Getting Around the City : General Info, Tokyo

The Narita express is a great way to get from Tokyo station to Narita airport. It costs about 2700 yen and departures are frequent.

One of the advantages of the Narita express is that some services go to destinations such as Yokohama, Shinjuku, Ikebukuro, Shibuya, Shinagawa and Omiya amongst others.

Please do not take any of the train lines during their peak hours. The Tokyoites are used to cramming into crowded trains and squeezing out when they reach their destination but this could prove to be a traumatic experience for foreigners.
Packed like sardines is an understatement to describe the state of train commuters during the rush hours!
Plan your itinerary such that you avoid the morning and evening rush hours.

On New Years Eve, the subway and most train stations are open 24 hours. Although most people are probably at home, you can use this opportunity to go partying all night without worrying about getting a taxi.

For all the traveller like me, please make sure you get the correct train to your destination. Those JR Tokyo route map are available almost in every JR station. Refer to the sign board on the wall before to get up the train. Once you are inside the coach, basically all the route map are in Japanese. In order for you to know where is the next stop, you have to either listen carefully to the speakers or look outside to the next station sign board. Else you have to regconize the Japanese character.

The rail system in Tokyo is extensive and fairly easy to master though the scale may be overwhelming at first. The system consists of JR (Japan Rail), subways and private railways. However they are all integrated and fairly easy to navigate. When in doubt, buy the lowest fare and pay the difference at the other end. Note also that train (& buses too) stop operating around midnight and start again around 4:30am. These sites might help:
http://www.tokyometro.go.jp/ http://www.jreast.co.jp/e/
Note that JR has an english information line where you can get fare and schedule information. I believe they provide information about non-JR rail as well.
Also, look into getting a JR Rail Pass which is only available to tourists. It is generally worthwhile if you intend to take at least one long-distance trip during your stay. (Note: The Rail Pass voucher must be purchased outside of Japan, in advance of your trip.)

Always carry two maps. One in your language (probably English) and one in JAPANESE. Find your destination on your map, check the letter and number (For example: E01) and point to it on the Japanese map. Japanese people tend to get shell shock when someone speaks English to them. Having a Japanese map can help them relax. If they speak great English, there is no need to show the Japanese map.

To get around Tokyo efficiently, subsurface transportation is the only way. Traffic can be unpredictable and keep you stalled for hours, while the trains always run on time. They are numerous and between the JR lines and the metro, go pretty much everywhere in the greater Tokyo area that you would want to visit. However, to increase your efficiency, I recommend getting a Suica or Pasmo card, which will save you the inconvenience of buying tickets. You can buy one at any JR ticket window and you put a few thousand yen on the card and you get automatic entry until you exhaust the money. Updating the money on your card is easy. You'llnever regret a Suica card.

Don't worry if you are lost or make a mistake re tickets fares, etc. There is always help available as mentioned. That is even when you are using a ticket machine (for buying tickets or fare adjustment).
Once we thought we made a mistake getting off in an unfamiliar station and had to go and make fare adjustments. So we went to the machine (our tickets were not accepted in the exit gates machines so we couldn't get out of the station) for fare adjustment but to our dismay, the machine just "swallowed" it.

A more surprising thing happened, as we were frantically pressing cancel, a human head suddenly popped out of the little window near the machine! He told us no need to pay and pointed to the far end of the exit gates where another train staffer was manning them so he could let us out!

Another problem averted!

So when in Tokyo, no worries, there is always someone to help!