Whether you've just arrived in Japan or are planning to leave tomorrow, coin lockers at train stations can free you from the cumbersome baggage you've brought (or accumulated) and have to tote around during your travels!
Some people arriving from the airport make their first stop at Tokyo Station, and want to explore a bit while they wait for their hotel's check-in start time. Others (like me) carry around a single backpack that has just enough space for all of my needs, and then get blindsided with lovely, heavy souvenirs from friends and business associates.
Coin lockers are a cheap way of storing your luggage for the day, with lockers ranging from 300 to 500 JPY (approx. $3-5 USD), depending on the size.
Small lockers are approx. 35cm x 43cm x 57cm (13in x 16in x 22in), and can fit a carry-on back comfortably.
Medium lockers are approx. 57cm x 43cm x 57cm (22in x 16in x 22in), and can store a couple of smaller bags, or large totes containing bulkier items you'd rather not carry around.
Large lockers are approx. 117cm x 43cm x 57cm (44in x 16in x 22in), and can store your typical roller suitcase.
To use these lockers, find an open one (easier said than done sometimes) and make sure you have the right change for the size you're looking for (prices are shown in stickers on each door). Using the touch screen for that particular cluster of lockers, you can pay for the locker and print out a receipt that has information on the location of your locker and a time stamp of when you were there!
By far, the most challenging thing is finding a free locker during a peak travel weekend. On top of dealing with your heavy luggage, you will also find many people before you are waiting their turn next to lockers where others are removing their luggage. I've had people come up to me as I was removing my belongings from a locker, so that they could politely call dibs.
In Kyoto during Kobo-san at Toji Temple, I literally could NOT find any open lockers, and being the light traveler that I am, all of the souvenirs I'd been given had no place to go other than in monstrous bags on each of my shoulders. As I wasn't staying in a hotel in Kyoto that day, I decided to skip that part of my itinerary and head to my next destination, where I found some coin lockers in which to store my things overnight!
Something I didn't think of when I arrived at Tokyo Station- arguably the largest train station in Japan- was that I would somehow forget my way back to my locker. I wanted to walk through the Imperial Palace grounds the next morning sans backpack, and since I didn't want to waste any time looking for my old locker group, I picked a new set of lockers to store my backpack in, walked in all directions around the Palace grounds, and then came back to begin the search for my lost Minecraft treasure. I found my backpack fairly easily, but where I left my things from the previous night was a different story.
Each midnight marks the end of a day, so you can technically store your things for less than a full 24-hour time period, but still pay for two days, and in order to retrieve your belongings, you have to drop in another 300, 400, or 500, depending on the locker size you used. I think it's totally worth it, but I only used the small and medium lockers and would gladly pay that much to not lug around my stuff.
Happy travels!
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