The best way to IKEA from Tokyo
I discovered a new way to IKEA yesterday; the best way to get to an IKEA from Tokyo. In the past I preferred the Minami Funabashi store because it was a short walk from the station. The train ride was a bit longer than to the Shin-Yokohama / Kohoku store, but the bus ride from Shin-Yokohama to the store couldn’t have been more annoying – crowded, infrequent, and an additional 15-20 minutes on top of a 40-45 min. train ride.
But now, there is an ideal way. IKEA started offering a free shuttle bus in one of those nice, “luxury” tour-buses from Den-en-chofu. Den-en-chofu is a 15 min. ride from Shibuya. From there you walk less than 100m to the bus stop, and then you sit comfortably in plush seats with plenty of leg-room for 20 minutes before being dropped off right in front of the IKEA store. The only caveat is timing. Weekdays, the shuttle runs approximately every 90 minutes. On weekends, every hour. This is Japan, so the bus leaves on time. You can check the timetable as a PDF download here.
Faster, cheaper, quieter, and more comfortable. Just the way I like to travel!
June 24th, 2008 at 4:12 am
Whenever I go to IKEA I come back with a truckload full of stuff. Do they do the standard Tokyo delivery thing there or do people come back with tons of cargo somehow?
June 27th, 2008 at 1:39 am
Some rent cars just for the trip, but IKEA also offers delivery, with rates depending on distance from the store. First 3 items (any size) are about $50, then each subsequent item costs an extra $10 or so. They can usually deliver within a week, but make no guarantees on time of day so it can be a challenge to schedule sometimes.
September 27th, 2008 at 3:34 pm
thank you so much – you made this journey so much easier than the last 3!!! I never knew about this shuttle bus – it was a joy.
July 6th, 2009 at 2:12 pm
Thanks for the huge tip. We’d love to make the trip, but now it seems the PDF link is dead. Any idea if this shuttle is still running? Any updates on this topic would be much appreciated. Thanks!
July 23rd, 2009 at 10:57 pm
Details with working PDF Schedule link from the IKEA site:
http://www.ikea.com/jp/en/store/kohoku/services