Going to Tokyo with an 18 month old

[Anonymous]

I am planning a trip to Tokyo and trying to find an apartment to sublet near my relatives. A friend told me to search for "weekly mansions" instead of "apartment sublets" and that has helped, but it's hard to find things that are a little more suburban. I was hoping to find an apartment/mansion instead of a hotel since we'll have laundry (cloth diapers) to do during our stay. Any suggestions would be appreciated.

Also, any suggestions for keeping a very active 18 month old occupied for a 13 hour flight would be appreciated. I'm considering getting a super lightweight Combi or Maclaren stroller for this trip even though DC tends to not like being in strollers since we'll have to do lots and lots of walking there. Any stroller recommendations would be appreciated since we'll have to schlep it and the baby up and down lots of stairs.

[Anonymous]

I have a 12 lb. Combi, it has a strap so you can sling it over your shoulder which makes it much easier when you have a walking kid and/or going up steps. We have used it extensively for traveling, the best stroller purchase I have made especially since I got it second hand.

Wish I could help with the apartment search but never been to Tokyo, can I go?

[Anonymous]

Our first trip to Tokyo with DC was when he was 18 months old.
Not much advice, because we always go to the same hotel in Ikebukuro, and insisted that first time on flying with our enormous Stokke stroller (not the best idea!).

For the trip, thank goodness there are 2 aisles - while regular passengers use one of them, your child can toddle down the other one
Since our DC did not really appreciate the TV, we kept him occupied with a bag full of little toys that we brought out one by one.. finger puppets, a small wire circuit with beads, soft books, a little wooden plane for the occasion, etc. He also loved exploring our three seats and making friends with the neighbors, all of whom were very accommodating. If traveling 2 adults to 1 child, take turns resting!

Prepare a bottle or something for your child to eat during takeoff and landing, as this usually hurts little ears.

We fly ANA or JAL when going to Japan, and love the helpful attendants, overall level of service and kid-friendly touches: JAL has a keepsake bag with bonnet, bib, baby spoon shaped like a plane and special baby food. ANA has more legroom.

[Anonymous]

Avoid University of Tokyo (TO Dai) Hospital's ER at all cost. What a zoo, especially during the holidays when it is run by 23 year old residents. Apparently, you go to med school right out of high school in Japan. So, the residents look (literally) like thy are 19 or 20 years old. Totally incompetent. Be warned.

[Anonymous]

Thanks for the feedback.

I've gotten a Kidco Peapod as our travel bed and I'm picking up an 11lb Combi stroller for this trip. I'm probably going to pick up a travel MagnaDoodle, stickers or colorful bandaids, and one or two other soft and quiet things to keep her occupied. We stopped using the bottle a long time ago, but still breastfeed at bedtime so hopefully that will be good enough for take off and landing. We'll also have some beef sticks since gnawing on those seemed to work on our last trip.

I insisted we fly ANA since I want a direct flight, their service is good, and I think we can get a free cell phone for use while in Tokyo.

For anyone interested in going, I'd highly recommend going during Golden Week (end of April - early May). The whole country is on holiday then so they leave the country and there are a bunch of half empty planes heading back to Japan. My husband and I got r/t tickets for <$700 on United from IAD during Golden Week. Plus the weather is nice then.

Now I just need to figure out where we want to stay...

[Anonymous]

Washing cloth diapers there might not be as feasible as you think. Washing machines are very small, dryers take forever to dry anything. Hanging to dry might be your only option for cloth diapers.

Good luck!