Oh, I am an envious! I only got to spend a few days there last time. I'd think strongly about Minshuku, if your kids are mature and flexible enough to deal with non-Western accommodations. They are like a bed-and-breakfast; usually in smaller places, sometimes people's homes, generally a six-tatami-mat room and bathroom down the hall, futon and yukata provided. Very good bargain...around the Yamanote Loop comes down to 4,000 yen...and you get a touch of traditional living (including Japanese style bath if you want it; they have showers as well, though). Best place to find one, though, is to stop by the tourism offices when you get into town and they'll call around for a reservation and basically clear the route for you. A few of them have an online-presence, tho.. this is a tourist-oriented but nicely located one; http://www.kimi-ryokan.jp/index.html There's a nation-wide network of them, too, sort of like a yellow pages and better business combined. (The travel plan I inherited from my mom, is, reserve your first night in a decent hotel close to the airport. AFTER you have a good night's sleep and recover from the flight, you go searching in town for something cheaper -- and closer to where you want to be.) If you are at all gadget-happy stop by the Akihabara (step right out of Akihabara Station on the Yamanote Line and you are in the middle of it.) Giant departos for electronics and software, but better yet, millions of speciality shops and a giant arcade that's bargain electronics and flea mart and swap shop and so forth. And you can haggle there, too! Geek heaven. Not a substitute for Tokyo Disneland, but there's a couple of massive arcades around town. One in O-daiba -- you can take the Yurikamome monorail out from around the Ginza to get there. I don't know the details but I'll but Shinjuku's got a few as well. Me, if I was an artist and in Japan I wouldn't be thinking about software or computers. I'd be out drinking in the scenery. Shinjuku for your glass-brick fix. Imperial Palace for giant gardens. Not as many shrines or temples in town (well, okay...not compared with, say, Kyoto), but still plenty to see. Gardens a'plenty. And don't forget to head into old Edo, stroll in one of the edomachi neighborhoods there. They are mostly reconstructed and a bit touristy now (as much Japanese tourists as foreign tourists), but still a kick to be in an old-style neighborhood that could come out of a samurai film. Bring lots of cameras. I'd swear, even a dumpster in Japan would position itself "just so" to be an amazing composition. It's like the entire land is conscious of contrast and balance and rhythm and just sets up these beautiful shots all the time. If you are a texture artist you'll just cry; fabulously intricate Buddhist art, wonderfully weathered paint and moss-grown tile, incredibly rich natural woods....the list goes on and on. (Forgot to add -- if at all possible schedule yourself a day trip out of town. Amazing how rural much of Japan appears, once you get out of the big city. Rustic old-style buildings with thatched roofs, tiny terraced rice paddies, little dirt country roads...and of course the natural scenery is, as usual, spectacular.) I could talk endlessly on this. I imagine you've done some research already. I'd say stay away from the big tourist destinations if possible. Many of them are worth it but Japan can really do a big crowd well. And the merchandizing around some of these places can get a bit annoying (as can the western tourists, who do tend to be larger, louder, and a lot less conscious of the people around them). Oh...if you mean to spend a lot of time in people's houses, or visiting temples (definitely worth a visit, especially one that's not so crowded), bring shoes that come off and come on easily!