Yokohama

Basic Information

Yokohama City lies about 30km south of Tokyo in the Kanagawa Prefecture. It is the second largest city in Japan after Tokyo. Yokohama is a fairly important city to both Japan and Tokyo. What was once a small village became one of the first ports to be opened to the West. In 1853 Matthew Perry came and demanded Japan to open it’s ports to the west. In 1858 a port located a little south of Yokohama was opened to the west. Yokohama was one of the first places to be influenced by the west because of its trade with the west. Since the opening of its ports Yokohama has become a sprawling city with an international flavor because of all the trading ports. It offers many interesting and different mixes of other cultures with Japanese culture and is among one of the favorite spots even for the Japanese. Not only is it close to Tokyo, but it is also connected by a vast railway system with express trains making the trip doable in about 30 min.

Access:
There are many railways connecting different parts of Tokyo to Yokohama. Here I will list trains running between Shinjuku Station-Yokohama Station, Tokyo Station-Yokohama Station, Shinagawa Station – Yokohama Station, and Shibuya Station – Yokohama Station.

Shinjuku Station –Yokohama Station
JR Shonan-Shinjuku Line

Tokyo Station- Yokohama Station
Keihin Tohoku Line
JR Yokosuka Line

Shinagawa Station – Yokohama Station
JR Tokaido Main Line
JR Yokosuka Line
Keihin Tohoku Line
Keihin Kyuko Main Line

Shibuya Station – Yokohama Station
Tokyu Toyoko Line (this is the cheapest route)

Once you get to Yokohama Station you can switch Yokohama Lines that take you around the Yokohama area. Minatomirai Line will take you to a couple of the popular sightseeing areas.