Shopping In Tokyo

Distance between Sunshine City Prince Hotel & main Toshima-ku Post Office, which is open 24/7? Less than a block!

• be mindful of your suitcase limits (space & weight)
• buy basic cart from Tokyu Hands or Seiyu to lug boxes to post office (Ikebukuro open 24/7 & very close, Akihabara regular hours & a few blocks away)



This is where the cart is essential

• pack what you can (watch weight restrictions)
• ship everything else SURFACE/SEA MAIL (1 month)
• post office for shipping slips & boxes



One of several runs to the post office

• Small (23 x 18 x 14): Good for gifts and smaller items.
• Medium (31 x 25 x 17): Useful for doujinshi and art books. Approximate cost to send to Canada C$50.
• Large (40 x 32 x 22): Fits five stacks of manga, about 15 books high for each stack. No room to spare. Approximate cost to send to Canada C$85.

These boxes were made for manga… really…

Depending on how much you purchased, you will likely ship your purchases home.  Most airlines have tighter weight restrictions on luggage and their rates can be killer — look into this and perhaps determine which is cheaper if you still wish to try and bring everything home with you.

Boxes can be purchased at the local post office.  Also pick up a number of shipping slips — make sure you obtain the SEA MAIL/SURFACE shipping slips (unless you want to spring for faster shipping but those rates are pricey).

While I have filled the Large box (as cited above) with doujinshi, the post staff in Japan and your home town will be cursing your name — they are HEAVY.

Reinforce the boxes with tape on all edges just to be safe.  While the boxes are fairly sturdy, damage can happen; so mitigate the effects by applying copious tape to any potential weak points.