🇯🇵Yokohama
Tokyo's polished port-city twin: a futuristic bayfront skyline, Japan's largest Chinatown, and just enough breathing room to feel like its own destination, not a suburb.
Mid-range figures, per person · HND is the nearest major airport
Per person, no flights — those are just below. The mid-range figure is researched; budget and comfort scale it, so treat the two as rough. The trip calculator and hotels below break the day down properly.
Fares are into Tokyo or Osaka. Reaching the other cities is a rail or domestic-flight leg, usually $30–120. Ranges are typical fares booked 1–3 months out, checked mid-2026 — school-holiday peaks run higher, and patient shoppers beat the bottom end.
Prices checked · how we work these out
Is Yokohama expensive to visit?
Somewhat: a mid-range day in Yokohama costs $85–145 per person, and its $115 midpoint is 28% above the $90 median across all 127 cities here. Within Japan it runs 16% above the $99 average of our 10 Japan guides. That makes it pricier than 82 of the 127 cities, with a cheap meal at $5–8 and a mid-range hotel at $95–190 a night.
How much does a trip to Yokohama cost?
| Trip length | Budget | Mid-range | Comfort |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3 days | $150–255 | $255–435 | $450–780 |
| 5 days | $250–425 | $425–725 | $750–1,300 |
| 7 days | $350–595 | $595–1,015 | $1,050–1,820 |
| 14 days | $700–1,190 | $1,190–2,030 | $2,100–3,640 |
Per person and before flights, 3 days in Yokohama costs $255–435 mid-range, five days $425–725, a week $595–1,015 and two weeks $1,190–2,030; a week costs about $350–595 on a budget and $1,050–1,820 travelling in comfort.
Per person in US dollars, flights not included. Each total is a daily range from the band above multiplied out: mid-range is the guide's researched figure and already includes a mid-range room; budget and comfort scale it by 0.6 and 1.8, so treat those two as rough. The trip calculator lets you set your own days and group size.
Entry & visa
Most Western passports (US, UK, EU, Canada, Australia) get 90 days visa-free as tourists, same as the rest of Japan.
Visa rules turn on your nationality and change often — always confirm the current requirement for your own passport with an official government source before you book.
Quick facts
Money & what things cost
Cards and IC cards (Suica/Pasmo, used seamlessly here as part of Greater Tokyo) cover nearly everything. Keep some cash for Chinatown's smaller stalls and street snacks. 7-Eleven and post-office ATMs reliably take foreign cards.
What locals earn
| Earnings | Amount | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Average monthly salary (Yokohama, gross) | ≈ ¥323,000 ($2,150) | close behind central Tokyo, as part of the same metro economy |
| Typical take-home pay | ≈ ¥255,000 ($1,700) | after tax and social insurance |
| Minimum wage (Kanagawa) | ≈ ¥1,162/hour ($7.75) | on par with Tokyo's |
Food & drink
| Item | Local price | ≈ USD |
|---|---|---|
| Yokohama-style shoyu ramen | ¥800–1,100 | $5.30–7.30 |
| Chinatown set meal (multi-dish) | ¥2,500–4,000 | $17–27 |
| Steamed buns / street snacks in Chinatown (each) | ¥300–600 | $2–4 |
| Mid-range dinner, per person | ¥2,200–4,200 | $15–28 |
| Coffee at a café | ¥400–600 | $2.70–4 |
| Draft beer at an izakaya | ¥500–700 | $3.30–4.70 |
Transport
| Item | Local price | ≈ USD |
|---|---|---|
| Minato Mirai / subway single ride | ¥190–330 | $1.30–2.20 |
| JR/Tokyu train from central Tokyo (~25–40 min) | ¥400–600 | $2.70–4 |
| Taxi flag fare | ¥500 | $3.30 |
| Airport limousine bus from Haneda (~30 min) | ¥600–700 | $4–4.70 |
| Narita → Yokohama via N'EX or bus (~90 min) | ¥4,000–4,700 | $27–31 |
| Cosmo Clock 21 Ferris wheel | ¥900 | $6 |
Where to sleep & what it costs
| Tier | Per night | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Hostel dorm | ¥3,200–5,000 ($21–33) | Fewer options than Tokyo; book ahead |
| Business hotel | ¥9,000–15,000 ($60–100) | Clustered near Yokohama Station |
| Mid-range hotel | ¥15,000–30,000 ($100–200) | Minato Mirai bay-view rooms are a highlight worth the small premium |
| Luxury | ¥40,000+ ($267+) | InterContinental and Royal Park hotels dominate the skyline |
Been recently? Check our prices
One tap per figure. Check-ins reset whenever this guide is re-priced, so they only ever vouch for the numbers you see here.
Trip cost calculator
$115 per person per day · 4 nights of lodging (Mid-range hotel)
A rough estimate, not a quote. The daily budget already includes a room, so one traveler pays exactly days × that budget; lodging is the room’s part of it, priced from the hotels below but never more than 45% of the trip. Extra travelers share the room and add only their own spending. Flights use the midpoint of the Getting there ranges above.
Getting around
- From Tokyo / the airports
- Yokohama functions almost like another Tokyo ward: JR and Tokyu trains from Shibuya or Tokyo Station take 25–40 minutes. From Haneda, it's roughly 30 minutes by limousine bus or train — often faster than reaching central Tokyo itself. From Narita, allow closer to 90 minutes.
- Public transit
- JR, the Minato Mirai Line, and the municipal subway cover the city well. Suica/Pasmo IC cards work exactly as they do in Tokyo — no separate card needed.
- Taxis & ride apps
- Same as Tokyo: immaculate, metered, honest, and pricier than transit. The GO app works here. No tipping.
- On foot
- Minato Mirai is compact and pedestrian-friendly, with elevated walkways linking the bay's attractions. Chinatown and the historic Yamate/Motomachi area are best explored on foot as well, though they sit a bit further out.
Map
Drag to look around, or open Google Maps ↗ · Apple Maps ↗
Neighborhoods to stay in
- Minato Mirai
- The bayfront skyline, Landmark Tower, the Ferris wheel — polished, scenic, and central to the main sights.
- Around Yokohama Station
- Best transit connections to Tokyo and beyond, with more competitive hotel pricing than the bayfront.
- Kannai / Chinatown
- Historic core with Japan's largest Chinatown on your doorstep, walkable to the harbor and Yamashita Park.
- Motomachi / Yamate
- Quieter, leafy, foreign-settlement-era streets — a nice contrast if you want a slower half-day away from the skyline.
Things to do
Nightlife
Restaurants
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Live music
Tipping & etiquette
- Yokohama Chinatown blends Chinese and Japanese customs — queueing, quiet indoor voices, and no eating while walking still apply even amid the more boisterous street-food stalls.
- Stand on the left of escalators, matching Tokyo's convention.
- Carry your trash; public bins remain scarce, same as the rest of Japan.
- The city takes its port and foreign-settlement history seriously — the Yamate district's Western-style houses are preserved heritage sites, not just photo backdrops.
How to spend a trip to Yokohama
The sights here are strung along the bay and Minato Mirai's elevated walkways link most of them; Chinatown and the Yamate slopes sit a little further out, which is the only real walking in the day.
One full day is exactly what this guide says Yokohama needs, and the bayfront makes it an easy one to do on foot.
- MorningMinato Mirai: the Landmark Tower, the waterfront, the Red Brick Warehouse.
- MiddayYamashita Park and the harbor front, then into Chinatown for lunch grazed from the street stalls rather than sat down for.
- AfternoonMotomachi and the Yamate slopes for the foreign-settlement houses, or Sankeien garden if you want the quieter version of the same half-day.
- EveningNoge for bar-hopping: six hundred small bars near Sakuragicho, and far fewer tourists than Tokyo's equivalent.
Three days is more than this guide gives Yokohama, so the extra days go wide rather than deep — central Tokyo is 25 minutes away and that changes what a day here can be.
- Day 1The one-day plan above: Minato Mirai, Yamashita Park, Chinatown, Noge at night.
- Day 2The slow version: Sankeien garden in the morning, Motomachi and Yamate in the afternoon, then Peking duck at Manchinro Honten or a set at Motion Blue in the Red Brick Warehouse.
- Day 3Tokyo, 25 to 40 minutes by JR or Tokyu, taken as a full day out and slept off back here.
Five days is well beyond what Yokohama itself holds — the guide's answer is one day. That makes it a good base rather than a bad destination, particularly if you are flying out of Haneda.
- Days 1–2The city, unhurried: the bayfront and Chinatown, then Sankeien, Motomachi and Yamate.
- Days 3–4Tokyo, which is close enough to commute into and far too big for one day. Sleeping here is quieter and usually cheaper than sleeping there.
- Day 5Minato Mirai lit up after dark with no last train to catch, and Haneda roughly 30 minutes away for the flight home.
Safety & common scams
Extremely safe, on par with Tokyo — walking the bayfront, Chinatown, or Yamashita Park at night is unremarkable. Minato Mirai in particular feels more spacious and less crowded than equivalent Tokyo districts.
Scams to know
- No significant tourist-targeted scam pattern is commonly reported — the usual light Chinatown restaurant touting (staff inviting you in) is harmless and easy to wave off.
Emergency numbers: 110 (police) · 119 (fire/ambulance) · Japan Visitor Hotline +81-50-3816-2787 — 24h, English
Phone & internet
Same setup as Tokyo: an eSIM bought before landing (Ubigi, Airalo — $5–10 for ~10GB) or a SIM from Haneda/Narita on arrival. Coverage is uniformly strong throughout the city.
First-timer FAQs
Is Yokohama a day trip from Tokyo, or worth staying overnight?
Both work — many visitors day-trip it in 25 minutes from Shibuya, but staying a night lets you see Minato Mirai's skyline lit up after dark without a late train back, and pairs well with Haneda arrivals/departures.
How is Yokohama different from central Tokyo?
More waterfront space, wider streets, a genuine international-port history (it was one of the first ports opened to foreign trade in the 1850s), and noticeably fewer crowds at equivalent attractions.
Is Yokohama Chinatown worth it if I've been to Chinatowns elsewhere?
Yes — it's the largest in Japan and has its own character shaped by over 150 years of continuous Chinese community history, distinct from a typical Japanese take on Chinese food.
How many days do I need?
One full day covers Minato Mirai, Chinatown, and Yamashita Park comfortably. It works well both as a Tokyo day trip and as a one-night base near Haneda before an early flight.
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