Longstanding Japanese lifestyle magazines Brutus and Popeye have weighed in on the huge influx of tourists with two new books.
Well, technically, in Japan, these are called “mooks”, a cross of a magazine and a book, but the important thing is that they actually exist.
In that, most people who come to Tokyo do so after watching an influencer on YouTube or TikTok who doesn’t actually live here.
Brutus and Popeye have been around for decades, and are written by people native to Tokyo, so the fact that they are sharing their insights in English is fantastic.
Brutus English Version New Perspective Tokyo, priced at $27.99, covers 545 unique spots in Tokyo over its 78 pages (shown above).
Whereas Popeye Special Edition Hello, Tokyo! Priced $32.99, comes in at 124 pages and again covers unique spots across Tokyo for people to visit.
As someone who has lived in Tokyo for over a decade and inevitably ends up as a tour guide whenever friends visit, I can at least now give them these to keep them busy.
In any case, both Brutus and Popeye have a long history of covering Japanese pop culture and fashion in a really thorough and interesting manner, so these definitely come recommended.
Either way, they will definitely be better sources of information than any of the wonky influencers that have literally no clue about what it’s like to live in Tokyo.
Follow me on X, Facebook and YouTube. I also manage Mecha Damashii and am currently featured in the Giant Robots exhibition currently touring Japan.
