I saw this thread a while back and meant to post a bunch of stuff but have been busy. Don't have too much time but some initial thoughts after 4 trips in last several years:
- Yes, get the portable wifi. Send it to the hotel, not airport. Much easier and if there are any delays, it'll be easier to deal with there than wasting time at the airport.
- If you want to visit Ghibli Museum, get the tickets early. You can hit websites like Govoyagin as well but you'll pay a premium for the convenience. They also have other experiences that might be of interest.
- Hit the robot restaurant. Pricey and tourist trap but you'll never see anything like it in Canada.
- Cash is indeed great for food and smaller things. It'll just make easier than credit frankly unless you're buying bigger items (electronics) at department stores.
- Whiskey: We helped grab a Hibiki 21 and a Suntory 25 for a friend a few years back. Took a bit of searching but we ended up finding in the basement of a Yodobashi Camera department store.
- Hotel, have you picked an area to search yet? We've always stayed in Ikebukuro. It's a decent central rail hub and along the circle main line. Also great connections to food, close to the crazy Seibu and Tobu food areas. Just go there as the end of the day to pick out whatever food you want or do restaurants. Go near the end of the evening when the clear out food for cheap too.
- Akihabara is a must. Hell, I'd spend my entire trip there if I could but then again, I'm a nerd/geek.
You'll find arcades as well, I loved trying these full sized pod things:
- They took down this Gundam from Odiba island but apparently a different one will be up shortly? Decent mall as well behind it.
- Luggage weight, buy a small portable scale thing from any of those ####ty mall places. Make sure you are sub 50lbs like a pro.
- Don't tip, don't leave cash on the table, pay directly.
- Don't bother with taxis, public transit is good unlike in Calgary. Suica/Pasmo card is a must.
- Don't hesitate to buy food from convenience stores, they are not like their counterparts in North America. Hell you can buy fresh soup/broth at them.
- Eat. Eat. And eat some more. Food is great and tasty. You won't gain too much weight with all the walking that you'll do. You'll marvel at how tiny everybody is and then be horrified at how fat everybody is in Calgary when you return.
- Oh and Tsukiji Fish Market. If you haul ass up early you can line up to see the Tuna auction. Or just go later and wander the area to eat the freshest and yummiest seafood ever.
Lots more thoughts I am sure later but here's my initial dump of thoughts in a short time.