Akabane Area Guide

Contents

• Location
• Key Stats
• Orientation Around the Station
• Livability
• Useful Info at a Glance
• Akabane Apartments

Location

Akabane is a neighborhood in Kita Ward, Tokyo. With a mix of JR train lines stopping at this station, it’s popular with those commuting to downtown Tokyo. The Arakawa River making up the northern border of Kita Ward is actually also the city limit of Tokyo, further north of Akabane is Kawaguchi, Saitama. To the south is Oji, another similar neighborhood in Kita Ward. Moving west from Akabane will bring you to Itabashi Ward. And if you cross the Arakawa River to the east you’ll end up in Adachi Ward.

Key Stats

Average Rent in Akabane

Apartments For Rent in Akabane

Train Lines

JR/Subway/Other	Line
JR East	Keihin-Tohoku
JR East	Saikyo
JR East	Shonan-Shinjuku
JR East	Takasaki
JR East	Utsunomiya
JR East	Akagi
JR East	Ueno-Tokyo

Accessibility

Orientation Around the Station

Akabane is a fairly large station, with 8 platforms to access the variety of train lines that make a stop here. Luckily, the station has a straightforward, easy-to-follow design. Just keep in mind which ticket gates you are exiting from. The descriptions below are for exiting the north ticket gate (北改札口), but there’s only about 70 m difference between this and the south ticket gate (南改札口) so it’s not a huge issue if you exit from the wrong ticket gate.

• The East Exit (東口) opens up into a small plaza with a few artistic sculptures that are surrounded with seating if you need to wait for a friend. Upon exiting from this side, you’ll see bus stops to the left and a taxi loading/unloading roundabout to the right. Moving further east, away from the station, you’ll run into Akabane Park and Akabane Hall (multipurpose event space for community gatherings).
• Similarly, the West Exit (西口) opens to a bus stop and taxi stand. There are fewer seating options on this side, however, straight across from the station is the Bivio shopping mall. Also on the west side of the station are Ito Yokado and Apire (shopping mall).

Livability

The east area of Akabane retains a lot of the postwar era look and feel. A surprising number of restaurants and bars are packed into some of the narrow streets here, making it pretty popular with salarymen who want to grab a quick drink on the way home from a day at the office.

West of Akabane Station is home to a few shopping malls, which give the area a more modern atmosphere. All things considered, Akabane is similar to a slightly smaller-scale Ikebukuro or Ueno. Similar to the aforementioned, Akabane is a major hub station with nearby shopping malls and restaurants.

Akabane Station was given a recent facelift in 2011, when the ecute shopping area inside the station was completed. This, along with other recent attempts to reshape Akabane into a more attractive and youthful neighborhood, is slowly changing the minds of Tokyoites when it comes to Akabane’s reputation.

In postwar Tokyo, the area just east of Akabane Station was a red-light district and well-known for its streets lined with izakaya (Japanese style bar). Some sections of the area retain a bit of a seedy atmosphere, and it would be advisable to stay away from these streets at night (around the Ichibangai Shopping Street). But still, the area has cleaned up quite a bit in the past ten years or so according to what some residents have to say.

Akabane is also home to a sizable immigrant population – communities of Korean, Chinese, and Filipino residents make their home in Akabane’s neighborhoods. Part of this is correlated to the affordable housing offered through the UR housing complexes nearby. This isn’t a criticism of the area, but it’s a fair statement to make in order to help apartment hunters have a full understanding of Akabane.

Akabane’s geographical location between Tokyo and neighborhoods in Saitama makes it a busy commuting hub. This is both a benefit and a disadvantage at times; residents can reap the advantages of quick transportation into Tokyo, but rush hour at this station can be a grueling slog. That being said, rush hour anywhere in Tokyo is an unpleasant affair.

Useful Info at a Glance

Supermarkets

*This is just a selection of supermarkets in the area.

Gyms

*These are just examples of gyms available in the area.

Universities

Ward Office, Police, Library

Hospitals

*These are examples of clinics in the area.

Parks

Family-Friendly Features

Department Stores

Akabane Apartments

Apartments for rent near Akabane Station:

• Kita-Akabane Station apartments
• Akabane-Iwawbuchi Station apartments
• Shimo Station apartments
• Shimura-Sakaue Station apartments
• Motohasunuma Station apartments
• Jujo Station apartments
• Higashi-Jujo Station apartments

A wide range of apartments can be found in Akabane. It’s difficult to say in particular that Akabane caters to any particular type of apartment seeker. For example, a 1R studio apartment in Akabane can be rented for as low as ¥58,000 per month. And more recently built apartments can be found for around ¥85,000 per month.

Apartments For Rent in Akabane

Where should you live in Tokyo? Check out all our Tokyo Area Guides to find the perfect place!

Dive Deeper

• Kita Ward is literally “North Ward,” located on Tokyo’s northern border with Saitama Prefecture. Major residential neighborhoods in Kita, like Jujo, Akabane, and Oji are very convenient residential and transport hubs. Its many green spaces and lower than average cost-of-living make it quite family friendly. Overall, Kita is known for being working class and traditional, but the opening of the Lycée Français International de Tokyo (French International School) in Takinogawa has raised the international profile of Kita. Read the in-depth guide to Kita Ward here!

Lead photo: Akabane Station West Exit, via iStock 1203311159 credit: ranmaru_