Yokohama | What to see on a day trip from Tokyo

I didn’t realize how close Yokohama was from Tokyo until I finally looked up the train routes on google maps. Yokohama is actually much closer to some other areas in Tokyo because of the frequent express trains that run between Tokyo and Yokohama. We took the Asakusa line from Daimon station which took us to Yokohama station in just only 28mins. That’s the same amount of time that it takes for me to get from my place to Shibuya! Also, the express train on the Asakusa Line has extra comfy seats on the end of the trains.

So, what can you do and see in Yokohama? It’s a very kid friendly place with a lot of places you can see within walking distance or by using the Minatomirai Line which runs along the harbor. We were there from about 9:30am – 1:30pm and this is the suggested route:

Keikyu Museum > Harbor Front Area (Red Brick Warehouse, Marine & Walk, Yokohama World Porters) > Chinatown (Lunch)

Keikyu Museum

Keikyu is a transportation group that runs trains and busses. This FREE museum has a miniature city with running trains in the middle, then there’s a life size train carriage on the left side which acts as a mini history museum to teach you about the history of trains and railroads in Yokohama. On the right hand side you can go onto a life-size model of a bus’s driver seat with functioning buttons, or you can go onto a simulation of train driving. This is definitely a hit for kids, but for an adult who’s a train fan like me, I really enjoyed my time there.

The Harbor Front Area

To get to the harbor front, you can take the Minatomirai Subway line a few stops to Nihon Odori Station. As soon as you exit the station, you’ll see a red brick landmark building called the “Yokohama Kaikou Kinenkaikan” which means Yokohama Port Opening Memorial Hall.

As you walk towards the harbor, you’ll see the Red Brick Warehouse. It’s actually two large buildings with a big space in the middle, which is where the Yokohama Christmas Market is usually held. The Red Brick Warehouse has many restaurants with cuisines from all over, so if you’re here around lunchtime, you can stop for a bite!

Continuing along the harbor, you’ll see Yokohama Marine & Walk. This is an outdoor mall with shops and restaurants that really remind me of California or Hawaii with its beach and surfer vibe. There’s also various wall art all around the mall like the iconic angel wings, or this cat going up a staircase.

Lastly, there’s Yokohama World Porters if you head a bit inland away from the sea. This mall is definitely more for those with kids, or for adults who are obsessed with Gacha Gacha machines (these are capsule toy machines). Here you can find many mini Thomas, Anpanman, and train/car themed mini indoor rides. Don’t worry if you don’t have coins, there’s a British phonebooth shaped exchange machine.

Also, there's a red tourist bus that runs all around this area, so if you'd like to see Yokohama from above ground instead of take the subway, that's also a good option.

Yokohama Chinatown

To get to Chinatown, it’s a short walk from Nihon Odori Station. If you’d like to see the large gate that marks as the main entrance to Chinatown’s main shopping street, look for “Zenrinmon Gate” on google. As you walk down the shopping street, you’ll see a lot of bubble tea shops, meat bun shops and restaurants. But I highly recommend “Rouishin” which is a corner shop that sells Panda Buns in various flavors. Also, each road in Chinatown is named after different places such as HK road, Shanghai road, and Little Tainan road.