Gotokuji Temple (The Lucky Cat Temple of Tokyo)

One of my favorite places to visit in Tokyo is the Gotokuji Temple. Many people might know this as the ‘Lucky Cat Temple’ for all the beckoning cat statues. There is lots of folklore and history behind the beckoning cat aka Maneki Neko and I highly recommend reading about it - its so interesting!
To get to this Temple it’s an easy subway train ride. We left from Asakusa station and it was a $3.00 in total cost and about 50 minutes. We planned visiting here first in the morning and then hop back onto the subway line and spending the day in Shibuya.
But more about Gotokuji Temple. Instagram and TikTok has made this area quite a tourist spot when in reality its tucked away into a quiet neighborhood in a residential part of Tokyo. With that being said, if you plan to visit this shrine please be mindful of the locals and the homes around here. Its a very quiet area and to be honest, if I ever moved to Tokyo its a spot I would consider living at. There’s also a cemetery but for respect we didn’t walk into it (some people did which is fine but once again be very respectful to the graves). 

After we made our blessings we went into the shop where you can purchase a Neko. PLEASE NOTE - due to the over tourism of the area you’re only allowed to purchase one Neko. There was many signs asking people to take their Neko home with them since the Temple is flooded with statues already. We decided each time we visit Japan we will stop by here to purchase a new Neko for our home. Reading online the Neko will bring good fortune for shop keepers which is why a lot of small businesses in Japan has one of these Neko’s at the entryway of their shops. 

Below is a few photos from our visit and I highly recommend checking out my Instagram page for a video tour of what the area is like! 

If you’d want to see more about Japan we’ll be returning October/November 2024. My Instagram will feature LIVE and in the moment posts so please follow along! There’s also highlights from my previous trips. 

*Please note this is free to enter. There are many tour groups that will take you here but if you have google maps and carve out some time to learn the subway lines - you can visit here with no tour guide needed! :D

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Where to Shop (Tokyo Edition)

The big ‘it’ thing is raving about shopping in Japan and how it’s supreme over anywhere else in this world - from luxury, electronics, pre-owned luxury, and basic thrifting. Why is this? There’s a few reasons: value of the yen at the moment, the quality Japan puts into their products, and how impeccable people are when taking care of their goods.
Bryce and I went secondhand shopping and the quality and how well the items were; you’d assume the items were brand new (not used). When purchasing new items they’re almost always wrapped or boxed for protection. If you love shopping, you’ll definitely need to devote a suitcase (or two).

Below is a list of retailers/stores we highly recommend in Tokyo (I’ll create one for Osaka too)! From video games, fashion, stationary, pre-loved goods, and more! 

Electronics/Video Games:
- Bic Camera is throughout all of Japan and they had everything from Tv’s, laptops, cameras, home appliances, bikes, electronic accessories and more. When we were here Bryce grabbed up this cool switch video game that isn’t sold in the US. 

- Akihabara is known for electronics. This is also a wonderful place to grab up any used video games or electronics too. Shops like Bic Camera, Super Potato, Book-Off and more are located here. You can find new and used.

- Nagano Broadway Mandarake is also a very well known area for finding used and vintage goods along the lines of video games, books, electronics, vintage toys, and vintage home items. When we were there we seen some vintage clothing but there’s another area I recommend for vintage/thrifting fashion.

Fashion:
*Fashion in Japan is amazing but please keep in mind a lot of Japanese retailers have very limited sizing. Citizens/locals are primarily the same heights and around the same weight. There are some plus size stores that you’ll find in large shopping malls which I’ll include. Stores like Uniqlo, Abercrombie, and American Eagle will still have a larger size range too if you cant find your size in some of the boutique shops.

- Shibuya 109 is an ultra popular shopping mall where you can find many trendy Japanese retail boutiques.

- Tokyo Skytree is a shopping area that I really enjoyed. There’s a Pokemon center and Uniqlo here too. My favorite store here was Earth Music and Ecology. 

- Sunshine City Mall is where you’ll find a huge pop culture area including the Pokemon Sweets cafe and Sanrio Cafe. There’s countless shops here including a Toysrus! 

- Ginza is where I seen many luxury retailers at along with a 7 story Abercrombie & Fitch!There’s also a big shopping mall here with the Pokemon Center DX. 

Secondhand Fashion/Thrifting:
Japan has some of the best thrifting. The quality of the items are so incredible and you can find some amazing deals too. Here’s a list of the secondhand shopping districts in Tokyo. The best way to shop here is to take a few hours and just wonder around.
Luxury
-Vintage Q00, Allu and Amore Tokyo (both in Omotesando)
- Gallery Rare (Ginza)
- Brand Collect (harajuku)

Vintage Fashion (non luxury and luxury goods)
- Shimokitazawa
- Koenji
- Kichijoji
- Harajuku
- Book Off Bazaar (luxury and non-luxury goods) in Saitama 

Stationary:
Japan still heavily relies on pen and paper for a lot of their day to day which means you’ll find the best quality stationary goods here! This is my list of Stationary shops to visit but keep in mind there’s so many lovely boutiques that specialize in unique stationary goods. I highly recommend just opening google maps and search for stationary and let the app guide you!
- Daiso
- Don Quixote
- Muji
-Itoya
-Kyukyodo (in Ginza)
- LOFT at Skytree
- Tag Stationary (in Asakusa)

Random Retail/Specialty Shops:
These are random spots that we enjoyed in Tokyo and places we think you will enjoy too.

- Ghibli store in Skytree area or Tokyo Station
- Pokemon Center (these are in all the major locations and I’ll have a blog post devoted just to the different centers)
- Nintendo Store
- Kirby Store at Skytree (next to Kirby Café)
- One Piece Store at Sunshine City (where you can get your Luffy hat!)
- Sylvanian Families at Sunshine City
- Flower Miffy Cafe/Shop at Asakusa (you can build your own bouquets and they have cafe items to enjoy!)
- Miffy Style at Tokyo Station
- Gelato Pique at Skytree or Sunshine City
- Sanrio Store at Asakusa Orange Street (this store even has a popcorn machine!)
- Uniqlo flagship at Ginza
- Muji at Ginza (its like Ikea but Japanese)
-Mega Don Quixote in Shibuya or Asakusa (best place to grab up beauty goods)

 

Be on the look out for my Osaka Shopping post soon!
Also we’ll be back in Japan during the Months of October and November. I’ll create an updated list of shops and new areas we visit. Don’t for get to follow my social pages to see in the moment content of our Autumn trip!

Where We Stayed at in Japan Spring 2024

Today’s blog post is all about the hotels we stayed at in Japan for our Spring Sakura trip!  

One of our top priorities when booking hotels is location. We wanted to make sure the hotel was within walking distance to a train/subway for quick navigation. But also in an area that has access to what we might need (quick bite to eat, retail, etc). But, each hotel had its flaws which I'll include in each review.

* Keep in mind hotels in Japan are VERY small. IMO it is cruise ship size rooms so keep that in mind with larger families you might want to consider airbnb, booking multiple rooms on the same floor, or larger suites that could accommodate a larger family. 

** Most Japanese hotels will take your rolling luggage/bags and hold them for you until check in and there's lots of lockers at the train stations you can store luggage in if the hotel is unable to hold the bags for you.... But Japan is very strict on time - so don’t expect any form of early check in. (We did get early check in at our last hotel but they charged us an additional 4,000 yen to do so). 

HOW WE DID OUR HOTELS: I wanted to break down how we did hotels cause its a bit different than how I've seen other travel influencers do. We knew we were going to be shopping quite a bite so we decided to have a 'main hotel' or a HQ that we booked for our ENTIRE trip. This hotel was in Asakusa, Tokyo. We decided on Asakusa because location wise it's the best and was near the main subway line. When we went to Osaka for USJ and Hakone for the Onsen resort - we kept our 'main hotel/HQ' so we can keep our items there and packed just a small overnight bag. 

*** Links to each hotel is included and these are NOT commission links. 

Hotel #1 Asakusa Tobu : We only stayed here for one night. Our Asakusa hotel didn’t have availability for the day our flight landed. We originally had an airport room but last minute swapped for this location and TBH, I’m glad I was able to experience this place! Location wise, this place was a great spot if you’re wanting to be near the subway, Senso-ji, and walking distance to Skytree. Their breakfast buffet was both Japanese and Western dishes and it was probably one of the best "hotel breakfast" we had on the entire trip. The entry to the hotel was so posh. The hotel room was VERY nice, bigger than expected and the TV even had access to Youtube so we were able to fight off jet lag. My only complaint is the beds weren’t comfortable at all (maybe it was just our room but the bed felt rock hard).

Hotel #2 APA Hotel Asakusa Ekimae (our Tokyo HQ) : The location of this hotel was brilliant! It was VERY close to Senso-Ji, The Don Quijote, Ozeki grocery store, and the subway lines. I love the outside sitting area this hotel had and wished we could have used it more. The bed was VERY comfortable but the room was one of the smallest rooms out of all our hotels (we had to be creative with our 6 suitcases at the end of our trip). This hotel did have a breakfast but we never ate there - it was only a few plate options (not a buffet) plus we wanted to enjoy some of the local cafes each day (I will have a blog post about cafes soon too!). This hotel chain has multiple locations in Asakusa alone and from my understanding there is different tier sizes too - so if you’re wanting to save money on hotel cost, you might really enjoy this location! 

Hotel #3 Osaka Hotel Resol Trinity : We enjoyed this hotel for 2 nights and it was one Bryce was familiar with because he had stayed here before. I must say this hotel being in the heart of Osaka, felt like you were in another world as soon as you stepped in. The design, aromas, and atmosphere was 10/10. The room was quite large too! I enjoyed the big bathtub in our hotel room and the check in area even had bath salt soaks for the guest to enjoy! Bryce and I joked that we need to have our next master bedroom set up to be similar to this hotel room because it was modern Japanese and had that zen feeling I've been searching for. Now, there was a few hiccups with this place. There's a public bath for guests to use which I was very excited for but this hotel had some ‘tour groups’ who weren’t following the rules of the public bath - I felt uncomfortable and didn’t get to enjoy it. Also the same tourist group was very rude at the buffet breakfast and some people even cut us in line and was talking extremely loud in the common areas (which for Japan and the Japanese culture - loud talking isn’t something people do). I truly enjoyed this hotel but felt maybe we just had some bad luck with other guests - it was cherry blossom season so maybe during off season this place would be a perfect Osaka hangout. 

Hotel #4 Hakone Kowakien Tenyu : We only stayed here for one night because this was peak tourist season and the rates were VERY expensive but I must say this is a destination Bryce and I plan to revisit on our future Japan trips. We booked a room with a private hot spring bath which I enjoyed multiple times, there was SO much space in our room (it literally felt like an entire apartment!), and they provided us with pjs and our katas to wear. The hotel had lots of areas for the guest to relax, there was 3 dinner options and all is well worth it, the hotel breakfast was over 80+ item buffet (something literally for anyone - including Champagne!), and the grounds of the retreat were breathtaking. There was 2 public hot spring baths that rotate each day and I truly enjoyed the onsen experience and recommend everyone trying it at least once. This location is out in the mountains so be prepared to either hike to the hotel, ride a bus, or take an expensive taxi. We hiked and enjoyed the sights. This hotel also has an annex building that seems to have a lot more kid-friendly activities. 

 

Hotel #5 Airport Collaboration Room Villa Fontaine Grand Haneda : Our final 24 hours in Japan we enjoyed the airport hotel and it was well worth it (another location we will stay at again for the convenience of being at the airport terminal). The room was a very good size and the tv had access to the internet. The breakfast buffet here was really nice too and we arrived there right when they opened and had great food selection. This hotel also has a rooftop hot spring which we sadly didn’t get to enjoy but if you have the time I recommend going since its open 24 hours. Now, our room was a special collaboration room which meant it was decorated to a theme and had free items gifted to us. We adored this experience and if you’re into Japanese collaboration experiences - I recommend booking one of these collab rooms. The bed wasn’t the softest bed in the world; it was mid. I highly recommend the airport hotels at Hanata. Its nothing like a US airport hotels and the ease of getting our luggage to the check baggage desk and through TSA made this room 100% worth it. 

If you have any further questions or would like to know more about the hotels Bryce stayed at on his solo Japan trip, let me know and I will gladly include the details. 

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I Sold My Car - Now What?!

Yes, you read the title correctly… I sold my Jeep Patriot. I loved that car so much and wow it was my first big purchase on my own. I drove my Patriot to Florida with all my belongings and traveled countless road trips with it - so why did I sell? Read and find out.

If you’ve been following me on social you would have known back in December 2016 I picked my 2017 Jeep Patriot out. I went to the dealership and actually selected it off the truck! It was such a wonderful and unique experience. Over the years I have had some highs and lows in that car. From having unexpected flats to traveling in snow covered roads to visit family at Christmas during the Pandemic! It has been such a joy to have but as I paid it off and 100% owned it with no loan attached I realized that the chapter of my life has shifted. From current events to wanting a more sustainable future. I simply sold my Jeep for a change that will have long term benefits for me. Bryce and I have been debating about where we want to live on our future - which having a car or not plays a big role. Also, with the amount of traveling I do I need a car that can handle the miles, drastic shifts in weather and climates. I also want to go in the direction of a battery powered car for a longterm benefit for my family. 

Though this Jeep has a special place in my heart - I have always made sure to take the best care of it with the end goal to sell and get something new, different, and a step up. 

Is the car a problem? No no 100% no. Its a perfect car. I’ve always worked hard on making sure it was taken care of the way someone would an exotic sports car. No wreaks, no damages, no problems at all. In fact whoever gets this car is going to win the lottery. It has so many new upgrades added to it that I feel its literally a brand new car. 

How we sold the car:

We requested quotes from Carmax and Carava. I considered Cars.com but their website seemed to be a bit picky with the number of miles my jeep had - my jeep had less miles than predicted based on the year model and the website said my mileage was incorrect (odd right?). Carvana quote was over 1.4K more than Carmax. Sadly I am having to pay $290 for a delivery service but still the price and value was A LOT better on Carava

Have you sold your car recently? How was your experience? For us we opted to reach out to multiple car selling companies (carmax, carvana, etc) for the best quote.