If you consider yourself a geek and you haven’t heard of Akihabara, then you’re missing out, but don’t worry; we have your back. Akihabara is a district found in central Tokyo. The area has grown more and more popular recently as a result of the incredible shops and amusements that can be found. The district caters explicitly for serious fans, but also those who love electronics. If you hadn’t guessed, if you’re an anime fan, then this place should be on your bucket list.
The Otaku culture
This region specializes in Otaku goods, which essentially means anything people can be a fan of, or have a special interest in. While this region has shops that specialize in anime and manga merchandise, they also have an abundance of stores that also provide retro video games, card games, figurines, t-shirts, bags, and so much more. If you want it, it’s going to be there. They will also be the kind of specialized items and designs you can’t get anywhere else.
Cosplay cafes
If you’re making a trip to Akihabara, then you better make the most of it. Make sure that you head on over to one of the maid cafes. The waitresses are actually dressed as either anime characters or maids. How awesome would it be to have your favorite anime character serving you tea? In a way, it’s like going to the anime-equivalent of Disneyland, just instead of rides, you can have cake. Manga cafes are something slightly different, as they’re where you can go to chill out, read anime or comic books, relax, and have access to the internet. It’s almost tempting to move there permanently.
A whole town of geeking out
You better go with all the money you can bring together since you’ll have everything you have ever wanted at your fingertips. If one place doesn’t have what you want, guarantee that twenty other stores will. There’s a place called the Tsukumo Robot Kingdom, and yes, it’s full of robots! Most people don’t get to see a robot at all, and yet this place seems to be filled with them. Here you can see robots that are both big and small, ready-made, and DIY. If you’re the kind of person who finds robotics fascinating, book your flight to Tokyo now.
Mandarake
Mandarake is the self-proclaimed biggest anime and manga shop in the world. This store specifically sells on pre-owned items, which might not sound great until you realize they’ll sell items that are no longer manufactured. If you’re someone who loves the idea of collecting rare or unique items, then this is going to be your best bet.
It’s easy to get to
Let’s face it, Tokyo isn’t a cheap place to get to from most Western parts of the world, but when you do finally make it there, getting to Akihabara is really easy. It’s only two stations from Tokyo and only takes three minutes on the train, the fare is super cheap too, so no worrying about shelling out loads of cash just to get there.
It’s one of the coolest places in the world if you’re the kind of person who absolutely loved manga, anime, robotics, and having all those things brought to life. Whether it’s Pokémon, Final Fantasy, Black Butler, Naruto, Vampire Knight and so on, you’ll find all the best items in the Akihabara district of Tokyo along with one of the best experiences of your life.
