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But it has proven to be a life-saver for me. Tokyo has added at least 3 new subway lines since 1998, and subways now extend to train lines. This map book is the key.You still have to do the work - it's not a magic book. I got my first copy of this map book in 1998 when I moved to Japan for a 2-year assignment. If you are exploring past the doors of the 5-star hotels, and are going by foot instead of by tourist coach, by all means, make this investment.Everytime I go to Tokyo, I make sure I pack THIS book. While to Westerners the address system is mystifying, it's really quite logical - area of the city, neighborhood, block within the neighborhood, building within the block. Look.even TAXI drivers can't find addresses in Tokyo (though GPS is helping them now). I'll add, since the building numbers were often assigned in the order in which the houses were built, that can be a bit confusing at times - but this book will help you.In addition, though Tokyo is light years ahead of other Japanese cities in the use of Roman Characters (romaji), it was very helpful to me to be able to "match the pictures" - when Kanji characters were all that were available.I've had three editions since my first one.
Wonderful map of tokyo, easy to use and orient themselves in the curious distribution of the streets.
My suggestion is get this along with Time Out Tokyo and you'll be a Tokyo pro in no time. This book totally saved my life here. My only complaint is that it's a little too small to specify building numbers on blocks - but if you want something that's easy to carry and will get you around Tokyo, this book is PERFECT.
Otherwise, even some reviewers have reported that maps are not updated, I did not have problem with this. Sometimes, the maps show importants places as shops and buildings that are very useful as reference in your walking tour. To conclude, this book will be very useful for you if you plan to have a long stay in the city, for a short stay is optional. The size of the book is not the best to be carrying with, but definitively If you plan to spend many days exploring the city, this book is a must. Probably, you can get some maps in the hotels or tourism's offices, but believe me these are not enough detailed to rely on them or to find an important spot after a long walk.
Also the central maps only cover central Tokyo. I just wish all the central maps would be the same scale. Would be nice to have the cover extended a couple of km in each direction. Very clear maps of Tokyo. As far as I know the only bi-lingual map available for purchase outside Japan.
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