metro 地下鉄 chikatetsu

The underground transport system: where efficiency meets claustrophobia with surgical precision. Your daily dose of sardine simulation awaits!

Know your subway systems:

• Tokyo Metro: 9 color-coded lines, 180 stations, and 6.52 million daily passengers crammed into spaces designed for half that number. The subway map resembles a plate of rainbow spaghetti thrown against the wall.

• Toei Lines: Tokyo’s “other” subway system, because one wasn’t confusing enough. Forms a loop that will have you traveling in circles both literally and mentally.

• Osaka Metro: The only metro in Japan to be partially legally classified as a tramway. Dissociative personality disorder in transit!

• Honorable mention: Kyoto’s Karasuma and Tozai lines form a sad little cross on the map. For a former imperial capital, it’s surprisingly minimalist. This metro only carries about 340,000 daily passengers – a rounding error in Tokyo terms.

Must-knows:

• Avoid rush hour: 7:30–9:30am is when the infamous white-gloved “pushers” earn their keep by folding you into trains like human origami.

• Etiquette: No eating, no phone calls, no backpacks on backs, and absolutely no eye contact. The quieter the better – think weirdly popular library but with more sweat.

• Last trains: Miss the midnight train and congratulations – you’ve just won an expensive taxi ride or a night at a manga café!

• IC cards: Get a Suica or PASMO card and tap your way through gates like a local. Bonus: they work at vending machines so you can stress-eat after getting lost for the fifth time.

Actually pracictal information

Ticket options in Tokyo:

• Tokyo 1–3 day subway pass: Available in 24, 48, or 72-hour flavors. Unlimited rides on all subway lines for tourists only. Flash your passport to prove you’re not a local trying to game the system. Purchase at Tokyo Metro Pass Offices, tourist information centers, or Bic Camera (where you’ll also be tempted to buy 17 electronic gadgets you don’t need).

• Regular one-way tickets: Buy from multilingual machines that accept cash, credit cards, and your silent prayers. Tokyo Metro fares: 180-330 yen. Toei fares: 180-430 yen because they’re fancy like that. Keep your ticket until exit or face the shame of the fare adjustment booth.

• IC cards (Suica/PASMO): The smart choice. 500-yen deposit (refundable if you remember to return it), then load with cash. Tap in, tap out, look smug. Works across all transit systems and at convenience stores. Available as physical cards or mobile apps for the digitally inclined.

Other touristy tips:

• Line up properly: Wait at the marked spots on platforms. Let others off before boarding or risk death stares from locals.

• Download an app: Japan Travel by Navitime will save your sanity. It plans routes, recommends passes, and prevents you from ending up in Yokohama when you meant to go to Shinjuku.

• Free WiFi: Available in many Tokyo Metro stations. Perfect for panicked “WHERE AM I?” Google searches.

• Operating hours: Trains run from approximately 5am to midnight. First trains start around 5am, last trains between 11:30pm and 12:30am. Plan accordingly or see “manga café” above.