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…
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…
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…
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,…
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…
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…
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…
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…
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…
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…
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…
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…
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,…
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…
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…
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…
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…
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…
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…
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…
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,…
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…
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…
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…
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…
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…
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…
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…
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…
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…
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…
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…
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.
