Tokyo is more than a city; it’s an overwhelming landscape home to the world’s finest cuisine, quirkiest districts, kindest people, and most ambitious art and architecture. It isn’t easy to know where to start!

Tokyo inspires visitors to be adventurous and discover its strangest secrets. It cannot be conquered, which makes it all the more fun to try. There are so many unique things to do in Tokyo; all you have to know is where to look.

Don’t forget a JR pass if you’re planning on leaving Tokyo and taking some amazing day trips.

21 Unique Things to Do in Tokyo

We were lucky, having lived in Tokyo for a while, to be able to try most of the activities on this list or speak to friends who had, but even just picking and choosing a few will leave you with fond memories of your trip to Japan. If you’re looking for the best places to visit in Japan, look no further!

We recommend learning more about the benefits of miles and points to make your trip to Tokyo more affordable.

Don’t forget to check out our three-day itinerary for help planning your trip.

1) Immerse yourself in animation at the Ghibli Museum

When planning your trip, and looking for the best places to visit in Tokyo, the Ghibli Museum will probably be at the top of your list.

And so it should be! Seeing Miyazaki’s work come to life in this incredible space is nothing short of incredible and one of the most beloved unique things to do in Tokyo.

Located on the western side of Tokyo, the Ghibli Museum enables you to get a closer look at how animation comes to life and see cells, sculptures, and toys from the famous films.

Tickets have to be bought well in advance so definitely one to plan earlier rather than later. You can purchase tickets and get them pre-delivered to your hotel here.

2) Capture amazing views of the city from Tokyo Tower

The iconic Tokyo Tower is easily one of the most photographed buildings Tokyo, it’s iconic red Eiffel Tower style is difficult to miss since it stands at 333 meters tall making it larger than its French counterpart.

The communication and observation tower offers unbeatable views over Tokyo making this the perfect place to get those epic shots of the city. At night the tower is lit up and a beautiful sight in itself.

You can also capture the whole city from the Tokyo Skytree. Tickets for the tower can be bought there, make sure you take your passport.

3) Go wild at one of Japan’s top theme parks

If there’s one thing Japanese people love it’s their theme parks, and Tokyo itself has two amazing parks to enjoy, including the world’s only Disney Sea —bwhich is actually the better of the two parks if you have to choose.

The Disneyland itself is quite small but has all of the usual rides meet Disney characters fun.

Taking a trip to Universal Studios is very possible for the day since it’s just two hours to Osaka on the bullet train, there you’ll find the incredible Harry Potter World and get the chance to see the huge Hogwarts castle up close.

Find Disney tickets and transfers here. A visit to one of Japan’s many theme parks is one of the most memorable unique things to do in Japan.

4) Go museum hopping in Ueno Park

Sort of a one-stop culture stop in Tokyo, Ueno Park not only offers a vast green haven within the city complete with shrines and a boating lake but also numerous museums to explore.

Options include The Tokyo National Museum, the oldest Japanese national museum bursting with historical treasures, several art museums including the notable Tokyo Metropolitan Art Museum and the entertaining Science and Technology Museum.

There really is something for everyone. Round off your experience with a snack from one of the many street vendors within the park.

5) Explore Asakusa and the ancient temple Senso-ji

Known as the historic neighbourhood of Tokyo, exploring Asakusa is a must for people visiting Tokyo. Partly due to the impressive ancient temple of Sensoji with its iconic red lantern.

This is a perfect way to explore the Shinto and Buddhist philosophies at the heart of the Japanese way of life. On the way to the temple you can explore Nakamise shopping street, a real step back in time.

This bustling ancient market sells everything from street food to souvenirs. It’s popular to rent a kimono in this area since it oozes old Japan at every turn. So, if you’re a history buff wondering where to stay in Tokyo, there’s no better place than Asakusa for unique things to do in Tokyo.

You can see all of Tokyo’s major shrines and temples with this city tour.

6) Get lost in otaku culture in Akihabara

There’s no denying that a big draw to Japan for many is its anime and video-game culture and the nerd’s first stop to Japan is usually Tokyo’s buzzing electric town: Akihabara.

For otaku and nerds like us, there are no better places to visit in Tokyo than Akihabara. Full of unique things to do in Tokyo, there’s just so much to do there.

Discover themed cafes to video game bars, and huge department stores packed with retro games, plushies, and anime memorabilia. Since this is electric town, this is also where you come if you’re looking for a new camera or the latest phone or Nintendo console.

With big lights, giant billboards with anime girls on Akihabara never gets old and needs to be seen to be believed.

If you’re a proud otaku like us, and you’re looking for where to stay in Tokyo, Akihabara is your haven. For more nerdy places to visit in Tokyo, consider also checking out Nakano Broadway.

Read More: Check out our Tokyo Neighborhood Guide to find out more about Akihabara.

7) Embrace the Kawaii on Takeshita-dori

Harajuku is easily one of the best places to visit in Tokyo. It’s an iconic Tokyo destination, forever a draw for the alternative and fun youth of Japan.

From the quirky fashion to everything cute and colourful, a day on Takeshita-dori (the main shopping street opposite the famous Harajuku Station) is best spent eating weird and wonderful desserts and buying kawaii accessories.

Lined with shops, boutiques, and cafes this is easily one of the most fun streets just full of unique things to do in Tokyo. Don’t forget to take lots of pictures of the crazy fashion choices that you’ll inevitably see.

If you’re looking for a great food/culture tour here then check out my friend’s Foodie Tours Japan, everything from instagrammable food to quirky places you’d never find otherwise.

Read More: Otaku’s 24 Hour Guide to Tokyo

8) Learn the way of the samurai at the Samurai Museum

The famous Samurai of the Sengoku period come to life in this fantastic museum nestled in the heart of Shinjuku. You’ll be taken on a tour through history and see everything from genuine samurai armour and weapons to paintings and live performances from trained samurai.

All while having a detailed explanation of everything you’re seeing from start to end. You can even get dressed up in armour and capture those important memories.

If you’re looking for a museum that’s a bit different, this is absolutely one of the most unique places to visit in Tokyo. Get your entrance ticket here. Side note: if you’re looking at where to stay in Tokyo, you can’t do better than Shinjuku. It has samurai.

Read More: To learn more about samurai take a day trip to magical Kanazawa

9) Experience art in a revolutionary new way at TeamLab Borderless

A relatively new experience in Tokyo, it’s unsurprisingly taken off in a big way. Located on Odaiba island, this art installation offers a borderless experience where you wander through light-based art scenes.

The space around you reacts to your presence and touch and the colours are truly out of this world. One of the top places to capture genuinely unique and gorgeous Instagram photos in Tokyo while also trying something new. Grab your ticket here.

10) Step Back in Time at the Imperial Palace and Gardens

Tours of the Imperial Palace grounds must be booked in advance, but the Imperial Palace East Garden is open to visitors year-round.

Located on the site of a former Edo castle complete with stones walls and a moat, the grounds serve as a place for Tokyoites to escape modern busy life but also offer a chance to take a step back in time.

On the other side of the moat, Chidori-ga-fuchi is a popular cherry blossom gazing spot.

11) Gotta catch ‘em all at the Pokémon Center Mega Tokyo

Since the first whispers of a potential Pokémon Center opening in Tokyo, the hype around the world’s first Pokémon dedicated store was huge.

No nation does toys and games like Japan, and Pokémon is arguably the biggest and most long-lasting global craze in history.

Stepping inside the megastore for the first time, in the heart of Tokyo is an experience like no other and whether you’re into the craze or not, it’s hard to ignore the giant Pokémon Centres drawing in huge crowds.

Floor to ceiling plushies, unique Japanese souvenirs, photo ops, and a Pokémon Café are just some of the many temptations inside.

12) Lose yourself in nature at Shinjuku Gyoen

Despite Tokyo’s many great parks, escaping into nature isn’t always easy. Just a short walk from Shinjuku station, Shinjuku Gyeon is like a cross between a botanical garden and a park.

It features several themed areas like the English Landscape Garden, the French Landscape Garden and the traditional Japanese Landscape Garden area with bridges and a teahouse.

Aside from in the cherry blossom season when it’s particularly busy, Shinjuku Gyeon generally remains a wonderfully relaxed area to stroll.

Read more about Japan: Best Books to Read Before Visiting Japan

13) Have fun on the entertainment island of Odaiba

This beautiful man-made island in the heart of Tokyo is Japan’s answer to California’s Silicon Valley. Tech capital of Tokyo, Odaiba offers a selection of entertainment and tech-based activities, such as the interactive art gallery TeamLab Borderless.

Besides tech, Odaiba is also a beautiful island to explore, occasionally playing host to outdoor fun like a summer beer festival. The beach and waterfront area truly comes alive in the Summer season as shoppers evacuate the various malls on the island for some fresh air and sun.

Odaiba even sports a giant Ferris wheel and its own perfect replica of the Statue of Liberty, which is a wonderfully Japanese thing to do.

14) Make your way through Golden Gai

This famous little area, tucked away in Shinjuku, is a collection of narrow alleyways famously lit with Japanese lanterns at night.

For an epic and very different night out in Tokyo, this maze of 200 smoky izakayas and small restaurants make a change from the chic cocktail sky-high bars Tokyo is famous for.

It has mostly been taken over by visitors in recent years, but you’ll still encounter the odd locals-only signage or chilly reception now and then.

Also, most are so small they can only accommodate a handful of customers, which is the reasoning behind the hefty seating charges you’ll find.

From beer to whiskey and several sake bars on offer here this is a traditional experience that needs to be had. Look out for English menus posted outside, to ensure you are welcome.

Take a fantastic food and drink tour of the area.

15) Experience sumo culture at Ryogoku Sumo

Another ancient aspect of Japanese culture that is a must-see for visitors to Tokyo. Getting to see a sumo match Ryogoku Kokugikan isn’t easy or cheap and getting tickets as early as possible is a good idea.

And, of course, it’s one of the best and most unique of things to do in Tokyo, bar none! There are some alternatives, however, to make your sumo experience cheaper and easier.

Sumo practice matches, for example, are usually a lot more accessible to the public, cheaper, and equally as dramatic.

The Ryogoku district is also home to a large number of little known historical landmarks and sumo stables, some of which might let you watch the early morning practices for free.

Don’t miss the Sumo Museum to learn about the history of the sport. See their official website for more details.

16) Enjoy seafood at Tsukiji Fish Market (Now Toyosu Market)

Even though the inner market of Tsukiji Market closed on October 6, 2018 and moved to a new site in Toyosu you can still enjoy Tsukiji’s outer market and enjoy fresh seafood food at the local restaurants (which, in my opinion, was the best bit anyway).

The chance to see the tuna auction is now in Toyusu but, arguably the more fun eating part is still very much present. Tsukiji Market is still one of the best places to visit in Tokyo for enjoying amazing street food, seeing sushi and sashimi-making in action, and devouring some of the best seafood on the entire planet!

17) Visit The Art Triangle in Roppongi

Immersing yourself in The Art Triangle is one of the best ways to get involved in the modern art culture of Tokyo.

Consisting of The National Art Centre, the Suntory Museum of Art, and the wonderful Mori Art Museum which also features The Sun café and The Moon restaurant plus beautiful views of the city from the inside.

Each of these astounding galleries features notable contemporary art from around Japan and has regular revolving exhibitions from famous local and international artists. When considering where to stay in Tokyo, Roppongi is a fine choice for visitors looking for a bit of dynamism and bustle.

Read more: Tokyo Art and Culture Guide

18) Go Boutique Shopping on Omotesando Hills

Fast becoming the place to be in Tokyo, Omotesando area blends with Harajuku and could be described as its refined big sister. You’ll find high fashion, designer quirky clothes but also an abundance of artisan coffee shops and excellent restaurants on Omotesando Hills.

An easy way to make your way through is to start at Omotesando Plaza and make your way towards Shibuya. Particularly beautiful at night since the shops essentially put on light shows, this whole area is designed to capture your attention, and it works.

Omotesando is our favourite place to be based in Tokyo. Find some options in our Tokyo hotel guide

19) Experience the future in a Robot Restaurant

One of the far quirkier and, by far, most memorable and unique places to visit in Tokyo, and well worth it regardless of how much of a tourist attraction it has become.

A quirky extravaganza of Japanese invention, you’re essentially dining in a light show while watching anime characters’ wrestle with cyborgs. It’s larger than life and a truly memorable experience. It really has to be seen to be believed. The food isn’t bad either! Grab your show tickets here.

20) Explore Shibuya

Shibuya is a microcosm of everything modern in Japan’s capital, making it one of the must-explore places to visit in Tokyo.It only takes one look up into the onslaught of neon and tall buildings to know that you’ve truly arrived in today’s Tokyo.

Apart from shopping, dining, and watching movies, there are some key things to see in Shibuya.

As most know by now, Shibuya Crossing is known as the busiest pedestrian space in the world in terms of foot traffic. You’ve likely seen many time-lapse videos of the area but nothing can prepare you for the real Shibuya experience.

Don’t forget to visit the legendary statue of Hachikō, located right outside the Shibuya subway station or pop downstairs into the Tokyu Food Festival to experience an underground food paradise.

Shibuya hides some of the best restaurants in Japan, particularly ramen restaurants, as well as the most unique things to do in Tokyo. So don’t miss out.

21) Go up to the Shibuya Sky rooftop observatory (at Shibuya Scramble Square)

Japan’s newest observation deck, the Shibuya Sky rooftop observatory, stands at 230 metres tall providing a dramatic 360 view of Shibuya. Look down on one of the world’s most photographed sights: ‘The Scramble’, where over a thousand people cross five main roads at the same time.

Getting a birds-eye view of this spectacular scene makes it all the more impressive as countless people are reduced to a mass of dots.

You’ll be able to see other famous landmarks like the Tokyo Skytee, Yoyogi park, and even Mount Fuji. The 47-floor tower also features shopping, cafes, and digitalised gallery of art, making for an immersive Tokyo experience.

Read More: Buy amazing snacks while you’re in Tokyo with this list

While the beach and pier and beautiful, and the food is delicious; while the people are friendly and the streets are peaceful, nothing beats a good bookshop.

The Best Bookshops in The Hague

The Hague is a city of wonderful galleries, museums, restaurants, and beautiful bookshops. There’s so much art and literature to explore here.

This is your guide to the best and most beautiful bookshops in The Hague.

Stanza Bookshop

Located on the central street of Noordiende, just a few doors down from the city’s palace (and office of the king) is the charming and welcoming Stanza Bookshop.

Run by booksellers from different countries, Stanza is an international bookshop that sells new fiction and nonfiction in multiple languages, including English.

The wonderful booksellers at Stanza speak fluent English and are the most kind, considerate, and inclusive people you will meet in The Hague.

The shop itself has stunning window displays, a wide range of fresh new fiction, and a particular love for Japanese literature.

It’s a small space, cosy and compact and kind. The booksellers here will be more than happy to order in anything you’re after and chat with you about your favourite books and authors.

The location of this central bookshop is also fantastic, sitting at the heart of it all, amongst the city’s best cafes and restaurants.

Read More: The Best Things to Do in Delft

Bookstor Cafe

Located directly opposite Stanza is another one of the best bookshops in The Hague: The Bookstor Cafe.

Open since 1921, Bookstor is a bookshop that doubles as a cafe. It’s a soothing space to relax, read, and work.

Sofas and armchairs, a conservatory at the back, potted plants, broad bookshelves, and books piled high. The aesthetics here are something else.

In the summer months, sit out on the street with a coffee and watch the world go by. Otherwise get cosy on a sofa inside with a book that took your interest.

On the book front, Bookstor specialises in anything and everything published by Penguin, so you’ll find many classics here.

And as for its food offerings, there are plenty of delicious baked things and some really excellent coffee options to enjoy.

Take a seat and work at your laptop for a while, browse the bookshelves, or just while away an hour reading in the corner. This is one of the most charming bookshops in The Hague.

American Book Center

This is one of the largest bookshops in The Hague. The American Book Center specialises in English language books from US and UK publishers.

When you first enter, you’ll find a selection of English language magazines lining the wall on your right.

Beyond that are the new bestsellers and recommendations from the shop’s booksellers.

Side note: bookseller recommendations are always one of the best parts of any bookshop, and it’s great to see them here.

From here, the bookshop opens up into a treasure trove of literature and nonfiction. Every category and genre you can imagine.

There’s an alcove of comics and manga that is decorated with posters and merchandise from various properties. Very enticing!

The sci-fi and fantasy section is especially broad, extending around the entire border of the shop. It snakes its way around the walls and covers everything you can imagine within those genres.

Amongst all the bookshops in The Hague, the American Book Center is probably the most extensive and impressive in terms of its size.

Mayflower Bookshop

Just a few doors down from the American Book Center is one of the most cosy and charming bookshops in The Hague.

Mayflower Bookshop is separated by Dutch language books on the right and English language books on the left. You’ll also find here a selection of new and used books, if you’re interested in digging for hidden treasure.

It’s a welcoming and friendly space with a warm vibe, with books stacked high and plenty of options for every kind of bookworm.

After dancing between the different bookshops of The Hague, Mayflower also seems to often have the lowest prices, which is a nice bonus.

Alice in Wonderland

This is The Hague’s kinderboekhandel (children’s bookshop), and it is everything a children’s bookshop should be!

Before you enter, you’ll see a little free library standing by the doorway, as well as a white rabbit cutout inviting you inside.

The aesthetics take your breath away immediately. Cosy wood furnishings, colourful books lining every wall, a stage at the back with a throne at its centre!

A section dedicated to Roald Dahl, and even what could only be called a shrine to Alice in Wonderland.

Sections are divided by age, and you’ll find everything from picture books and pop-up books to novels for children and middle-grade readers.

This is exactly what a children’s bookshop should look and feel like: a bright, magical space that feels like a portal into one’s own imagination.

One of the most beautiful and essential bookshops in The Hague, this is a haven for little bookworms.

From neo traditional and old school artists to fine line and surrealist work, these are the best tattoo artists in Amsterdam.

Note: You may notice that a solid number of these artists are from Black Rose Tattoo Studio. This is purely because that studio is a cut above the rest, and is home to some of the best tattoo artists in Amsterdam. The pedigree there is ridiculous.

Bodine Ester

Owner of The 9 Muses, an amazing tattoo shop, Bodine Ester is one of the most electrifying tattoo artists in Amsterdam. Bodine is an expert at tattooing bleak, eerie, and abstract pieces, as well as twisted takes on pop culture characters and classic tattooing themes. While she mostly tattoos in black and grey, she also handles colour in a very unique way.

She has a true knack for realistic portrait pieces, but her stand-out work is definitely the larger, denser, bolder pieces that lean on horror and surrealism. She often blends inspiration from old school American and Japanese styles of tattooing, but these pieces remain distinctly and recognisably hers.

Not all of her work is dark, however (far from it). Many of her pieces explore softer, cuter themes, but it’s the darker stuff that really boasts her unique eye, hand, and imagination. You don’t come across many tattoo artists with this kind of style. We’re lucky to have Bodine, easily one of the finest tattoo artists in Amsterdam.

Katya Slonenko (Slon Salon)

Owner of the wonderful Slon Salon tattoo shop in Amsterdam, Katya Slonenko is truly a cut above the rest. Slonenko has a style that’s difficult to put into words. Bright and colourful, it pops with vibrant, almost cartoonish joy. While she excels at pieces depicting cute, cuddly creatures, her stand-out work is that which pays homage to cityscapes, streets, and architecture.

Slonenko has an eye for miniature landscapes: an Amsterdam street, a rural country home, an iconic skyline. These tattoos are like nothing you’ve ever seen. Katya Slonenko is one of the best tattoo artists in Amsterdam because of the love she pours into art pieces that celebrate the world around us, both natural and man-made.

Holly (Slon Salon)

Also tattooing out of Slon Salon is Holly, another one of the best tattoo artists in Amsterdam.  Holly is an artist with a great admiration for colour, pop culture, and all things cute and sweet. Many of her best tattoos are inspired by anime and video games.

If you want to show your love for Studio Ghibli, Pokemon, or Sailor Moon, you’ll be amazed by what Holly will deliver for you. If you simply want a cute tattoo that pops with pastel colours and soft lines — one that shows how much you love cats, flowers, and all things sweet, you need to pay Holly a visit. Hers are original pieces that pay homage to the brighter side of pop culture and our real world. I can’t get enough of them.

Heather Cheung

Working out of The 9 Muses (owned by Bodine Ester, above), Heather Cheung is another bold and bright talent amongst tattoo artists in Amsterdam.

Cheung is a master of black and grey tattoos; her art pops with the deepest, darkest blacks and the thickest, boldest lines that really leave an impression. There is an old school vibe to many of Cheung’s tattoos; with designs that harken back to the golden age: daggers, mothers, tarot cards, noh masks, and so much more.

But Cheung is always delivering her art with a very recognisable spin, thanks to her deliberate linework that has a feeling of permanence; it sticks in your mind as much as it does your skin. Her tattoos toe this wonderful line between intricate detail and bold minimalism that makes them incredibly eye-catching. It’s hard to look away.

Alberto DF

What makes Alberto one of the most unique and stand-out tattoo artists in Amsterdam is his dedication to the craft of true old-school tattooing.

His work is traditional, through and through. If you also have a love for the timeless style that originated from the golden age of tattoo art, you need to be tattooed by Alberto. Working with a colour scheme that is almost entirely black, white, and red, Alberto creates some truly original and imaginative pieces.

Hearts, skulls, roses, geisha, snakes, masks, moths, and more classic designs beside. But Alberto twists them all just a little, making them his own. There’s a subtle surrealism to his work, as he takes liberties with his designs to make them look like nothing else out there. Alberto is a tattoo artist that shows how you can pay respects to the legacy of tattooing while also being wholly and refreshingly original. It’s amazing work.

Read More: The Best Tattoo Artists in Berlin

Pemy (Salon Serpent)

You can search and search but you’ll never find a tattoo artist quite like Pemy, who works out of Salon Serpent in Amsterdam. Pemy stands far out from the busy crowd with a very recognisable style that is all her own. What makes Pemy one of the most unique tattoo artists in Amsterdam — perhaps the most unique, honestly — is her talent for designing anthropomorphic animals, especially cats.

Most of Pemy’s tattoos depict cute and colourful creatures in human dress, doing human things (mostly, as I said, cats). There’s a wonderful celebration of the surreal and the cartoonish in Pemy’s work. It’s illuminating, cheeky, sweet, and worthy of basking in. Anthropomorphic animals are not all she does, though; she also does wonders with surreal portraits of people and critters.

It’s the sheer imagination on display here that really makes you step back and say wow. Pemy has an eye like no other and it makes her work incredibly addictive.

Marcel (Black Rose Tattoo)

Marcel tattoos out of Black Rose Tattoo, a shop of such a high calibre that it might well be the best tattoo shop in Amsterdam. Marcel happens to be one of the best (if not the very best) neo-traditional tattoo artists working anywhere right now.

His work is dark and bold, with minimalist use of colour but copious amounts of texture that breathes and has an almost three-dimensional quality to it. This is the kind of art that reaches out to you and has you gasping at the sheer luxury of it all. Marcel excels at producing black and grey pieces, each with one bold colour attached: a blood red or ice blue that almost melts your mind as you drink it all in.

His finest designs are those that depict the faces and heads of people, blended with natural imagery: animals, flowers, leaves, suns, and moons. These are gorgeous neo-traditional tattoos, and Marcel is easily one of the very best tattoo artists in Amsterdam.

Gabriel Garz (Black Rose Tattoo)

Gabriel Garz is another one of the true stand-out tattoo artists in Amsterdam. His black and grey fine-line and delicate style is unmatched. Garz is another artist that leans on darkness and horror-tinged art, yielding wonderfully imaginative results. Spider, snakes, and skulls are some of the recurring images you’ll find in Garz’s work, and it’s all so textured and addictive.

But if horror isn’t your thing, Garz also delivers some amazing old-school inspired work with flowers and birds; nothing beats the darker stuff, though. Then there are Garz’s faces! The realistic approach doesn’t work for all artists but Garz makes it look effortless. What a talent.

Sven Anholt (Black Rose Tattoo)

Sven Anholt is another truly unique tattoo artist who has made a name for himself by tattooing in an old-school traditional, and sometimes Japanese, style. However, there is a recurring theme to his work: demons. In this wonderful interview with Tattoodo, Anholt talks about refining this “devil or Krampus-like figure” that he has become known for.

Anholt discusses in the interview all the folk and historical inspirations behind his demons, as well as the places he has visited that helped give birth to this unique design. Anholt is now known for tattooing these demons in a traditional style, but he also often explores other dark and gloomy themes, all in an old-school style. There are no other tattoo artists in Amsterdam quite like Sven Anholt.

Diego Garrafa (Black Rose Tattoo)

Diego Garrafa has turned himself into a legend in the tattooing scene with his exclusive work on lettering. This isn’t just any lettering, however. This is the sickest, boldest, most punk lettering you’ve ever seen. Larger-than-life pieces, all in the thickest, inkiest, darkest blacks. Tattoos that live a life of their own and cover almost too much skin. There’s nothing like it!

Garrafa tattoos everything from bellies and shoulders to fingers and toes, and even faces. Gnarly, bold letters that stand out like you wouldn’t believe. He and his art are laws unto themselves.

Must-Visit Tattoo Shops in Glasgow

If you’re visiting Glasgow and are looking to get a tattoo, these are the best tattoo shops in Glasgow, home to some of the Scotland’s finest tattoo artists. Check them out.

Nest of Thorns

Nest of Thorns is one of the most bold and unique tattoo shops in Glasgow; home to a group of phenomenally talented artists who excel at old school, neo trad, and pop culture tattoos. The artists at Nest of Thorns are some of the best when it comes to tattoos inspired by anime, gaming, and other areas of pop culture.

Kirsten and Amy tackle similar themes and topics with their art but from completely different directions, meaning that Nest of Thorns offers its clients a wonderful variety in the way of style and aesthetics. Likewise, Kyle and Pete both lean into traditional tattooing, but one is more neo traditional while the other is more traditionally old school. Whatever you prefer, there’s an artist for you!

Nest of Thorns is an exciting breath of fresh air in the Glasgow tattoo space, and one of the coolest tattoo shops in Glasgow, and in Scotland as a whole!

Gold Leaf Tattoo

Gold Leaf is a tattoo studio owned and run by two incredible tattoo artists that are producing some of the most stunning work in Scotland. Laura and Ellie are the cream of the crop. They both have an eye for texture. Their art lives and breathes and moves. The colours pop; the shadows creep; it’s all so mesmerising.

Few artists’ work takes your breath away like theirs does. When you go to Gold Lead, you’re going to walk out with a true piece of art on you, whoever and whatever you pick. There’s a neo traditional style on display here, with old school motifs like snakes, roses, daggers, and dark things being elevated to new heights by their imagination and skills.

Gold Leaf is one of the most essential tattoo shops in Glasgow. Get yourself a tattoo from Laura or Ellie; you owe it to yourself.

Read More: The Best Japanese Restaurants in Glasgow

Twenty Two Volts

Twenty Two Volts is a tattoo studio that is just quality across the board. A handful of varied and amazing artists, each one bringing their own set of skills to the table. Because of this, Twenty Two Volts has set a very high bar for tattoo shops in Glasgow. They are at the peak of the craft.

One of the coolest things about this Glasgow tattoo shop is its love for colour. These artists know how to make their work pop and burst with colour and light. These tattoos have life and character. Even the darker pieces have so much density and boldness to them. There’s a real sense of presence and volume to the work put out by the artists at Twenty Two Volts that is awesome to see.

Because of the sheer variety on offer, almost every taste is accounted for. Grimdark pieces, neo traditional tattoos, pop culutre art, surrealism — it’s all here and it’s all so good! Twenty Two Volts is one of the coolest high quality tattoo shops in Glasgow. Check them out!

Read More: The Best Tattoo Shops in Edinburgh

Hardlines Glasgow

Hardlines is a collection of some of the best tattoo artists in Scotland, all gathered under one roof and each offering a different style of tattooing to appeal to all kinds of tattoo enthusaists. Do you like big, bright, and bold neo traditional tattoos? How about pop culture-inspired pieces that reflect your passions? Or maybe smaller, darker, horror-inspired pieces?

All of these styles of tattooing are not only available at Hardlines, but also honed to the peak of the craft. When your tattoo shop offers both variety and high quality, there isn’t much left to conquer. You’re delivering the best. And for this reason, Hardlines is one of the very best tattoo shops in Glasgow.

Mortez

The artists at Mortez mix passion with talent and experience. They love what they do and it shows. They produce some of the most imaginative pieces of tattoo art in Scotland. If you like your tattoos to harken back to the good ol’ days of golden age tattooing, you can get yourself an old school or a neo trad tattoo at Mortez.

If you want a tattoo that proudly presents your passion for animation, comics, or other areas of pop culture, you can get a unique custom tattoo from Mortez to show that off. From fine lines and black-and-grey tattoos to explosions of colour and texture, everything done by the artists at this, one of the coolest tattoo shops in Glasgow, is expert and excellent.

Rock’n’Roll Tattoo

Realism is the name of the game at Rock’n’Roll Tattoo in Glasgow. The artists here excel at bringing you hyper-detailed and hyper-realistic tattoos, both in black-and-grey and in full colour. Ornamental and neo traditional tattoos are also done with expertise and flair here, but it’s the portraits and realism that really make Rock’n’Roll Tattoo stand out amongst other tattoo shops in Glasgow.

It’s not often you get realistic portraits done in full colour. Many artists prefer to present their realism in black and grey; but at Rock’n’Roll Tattoo, they offer both styles! And the realism extends beyond portraits and into natural imagery as well: plants, flowers, and animals are rendered with striking texture and dimension. It’s a sight to behold!

Read More: The Best Tattoo Artists in Amsterdam

Deviltown

If you’re in the mood for some proper old school tattoos or a healthy dose of surrealism, you need to pay a visit to Deviltown. Deviltown Tattoo prides itself on being an inclusive and progressive space amongst tattoo shops in Glasgow, and their artists excel at providing custom pieces that blend the traditional with the fresh.

The tattoos done at Deviltown are all unique custom pieces, but many of them have roots in old school, traditional tattooing styles and designs. This is, in part, about subverting the traditional while also providing tattoo enthusiasts with art in that beloved, timeless style.These guys are doing something that is classic and new all at once, and we can’t get enough of it.

Deadman Tattoos

As a group of varied and talented artists, Deadman Tattoos can do almost anything. Whatever kind of tattoo you’re after, it’s a pretty safe bet that someone at this Glasgow tattoo shop can deliver. If you want a unique, custom tattoo inspired by your favourite anime or video game, Deadman has an artist for that.

If you want a realistic portrait tattoo done in black and grey or full colour, Deadman has an artist for that. From intimate, small, detailed tattoos to huge blasts of colour and pomp, the artists at Deadman Tattoos have proven to be experts in everything. This is a jack-of-all-trades kind of shop, but here they’re all masters.

Cherry Pie Tattoo and Piercing

As the name suggests, Cherry Pie Tattoo and Piercing is a combination tattoo and piercing shop in Glasgow that delivers some of the prettiest tattoos in Scotland. This is a female-owned and operated tattoo shop, showcasing some of the best talent amongst women tattoo artists in the UK.

From delicate fine lines to fun blasts of colour and expression, a lot of ground is covered by the artists at Cherry Pie Tattoo and Piercing, all with flair and flavour. We’re especially big fans of their current apprentice, Shy, whose stark, bleak, and atmospheric work of gothic beauty is a true sight to behold!

Memento Mori Tattoos

Mememnto Mori Tattoos is a band of brilliant artists in Glasgow. The styles and skills on display here are fresh, frantic, and fierce. From watercolours to abstract and surreal designs; from neo traditional to grimdark black pieces with an edge of comedy and cheek, there’s so much freshness and coolness here that you just love to see.

Mememnto Mori is a tattoo shop that keeps the art form fresh and new; keeps tattooing on its toes. This kind of approach to tattooing is much needed, and its no surprise that’s happening in Glasgow. Mememnto Mori is one of the most distinct and unique tattoo shops in Glasgow, without a doubt.

The Very Best Tattoo Shops in Edinburgh

You’ll find plenty of variety here when it comes to style. Neo traditional and old school artists stand shoulder-to-shoulder with fine line and horror-inspired artists. These people know their stuff, take pride in it, and provide some of the best tattoos in Scotland.

The Keep Edinburgh

The Keep is one of the most strikingly impressive tattoo shops in Edinburgh, and is currently home to one of our favourite UK tattoo artists: Dani Green. The tattoos that people leave The Keep with are big, bold, and original. These are some of the best tattoo artists in Scotland, all found under one roof.

What’s extra special about The Keep is that it’s also an art studio, which means they design original paintings that you can buy your own prints of, as well as shirts and other merch! The pedigree of the artists at this Edinburgh tattoo shop is like nothing else. There is so much imagination, colour, and attitude bursting from the canvases here (both human and otherwise).

This is far from your old school, cookie cutter tattoo studio. The Keep is a place of vibrancy, modernity, and outside-the-box approaches to art and design. If you’re in Edinburgh and looking for a quality original tattoo or a stunning art print, pop into The Keep and prepare to have your mind blown.

Insider Tattoo Studio

It’s hard to imagine more consistency in a single place than what’s found at Insider Tattoo Studio. A handful of varied and exquisite tattoo artists under one roof. The variety of art on display here is matched only by the consistent quality of these artists, making Insider one of the finest tattoo shops in Edinburgh by a country mile.

One of our favourite UK tattoo artists, Jack Peppiete, tattoos here, and he is joined by artists of all different flavours and styles. What that means for you as a customer is that, no matter your taste, you’ll find a tattoo artist at Insider to fit your flavour.

From bold ornamental designs to cute pop art; from old school American to traditional Japanese, almost every kind of tattoo art is done with expert professionalism and bold imagination by the artists at Insider. This isn’t only one of the best tattoo shops in Edinburgh, but it all of Scotland and the UK as a whole.

Read More: The Best Tattoo Artists in Dublin

Watermelon Tattoo

This is a female-owned, female-led tattoo studio in Edinburgh, and it blows away so much of the competition. The delightfully named Watermelon Tattoo is a true force of vision and imagination in the Scottish tattoo scene, delivering a range of tones and styles that is almost unmatched.

Small, cute, and colourful pieces are delivered with care and precision, while big and bold and bright pieces are done with pomp and style. There’s so much excitement to the art at Watermelon Tattoo. These artists clearly love the form and love what they do. There’s heart to this art.

It’s cool to see an even balance between thickly detailed black and grey tattoos and lusciously vibrant bursts of colour that are both equally eye-catching. Whatever your preferred style, you can find and get it here at Watermelon, one of the coolest tattoo shops in Edinburgh.

Ink Dependent Tattoo

Ink Dependent is more than just a very clever and punny name (though that name does deserve some attention). It’s also simply one of the best tattoo shops in Edinburgh. This tattoo studio excels at delivering outstanding black and grey tattoos. While they do tackle colour occasionally, it’s in their darker designs where they really, ironically, shine.

Black and grey is often used for two different styles of tattooing: hyper-realistic portrait designs of people and animals, and grimdark, gothic, moody horror pieces. You’ll find both of these styles at Ink Dependent Tattoo. If you’ve always wanted a realistic depiction of a person or a tiger, you need to check out the work at Ink Dependent.

Likewise, if you’re in the mood for a horror-inspired tattoo with a gritty edge to it, Ink Dependent is the Edinburgh tattoo studio to visit! There’s a lot of variety within this specific niche and style of tattooing, which demonstrates the strength and pedigree of tattoo art found here at Ink Dependent Tattoo.

Studio XIII

Studio XIII is another Edinburgh tattoo studio that offers a wonderful variety of styles and techniques, all of which have been honed to the height of the craft. From pop culture-inspired neo traditional art to black and grey portraits and something a little more abstract, it’s all here and all excellent.

Whether a tattoo shop has a very specific style and niche that it’s known for, or it hosts a wide range of talented artists, both are satisfying in their own way. For Studio XIII, their approach is the latter, which means the breadth of skill on display here is really fantastic.

This is one of the best tattoo shops in Edinburgh for people looking for a wide range of approaches to tattoo styles. They also do excellent piercings!

Read More: The Best Tattoo Shops in Glasgow

Old Town Tattoo

Old Town Tattoo is exactly our kind of tattoo studio. The artists here reign supreme when it comes to old school and neo traditional tattoos. New takes on classic style; you love to see it! The art that these guys put out is big, bold, bright, and colourful. It harkens back to the golden age of tattooing while doing so much fresh and exciting work.

The beauty of old school tattooing is found in the abstract. Designs that turn the everyday into something surreal but stylish. And Old Town Tattoo excels at exactly that approach to its art. We are huge fans of this particular style of tattooing, so we can’t get enough of Old Town Tattoo. Easily one of our favourite tattoo shops in Edinburgh. If you’re more into softer tattoos with fine lines and less colour, they deliver on that front as well!

Relatively Painless Tattoo

Aside from having one of the best names for a tattoo shop we’ve ever seen, Relatively Painless also has a very distinct style all its own. If you’re a fan of bold, dark tattoos, horror-themed art, and an abstract approach to artistic expression, you need to visit Relatively Painless; one of the best tattoo shops in Edinburgh.

This is where outside-the-box thinking, an impressively deep imagination, and some sharpened talent converge to make the best dark tattoos in Scotland. Some of the work that Relatively Painless Tattoo produces leans into the realistic; a lot of it is more stylised and creatively expressive. All of it is gorgeous.

We all have our favourite styles and themes when it comes to tattoo art, and if you like dark pieces with a hint of horror, please visit Relatively Painless Tattoo.

Bold and Gold Studios

This right here is proper old school tattooing, brought to the 21st Century with pomp and style. These guys know their stuff and they absolutely excel at it. There is such a brilliant timelessness to old school and traditional tattooing, whether it be Western or Japanese, and you’ll find both handled here with skill and finesse.

As the name suggests, Bold and Gold Studios is more than one place: a tattoo studio and a piercing studio. Here we’re talking about the tattoos, obviously, but their piercers are excellent as well. There’s such a playfulness to old school tattooing that proves so addictive, and no style of tattooing ages with more grace, whether it be in colour or black and grey.

If you love your roses, skulls, pirate ships, tigers, dragons, and geisha — or if you want something wholly original in an old school style — you have to pay a visit to one of the best tattoo shops in Edinburgh.

Okey Dokey Tattoo

Oh yes, now this is what we’re talking about! The sheer amount of style and detail and imagination poured into the art by these fabulous artists should be celebrated. At Okey Dokey Tattoo, each artist brings something wholly original to the table. They’ve each carved out a style; a niche; a unique perspective on what tattooing can do. And it’s all under one roof!

Big, bold, neo traditional pieces. Intimate, detailed fine lines. Cute and colourful pieces. Abstract pieces in black and grey. There’s so much variety and style and mastery here. We honestly can’t say enough good things about the work that’s done at Okey Dokey Tattoo. One of the most impressive tattoo shops in Edinburgh by a long, long way.

Setting sail for uncharted waters and touching down on exotic lands, bold and brave men and women have explored every corner of the map and recorded what they’ve learned for us to enjoy in the comfort of our own homes.

Travel writing can teach us about worlds we may never see, share incredible stories of survival and adventure, or it can inspire us to head out onto the road and see what they saw for ourselves. It’s an exciting, illuminating, and often hilarious form of writing that has changed the course of our lives in more ways than one.

As readers, writers, and travellers, we have always devoured travel books and, generally speaking, we try to read travel accounts and fiction from any new country before we set sail for it.

Read More: 19 Books for Digital Nomads (and Freelancers)

Our 3 favourite travel books are:

• Land of the Dawn-Lit Mountains by Antonia Bolingbroke-Kent following her incredible journey adventure through Arunachal Pradesh, one of the world’s least explored places
• Hokkaido Highway Blues by Will Ferguson, an all-at-once hilarious and sorrowful travel writing account of one Canadian’s mission to hitchhike from Japan’s southernmost island to its northernmost tip
• Notes by Bill Bryson, one of the first we ever read and an incredibly witty and accurate painting of our own British Isles, replete with its literal and metaphorical peaks and valleys.

To add to our favourite pieces of travel writing we asked seven travel bloggers what their most inspiring travel writing experience was and they’ve each selected a travel book to share with you.

From Iceland to Portland, you can experience the world from the comfort of your armchair with these incredible pieces of travel writing. They might even convince you to see it for yourself.

The Sagas of Icelanders, Anon

If you want to learn about Iceland, its best to start at the beginning. These sagas tell the tales of Iceland’s settlement in ~900AD.

They were initially oral stories passed through the generations. But in the 12^thcentury, the Icelanders actually created the first non-fiction prose form by writing down and publishing the sagas. Previously, most written tales were poetic, such as Beowulf and Shakespeare.

The sagas are stuffed full of melodramatic heroism, none more so than with the Saga of Egil. His family settled Iceland, eking out a living in the harsh landscape. He was a marauding Viking of the most heroic and psychopathic sort and he had a very unforgiving nature.

During his decades-long beef with the King of Norway, Egil took every opportunity to aggravate him by murdering, plundering and enslaving everyone in his path. It makes for a ripping good yarn.

You can also check out this list of books set in Iceland for more fiction and non-fiction set in one of the most book-ish countries in the world.

Chosen by Wayfaring Views

The Lost Executioner by Nic Dunlop

We see books and reading not just as a way to relax or escape but as a way to educate ourselves about the historical context of the places we travel. The Lost Executioner by Irish investigative journalist Nic Dunlop is a must-read if you are planning a trip to Cambodia.

On a visit to Phnom Penh, it’s impossible not to encounter echoes of the Khmer Rouge and the dark period of Cambodian genocide heralded by their reign.

The Lost Executioner reveals the story of Comrade Duch who was in charge of the S-21 prison in Phnom Penh during the time of the Khmer Rouge. Duch was ultimately responsible for the torture and cruel deaths of thousands of Cambodians.

When Pol Pot and his Khmer Rouge regime fell in 1979, Duch simply disappeared. For 20 years, no one knew what had become of Duch and he escaped the hands of justice until Dunlop tracked him down in a remote village and published the interview that ultimately put him in prison more than 30 years later.

The Lost Executioner is equally fascinating and horrifying read. We felt that it was important to understand the history so that we could visit and pay our respects to the people who lost their lives to the Khmer Rouge in the Cambodian genocide.

Find out more about this turbulent period at: Sidewalk Safari

Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail by Cheryl Strayed

Wild is a life-changing memoir about loss, transformation, and exploration. After her mother’s death and her own divorce, 26-year-old Strayed embarks on a thru-hike (a long-term hike where you carry your belongings and camp along the trail) on the Pacific Crest Trail in the western United States).

Strayed starts out on the trail with no hiking experience. She makes all the classic rookie mistakes. Her shoes are too small. She carries way too much weight in her pack.

Humorously, she even carries multiple leisure reading books with her. And—what drove me craziest—hadn’t even completed an overnight hike ahead of time. Still, one day after day, she puts miles behind her. Over time, she becomes a real, veteran thru-hiker.

As a female solo traveller and aspiring thru-hiker, this Wild made me feel like I could do anything. Even if you aren’t typically into nonfiction, you will absolutely fly through this book. The movie is great but it’s no replacement for the full story.

Though Strayed’s experience, I learned that almost anything can be achieved with persistence, no matter what level you start with. As soon as you finish reading this empowering memoir, you’ll want to hit the trail!

Chosen by: Carly Matthew — follow her adventures on Instagram.

The Lost Girls: Three Friends, Four Continents

One Unconventional Detour Around the World by Jennifer Baggett, Holly C. Corbett & Amanda Pressner

The Lost Girls is about three friends who quit their intense New York City media jobs and leave everything behind for a year-long backpacking trip around the world.

The girls each tell their own stories in separate chapters dispersed throughout the book. They describe some of their unique and crazy adventures, what motivated them to go on this once-in-a-lifetime journey, their trials and tribulations along the way, and how the trip changed their perspective on life.

I credit The Lost Girls for making me who I am today. I found this book at a time when I was still searching for what I wanted in life and defining who I was.

As someone who also planned on having a career in media (specifically journalism, at the time), I could strongly identify with these women. I was ambitious and driven.

I thought the path I wanted to take was to work at a well-known publication, most likely based out of New York City, just like these women. But reading The Lost Girls reminded me of what I actually found important in life, and that the dream I had wasn’t really what I wanted at all.

It had me reflecting on my life and goals, and ultimately changed what I wanted for my career and lifestyle.

Even if this book doesn’t inspire you the way it did for me, their adventures around the world will make for an entertaining read!

Chosen by Brittany from B Out Exploring

This is Portland by Alexander Barret and Andrew Dickson

This is Portland by Alexander Barret and Andrew Dickson is not a typical guidebook or travel book.  Instead of instructing their readers to go to this specific location or do this particular activity, Barret and Dickson give their readers a glimpse of what it’s like to be a Portland local.

From the feud between the Southeast and Northeast sides of the city to the insane amount of beer, bikes, beards, and books that can be found, the authors are able to show readers aspects of Portlandian culture that visitors – including myself – would have been completely oblivious to.

Yet, throughout this hilariously honest description of Portland, Barret and Dickson still manage to slide a few recommendations of note in there, including Pine State Biscuits, Crafty Wonderland, and Salt & Straw.

Consequently, the authors have narrowed down their guidebook-like recommendations for the city of Portland to just the local essentials. In other words, want to experience Portland like a local? Start by reading This is Portland.

Chosen by Sarah from Borders & Buckets. Follow her on Pinterest.

Travels with Charley: In Search of America by John Steinbeck

Novels that paint an authentic and historic picture of a destination, are my favorite to read. This is the precise reason why I love Travels with Charley: In Search of America. John Steinbeck is well-renowned for his novels Of Mice and Men and Grapes of Wrath.

Steinbeck had an inept talent to honestly portray his character and the land that they are adventuring. In this novel, Steinbeck is writing about his own adventures with his poodle Charley. The two of them travel across America in his rusty camper trying to uncover what makes Americans American.

Steinbeck accurately encompasses the nuances and quirks each region of the country possesses.

When I was reading about his travels through the Midwest, Minnesota specifically, where I call home, I laughed at how accurate he described Minnesotans.

It was as if he photocopied a description of my next door neighbour onto the page. Not only did Steinbeck pay attention to the landscape that whizzed by him, but he also admired the people and celebrated their differences.

Travels with Charley is filled with funny anecdotes and humorous mishaps. It’s guaranteed to make you laugh. Steinbeck will also make you pensive and baffled at the fact that you hadn’t thought of that before. And in fair warning, he’ll also make you cry.

This novel is a rollercoaster of emotions, but definitely worth a read. Chosen by the Quirky Globetrotter

Backpacked: A Reluctant Trip Across Central America by Catherine Ryan Howard

This is one of my favourite books and it also happened to inspire my first solo trip to, you guessed it, Central America. Backpacked is a hilarious recounting of two friends with totally different travel styles backpacking across Central America together for three months.

I love this book for two main reasons: the setting and the writing style.  The author, Catherine Ryan Howard, was just finishing up a year working at Disneyworld in Orlando on a J1 visa and decided to tag along on her best friend Sheelagh’s (pronounced Shelia) big trip.

You’ll find hilarious recountings of events from struggling up the side of an active volcano to not learning Spanish in the most idyllic lakeside town ever.

No matter the story, she finds a way to make it hilarious and I find myself going back to read it about once a year, wishing I was back there myself.

Chosen by Megan Johnson. Check out her own adventures in Central America.

We hope you enjoyed these wonderful pieces of travel writing, if you’d like even more inspiration check out the Most Memorable Travel Destinations chosen by bloggers.

Whatever style of art you personally enjoy, be it watercolour, oils, surrealism, geometry, cartoons, calligraphy, or Japanese anime, all of it can be captured on the skin by the immensely talented UK tattoo artists working today. And the most wonderful thing is that more and more of these immensely talented artists are women.

The UK’s Best Female Tattoo Artists

Female tattoo artists are taking up more and more of the tattooing landscape in the UK and that is a wholly fantastic thing. More art, more talent, more skills, more beauty. So, let’s take a look at ten of the best female tattoo artists working in the UK tattoo industry today.

Ali Burke

Ali’s art is unmistakeable. She has a unique and frankly magical eye for capturing the world as it exists and the world of fiction in her artwork. If you’re looking for a tattoo that incorporates adorable animals, bright flowers, or anime characters, you have to go to Ali for her uncanny ability to blend bold colour with soft tones.

There’s an atmosphere to her tattoos – they appear kind, sweet, made with love and affection. And all of this matches Ali’s own personality and attitude towards her work. She’s a kind, enthusiastic, and incredibly friendly artist. After a few hours with her, you get the best tattoo and a new friend. We know from first-hand experience, and we also know that she is one of the finest female tattoo artists in the UK today.

Find Ali on our list of artists of geeky tattoos!

Dani Green

Based in Edinburgh, Dani Green is one of the most electrifying and striking female tattoo artists in the UK right now. Her work is bold, bright, colourful, and playful; inspired by everything from natural landscapes and creatures to more nerdy designs reminiscent of Japanese and western pop culture.

The way that Dani Green sees and implements colour into her tattoos is inspiring, and the imaginative ways that she plays with her inspiration to create something wholly new and entirely her own will stay with you for a long time. Dani Green is one of the UK’s most beloved and celebrated tattoo artists for a reason. You need only glance over her work to see why!

Kate Selkie

My god, there may not be a UK-based female tattoo artist working today, with a more unique art style than Kate Selkie. We often use the comparison of human skin to canvas when talking about tattoos, but Selkie actually has the remarkable ability to make skin seem like canvas.

She doesn’t tattoo so much as she paints. Specialising in animals, flowers, and plants with an alluring blend of absolute realism and subtle interpretation, she creates something unmatched by any other UK tattoo artist. Her work is something truly special, and if there’s one woman who can make a name for herself with a unique style, it’s Kate Selkie.

Lois Clayton

Based in Essex, Lois Clayton is a UK tattoo artist who specialises in vibrant and colourful tattoos based on Pokemon and Nintendo characters. She takes beloved characters and puts them in original and imaginative scenarios, such as ramen bowls, keychains, or bites of sushi.

Clayton’s tattoos are both dedications to, and unique takes on, the beloved characters that so many of us grew up on, have been inspired by, and continue to find so much joy and comfort in. And, thanks to the sheer creativity on display in her tattoos, and the fact that the brightness and positivity found in these characters emanates so boldly from her work, you can’t help but smile at every single piece she creates.

Lala Inky

Lala is a quirky, sweet, and wonderful female tattoo artist with a delightfully nerdy side to her tattoo art. Both of us at Books and Bao have been lucky enough to get tattooed by her, and it’s always a fun, relaxing, and exciting experience.

Her work is unabashedly nerdy, adorable, usually bright and bold. Our own tattoos from her (one above) are great examples of that. Lala is great at taking something nerdy, whether it be Japanese or Western and putting her own unique spin on it, customising it, and bringing it to life in real bold beauty. She’s also fun, and being tattooed by someone who’s fun and a good chat takes half the pain away.

Stephanie Melbourne

If there’s one word that sums up Stephanie, it’s ‘dynamic’. A quick scroll through her impressive Instagram page reveals a range of styles and topics, from cartoony portraits to true-to-life shimmering rubies; from animals to anime. She’s diverse and her work is exciting. There’s a life and an animation to her tattoos that really make you feel like you’ve been given something exciting, not just a still image. Something, well, dynamic!

Stephanie blends neotrad tattooing with more modern and fun subject matter, showing that tattoos can be fun, sweet, and adorable.

Ellis Arch

Ellis can do an awful lot. Her range of style and her approach to tattooing is more than impressive. From black-and-white minimalism to brutalist bold blacks and sold colours to intricately shaded and coloured true-to-life people and creatures.

She’s the kind of artist you can approach with a vague idea and style, and she can make it into something real and tangible that you’ll fall in love with. Whether you like your tattoos loud and bold, or soft and delicate, she can do it. There’s a strength and fluidity to her art that’s unmatchable. Just look at how she captured our beautiful boy Oscar!

Lucy O’Connell

Lucy is another incredible UK tattoo artist who can do almost anything. If you have a favourite character from a film – real or animated – she can capture it on your skin like nobody else.

If you’re looking to celebrate your love of animals, people, or natural things, she can celebrate it with you. Or if you just want to look even more beautiful, she can help. Her art is versatile; it’s living, breathing, exciting art that’s hard not to get lost in.

Her strengths are in her variety and her intricate ways of capturing the heart of the thing she’s tattooing. She’s clearly an artist whose love for tattooing is equal to her skill.

Claudia de Sabe

Claudia is nothing less than a thundering legend in the UK tattoo artist world, especially among female tattoo artists. Originally from Italy, she gifts lucky lovers of tattoos everyday with mind-blowing, gorgeous artwork. Claudia takes the most traditional aspects of tattooing, from the UK, USA, Japan, and so on, and makes them sharper, more exciting, more modern, and more beautiful.

If you love your neotrad designs, Claudia’s interpretation and unique spin cannot be beaten. And it’s not hard to argue that she does traditional portraiture better than any other UK tattoo artist.

Sadee Glover

If you have a love for pets, beautiful wild creatures, and the prettier things in life, Sadee can map them to your skin for life, making you even more beautiful than you already are. Her ability to blend the bolder, harsher lines and colours of traditional work with the subtler intricacies and details of modern tattooing is impressive, demonstrating control, a keen eye, and a love for the art of tattooing.

She’s also incredibly gifted at portraiture with a colourful, neotrad twist. Sadee is one of the great female tattoo artists, for sure.

Georgina Liliane

There’s a softer, darker, more pastel-esque tone to Georgina’s artwork that relaxes you if you gaze at it for long enough. Her beautiful style, which is very much unique to her, is so unmistakably Georgina.

This means that she is, seemingly effortlessly, set apart from the rest of the UK’s female tattoo artists by virtue of being wonderfully herself. Like a nature and landscape painter, she captures the intricacies of living, moving, breathing things and transfers them into tattoo art with seamless beauty and splendour.

Amy V Savage

You’d be surprised how few artists can switch between black-and-grey and colour work without losing an inch of quality and dynamism. Amy is one of those rare and special artists. She has an eye for the deep yet simple artistry in things of the natural world, and celebrates them through her art.

Whether you prefer your art to be bold and bright, or softer and darker, she can deliver on both styles with grace and panache. Look closely, and take in all the wonderful intricacies of her work. And take your time.

Keavy

Based in Cumbria, Keavy is one of those wonderful female tattoo artists who excels within the cheerful, cute, and bright world of tattooing (our favourite place to be). Her art pops with bold, happy colours; it takes a lot of influence from the happier side of pop culture (kids’ cartoons and Pokemon, for example); and it makes you happy just to gaze on it.

She does also dabble in black and grey work but, in our opinion, it’s her brightest and most vibrant pieces that help her to stand out in a crowded industry. Bubbly and bright, we can’t get enough!

Clara

Bristol-based Clara is a new and fresh face in the UK tattoo world, but she has burst out of the gate with an immediately recognisable brand. Clara’s colour palette, style, and design themes are all her own, and having a unique brand of your own is what tattoo art is all about these days. She’s as savvy and she is talented!

If you’re into pastel tones, smaller pieces, and cute themes inspired by storybooks, nature, a big of old school tattooing, and generally happy vibes, you need to get a tattoo from Clara asap!

If you want to check out some of the best men tattoo artists in the UK today or tattoo artists in South Korea, then look no further.

Copenhagen, in short, is perfect. To top it all off, Copenhagen tattoo artists are some of the best around.

Copenhagen Tattoo Artists

Here, you’re going to see some incredible tattoo art from artists working out of shops like Iron & Ink and Thank You Tattoo – some of the very best tattoo shops in Copenhagen.

These artists are masters of neotrad, old school American, traditional Japanese, photorealistic black-and-grey tattoos, and everything else besides. These are the ten best Copenhagen tattoo artists.

ŠPENDLO

ŠPENDLO is a tattoo artist who divides their time between Copenhagen and Slovakia. In Copenhagen, their work out of Custom Made Ink.

ŠPENDLO excels at big, bold, bright artwork. Their tattoos are colourful, first and foremost. The colours are rich, big, and bright but also soft.

“Cartoonish” is the most fitting word but that might seem patronising. As a huge fan of cartoons and cartoon art, that’s far from my intention.

This is exactly the kind of tattoo art that I adore, maybe more than any other. It’s happy, cheerful, playful, and joy-inducing.

ŠPENDLO really does their best work when producing dinosaurs and other animals, but also when putting their own spin on images from nerd culture: video games, anime, and cartoons.

This is the kind of portfolio or tattoo Instagram page I can scroll through and be made giddy by for hours on end. This is art that makes people happy, and it is endlessly beautiful to boot.

Kinga Ewelina

Let’s start this off with a bang! Kinga is Copenhagen’s most unique is stylish tattoo artist, by a pretty wide margin.

This Copenhagen tattoo artist works out of Iron & Ink. As you go down this list, you’ll notice a trend: that Iron & Ink is one of the best tattoo shops in Copenhagen. And Kinga is a big part of the reason why.

Kinga’s tattoos, mostly (but not always) black and grey, have an ornamental theme about them. They’re intricate and delicate like the finest jewellery.

This magnificent Copenhagen tattoo artist specialises in mandala tattoos and other subtly Indian-inspired tattoo art.

The intricacies and details on display here are extraordinary! And Kinga, hands down, produces some of the most beautiful tattoo art in Copenhagen.

Jesper Jørgensen

Arguably Copenhagen’s king of tattooing, Jesper is an absolute legend of the tattooing world. Working out of Thank You Tattoo, one of the very best tattoo shops in Copenhagen, Jesper’s old school tattoos and neotrad tattoos are mouth-wateringly good!

Jesper is perhaps the leading Copenhagen tattoo artist when it comes to neotrad and harnessing the power of old school traditional tattoo designs and tattooing techniques.

A lot of (but not all of) his tattoos have delightfully dark, twisted, heavy metal themes. We’re talking fire, bloody, and demonic things. Bats, witches, skulls, reapers, and more.

Jesper also works with Eastern-inspired tattoo art. You’ll find a few samurai, geisha, and katana ripped straight out of the book on classic Japanese tattoo art.

But through his needle they’re so wonderfully refined and captivating. Looking to get the best tattoo in Copenhagen? You may want to start with Jesper.

Read More: 18 Unique Things to Do in Copenhagen

Andreas Milan

Another traditional Copenhagen tattoo artist is Andreas Milan. Andreas’ tattoos are true old school. They’re a real hark back to the traditional American tattoos of old.

But, of course, they’re refined and beautiful. Not so much neotrad as true traditional with modern precision and clarity. In other words, real beauty.

Andreas tattoos out of World Famous Copenhagen, another of the best tattoo shops in Copenhagen, and he is celebrated as one of the most cherished and refined Copenhagen tattoo artists.

From Andreas you can expect ships, knives, gypsy heads, eagles, snakes, mermaids – all of the true traditional tattoo designs that have become immovable classics in the world of tattooing. And he delivers them with sharpness and real style.

Tato Toby

Thank You Tattoo isn’t only one of the best tattoo shops in Copenhagen; it’s one of the best tattoo shops in Northern Europe. And Tato Toby is one of several reasons why.

Toby is an artist of traditional tattoos, but he’s one with enormous scope. His tattoos encompass all manner of styles and traditions.

If you’re a fan of traditional American tattoos, Japanese yokai, lifelike black and grey tattoos, and anything in-between, Toby can deliver something classy and captivating.

There’s fun in his art; it’s organic and enigmatic. He’s one of the best Copenhagen tattoo artists for a reason, after all.

Sigbjørn

Sigbjørn tattoos out of Death Or Glory, home to some of the coolest Copenhagen tattoo artists around. Sigbjørn specifically deals in traditional old school tattoos, which is an incredibly popular style in Copenhagen.

What makes Sigbjørn stand out against other Copenhagen tattoo artists is his unique colour scheme. He has a way of making a tattoo uniquely his by choosing from a select range of colours that have become something of a signature for his work.

You’ll notice plenty of reds and oranges mixed in with shades of black and grey that give a warm, dark tone to his style.

This colour scheme, mixed with the old school tattooing style, makes his art incredibly timeless. It’s likely that a tattoo from Sigbjørn is going to age incredibly gracefully and in a very satisfying way.

Ron Koupal

As a fan of traditional Japanese tattooing, I’ve been excited to talk about Ron Koupal for a while. Ron clearly has mountains of love and respect for the art of traditional Japanese art, and Japanese tattoo art specifically.

From full sleeves (arm or leg) to enormous back pieces – from cranes to tigers to phoenixes – from yokai to geisha to samurai – Ron is a master of it all. Ever wanted a tengu tattoo? Ron can deliver a fierce one.

His art is so authentic and detailed and luscious. He’s one of my favourite artists of Japanese style tattooing in Europe, and one of the most unique and exciting Copenhagen tattoo artists.

Ester Tarabal

Ester Tarabal might be the most broadly talented Copenhagen tattoo artist on this list. Like photorealistic black and grey tattoos? Check. How about soft colour tattoos with no black lines? Sorted. Or even tattoos that mimic more than one style of painting?

Yup, Ester can deliver.

Seriously, the sheer scope of Ester’s talent is almost too much to belief. She’s a true force in the tattooing world and she deserves to go down as one of the greats.

Her breadth of skill and her eye for detail and, perhaps most important of all, beauty cannot be understated. She’s truly one of the most purely skilled Copenhagen tattoo artists.

Read More: A Bookish Guide to Copenhagen

Kristina Marie Poulsen

We’ve covered old school, neotrad, and traditional Japanese tattoos, but where do you go if you want something black and grey, something photorealistic, and you’re seeking the best tattoo in Copenhagen? You turn to Kristina Marie Poulsen.

Kristina specialises in large pieces of photorealistic black and grey. She tattoos alongside Kinga Ewelina at Iron & Ink, one of the best tattoo shops in Copenhagen.

Looking for animal imagery? Human portraits? Delicate and bold script? Or something else entirely? If it’s black and grey, Kristina can deliver. Her art is a spectacle.

Kasper Rømer Riis

We all have our favourite styles of tattooing. And, while I can love and celebrate photorealistic tattoos and black-and-grey tattoos, my personal favourites are big, bold, colourful tattoos of nerdy things or neotrad designs. And that’s exactly what Kasper Rømer Riis delivers!

Kasper is another artist from Iron & Ink, one of the best tattoo shops in Copenhagen, and his art is all about those primary colours, those big and bold pieces of happy, jolly artwork.

Cartoon characters, bright flowers and kawaii creatures. Though Kasper does also dabble in sombre and sharp black-and-grey tattoos that are a really big mood. In other words, this Copenhagen tattoo artist can do it all.

Mikkel Westrup

Last on our list is another phenomenal Copenhagen tattoo artist from Thank You Tattoo – not only our favourite but absolutely one of the best tattoo shops in Copenhagen. Mikkel Westrup is a powerhouse of tattooing.

Horror and gore, Japanese neotrad, American traditional, and everything in-between. Mikkel is one of the elite tattoo artists in Copenhagen.

If you’re looking for sharp, quality, captivating neotrad tattoos inspired by both Western and Eastern traditions, you can’t do better than Mikkel.

This, of course, includes tattoo artists. It should be no surprise, then, that the Portland tattoo shops and tattoo artists are some of the coolest and most unique in the US. Here, you’ll find some of the best tattoo shops in Portland, OR.

Must-Visit Portland Tattoo Shops

Whether you live in Portland and are looking for new Portland tattoo shops to check out, or you’re just visiting and want to commemorate your trip, these are the best tattoo shops in Portland, Oregon.

Tattoo 34

Perhaps the most important and inspiring of all Portland tattoo shops, Tattoo 34 is a proudly indigenous and Black-owned business that hosts guest artists as well as in-house Portland tattoo artists.

The artists at Tattoo 34 come from a variety of backgrounds, and bring different influences to the artistic output of the shop. Black-and-grey and colour. Modern, neotrad, and old school. Vibrant pop art and subtle, muted tones. There’s a huge variety on display here.

We are huge fans of the ethos, the style, and the community focus of Tattoo 34. We love their emphasis on celebrating art, especially art by minority creators. They are good and wholesome people, and Tattoo 34 is one of the best tattoo shops in Portland OR.

Atlas Tattoo

Atlas Tattoo is a behemoth of the Portland, Oregon tattoo scene, and rightly so! This is one of the absolute best tattoo shops in Portland. It’s not often you’re blessed with this much variety of design and style that is also of outstanding quality.

We all know the phrase “jack of all trades, master of none” but what does it look like to have a tattoo shop that really is master of all? Well, it looks like Atlas Tattoo.

The artists at Atlas Tattoo are the best at neotrad. They’re the best at authentic Japanese-inspired tattoo art, and they’re the best at true traditional old school designs. This really is one of the absolute best Portland tattoo shops, hands down.

Scapegoat Tattoo

In terms of its popularity, Scapegoat Tattoo is one of the biggest and best tattoo shops in Portlant OR. Take a quick scroll through their portfolio or Instagram page and you’ll see why that is. It’s justified popularity, that’s for sure.

At Scapegoat Tattoo, you’re getting a true, timeless piece of tattoo art on your skin. Whether you prefer bold colours that pop, or deep but soothing blacks and greys, you’ll be stunned by the quality of artistry on display by the artists at Scapegoat Tattoo in Portlant.

We are particularly big fans of the way they take old school designs and motifs, and blend them into newer, more original designs; truly, this is neotrad tattooing at its sharpest.

Cypress Tattoo Studio

Mickey Warner is a home-grown Portland tattoo artist from a family of artists. His studio, Cypress Tattoo Studio, is one of the best tattoo shops in Portland OR, and he himself stands out as an excellent artist of hyper-realistic black-and-grey tattoos.

Warner excels in the realm of black-and-grey art, especially statuesque portraiture. His tattoo adaptations of Greek gods and warriors are a step above those of most other artists out there.

Cypress Tattoo Studios is one of the absolute must-visit Portland tattoo shops, especially for those ink lovers in search of the finest black-and-grey realism. There are few artists out there with Warners’ chops.

Illuminati Tattoo Parlor

We should make it clear right now that this isn’t actually a Portland tattoo shop. Illuminati can be found across the river/state line in Vancouver WA. But given just how close the two are, it felt almost unfair to not include Illuminati on this list.

It takes just as long to get from Portlant Union Station to Illuminati Tattoo Parlor as it does to get across town to Street Station, so we’re counting it. We also want an excuse to talk about this awesome tattoo shop.

We adore the style and delivery of the custom tattoos done at Illuminati Tattoo Parlor.

There’s a wonderful amount of variety on show at this tattoo shop, but the artists at Illuminati really excel when it comes to bold colours, and especially the contracts between splashes of colour and bold linework.

Ever True Tattoo

Some of the best Portland tattoo artists can be found at Ever True Tattoo. These artists have a real focus on old school and neotrad tattoos — the kinds that never go out of fashion and always look deliciously fresh.

Both black-and-grey and colour tattoos can be found at Ever True Tattoo, as well as both Eastern and Western inspired tattoo designs. This is a real American tattoo shop.

If, like us, you’re a devoted fan of traditional tattoos done with a modern eye and a modern aesthetic, Ever True Tattoo is what you’re looking for. One of the best tattoo shops in Portland OR, absolutely.

New Rose Tattoo

It’s something of a theme in this city that the best Portland tattoo shops are the ones that offer a variety amongst their artists, while also having a clearly defined theme.

New Rose Tattoo, like many of the best tattoo shops in Portland, Oregon, has a penchant for neotrad and old school tattoos, both traditional American and Japanese-inspired. There’s a romanticism to their designs that never goes out of style.

Whether you’re inspired by pop art and popular culture, or the traditional stylings of the great golden age American tattoo artists, you’ll find an artist at New Rose Tattoo that can do your ideas justice.

Martian Arts Tattoo

A Portland tattoo shop with a name like Martian Arts is not going to disappoint. It’s exactly the kind of name you’d expect to find in the city that’s home to The Freakybuttrue Peculiarium.

The art found at Martian Arts is a delightful mix of modern and old school. You’ll find tattoos inspired by geek culture (anime and cartoons, especially), as well as Japanese-inspired tattoo art and old school designs both colour and black-and-grey.

If you’re a fan of old school tattoo art, geeky custom tattoos, and original neotrad designs, pop into Martian Arts Tattoo, one of the best tattoo shops in Portland OR.

Icon Tattoo Studio

Icon Tattoo Studio isn’t only one of the best Portland tattoo shops; it’s also one of the most famous, and for good reason! In true Portland OR style, Icon is a tattoo shop that excels at bringing its clients fantastic old school, neotrad, and black-and-grey tattoos.

The linework on display at Icon is particularly impressive, showcasing clearly that some of the best Portland tattoo artists are working under this roof. These are tight, crisp, bold lines that consistently make the tattoo art of Icon pop and sparkle.

Minimalism is another valuable skill you can see on display at Icon. Some of the best art at this Portland tattoo shop takes a less-is-more approach to design and execution, especially where the old school tattoos are concerned, and we love it.

Grizzly Tattoo

If you’ve read this list in order so far, you’ll be wondering how the hell Portland has so many outstanding tattoo shops that do old school and neotrad so damn well. We don’t have the answer but we’re grateful either way!

Grizzly Tattoo is one of the best Portland tattoo shops when it comes to proper old school tattoo art. The artists at this Portland tattoo shop are masters of the skull, the tiger, the flame, the rose, and the snake.

These are designs as timeless as any, but the artists at Grizzly present them afresh, with originality and plenty of heart. We adore Grizzly to pieces; one of the best tattoo shops in Portland OR.

Tattoos are collected and worn proudly by lovers of cinema, anime, video games, comics, and books alike. And Literary tattoos are fast becoming a normal and celebrated niche in the tattoo world.

The Best Literary Tattoos for Bookworms

We celebrate our love of books, poetry, Shakespeare, and everything else literary in a hundred different ways and one of them, as book lovers, is by etching our favourite characters, quotes, and covers onto our skin.

Let’s take a look at eleven fantastic book tattoos, from Lord of the Rings tattoos to The Handmaid’s Tale tattoos via Alice in Wonderland and all the great literary tattoos in-between.

Alice in Wonderland Tattoo

Danny Elliott at Rebel Muse Tattoo, Texas does some bloody fantastic tattoos. 

The majority of his tattoo art depicts colourful, bold, and vibrant interpretations of characters and details from video games, comic books, and other areas of nerd fandom.

Suffice to say, if you’re in Texas and looking for a comic book tattoo or a video game tattoo, Danny is your man.

Here, he has brought to life through staggering dimensionality and depth the Cheshire Cat and the iconic ‘Drink Me’ shrinking tonic in a clever and captivating Alice in Wonderland tattoo.

Read More: The Best Magical Alice in Wonderland Tattoos

Harry Potter Tattoo

Harry Potter tattoos are, unsurprisingly, the most popular literary tattoos you’re likely to find. Harry Potter has a lively, enthusiastic, passionate, and dedicated fanbase so it stands to reason.

The Harry Potter universe also has a diverse selection of people, places, magical creatures, themes, quotes, items, and ideas that can be turned into awesome tattoo designs.

But no Harry Potter tattoo can beat this original and unique tattoo of Professor McGonagall in cat form. It’s a bright, cartoonish depiction of her in all her feline glory.

We’ve mentioned this tattoo, by Chelsea Shoneck, before and awed at it then as well. It’s a marvellous and original Harry Potter tattoo that we absolutely adore.

Read More: 8 Spellbinding Harry Potter Tattoos

His Dark Materials Tattoo

We’ve waxed poetic about Ellis Arch’s tattoos before and here she has outdone herself once again.

While it may not be to everyone’s tastes having a blade running through the head of beloved fan-favourite character Iorek Byrnison, one cannot argue with the artistry on display here.

Ellis has used traditional tattoo tropes of animal heads, knives, and blood to come up with one of the most unique and delightfully original literary tattoos in the form of this fantastic His Dark Materials tattoo.

You could go for anything when it comes to a His Dark Materials tattoo: an alethiometer, a spyglass, a hot air balloon, but why not go for a badass depiction of Iorek Byrnison, armoured and strong!

Lord of the Rings Tattoo

Konstantin Schmidt (resident artist at Verlorene Jungs in Lüneburg, Germany) does some truly astonishing tattoo art. Neotrad tattoos that pop and burst with heart and colour.

And while there are thousands of Lord of the Rings tattoos out there in the ocean of literary tattoos, unfortunately the vast majority are tacky and poorly executed.

His, however, as you can clearly see, are something truly magical and experimental.

He takes the tone and beauty of the settings – arguably the best thing about both the Lord of the Rings books and films – and transforms them into some truly breath-taking Lord of the Rings tattoos.

Game of Thrones Tattoo

Game of Thrones tattoos (or A Song of Ice and Fire tattoos, if you prefer) are excessively popular at the moment. As such, finding ones that really stand out (as opposed to being some simple script or poorly-replicated portrait of an actor) can be a real challenge!

Here, however, is an original interpretation of beloved character Arya Stark in all her murderous glory, designed and created by Cat No Name at Empty Project in Mexico City.

This most awesome of literary tattoos resembles Maisie Williams just enough to be recognisable, but also clearly takes inspiration from the books as well as being an original design by the artist.

In fact, it has a sort of chibi anime art style to it that we absolutely adore for a Game of thrones tattoo.

Edgar Allan Poe Tattoo

Would you believe us if we said that portrait tattoos of Edgar Allan Poe are surprisingly commonplace? It’s true! Poe tattoos are a favourite amongst us literary types.

And it makes sense: Poe strikes a very unique and recognisable pose.

He’s an author with a face as recognisable as Shakespeare’s.

And his gothic tone and themes make for some creative tattoo art. Here, for example, we have what might be the very best of Poe tattoos with a collage depicting Poe himself, his beloved raven, and a tarot-style moon and stars.

Esme Baker who tattoos in Guildford, UK (my old haunt, in fact), is an absolute legend in her field. Her tattoo art — black-and-grey fine line work in a gothic and woodcut style — is utterly breathtaking. And this Poe tattoo is Esme at her finest. One of our favourite literary tattoos.

Read More: The Best London Tattoo Artists

Franz Kafka Tattoo

Franz Kafka is one of the greats. He’s seen a surge in popularity recently, in the same way that Orwell and Atwood have, as the world grows weary once again of capitalism and our entire way of life seems to be one Kafkaesque joke.

And so what better time to celebrate one’s love of the depressed Czech icon than with a Kafka tattoo? It’s a challenge, of course, since our go-to image when thinking of Kafka is a large insect.

But CrocKat in Berlin has done is very proud. Her interpretation of Metamorphosis and the titular Gregor Samsa as a large insect is positively inspired, and a real treat of a Kafka tattoo.

CrocKat’s work, in general, is unique and captivating.

The Handmaid’s Tale Tattoo

The Handmaid’s Tale is perhaps one of the easier works of literature to be captured in ink, given both its iconic and striking character imagery and an iconic latin phrase adored and repeated by fans the world over.

And here, Amanda Slater (who tattoos at Lakeside Tattoo in Richmond, Virginia) has done that very but of script proud.

Tattooing a quote or piece of script can be a surprisingly creative challenge, and Slater has opted to surround the script with impressive and boldly colourful flowers.

This Nolite Te Basardes Carborundorum tattoo is a real original and beautiful representation of the iconic phrase, and makes for a striking Handmaid’s Tale tattoo.

Discworld Tattoo

Terry Pratchett’s Discworld is one of the most beloved fantasy book series’ in literary history. And many a fan has come and gone to get artistic interpretations of his work etched on their skin forever.

The majority of them, unsurprisingly, are of the Great A’Tuin – the World Turtle who carried the Discworld on its back, supported by four colossal elephants.

Many of these tattoos, however, suffer from an excess of detail that can ruin the effect. Stefanie Mader in Aschaffenburg, Germany has struck just the right balance here, though.

She has interpreted the World Turtle and adapted it into a gorgeous Discworld tattoo that’s recognisable, charming, beautifully executed, and something Sir Terry would be proud of.

Read More: A Tour of Hay-on-Way, Britain’s Book Town

Wheel of Time Tattoo

The internet is flooded with Wheel of Time tattoos, most of them depicting the fantasy book series’ iconic symbol, and almost all of them really badly done.

Not true of this stunning Wheel of Time tattoo by Vera in Seattle, WA. In fact, this is one of the most heavy and striking literary tattoos we’ve seen. What a piece of art!

The sheer size of it is impressive, but the way in which Vera has run with the design to create something with colour, vibrancy, and dimension is a real sight to see.

This is how you show your dedication to a beloved book series!

Coraline Tattoo

Of all the world’s authors, Neil Gaiman might be the one with the most dedicated and enthusiastic fanbase. As such, tattoos of his characters and quotes can be found on the skin of thousands of people the world over.

Especially his masterpiece comic book series: The Sandman. But here we have a fantastic, exquisite depiction of Coraline.

A bold, defining statement of love for a creator’s work, and an incredible piece of Coraline tattoo art by Michelle Maddison in Edinburgh, Scotland.

Books Tattoo

Our bonus tattoo isn’t from any author in particular, but rather something more general.

If you want to show your love of reading, and of books and literature in general, but you don’t want to focus on one author in particular, why not just get a tattoo of books?

It’s a difficult thing to pull off and make look good, but of all the many books tattoos we’ve seen, Marilou Legault-Mercier in Quebec, Canada has done it the best.

She has taken a stack of books, chosen the right colour scheme, moulded them perfectly to the skin, and added a few extra flourishes like the Deathly Hallows tattoo to make it something original and playful.

A fantastic way to show what books can mean to a person, and absolutely the best books tattoo we’ve seen.