Originally a small fishing village named Edo, Tokyo was the Emperor Ota Dokan's choice for the Edo Castle . By the 1600s Edo became the centre of shogun Tokugawa leyasu's nationwide military government. By the 1800s Edo had become the nation's political and cultural center. The city of Tokyo was then established but abolished as a municipality around 1943 and merged with the Metropolitan Prefecture of Tokyo. Tokyo is designed around major train stations in a high-density fashion with their own right-of-way. By 1970 Tokyo 's subway and commuter rail networks became one of the busiest in the world. In the 1980s Japan experienced a real estate boom that crashed in the early 1990s. Many companies, banks and individuals met with significantly reduced real estate properties and Japan is still recovering from this economic crisis.

Tokyo boasts several outlying islands extending as far as 1,850 m from central Tokyo . The Izu Islands are a group of volcanic islands and form part of the Fuji-Hakone-Izu National Park . Tokyo lies in a sub-tropic humid climate zone with hot humid summers and mild winters. There is sporadic snowfall and it occurs almost every year during the winter season. Tokyo is an urban heat island, meaning its metropolis is considerably warmer than surrounding rural areas. Tokyo experiences typhoons every year although these are seldom very strong. Tokyo has enacted an emissions cap system in order to cut down on greenhouse gases.

Some wonderful tourist attractions include Tokyo 's many impressive museums. Tokyo National Museum is Tokyo 's largest museum. It specializes exclusively in Japanese art and sculpture. The National Museum of Western Art boasts collections of modern Japanese art and foreign films. There are many theatres for the performing arts such as noh and kabuki. Noh is a major form of classic Japanese musical theatre while kabuki is a form of traditional Japanese theatre. It is known for the elaborate theatrical make-up of its performers. Symphony orchestras and other musical organizations perform Western and traditional music. Ueno Park boasts the National Museum of Science and a public zoo. The Japanese Sumo Association is located in Tokyo and features three official annual sumo tournaments in January, May and September. Tokyo often hosts sports tournaments in tennis, soccer, judo and swim meets.

Many festivals occur in Tokyo throughout the year. Major events include the Sanno at Hie Shrine and the biennial Kanda festivals. The Kanda features a parade with gorgeously decorated floats and thousands of people in attendance. Tokyo cuisine is internationally acclaimed. Typical meals are punctuated by raw fish, sushi and vinegared rice. This cosmopolitan and stunning city is well worth the visit and offers entertainment and cultural attractions to suit virtually every tourist.