Tokyo in summer — 3 days with a 4-year-old and a baby
Tokyo in August wears everyone down if you keep walking outdoors through the middle of the day. This plan puts the mornings and the hours after sunset outside, keeps roughly 10 to 3 indoors, and sends everyone back to the room in between. Day 2 needs almost no travel — the aquarium, lunch, and the tower sit in one block. The last day is an indoor play space, then lunch in Ueno on the way to the airport.
Day 1 — Arrival day, Asakusa only — the temple once the sun is down, then dinner
The main hall is open 6 a.m. to 5 p.m.; the grounds themselves have no set hours. Stand directly under the big lantern in the outer gate and you can see the dragon carved on its underside.
- Walk ~5 min
Asakusa Imahan Kokusai Street Head Restaurant
The first floor has a raised tatami area as well as chair seating. Last entry is 7 p.m.
Day 2 — One day in Oshiage — the aquarium in the morning, a nap at the room, the tower after dark
The penguin pool is open to the room instead of sitting behind glass, so you watch from the same air the birds swim in. There are seats in front of the tanks. It opens at 10 a.m. on weekdays and 9 a.m. on weekends and holidays.
- Walk ~5 min
Solamachi Tabe-Terrace Food Court
The nursing room and the stroller parking are on the same floor as the tables, so feeding and diaper changes don't mean changing levels. Udon, soba, ramen, and takoyaki line up in one row, and several counters have kids' sets.
- Walk ~5 min
On the lower observation floor, one section of the floor is glass, and you can stand on it and look straight down at the street. It is normally open until 10 p.m.
Day 3 — Last day indoors — the play space, lunch in Ueno, then straight to the airport
Babies get an area of their own here, with a low slope built to encourage crawling. On weekdays it opens at 10 a.m., and the desk stops admitting people 70 minutes before closing.
- Train ~10–20 min (est.)
A Western-food restaurant standing in Ueno Park, serving since 1872. An elevator reaches the fourth floor, where the nursing room and the diaper changing area are. Closed Mondays; on weekdays the dining room takes its last order at 4 p.m.
Before you go
In August, plan to be indoors from about 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. rather than walking outside through those hours. On the fifth floor of the building connected to Asakusa Station there is a baby room with a formula-preparation unit, open 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.; the nursing booth is for women only, but fathers can use the changing beds. Sumida Aquarium sells dated web tickets, and once a date sells out online, the machines inside the entrance do not sell it either. Ueno Seiyoken is closed on Mondays.