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Tokyo · Special ward

Chuo

中央区ちゅうおうくChūō-ku

Edo's merchant heart, from Nihonbashi to Ginza

Chuo is the special ward covering the old merchant heart of Edo east of the Imperial Palace. It includes Nihonbashi, starting point of Japan's highways and home of its oldest department stores, the luxury shopping district of Ginza, the Kabukiza theatre, the Tsukiji outer market and the island neighbourhoods of Tsukishima and Harumi on Tokyo Bay.

Overview

Chuo, 'central', lies between the Imperial Palace moats and the Sumida River on land that was largely reclaimed from Tokyo Bay in the early Edo period. It was the commercial core of Edo: merchants, wholesalers and craftsmen crowded the canals around Nihonbashi, the bridge from which the five great highways of the shogunate were measured and which remains the zero point of Japan's national roads.

The great merchant houses of Edo grew into modern corporations here. Mitsui's Echigoya drapery became the Mitsukoshi department store, the Bank of Japan stands on the site of the shogunate's gold mint, and the Tokyo Stock Exchange is in Nihonbashi Kabutocho. Ginza, named after the silver mint of 1612, was rebuilt in brick after a fire in 1872 and became Japan's showcase of Western fashion, cafés and department stores, a role it still plays with flagship stores of international brands.

Towards the bay, Tsukiji was home to the world-famous wholesale fish market until 2018; its outer market of food stalls and knife shops remains. Across the Sumida, Tsukudajima preserves a fishing-village atmosphere, while Tsukishima, Kachidoki and Harumi – built on reclaimed land from the 1890s – combine monjayaki streets with high-rise apartment towers, making Chuo one of Tokyo's fastest-growing residential wards.

Landmarks

  • Nihonbashi

    日本橋Nihonbashi

    Granite bridge of 1911 with bronze kirin and lions, marking kilometre zero of Japan's national roads; an Important Cultural Property.

  • Ginza

    銀座Ginza

    Tokyo's most prestigious shopping street, pedestrianised at weekends, with department stores, flagship boutiques and the Wako clock tower.

  • Kabukiza

    歌舞伎座Kabukiza

    Tokyo's principal kabuki theatre; the present building (2013) recreates the traditional facade in front of an office tower, and single-act tickets allow short visits.

  • Tsukiji Outer Market

    築地場外市場Tsukiji Jōgai Shijō

    Hundreds of shops and stalls selling seafood, knives, dried goods and breakfast sushi.

  • Tsukiji Hongwanji

    築地本願寺Tsukiji Hongan-ji

    Jodo Shinshu temple rebuilt in 1934 by Ito Chuta in an ancient Indian style, with a pipe organ in its main hall.

  • Hama-rikyu Gardens

    浜離宮恩賜庭園Hama-rikyū Onshi Teien

    Former shogunal garden on the bay with a tidal pond, duck-hunting blinds and a teahouse on an island.

  • Bank of Japan head office

    日本銀行本店Nippon Ginkō Honten

    Neo-Baroque stone building by Tatsuno Kingo (1896) on the site of the Edo gold mint, with a currency museum nearby.

Districts

  • Nihonbashi

    日本橋Nihonbashi

    Department stores, old shops selling knives, lacquer and dried bonito, and financial institutions.

  • Ginza

    銀座Ginza

    Luxury shopping, galleries, bars and exclusive restaurants.

  • Tsukiji

    築地Tsukiji

    The outer market, Tsukiji Hongwanji and the former market site.

  • Tsukishima and Tsukuda

    月島Tsukishima

    Monjayaki street, the old fishing quarter of Tsukudajima and high-rise apartments.

  • Ningyocho

    人形町Ningyōchō

    Old-fashioned neighbourhood of traditional restaurants and sweet shops near Suitengu Shrine.

History

Tokugawa Ieyasu ordered the hills of Kanda levelled to fill the marshes of the bay, creating the land on which Nihonbashi and Kyobashi were built. The first Nihonbashi bridge was completed in 1603. Fishermen brought from Tsukuda village in Settsu settled on an island at the mouth of the Sumida and supplied the shogun's table; their preserved fish, tsukudani, took its name from the island.

After the Meiji Restoration, Ginza's brick town, the Bank of Japan and the stock exchange made the area the centre of modern commerce. Most of it burned in the 1923 earthquake and again in 1945, and was rebuilt each time. Chuo Ward was formed in 1947 from the former Nihonbashi and Kyobashi wards. In 1964 an elevated expressway was built over Nihonbashi bridge, a much-criticised intervention in the historic townscape.

  1. 1603

    The first Nihonbashi bridge is built, becoming the starting point of the Tokaido and other highways.

  2. 1612

    The shogunate's silver mint moves to the district that takes the name Ginza.

  3. 1673

    The Mitsui family opens the Echigoya drapery, forerunner of Mitsukoshi.

  4. 1872–1877

    After a great fire, Ginza is rebuilt as a Western-style brick town.

  5. 1889

    The first Kabukiza theatre opens.

  6. 1911

    The present stone Nihonbashi bridge is completed.

  7. 1935

    The Tokyo Central Wholesale Market opens at Tsukiji.

  8. 1947

    Chuo Ward is formed from Nihonbashi and Kyobashi wards.

  9. 2018

    The wholesale market moves from Tsukiji to Toyosu in Koto Ward.

Culture

Chuo embodies the commercial culture of Edo and its modern successors: century-old shops in Nihonbashi, the Kabukiza theatre, and Ginza's galleries, cafés and department stores, where the Meiji-era fashion of strolling the street, 'Gin-bura', was born. Tsukudajima's Sumiyoshi Shrine festival and the pickle market of Takarada Ebisu Shrine keep older neighbourhood customs alive.

Festivals

  • Bettara-ichi

    べったら市Bettara-ichi

    On 19–20 October around Takarada Ebisu Shrine in Nihonbashi, a street market famous for sweet pickled daikon.

  • Tsukudajima Sumiyoshi Festival

    佃島住吉神社例大祭Tsukudajima Sumiyoshi Jinja Reitaisai

    Held in early August, with a grand version every three years in which a portable shrine is carried into the Sumida River.

  • Tsukiji Hongwanji Bon Odori

    築地本願寺納涼盆踊り大会Tsukiji Hongan-ji Nōryō Bon Odori Taikai

    Summer Bon dance in the temple courtyard, with food stalls run by market traders.

Food

  • Sushi

    寿司sushi

    From the breakfast counters of the Tsukiji outer market to Ginza's most exclusive sushi bars.

  • Monjayaki

    もんじゃ焼きmonjayaki

    Tsukishima's Monja Street has dozens of restaurants where diners cook the runny batter themselves.

  • Tsukudani

    佃煮tsukudani

    Small fish and seaweed simmered in soy and sugar, still made by old shops on Tsukudajima.

  • Anpan

    あんパンanpan

    Sweet bean-paste buns, invented at a Ginza bakery in the 1870s.

  • Ningyo-yaki

    人形焼ningyōyaki

    Small cakes with bean paste baked in figure-shaped moulds, a speciality of Ningyocho.

Getting around

  • The Yaesu side of Tokyo Station lies in Chuo Ward; Shinkansen passengers can walk to Nihonbashi and Kyobashi.
  • The Ginza, Hibiya and Marunouchi subway lines serve Ginza; the Oedo Line serves Tsukiji-shijo and Tsukishima; the Hanzomon and Tozai lines serve Nihonbashi.
  • Water buses link Hama-rikyu Gardens with Asakusa and Odaiba along the Sumida River.
  • Ginza's main street is closed to cars on weekend afternoons, and most of the ward is easily walkable.

Day trips

  • Asakusa

    By water bus up the Sumida River from Hama-rikyu.

  • Odaiba and Minato

    Across the Rainbow Bridge by the Yurikamome line, or to Tokyo Tower.

  • Imperial Palace

    A short walk west through Marunouchi.

  • Yokohama

    Port city with Chinatown and Minato Mirai, about 30 minutes by JR.

Other cities in the prefecture

CapitalShinjukuShinjuku-kuSkyscrapers, neon and the seat of Tokyo's governmentSpecial wardChiyodaChiyoda-kuThe palace, the Diet and Tokyo Station at the heart of JapanCore cityHachiojiHachiōji-shiMount Takao and the silk town at Tokyo's western edgeSpecial wardMinatoMinato-kuEmbassies, art museums and Tokyo Tower on the baySpecial wardShibuyaShibuya-kuFashion, youth culture and a forest shrine in the heart of TokyoSpecial wardTaitoTaitō-kuTemples, museums and the old shitamachi of Asakusa and Ueno

Frequently asked questions

Is the Tsukiji fish market still open?

The wholesale market moved to Toyosu in 2018, but the Tsukiji outer market, with its food stalls, restaurants and specialist shops, continues to operate.

Why is Nihonbashi important?

Since 1603 the bridge has been the starting point of Japan's main highways; distances on national roads are still measured from a marker in its centre.

Can I see kabuki without watching a whole programme?

Yes. The Kabukiza sells single-act tickets (hitomakumi) on the day, allowing visitors to watch one act of a programme.

When is Ginza's main street closed to traffic?

Chuo-dori becomes a pedestrian zone on weekend and holiday afternoons.

Related

Sources

  1. 1.中央区ホームページ (opens in a new tab) — 中央区 (Chuo City)
  2. 2.令和2年国勢調査 (opens in a new tab) — 総務省統計局 (Statistics Bureau of Japan)
  3. 3.東京都公式ホームページ (opens in a new tab) — 東京都 (Tokyo Metropolitan Government)
  4. 4.Japan National Tourism Organization (opens in a new tab) — JNTO

Editorial team · Published: