7 Hidden Sides of Taito Ward to Explore on a Budget

Taito Ward is the smallest ward by size, but it’s packed with things to see and places to visit. The major notable sights in Taito (Ueno Park, Asaksua, etc.) are all worth a visit but have already been quite extensively covered. Instead, we want to take this opportunity to show how you can really immerse yourself in this area of Tokyo, at a reasonable price!

Yanaka Ginza – 谷中ぎんざ

At the bottom of the stairs you can see the Yanaka Ginza gate sign. The entire area makes for a good walk with traditional Tokyo sights. Photo: Scott Kouchi

This is a stretch of road that maintains a postwar era look and feel. It’s an open air shopping street, so there is no cover from rain/sun, but it is still a very enjoyable area to walk through and take in a calmer, more traditional side of Tokyo. You can browse a wide variety of shops, a good handful of which are used to international tourists and provide information in English. Yanaka Ginza is also known for its population of free roaming cats that can be seen napping around various storefronts or at shrines. In fact, a few of the shops in the area specialize in cat-themed goods like Neco-e-mon Cafe and Manekiya.

Sumida River Terrace – 隅田川テラス

The illuminated path along the river is a popular path for those jogging as well – especially when it’s too hot to be active outside in the summer! Photo: Scott Kouchi

Located along the Sumida River, this pedestrian promenade is a very relaxing walk with views of Tokyo Skytree. If you include both banks of the river, there’s roughly 47 km of walkable path, which means you have tons of opportunities for exploring.

Imado Shrine – 今戸神社

Manekineko (lucky cat figurine) decorate this shrine that is popular for couples to visit. Photo: Rosa Menkman via Flickr

This relatively small shrine is just a short walk away from the Sumida River near the Taito Riverside Sports Center (which while not featured in this list is also a great place to visit in Taito Ward for your fitness needs). Imado Shrine is both a shrine for cat lovers thanks to its connection with the famed manekineko (lucky cat figurine), and for love lovers as it is also associated with enmusubi (eternal bond, marriage).

Matsuchiyama Shoten – 待乳山聖天

Great alternative to Sensoji – especially if you want to stay away from crowds! Photo: Guilhem Vellut via Flickr

Just roughly 500 m away from Sensoji, Matsuchiyama is a constituent temple of Sensoji. It tends to lie just out of the spotlight though, and therefore is a very calm spot to visit compared to the lively Sensoji streets. Interestingly enough, you might see illustrations of daikon radish or even piles of the vegetables in this shrine. As stated by the temple, “The daikon represents our minds trapped in deep ignorance, emanating poison of anger, but by offering a daikon to Kangi-Ten, that poison will be purged from our body and soul.” Kangi-Ten is the divine deity that is enshrined at this temple.

The daikon imagery can be seen in the most obscure places in this temple! Photo: Guilhem Vellut via Flickr

Asakusa Cultural Tourism Center – 浅草文化観光センター

I guess technically this is a bit of a tourist destination, but since admission is free you can take advantage of the observation deck with great view of the surrounding area. The information here is presented in English as well so it’s a good place to get some info on the history of the area.

Pelican Bread/Terasawa Cake Shop

If you’re looking to patronize some local cornerstones of the community and to recharge your energy for all your walking around, there’s a lot to choose from. However for brevity of this article I’ll just introduce Pelican Bread (パンのペリカン) and Terasawa Cake Shop. Pelican Bread has been baking Japanese style shokupan since 1942. In fact, this bread is so popular that there is often lines waiting to get their hands on the freshest loaves! Check out the very simple menu on their website, here.

As its name implies, Terasawa Cake Shop tends to offer baked goods of the sweet variety. Great for the on-the-go bite when exploring Taito Ward!

Honorable mention: Sawanoya Bathhouse – 澤の屋

Because of recent conditions in Tokyo regarding COVID-19, this bathhouse/traditional inn has seen a drop in visitors. So they’ve opened their doors to those interested in using their facilities for a telework staycation! Rent a room for 3,300 yen from 9 am to 7 pm, find more info on their website here. This also allows you to use their baths, making your work day way more relaxing! This is a unique opportunity that you can take advantage of in Tokyo for the time being so I thought it would be great to highlight this local business that you can support.

If you’re interested in more information about Taito Ward, read through our Taito Ward Area Guide about it and the various neighborhoods in this section of Tokyo (Asakusa, Uguisudani, Okachimachi, Kuramae, and Ueno).


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