIP: for all the above, if you have the JR TOKYO Wide PASS, all the train trips are free!)
JR TOKYO Wide Pass
The JR TOKYO Wide Pass, and where you can use it. (Image credit: JR East)
The JR TOKYO Wide Pass is an affordable pass offering unlimited rail travel on JR East lines (including bullet trains) in the valid area for 3 consecutive days. At ¥15,000, you can use it to travel from Tokyo to Yokohama, and many other places within the designated areas, such as Nikko, GALA Yuzawa, Karuizawa and more. You can also make seat reservations online for free, up to 1 month in advance, on the JR-EAST Train Reservation.
The JR-EAST Train Reservation. (Image credit: JR East)
Header image credit: JR East / Nazrul Buang
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