Activities & Where to Eat in Tokyo

This is a continuation of our Bali & Tokyo trip. You can find the full trip itinerary here. 

Sushi Zanmai

My brother-in-law recommended we try this place while in Tokyo. Sushi Zanmai is actually a "chain", but we were surprised how good this place was. We went to the one near Tsujiki Fish Market and ordered the Omakase and several a la carte items.

The fish tasted so fresh! I mean the restaurant was literally steps away from the fish market. :) The outstanding item was for sure the toro (fatty tuna). There was also a very interesting item, the "grass" sushi...haha

Omakase 

The toro melted in my mouth and did not taste like anything we had ever tasted before!
The restaurant was also quite family friendly as it's not super cramped and there's actually table seating instead of just bar seating.  There were multiple floors though, and we got seated on the 3rd floor.  So lots of steps.

We really enjoyed our meal there. We know this probably may have not be the "best" out there, but we thought it was excellent for us. Given that we were traveling with a toddler, we couldn't always seek out the best places and instead we usually sacrificed for what's more convenient.

Yakiniku Jumbo Shirokane

This was another recommendation from my brother-in-law. This place was a little bit out of the way from our hotel, but the trip was definitely worth it.



Make sure to have reservations as this place gets very full! I made reservations through our hotel concierge at the Conrad.

We ordered a couple types of meat as well as the signature Nohara yaki (must get this!). Everything was AMAZING, like melt in your mouth amazing! We could see the marbling in the cuts and knew it would taste so delicious.

Nohara yaki

Nohara yaki - cooked

The signature Nohara yaki cut was a bit expensive, as it's sold per slice -- but it was definitely excellent. We dipped it in raw egg, which probably wasn't the best idea as we both had a bit of a stomach ache the next day. Next time we'll skip the raw egg dipping sauce. :)

Pattiserie Sadaharu Aoki



I really wanted to try this place so we visited the one in Midtown.



We tried the omakase dessert, which was pretty good (but not outstanding).

I also got a couple of macaroons to try. They had some pretty unique flavors like green tea and sesame macaroons.



What was outstanding was the matcha croissant. It was probably my favorite, very unique - combining the best of Japanese and French flavors!



We also got the Green tea eclair - which I thought was ok (not as good as the matcha croissant). Price was a bit on the higher end, but we're glad we were able to try this place.

Laduree

I squealed when I saw this store in Ginza. I had heard so much about this place, so to finally see a real store in person was a treat. We grabbed a couple macaroons to go and thought they were really good.

Haagen Dazs Crispy Sandwich Ice Cream

Haagen Dazs is one of my favorite ice cream brands, and whenever I'm in Asia, I always make sure to get the crispy sandwich since they don't have this available in the US!

This is basically ice cream in between 2 thin wafers. I don't know how they keep the wafer so crispy in the freezer!

Haagen Dazs crispy sandwich on the left

Tokyo Skytree Food court

We were not able to make it up to the top of the Tokyo Skytree, but we did have lunch at the food court. :)

I was so happy that there was an Ippudo Express (not quite the same as Ippudo, but I'll take it), as well as the famous Gindaco Takoyaki. The food court was really, really crowded, but we managed to find seats and really enjoyed the food. We also got katsu curry which was yummy as well.

Ippudo Express Ramen

I have had lots of takoyaki before, and I can say that Gindaco is definitely on the top of my list. It's crunchy on the outside and soft on the inside.

Gindaco Takoyaki

Activities:

Tokyo Skytree

Tokyo Skytree is one of Tokyo's newest attractions, where you can go up to the observation deck to see the city from up high.

We didn't reserve a place in advance and the line was too long when we came, so I highly recommend booking in advance.

Asakusa

Since we were not able to make it to the Skytree, we went to the Asakusa area, which is like Japan's old town. There's a temple in the middle and lots of shops that sells souvenirs all along the walkways. It was nice to stroll around, although it was very cold since it was January!

Odaiba

We wanted to visit a Hello Kitty store so our hotel concierge recommended going to Odaiba. It's actually a very "interesting" shopping center, and if I had known what it was like, I probably would have chosen to go somewhere else. The good thing from this place was we got to try green tea/vanilla ice cream swirl, as well as chocolate drizzled potato chips.

Hello Kitty Swirl

Calbee potato chips & chocolate

Ginza

Since our hotel was located near Ginza, we took a stroll one night to see the shopping stores and find something to eat. We could definitely tell that it's a more upscale area. Unfortunately since it was really cold, we only went for a short walk before deciding to head back to our hotel. :)

Summary

There were several other areas that I wished we could have visited, like Omotesando, Roppongi Hills, Shibuya, and Shinjuku to name a few. To be completely honest, work had been very busy the last few months and I didn't really had to time to sit down and prioritize what to do during our layover in Tokyo, so I felt like the places we visited during this trip was a bit unorganized. Thankfully some of my Japanese coworkers actually took us out to the Skytree and Asakusa, otherwise we may have visited even more random places...haha.

We LOVED Japan, and three nights in Tokyo was definitely not enough. It did give us a good preview, and we definitely want to go back and spend more time in Tokyo and other cities in Japan. Food was amazing, even though this time we weren't really able to go to all the places we wanted. We realized now when traveling with a baby/toddler, we just have to go with the flow and convenience over trying to hit all the must hit spots. :) 

Conrad Tokyo

This is a continuation of our Bali & Tokyo trip. You can find the full trip itinerary here. 

On our way back from Bali, we wanted to stop in Japan since I have never been. We decided on 3 nights, since by that time we would have been gone for about 3 weeks, and couldn't take too much more time off from work.

We looked into a couple different hotel options and ended up booking the Conrad Tokyo. We were very happy with our choice. We reserved the Conrad using two free nights from my CitiCard Hilton Reserve (and which also gave me automatic Gold status), and then I booked the last night via Expedia. The hotel was located just a few blocks away from Ginza, which definitely felt like an upscale area, but the immediate surrounding area felt very "business-y".

Ginza

When our taxi pulled in to the entryway, there were Japanese doormen wearing long coats and white gloves to open the car door! It turned out to be just the "welcoming" area, because then we had to take the elevator to the 28th floor, where the actual lobby area was. My understanding was that the rest of the floors were actually used for office space.

Lobby

The lobby was beautiful as it had huge glass walls to the ceiling with a great view of the Bay.

Bar Area with huge floor to ceiling glass

We then took another separate elevator to go to our room. This could be annoying sometimes as we would basically had to change elevators every time we wanted to go out and when we returned. Not a big deal, but definitely interesting and could be a hassle at times.

The room was quite spacious for Japan, with a beautiful bath tub, separate shower area, and double sinks.

King Bed

Glass window between bathroom & bedroom

Double sink, shower area

Service at this hotel was really, really good. Everyone at the front desk & concierge were very friendly. Usually after we got back from an outing, they would always ask how the day went and said hi to our daughter. Another day we came back to the hotel, and the cleaning service lady noticed that we had a daughter. She then rang our doorbell soon after to leave 2 small Conrad teddy bears for M, which was really sweet of her.

Due to my Hilton Gold status, we were also entitled to free breakfast at the cafe which we took full advantage of.

The breakfast buffet spread was good, and we could also order from the menu.

Overall we really enjoyed the hotel. Room was spacious and clean, and everything was very well maintained. One thing though, the hotel did feel a little stuffy/dry, maybe because it was the winter season and the heater was always on? Another negative about this hotel was that there's not really much in the immediate surrounding area. It's not a far walk to Ginza but the hotel by itself did feel a little isolated.

Activities & Where to Eat in Bali

This is a continuation of our Bali & Tokyo trip. You can find the full trip itinerary here. 

Bali Safari & Marine Park

Since we traveled to Bali as a family with 2 toddlers, we wanted to do a fun kid-friendly activity. I had heard about the Bali Safari & Marine Park, and we decided this would be a good option.

My mom rented a van so that all of us could fit in one vehicle. The drive to Bali Safari & Marine Park took about one hour.

Bali Safari Lobby

I was pleasantly surprised with the park. The first half was walkable and I loved that overall it's quite shaded. They also styled the park very Balinese, but you can tell that this was a professionally managed park.

M especially loved the bird section near the lobby.

There's also various eating options, ranging from very cheap stall food to actual sit down restaurants. Dan tried Nasi Djinggo (traditional Balinese rice) for the first time!

Eating Nasi Djinggo

Like I said, the first half of the park was walkable, which then directed us to the line to take the safari ride. The safari ride was air conditioned (a huge plus since it's so hot & humid in Bali!) and was enjoyable. We did have to wait in line for around 40 minutes though!

Our ride!

The ride was enjoyable and we got to see lots of animals!

Lion at Bali Safari Marine Park

Overall it was a wonderful day and I would highly recommend it if you have young children!

Bumbu Bali

Bumbu Bali is probably the quintessential Balinese tourist experience. The place is clean, has Balinese feel, and serves traditional food. Make sure to get a reservation here, as we had tried to get in for several days without reservations and were unable to.



My main gripe with this place is that since the setting is outdoors, there's lots of mosquitoes, so be prepared to wear long pants and/or use lots of bug repellent.

Food is wonderful. We've usually ordered several Rijsttafel (Rice Table set menu) to share. It's a good way to try different food for everyone at the table. Price is a bit more expensive than a typical Balinese restaurant, but it is a good quality.

The Rijsttafel includes various curries, satays, cooked veggies, etc. Yum!

The Rijsstafel also came with a selection of yummy Indonesian dessert!

Potato Head Bali

Potato Head is a famous bar by the sea that is always full of locals and westerners. Make sure to get reservation in ahead as well as this place is always packed! They have a section for "western food" and another section for "local food".

Finn's Beach Club

My sister told me about this Beach Club, and I made the mistake of trying to go without reservation. By the time we get to this place, they were fully booked. One thing I learned from this Bali trip during the high season is to always make reservations in advance!

So we didn't end up going to the beach club, but I did spend time at the spa at the hotel.

Amanusa

Our hotel was across the street from Amanusa, and we were intrigued to see what the hotel is like since it's very upscale ($1000/night) and had heard wonderful things about it.

I booked lunch at the restaurant for our family. The resort and the restaurant was located up on a hill. The resort seemed very quiet and had a strong Balinese influence. Unlike our resort at the Mulia, we barely saw other resort guests at this place. I think they only have around 80 rooms or something like that. The view from the restaurant was amazing! I'll let the picture do all the talking.





Food was pretty good (not outstanding, but definitely good). Price was typical hotel price.
It was a good lunch and definitely a good way for all of us to take a peek of how the ultra rich live. :)

Nasi Campur Bali

One thing for sure that was obvious was the service here was much better than at the Mulia.

The Rock Bar

If you are going to Bali, you must go to the Rock Bar at the Ayana. Unfortunately, when we came, the line was too long and we didn't want to wait hours to get seated. So we ended up reclining at the lounge area. If you are guest at the hotel, you have priority to get in. The Ayana is definitely a beautiful resort worth checking!

Ah Yat at the Ayana

This place serves really good, upscale, Chinese cuisine at the Ayana resort. The place was quite empty when we went. I'm typically not a big fan of Chinese food, but this place was actually good. :)

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Here are more list of restaurants that people have recommended me, but unfortunately we didn't get a chance to try all....but maybe you can! :)

• Metis
• Kudeta: Really nice to catch sunset on the beach.
• Nuri’s ribs: Famous ribs, they have 2 locations. One in Ubud and another one in Seminyak.
• Bebek Bengil or Bebek Tepi Sawah: We love either one! Really good, in Ubud area. They both now have branches in Jakarta too
• Nasi babi bu Oka: I thought it was overated but this place is very popular.
• Mozaic or Mozaic Beach Club: Mozaic is the fine dining restaurant in Ubud, and Mozaic Beach Club is the beach side restaurant in Seminyak
• Brunch at Soleil: The Sunday champagne brunch is very popular and very good
• Merah Putih: Upscale Indonesian restaurant in Seminyak
• Biku: Casual, good food in Seminyak
• Menega: This place is famous for seafood/beach dining
• La Lucciola: Really good Italian food in Seminyak

W Seminyak Bali

This is a continuation of our Bali & Tokyo trip. You can find the full trip itinerary here. 

For our last 2 nights in Bali, I originally booked a private villa for my family via Airbnb. We checked in to the villa and were not happy with the condition of the villa. So we decided to find another accommodation last minute. Thankfully, the W in Seminyak had availability for 4 rooms. We made reservations online and checked in to the resort after lunch.

Hotel Lobby

This was actually my very first time staying at a W property. We all noticed a very different vibe from our stay at the Mulia. Where the Mulia's style was more classic, elegant and luxurious, the W was very hip and modern and had a boutique feel to it. The size of the W was a lot smaller compared to the Mulia.



The lobby was open air and had views of the pool and the ocean. During our check-in, we were introduced to the daily drink refreshment free of charge at the lobby. For our first day, it was mint iced tea. For our second day, it was mango/pineapple juice.

Room

The room was good sized, with the first half being the bathroom, and the second part the actual bedroom. Bottled water and milk were free of charged at the minibar (which was huge since we were traveling with a toddler). They also had movies available to borrow for free.



The bathroom had dual sinks, a tub and a big shower area. I actually noticed some minor wear and tear in the bathroom area, specifically near the shower. I'm not sure if it's the material that they used, or if the maintenance was not up to par, but something about the bathroom didn't look terribly clean.

There's a sectional that actually turns into a bed. My sister shared a room with my parents, and they converted the sectional into an extra bed.

We booked a garden view room, so our room overlooked the back of the property. There's a good size balcony area with a table & lounge chair.

Our rooms at this hotel were all right next to each other, so it made coordinating meals and excursions a whole lot easier compared to the Mulia where our rooms were all quite far from each other.

Breakfast

Breakfast was included in the rate and we all liked the W breakfast more than the Mulia. I think because the W was a much smaller resort, they were able to offer a higher quality breakfast. The decor was very modern and interesting. You can choose to sit inside or outside.



Upon entering the restaurant for breakfast, we were given an option to select our own mug from a selection of vintage mugs, which I thought added a nice touch.



There were different stations such as dim sum/porridge, pastries, desserts (with chocolate fountain!), egg station, and even their own barrista station! We could also order from the a la carte menu if we didn't want the buffet, and they had a huge menu selection! Overall I think this breakfast was probably one of the better ones we have ever had. We highly recommend it.

Cheese & Cold Cut Station

Cereal/Milk Station

I loved their pastries display which were in between books as if the pastries were part of the display. Can you see the hanging donuts below?

I ordered an ice latte, and it was just perfect!

Fitness & Spa

We checked out the fitness center and spa. I saw a special which was 100 minute spa treatment (massage, wrap) for around $100 USD, which was a pretty good deal. However, our schedule was so packed we didn't get a chance to try the spa.

Buggy Service

Since the resort was quite a long walk from the main road, the hotel offered complimentary buggy service to take us to the main street. My mom and sister used this service quite a few times to go shopping. :)

The location of this hotel was definitely more convenient for shopping and just being in the hustle & bustle of Seminyak.

Lounge Area

Just next to the lobby, there's lots of seating/lounge area where you can order drinks & snacks, and enjoy the view of the pool and the Ocean. Dan & I spent a few hours lounging on one of these sofas.

Pool & Beach Area

The pool was tiered and had a beautiful curved design, overlooking the ocean. 

The pool area was not that big (especially compared to the Mulia), but it never felt crowded.

The ocean waves in Seminyak were much stronger compared to Nusa Dua. I do not think the beach in Seminyak was actually safe for swimming. During our time in December, the waves were very strong and people were not allowed to swim. Additionally, when we walked by the beach in the morning, there were tons of debris and trash on the shores and local people cleaning them up. I talked with the security guy to ask why there's so much trash on the shores and he said that from January-March (rainy season in Bali), there's lots of tree branches/debris that got swept away to this part of the shore.

So in general, I would recommend staying away from the main beach and just spend your time "inside" the hotel resort boundaries. :)

General Observations

• Service generally was really good. The workers were very friendly and helpful. 
• At night, the hotel/lounge area looked like a Vegas nightclub :) 
• Majority of the clientele appeared to be from Europe or the US
• I noticed that they tried to use unique short words to describe different areas. Such as "Wet" for the pool and "Away"for the spa. Sometimes it was confusing because it wasn't super clear what things meant. However, I appreciated the concept of it.
• Although the hotel was not too old, I could see some wear & tear, especially in the bathroom. 
• The location was great if you enjoy being in the middle of the hottest restaurants/clubs/shopping. 
• In summary, we really enjoyed our stay at the hotel and we were really glad that we were able to get a last minute reservation.