Bt tourist-iendly gay bars Shju Ni-chome | Time Out Tokyo

Contents:

• BT TOURIST-IENDLY GAY BARS SHJU NI-CHOME
• THE 10 BEST SHJU GAY CLUBS & BARSGAY CLUBS & BARS SHJU
• SHJU NICHOME: STRETCHG YOUR YEN THE GAYBORHOOD
• EAGLE TOKYO & EAGLE TOKYO BLUE: BT GAY BEAR BARS JAPAN
• A GAY UPLE RAN A RAL RTRANT PEACE. THEN NEW NEIGHBORS ARRIVED.
• TOKYO GAY MAP
• THE 10 BEST TOKYO GAY CLUBS & BARSSEE ALL THGS TO DOGAY CLUBS & BARS TOKYO

BT TOURIST-IENDLY GAY BARS SHJU NI-CHOME

MiguelLos Angel, CA26 ntributnsEagle is a pretty ol bar the gay block at Shju, the staff is very iendly and sce s a place wh a lot of ternatnal visors they speak English! Rints range om outrageoly out-there, alien, and genr-bent to culturally tradnal and polilly nservative (though 's worth notg that the past few years have seen LGBTQ activists elected to ernment offic cludg Kanako Otsuji, the first openly gay member of the Hoe of Reprentativ, and 2019, Taiga Ishikawa to Japan's Hoe of Councillors). To w, some of the most popular genr of manga and anime are gay-themed "yaoi" and "BL" (short for "boylove") romanc, which sell like gangbters among Japane femal and have spired dozens of live-actn movi the same ve.

And one of the most popular TV dramas of late is "What Did You Eat Yterday?" about a gay uple and the wonrful food they nsume (which has spired viewers to create those dish at home). The center of Japan's gay universe his pla sight, smack dab the 7-square-e district (or ward) of Shju, Tokyo. A 10 or 15-mute walk om btlg Shju Statn brgs you to a quieter, more rintial feelg sectn of the cy lled Shju Ni-chome, which is home to at least a hundred LGBTQ bars and clubs, a sna plex, and gay-centric shops brimmg wh clothg, accsori, paraphernalia, and adult goods.

NY-based, Japan-born photographer Kaz Senju documented this buzzy yet discreet scene and some of s nizens the fantastic, English-language 2018 photography books "Shju Story" and "Shju Story Vol.2," which offer a ep dive to Shju Ni-chome's history and how beme the "gayborhood" is today, wh glimps behd the closed doors. And 2019, Queer Eye dispatched s Fab Five to Tokyo for a season to dig to the culture and gay life. Queer men n also get the si sop on Tokyo gay life, and possibly make a iend (or more), via the app 9Monsters: s chat functn nveniently to translat English to Japane and vice versa, and there's a b of Pokemon cutens to the way assigns a kd of creature (or Monster) to the er and the type of guy they seem to like.

THE 10 BEST SHJU GAY CLUBS & BARSGAY CLUBS & BARS SHJU

GaijPot Travel, a webse for English-speakg expats (and would-be expats, also featur a helpful page of Tokyo LGBTQ plac to check out, om f to nightlife, pl Japane gay bar etiquette and other helpful cultural hts.

An onsen—natural sprg water bath spa—is a fantastic place to spend an afternoon or night (or both!), and Shju Ni-chome's 24 Kaikan Shju adds a whole lot of gay cisg and actn to the mix, wh eight floors of facili cludg steam room, dark rooms, and private bs (for a premium). Kick thgs off wh the misleadgly named New Sazae, which is actually Tokyo's olst gay bar— opened 1966—and pays plenty of homage to s past wh s r and "funky dis" and soul mic nights. AiSOTOPE Lounge, possibly the district's biggt gay venue, boasts two dance floors, a stage, and mix thgs up wh men-only (and very cisy!) and women-only parti.

For more sual fare, some gay bars and f also offer food cludg Alamas Cafe and women-only Dorobune.

SHJU NICHOME: STRETCHG YOUR YEN THE GAYBORHOOD

Shju Nichome is known as Tokyo’s gay district. The area is home to high ncentratn of gay bars, clubs and rtrants—but how do you choose where to go?

Which brgs on to the next pot of gettg your money’s worth the gayborhood—htg up the happy hours! EAGLE TOKYO and EAGLE TOKYO BLUE are the bt gay bear bars / the most tourist-iendly gay bars Tokyo’s gay neighborhood ‘Shju Ni-chome (新宿二丁目).

EAGLE TOKYO & EAGLE TOKYO BLUE: BT GAY BEAR BARS JAPAN

That stagrammable, ever-so-graphic mural of gay Asian bodybuilrs – the artwork by Japane gay manga artist/illtrator ‘Jiraiya (児雷也)’ – is at EAGLE TOKYO. It’s sort of the mec for gay tourists Japan. Sophistited EAGLE TOKYO, one word, is a sleek Amerin gay bar.

EAGLE TOKYO BLUE is the largt gay bar Tokyo. Shju is also home to Ni-chome, which is Japan's largt gay nightlife area.

A GAY UPLE RAN A RAL RTRANT PEACE. THEN NEW NEIGHBORS ARRIVED.

Dragon Men: The center of Tokyo's gay scene, this is a great place to start if you're lookg for an LGBTQ night out and don't know where to beg. Conveniently, many other top Tokyo gay bars and clubs (mostly ncentrated the Ni-chome neighborhood) are the area, too.

Participatg illegal activy Tokyo n lead to portatn, so break the l at your own 's gay nightlife scene is ncentrated primarily Shju's Ni-chome district. The bsman and his wife, Melissa, first plaed to the Front Porch proprietors about pre-dawn vendor liveri 2019, not long after the nservative Christian uple moved their fancial firm right next door to the rtrant, which fli a gay Pri flag. (Front Porch Market and Grill)What’s more, the Washers say, the ad rat was jt one more sult that the uple, who once planted an “all liv matter” sign their ont yard, have endured sce movg next door to a rtrant owned by a gay uple.

They married 2020, five years after they opened the Front Porch, which quickly beme a statn The Front Porch has been flyg a Pri flag on s pat sce 2016, not long after a gunman killed 49 people a gay bar Orlando. Waybourn was print of the Dallas Gay Alliance when sued Parkland Memorial Hospal for failg to provi readily available medic to AIDS patients.

TOKYO GAY MAP

In 1991, he lnched the Gay and Lbian Victory Fund (now the LGBTQ+ Victory Fund) to elect openly gay policians to office. He served as managg director of the Gay & Lbian Alliance Agast Defamatn, or GLAAD, which he helped turn to a natnal group. He owned gay newspapers Hoton, Atlanta, New York and Washgton.

“I had so many threats agast me that even the Dallas police statned squad rs outsi our home, ” Waybourn an activist, Waybourn says, his goals were clear: same-sex marriage, gays and lbians the ary, accs to lifavg medic. To the activist, feels like a step backward after a lifetime of fightg for gay pack the seats at the Board of Zong Appeals hearg hosted at Grace Epispal Church. “I have que a few gay iends, clients and a fay member, and I have patronized a gay-owned rtrant for years, ” he whether the Washers are tryg to remake The Plas to their image of Ameri — Whe, nservative, Christian — Melissa said, “I n see where you’re g om.

THE 10 BEST TOKYO GAY CLUBS & BARSSEE ALL THGS TO DOGAY CLUBS & BARS TOKYO

Tokyo Gay MapOur teractive Tokyo gay map.