Tokyo travel guide a love letter to the city and a toolkit for tourists

Michelle Mackintosh and Steve Wide have watched the city transform in the decades since they first landed in Tokyo on their honeymoon in the late 1990s. It wasn’t Tokyo itself, unlike the travelers who came there.

“When we first went, not many people were traveling there,” Wide recalls. “We were blown away by the food, the design, the people. It was a completely unexpected feeling.”

They have been returning ever since, establishing a deep and growing relationship with the city that now forms the basis of their latest book. Tokyo Story (Hardie Grant), One of eight books on travel in Japan, establishing the pair as leading and prolific authorities on the subject.

Some of his other books include: Train Japan: The Essential Railway Guide, Secret Pockets in Kyoto, Awareness Travel Japan And Onsen of Japan.

Tokyo Story is a richly illustrated, design-focused guide; is both a love letter to Tokyo and a toolset for experiencing it as a personal experience.

For Mackintosh, a Melbourne-based designer who illustrates and art directs his books, the connection began even earlier, sparked by a Japanese exchange student and his fascination with graphic design.

The duo, along with Wide, a writer, broadcaster, and long-time cultural observer, have created a body of work documenting Japan that falls somewhere between travel guide, visual essay, and cultural in-depth study.

Previous titles Tokyo (2018) began to develop their approach. They wanted to avoid making lists and encourage involvement in the city’s rhythms, neighborhoods and subcultures. Tokyo Story expands on this idea by shifting the focus from geography to experience; It is organized around interests, obsessions, and the kinds of discoveries that emerge while wandering.

One thing’s for sure, Wide says. You will go astray. “But that’s one of the great things about Tokyo. When you get lost, you’ll see a lot of things you didn’t expect.”

This is also the case with Google Maps, although the couple have observed that the app and its ilk make navigation easier and social media reinforces certain points, Mackintosh says: “People just seem to go to the same places.” “You go to a place we put in a book 10 years ago and there’s a queue of Australians there.

“And in a city like Tokyo, you don’t want to be in a TikTok queue for something,” he says.

That’s why the duo talks about how they’ll travel as much as where they’re going. If there is only one theme in his advice, it is respect for the culture and the people who move to his city.

“There are rules and you follow them,” says Mackintosh.

This might mean something as simple as queuing properly for a bus, avoiding eating on the street, or asking before taking photos.

“Last year we saw a lot of bad behavior from Westerners,” he says, describing travelers jumping queues or ignoring basic etiquette.

They say this behavior means some visitors face resistance from locals. The key to Wide is flexibility. “If you have a bad experience, just brush it off,” he says. “You will have a wonderful experience in the next half hour.”

So how? should do Are you approaching Tokyo now?

First: be curious. Whether it’s music, food, fashion or stationery, “Get involved in everything,” says Wide.

Second: Mackintosh and Wide advocate a little groundwork. Before you go, watch Japanese movies, try unusual Japanese dishes, learn a few basic expressions.

Third: Embrace each day. Some of Tokyo’s best moments lie not in the headlines but somewhere in between. This could be a store cafeteria, a walk around the neighborhood, a train ride through the city.

And finally, leave room for your own version of the city to emerge.

“The name of the book Tokyo Story“But it’s really about creating your own Tokyo story; That’s when you come back.”

Tokyo Story, RRP $49.99, published by Hardie Grant Explore. To see publishing.hardiegrant.com