We will take you not only to places you might visit on a typical tour offered by other companies, but also to places they would never take you. All of these locations are fascinating even if you simply look at them, and you will no doubt want to capture Instagrammable photos there. However, the essential difference between our tour and a conventional tour is that bringing you to photogenic spots is merely a means to an end—not the end itself. The true purpose of our tour is to help you decipher the hidden Animescape contexts embedded in the city. This tour is inspired by two main experiences. The first dates back more than fifteen years, when we moved to Tokyo from a regional city in Japan to start university. Back then, senior otaku students born and raised in Tokyo would often take us on private city tours to pass down their otaku knowledge and cultural literacy. In time, we inherited that tradition ourselves and, when we became upperclassmen, took new students on the same tours. The second inspiration comes from our time working at an anime studio. During the pre-production phase of various anime projects, we accompanied creators on research trips and location hunting to develop image boards, background art, and prop designs. Both of these experiences were far beyond the scope of an ordinary sightseeing tour—filled with intellectual and visual stimulation. What made them so compelling? It was the thrill of deciphering the Animescape context hidden within reality, and at the same time uncovering the reality embedded within the Animescape. It’s like the joy Colonel Muska feels in Laputa: Castle in the Sky, when he finally reaches the central chamber of Laputa’s sanctum, discovers the Black Stone left by his ancestors, looks at the Laputian script carved into it, and exclaims, “I can read it... I can read it!” It is that exhilarating sense of consuming far more information than the people around you, even while looking at exactly the same thing. We only create tours out of experiences that we ourselves have genuinely found fascinating. And we don’t believe that taking Instagrammable photos, uploading them to social media, and then never thinking about them again constitutes an interesting experience in itself. Of course, we aim to make the tour itself stimulating and memorable—but beyond that, we focus on helping you acquire conceptual Den-noh Glasses (from Den-noh Coil). These are lenses that will enable you, whenever you visit other destinations or see photos of Japan trending online, to read the Animescape context hidden within the real-world scenery—and conversely, when you watch the new anime series or legendary theatrical anime, to perceive the real-world context embedded within them. Our ultimate goal—and what makes our tour truly unique—is to ensure that even after you leave Japan, you can always activate those glasses whenever you wish.

Our tour is conducted in English by a Japanese guide.

The meeting point is usually Akihabara Station or Shinagawa Station. For private tours or half-day tours, we may arrange to meet at a different station. You will receive an email 24 hours before the start of your booked tour with the exact meeting location and detailed directions on how to get there.

Unfortunately, we do not provide pick-up service from hotels or other accommodations to the meeting point, nor do we offer drop-off service after the tour ends.

As a commercial company, we should probably just say, “Yes! You’ll have no problem enjoying it!” But to be honest, this is how we would describe it: You will almost certainly enjoy it far more than a typical sightseeing tour of Tokyo. Even if you have no particular interest in manga or anime, if you’re curious about other cultures or you love discovering unfamiliar things, we can guarantee you will have a very special experience. However, people who do have an interest in anime or manga enjoy it at least ten times as much.

We generally recommend that participants be 15 years old or above. This is not because the tour involves anything dangerous or sensitive. Rather, it’s because we have no interest whatsoever in simply taking guests to Instagrammable photo spots. What we care about is accompanying you to many places, exploring many Animescapes together, and gradually unraveling the question of what exactly creates these landscapes—so that by the end of the tour, you will have acquired the eyes to perceive them yourself. For that reason, while we will not stop you from bringing younger children, it is unlikely that small children would find the experience enjoyable. That said, recalling our own experiences as otaku, we believe that if a young person is especially curious and passionate about anime and manga, they can still enjoy the tour from around age 12.

During the tour, you will use a pass that we provide, so you won’t need to pay any transportation costs yourself.

This tour involves a significant amount of walking and movement up and down stairs. Unfortunately, if you are unable to do these activities independently without assistance, it would not be feasible to participate in our standard tours. However, for private tours, we can design an itinerary tailored to your needs. Please feel free to contact us first to discuss your situation.

This tour is designed to be just as enjoyable regardless of season, weather, or time of day, so there is no particular time that we consider the “best.” Like many countries, Japan is hot in summer and cold in winter, but we have structured the tour so that these seasonal factors do not affect the overall experience.

Yes. Our tours generally proceed even in rainy weather. While parts of the tour involve walking outdoors, you will also spend a significant amount of time indoors, so typical rain does not have much impact. For more details, please also refer to our cancellation policy.

Since our tour involves walking and moving up and down stairs, wearing comfortable shoes is the most important thing. Because part of the tour takes place outdoors, we also recommend bringing an umbrella if rain is expected. You can easily purchase an umbrella almost anywhere—at convenience stores, drugstores, and similar shops—for about 1,000 yen. Other than that, you are welcome to wear whatever you like and bring whatever makes you feel comfortable. Among Japanese otaku in their teens and twenties, it’s quite common to bring along plush toys or acrylic stands of their favorite characters when traveling or joining tours.

Because our tour involves traveling by train as well as walking and using stairs, please do not bring any luggage larger than a backpack or tote bag. We are unable to store luggage for you or help carry your bags during the tour. If you absolutely need assistance transporting luggage during the tour, please consider booking a private tour instead.

You may cancel your booking up to 48 hours before the scheduled start time of the tour and receive a full refund. If you cancel less than 48 hours before the scheduled start time, cancellations are not accepted and no refunds will be issued. If it becomes impossible to operate the tour safely due to typhoons or other severe weather conditions, if train service is suspended for any reason, or if we are unable to operate the tour due to circumstances on our side, the tour will be canceled and you will receive a full refund, even if this occurs less than 48 hours before the scheduled start time.

Please cancel your original booking at least 48 hours before the scheduled start time to receive a full refund, and then make a new reservation for your preferred date and time. If you cancel less than 48 hours before the scheduled start time, no refund will be issued.

Unfortunately, in Japan there are many places where animals other than service dogs are not permitted, so pets cannot be brought on the tour. If you wish to join the tour with a service dog, we can accommodate this through a private tour. Please contact us before making a reservation to discuss the arrangements.

Unfortunately, our standard tours do not include any time allocated for shopping. If you would like to enjoy shopping as part of your experience, please consider booking a private tour. However, on the Decode Tokyo: Animescape Grand Tour, we can accommodate very brief shopping stops if time allows—for example, picking up a quick souvenir or item of interest along the way.