Planning A Successful Day Trip To Yokohama From Tokyo
Last Updated on July 21, 2026 by Audrey
When I visited Tokyo for 2 days last year, I decided to visit Yokohama on a day trip because I was looking for a short and sweet one day trip near Tokyo.
Let me tell you now, Yokohama is nothing like Tokyo, despite being the second largest city in Japan. It’s chill, peaceful, and made me feel like I had the best of both worlds: coastal ocean views coupled with big city attractions like the Cup Noodles Museum and Chinatown.
After exploring Japan annually since 2019 and visiting 32 cities across 14 prefectures in the country, I’d like to think I’m pretty familiar with Japan. Which is why when I say Yokohama is worth visiting, I mean it!
I’m going to take you down the exact Yokohama day trip itinerary that I did. Today, you’re going to explore the Cup Noodle Museum, walk along Minato Mirai water walk, ride the vibrant Ferris wheel in Cosmo World, and eat alllll of the delicious food in Chinatown. You’ll see all the main attractions and discover the hidden gem spots that I discovered and loved. Let’s do it!
Short on time?
You don’t need to book a tour for day trip to Yokohama from Tokyo; it’s an easy 30-minute train ride, and all the attractions are close together. However, if you’d prefer to have transportation arranged for you, you can book this day trip to see Yokohama, Enoshima, and Kamakura all in one day.
Free Map of Yokohama Itinerary
Here’s an easy to read map of the main attractions in Yokohama and where my day trip itinerary will take you.
Yokohama Day Trip Itinerary
Ok, let’s get started with our full day in Yokohama! Plan to arrive in Yokohama by around 10 AM, and leave around 8-9 PM after dinner.
Early Morning - Take the train from Tokyo to Yokohama
Okay, first let’s take the train to Chinatown from Tokyo! It’s super, super easy to get to Yokohama. The fastest way is from Tokyo Station. Depending on where you are in Tokyo, take the train station to Sakuragicho Station.
Let me repeat that: Sakuragicho Station is your destination. Do not get off at Yokohama Station.
You’re going to take one more stop to Sakuragicho Station because it’s closer to the Cup Noodle museum. Also, if you want to do the touristy thing and take the air cabin down to the city, Sakuragicho Station is where you want to be.
Optional - Air Cabin from Sakuragicho Station
You can purchase a combo ticket to ride the Air Cabin + the Ferris Wheel in Cosmo World for ¥1,700 ($10.50) for 1 adult 1 way. Don’t get the round trip, just get the 1 way, because the air cabin is more of a one time gimmick.
You may end up leaving Yokohama from Chinatown later tonight, so that’s another reason to not get a round trip ticket. Who knows where you’ll end up?
The Air Cabin, while touristy, is pretty fun. Plus, the ferris wheel is absolutely beautiful and makes the combo ticket worth it.
Walk through Yokohama World Porters
The Air Cabin will drop you off at Unga Park, and you can walk through World Porters to get to the Cup Noodles Museum.
Yokohama World Porters is a huge mall with over 150 stores, primarily geared towards younger audiences. You can find fun souvenirs like tamagochis, figurines, stickers, and Hawaii-style clothing here, along with delicious snack stalls. I wouldn’t spend too much time here since we have to head to the museum, but it’s a fun quick stop.
Morning - Cup Noodles Museum
Now, let’s start our morning off at the Cup Noodles Ramen Museum!!! This place is soooo fun, specifically if you’re a instant noodle fan like myself. I grew up eating this stuff, so it was fun getting to visit this interactive museum.
Important tip: You don’t need to purchase tickets in advance. I saw that the museum was “sold out”, and I panicked and tried to purchase tickets on Klook. Turns out there’s TWO ramen museums in Yokohama.
Pro tip: Do NOT buy tickets for the Shin-Yokohama Ramen Museum. Totally different museum!
Second, the museum doesn’t sell out of admissions. They sell out of limited tickets for the hand-making ramen class. If you want to take that class, then in that case purchase tickets 2-3 weeks in advance. But don’t worry about not getting entry into the museum itself, as same-day tickets are numerous.
We spent around 1 hour at the museum. I loved Momofuku’s work shed, a recreation of where Momofuku Ando created the very first chicken ramen! We also got to sign up for a time slot for My Cup Noodles Factory, one of the extra exhibits where you can design your own cup ramen package. If you’re willing to pay the small extra fee (500 yen), then you can sign up for one of their limited exhibits when you buy your museum admission.
- Museum Admission Fee: 500 yen (Limited Exhibit Classes are an additional cost)
- Museum Hours: 10:00 – 18:00 (Last admission is at 17:00), Closed on Tuesdays
Lunch - Noodles Bazaar (Cup Noodle Museum)
To be frank, since we had limited time, we ate lunch at Noodles Bazaar in the Cup Noodle Museum to save time. I recommend you do the same.
You could also eat at the Red Brick Warehouse, but we took the slow route and spent some time walking through the Minato Mirai Pier before we got to the Red Brick Warehouse, so we got there around 2-3 PM.
My Experience at Noodles Bazaar
The dining area in Cup Noodles Museum is a fun concept, because you get to try different noodle-based specialties from all over the world in an asian night market setting!
Options include unique specialties like Malaysian Laksa and Tom Yum Goong Noodles from Thailand, to more common dishes like Italian pasta or Vietnamese pho.
We tried the Lanzhou Beef Ramen from China and the Laksa, and it was pretty good! They also have delicious ice cream desserts.
Early Afternoon - Stroll by the water in Minato Mirai Pier
Walking along the water in Yokohama was easily one of my favorite things that I did in the city. The Red Brick Warehouse is only 6 minutes walk from the CupNoodles Museum, so make sure to walk to the CupNoodles Museum Park so you can see the bay and Yokohama port.
The walk is so calming, and you get to see locals who are just chilling by the water and walking along the park.
We got the lucky opportunity to visit during the Gogo Dog Fes in April, Japan’s largest outdoor dog event. There were multiple shopping stalls set up along the pier, and it was sooo fun seeing all the cute dogs walking around!
There’s also the Marine & Walk Yokohama, a collection of stores that you can check out as you head over. We definitely stopped by the COS store here!
Afternoon - Walk around Yokohama Red Brick Warehouse
Spend the rest of your afternoon shopping in Yokohama Red Brick Warehouse.
This shopping mall doubles as a historical landmark, as it used to be the Yokohama Bay’s Customs Inspection House for all shipping activities in the early 1920's! Now, it’s a large shopping area that also hosts most of the city’s seasonal events, like the Strawberry Festival and the Gogo Dog Fes that we saw.
Our favorite shops here are Luka, a fragrance store, Haruta, a loafer brand exclusive to Japan, and Top of the Hill, a large thrift store.
There’s also lots of amazing snacks you can try here too, though the prices are a little expensive.
We spent around 1-1.5 hours visiting all the shops here.
Late Afternoon - Ride on the Ferris Wheel at Cosmo World
Now it should be around 5-6 PM, which is hopefully around golden hour. I highly recommend visiting Cosmo World and riding the large Ferris Wheel around this time, so you can get a beautiful view of Yokohama and the city lights like we did.
Don’t skip the ferris wheel ride, because it’s an amazing experience! It’s perfectly smooth, and takes you very high above the city. It’s beautiful.
If you purchased the combo Air Cabin + Ferris Wheel ticket like I did, then you just need to show your ticket to the attendant. There’s a regular Ferris wheel car or the glass bottom car. If you want the glass bottom car, then you have to wait in a separate line that will typically take longer. I’m scared of heights, so we opted for the regular car, hehe.
Dinner - Eat Streetfood in Japan’s Biggest Chinatown
Our last stop of the day is going to be Yokohama Chinatown, the largest Chinatown in Japan!! Honestly, we were pretty tired by this point in time and debated skipping it because you have to take a train ride to get there. However, don’t skip it!!! The food here is SOOO good, and it’s such a fun street food experience that isn’t available in Tokyo.
Keep in mind that most of the stalls close at 9 PM, so ideally get here by 7:30-8 PM to get to try all the different food.
Hands down, my favorite was the soup dumplings from the shop near the entrance of Chinatown. Look for Wangfujing Restaurant, and order the soup and fried dumplings here. You won’t regret it.
There are also sit-down restaurants, but I think the best part is wandering around all the street stalls and getting to try everything.
Our Video - Eating All The Streetfood in Chinatown Yokohama
Evening - Take the train back to Tokyo
By now it’ll probably be around 9 PM, and we were super tuckered out after spending all day walking around Yokohama, so I assume you may be as well (though there are lots of concerts that take place in Yokohama!).
It’s a quick 20-30 minute train ride back to Tokyo, so you won’t be getting home too late to your hotel! It was a pretty great day, huh?
More Things to Do in Yokohama
We loved Yokohama so much that we came back the following year, so there’s more things to do around here if you have the time.
Visit Sankeien Garden
We didn’t have time to visit Sankeien Garden during our day trip because it’s in the southern area of Yokohama near Negishi Bay, but this huge Japanese garden is a top attraction in the city!
Spanning over 175,000 square meters, there are many historical houses and seasonal flowers here, including a three storied pagoda. While there are many gardens throughout Japan, this is one of the most beautiful, with bridges, streams, waterfalls, and bamboo groves.
If you’re visiting in late March, April, July, or August, then I definitely recommend checking Sankeien Garden out to see the cherry blossoms or pink lotus blossoms.
Eat Delicious Seafood at a Hidden Gem Restaurant
If you have a second day in Yokohama, then I’d also recommend eating at my favorite hole in the wall 海鮮居酒屋 魚や海虎, a seafood izakaya restaurant. It’s definitely an office worker hang out after hours and gets packed, but the fish is incredibly fresh and it’s super cheap compared to what you’ll find in Tokyo. Yokohama locals love this spot, and we do too!
We took my fiance’s parents here and it was their favorite restaurant of the whole trip. They still talk about how amazing and affordable the seafood was here.
The location is slightly confusing. The restaurant is on the second floor, so look for the large sign display and the restaurant will be upstairs.
Yokohama Hakkeijima Sea Paradise
I haven’t been to Yokohama Hakkeijima Sea Paradise, but it’s a popular water park for families and children. It’s home to the largest collection of marine life in the country, with a theme park, an aquarium, and a mall in one location.
If you have a free day, you might want to check it out, but just know that animals in foreign countries may not receive the same amount of treatment compared to the United States.
Where to Stay in Yokohama
As I said before, we loved Yokohama so much that we ended up coming back, and instead of a day trip, we stayed 3 nights in Yokohama. If your plans end up changing and you want to stay in Yokohama, you won’t be disappointed. The hotels are bigger and more affordable.
Mitsui Garden Yokohama Minatomirai Premier
My top-tier recommendation of where to stay in Yokohama is Mitsui Garden. We stayed here for 3 days, and it blew us away. We literally didn’t want to leave.
It’s in a convenient location, it was very affordable, and we got a luxurious room with a beautiful city view. Sometimes you can even spot Mount Fuji! It’s a 5-star hotel that is well-deserving of its status!
Amenities include a Family Mart within walking distance, a sky pool, a bar, a gym, a restaurant, and an outdoor terrace. It’s also only a 5 minute walk to the Minatomirai Station. We absolutely loved our stay here, and would book it again in a heartbeat.
Conclusion - The Best Yokohama One Day Itinerary from Tokyo
If we were to move to a city in Japan, Yokohama is my number one choice. We even took my fiancé‘s parents here this year, and they also fell in love with it just like we did.
There’s something about how much more calm Yokohama is compared to feeling like a sardine in Tokyo. You get water views, all the main attractions are close together, and you can explore nearby cities like Tokyo, Enoshima, or Kamakura easily. I think Yokohama is the easiest day trip you can make from Tokyo, and is fun to visit even during the winter.
If you book a guided tour, you probably won’t get to see all of Yokohama, but you’ll get to see all three cities (Yokohama, Enoshima, and Kamakura) in one day.
Overall, you should definitely visit Yokohama at least once. If not during your first trip to Japan, then during your second. How many times have you visited Japan? Let me know by leaving a comment!
I recommend checking out my Tokyo 4 day itinerary for your next step. I can only assume you’re going to be staying in Tokyo during your trip if you’re visiting Yokohama, after all! If you need any assistance, feel free to leave a comment or email me at audrey@getlostinjapan.com 🙂
Recommended Posts