Ueno & Yanesen
If you visit only one museum in Tokyo, make it the Tokyo National Museum. Here you'll find the world's largest collection of Japanese art, including…
Must-see attractions in Ueno & Yanesen
Ueno & Yanesen
Considered by many to be Tokyo's most elegant garden, Rikugi-en was originally completed in 1702, at the behest of a feudal lord. It is definitely the…
Asakura Museum of Sculpture, Taitō
Ueno & Yanesen
Sculptor Asakura Fumio (artist name Chōso; 1883–1964) built his home studio in the early 20th century and it's very much representative of architecture of…
Ueno & Yanesen
Best known for its profusion of cherry trees that burst into blossom in spring (making this one of Tokyo's top hanami – blossom-viewing – spots),…
Ueno & Yanesen
Japan’s oldest zoo, established in 1882, is home to animals from around the globe, but the biggest attractions are the giant pandas from China, Rī Rī and…
Ueno & Yanesen
One of Tokyo's few remaining open-air markets, Ameya-yokochō got its start as a black market, post-WWII, when American goods (which included ameya – candy…
Ueno & Yanesen
Yanaka Ginza is pure, vintage mid-20th-century Tokyo, a pedestrian street lined with butcher shops, vegetable vendors and the like. Most Tokyo…
Ueno & Yanesen
One of Tokyo’s largest graveyards, Yanaka-reien is the final resting place of more than 7000 souls, many of whom were quite well known in their day. It’s…
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Ueno & Yanesen
Tokyo University (commonly called Tōdai) was founded in 1877 and is Japan's top university. The attractive and leafy campus occupies what was once the…
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Ueno & Yanesen
This grand residence offers a Western-style mansion designed by Josiah Conder in 1896, connected to a Japanese house built by Ōkawa Kijuro at the same…
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Ueno & Yanesen
Not only is this one of Japan's oldest shrines, it is also among the most beautiful – a tough call in a district packed with attractive, historic…
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Ueno & Yanesen
Kuroda Seiki (1866–1924) is considered the father of modern Western-style painting in Japan. This 1928-vintage hall, an annex to Tokyo National Museum,…
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Ueno & Yanesen
A key feature of Ueno-kōen is this large, natural pond, much of which is completely covered with giant lotuses that bloom in summer. Go bird- and botany…
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Ueno & Yanesen
This shrine honours Tokugawa Ieyasu, the warlord who unified Japan; it's the (much smaller) Tokyo counterpart to Nikkō's grand Tōshō-gū. Resplendent in…
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Ueno & Yanesen
This enchanting gallery, part of the Tokyo National Museum, displays masks, metalwork and sculptures from the temple Hōryū-ji (in Nara Prefecture, dating…
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International Library of Children's Literature
Ueno & Yanesen
Occupying a handsome brick-clad building dating from 1906, this branch of the National Diet Library stores hundreds of thousands of volumes including…
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National Museum of Nature & Science
Ueno & Yanesen
The Japan Gallery here showcases the rich and varied wildlife of the Japanese archipelago, from the bears of Hokkaidō to the giant beetles of Okinawa…
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National Museum of Western Art
Ueno & Yanesen
The permanent collection here runs from medieval Madonna-and-child images to 20th-century abstract expressionism, but is strongest in French impressionism…
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Ueno & Yanesen
Part of the Tokyo National Museum, this building houses the Japanese Archaeological Gallery, full of pottery, talismans and articles of daily life from…
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Tokyo Metropolitan Museum of Art
Ueno & Yanesen
This museum hosts blockbuster shows with art on loan from local and international museums (such as New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art); you could be…
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Ueno & Yanesen
Take a stroll down the causeway leading to the island on which Benten-dō stands. The temple is dedicated to Benzaiten, the Buddhist goddess of the arts,…
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Ueno & Yanesen
Looking like something straight from a woodblock print, this gorgeous pocket park is worth the stroll from the Sendagi end of Yanaka to view its brilliant…
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Ueno & Yanesen
Kiyōmizu Kannon-dō is one of Tokyo's oldest structures: established in 1631 and in its present position since 1694, it has survived every disaster that…
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Ueno & Yanesen
Part of the Tokyo National Museum, the three-storey Gallery of Asian Art focuses on pieces from across the region, including delicate Chinese ceramics and…
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Ueno & Yanesen
This Inari shrine inside Ueno-kōen is most noteworthy for its photogenic succession of torii gates, which form a vermilion tunnel. This feature is typical…
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Ueno & Yanesen
In the 14th century, the spirit of a renowned scholar was enshrined here, leading to the shrine's current popularity: it receives countless students who…
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Ueno & Yanesen
Tokyo University of the Arts, commonly known as Geidai, is Japan's top art school. Its collection dates back to 1887 and includes over 28,000 items, a…
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Ueno & Yanesen
Early-20th-century artist Yokoyama Taikan was one of the masters of modern nihonga (Japanese-style painting). Inside his former residence, a traditional…
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Ueno & Yanesen
During the Tokugawa reign, Kanei-ji was a powerful temple – its grounds once covered all of what is now Ueno-kōen (its pagoda is inside Ueno Zoo). With…
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Ueno & Yanesen
West of the main gate to Tokyo National Museum is the Kuro-mon (Black Gate), transported from the Edo-era mansion of a feudal lord. You can view the…
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Ueno & Yanesen
This 200-year-old bathhouse is now an avant-garde gallery, showcasing Japanese and international artists: the vaulted space just as suited for…
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Ueno & Yanesen
The 'red gate' is the most famous of the several entrances to Tokyo University (commonly known as Tōdai). The attractive and leafy campus occupies what…
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Ueno & Yanesen
Near the southern entrance to Ueno-kōen is this unconventional statue of a samurai walking his dog. Saigō Takamori started out supporting the Meiji…
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Ueno & Yanesen
This Yanaka temple is known for its part in the story of the 47 ronin (masterless samurai). It was here that they plotted to avenge their master (the…
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Ueno & Yanesen
This small museum recreates life in the plebeian quarters of Tokyo during the Meiji and Taishō periods (1868–1926), before the city was twice destroyed by…
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Ueno & Yanesen
Before the 1860s, only samurai lords could see these fascinating clocks, called wadokei, that tell time according to variable hours named after animals of…
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Ueno & Yanesen
Literally the ‘Sunset Stairs’, these stone steps lead down to the classic mid-20th-century shopping street Yanaka Ginza. They are so called because you…
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Ueno & Yanesen
One of Yanaka's many ambient temples, this is home to an ancient chinquapin tree that's been designated a national monument. Ask someone from the temple…
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Ueno & Yanesen
This Nichiren-sect temple, on the edge of Yanaka-reien, is noteworthy for its minimalist, modern gate and its centuries-old big bronze Buddha statue.
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Ueno & Yanesen
This century-old liquor shop (which operated until 1986) has been returned to its original state, but as a museum of bygone Tokyo, with old sake barrels,…
