LET'S ODEKAKEBest Museums in Tokyo to Visit

The Tokyo Toy Museum is targeted more at kids, but adults will also enjoy looking at all the retro toys from their childhood. The museum is housed inside an old elementary school and it retains its childlike charm to this day.

The museum focuses on wooden and environmentally friendly toys and houses over 10,000 toys, many of which can be played with. They have a playroom filled with toy from Japan and other countries around the world, which kids are free to try out. The wooden ball pit is particularly fun for small kids and the room dedicated to traditional Japanese toys is very interesting.

If you want to try a hands-on craft activity, you can partake in a toy making workshop using recycled materials.

Opening hours:10am - 4pm *YOU MUST RESERVE IN ADVANCE
Closed:Thursday
Cost:1,100 yen (adults), 800 yen (kids)
Location:5 min. walk from Exit No. 2, Yotsuya-sanchoume Station

Mori Art Museum is a contemporary museum located on the 53rd floor of the Roppongi Hills Mori Tower. The works on display are ever-changing, featuring works from both Japanese and foreign artists. Presently their main exhibit is entitled "Listen to the Sound of the Earth Turning: Our Wellbeing since the Pandemic". It showcases 140 works and includes scultptures, video, paintings, installations and more.

Sometimes they feature interactive works, while other exhibits are just for looking at and pondering.

There is a rooftop observation deck with stunning views over Tokyo that you should check out while you are there.

Opening hours:10am - 10pm
Cost:Varies
Location:3 minute walk from Roppongi Station exit 1C

This is one of the few local ward museums which has good English translations of the exhibits, which is not surprising considering how popular Minato-ku is with expats.

The museum is designed to teach residents about the history of Minato City. It contains artifacts found in the area and teaches visitors about how the area has evolved over the years.

While this is not the biggest or most spectacular museum in Tokyo, we think it is important to know our local area so we included one example of a local museum which impressed us.

Opening hours:10am - 5pm
Closed:3rd Thursday every month
Cost:300 yen
Location:5 min. walk from Shirokanedai

The Nezu Museum is located not in Nezu, but in Minami-Aoyama. The museum used to be the private residence of Nezu Kaichiro, the president of Tobu Railways, and was originally built to display his private collection. These days it houses many Japanese and East Asian artworks.

The museum houses ove 7400 works including seven national treasures. There are painting, calligraphy, sculpture, metalwork, ceramics, lacquerware, wooden and bamboo craft, textiles, armor, and archaeological specimens.

One reason that this museum is so nice is that it is not just an art museum, but it also contains a large Japanese style garden which you can stroll around, and a has a rather delicious restaurant on-site. If you don't like art and history it may not be for you, but for those who appreciate such things you will likely enjoy yourself here.

Opening hours:10am - 5pm
Closed:Monday
Cost:1300 yen
Location:8 min. walk from Omotesando

The National Museum of Nature and Science is one of the many museums located in Ueno Park.

They are all worth a visit, but the most enjoyable is possibly this one. It houses over 25,000 exhibits, teaching museum-goers about outer space, animals, Japanese history and technology. You can spend an entire day here if you take your time.

The exhibits are mostly in Japanese but they offer an English audio guide. Children will like it for the visual displays such as real-life size dinosaur skeletons. There is a 3D theatre with shows (Japanese only) that change each month, and a hands-on learning area for young kids.

Opening hours:9am - 5pm
Closed:Monday
Cost:630 yen
Location:5 minutes from Ueno

The Fukugawa Edo Museum homes a reproduction of Tokyo in the late Edo period. It's located in the trendy up and coming area of Kiyosumi Shirakawa, giving you a good opportunity to try some of Tokyo's best coffee while you're there.

The museum is very realistic looking and displays life sized restaurants, shops and houses from that time, as well as a waterway and boat. The lighting changes to reflect different times in the day.

The best thing about this museum is that you feel really immersed in the exhibits, like you have really stepped back in time. It's so interesting to see what people's houses looked like back then, and how they lived. There are volunteer guides available to explain the displays, and sometimes even English speaking guides.

Opening hours:9am - 5pm
Closed:Second and fourth Mondays of the month
Cost:400 yen
Location:5 mins. walk from Kiyosumi Shirakawa

National Museum of Emerging Science, or MIRAIKAN, is located in the modern area of Odaiba.

Odaiba is full of shops and entertainment venues like Legoland or Joypolis. Miraikan is a cutting-edge technological museum aiming to teach us about the latest technological advancements in Japan.

You can see an eerily lifelike android robot, or Geo-Cosmos, a 3D model of earth from outer space, and many more. You can spend about half a day here, while using the rest of the day to explore Odaiba itself.

Opening hours:10am - 5pm
Closed:Tuesday
Cost:630 yen
Location:5 mins. walk from Yurikamome

This list isn't exhaustive, there are over 100 museums in Tokyo, but it's a good start. Each ward offers a small and usually free museum about the area so be sure to find your local one.