Are you looking for what to do or visit in Tokyo? A must-see is the Tsukiji Outer Market! I explain how to get there as cheaply as possible
After telling you about my week-long volunteering in Japan on an organic farm near Himeji, today I would like to share with you a must-see in Tokyo!
Tsukiji Outer Market !This huge market located on the outskirts of Tokyo is one of the must-see things to see in Tokyo in absolutely every tourist guide… And I totally understand why!
Tsukiji Outer Market… What?! No, but what is this thing?!
Just imagine a huge market, the largest in the world for fish and seafood.
Add to the scene tuna steaks weighing more than 100 kilos, hundreds of Japanese people shouting and bargaining and thousands of visitors tasting with different fish specialties. Finally, sprinkle everything with a good dose of scenery and you get… Tsukiji market!
Every day, thousands of sellers and buyers come to try to do business in this incredible fish market. In total, nearly 500 species from all over the world can be purchased there. Among them, we find – unfortunately – bluefin tuna, an endangered and protected species which is one of the most coveted fish in Japan… And also the most expensive. At the Tsukiji market, it is not uncommon to talk in tens of thousands of euros!
Why visit Tsukiji Market?
I have never been particularly passionate about fish (apart from sushi which you can find for 35 cents each on the market, a bargain!), but visiting the Tsukiji market made me subsequently transported to another world.
Seeing all these people bustling and screaming to buy and sell fish, admiring the huge stalls covered with numerous species, tasting the different specialties… It’s difficult to find a more authentic and typical experience to live in Japan. We might as well tell you that at the Tsukiji market, the immersion is total and absolute.
How to prepare for your visit?
The other side of the coin is that with its success, the Tsukiji market is becoming more and more difficult to access. So much so that after 5 a.m., you risk having to turn back. What I advise you is to arrive around 4 a.m. in order to get a good ticket for the auction which starts at 5:25 a.m. What we call “ticket” on the market are simply jackets of different colors that allow you to access the auction and be more or less well placed.
How to get to Tsukiji Market?
As I just told you, you will need to arrive there around 4 a.m. The problem? Public transport (buses and trains) does not operate at this time.
You will therefore have to take a taxi from your hotel in Tokyo or go to the area around the market the day before your visit to sleep in a hotel on site.
The problem is that both of these solutions turn out to be quite expensive. If you are a “warrior”, you always have the possibility of taking the last train and staying up all night by going to regularly drink coffee at Jonathan’s Family Restaurant, a restaurant which has the particularity of being open 24 hours a day, by going karaoke or bar hopping and meeting the locals.
But let’s be honest… You might not feel very fit the next day to visit the market. If you neither want to break the bank, nor want to exhaust yourself… There is one last solution.
The solution to easily visit Tsukiji market: Manga cafe!
For those of you who have never been to a Manga café (that was the case for me), know that the name is quite misleading. Yes, it’s a place where you can read manga, but about 80% of the people who come there don’t touch comics. I binge-watched 3 volumes of Detective Conan before falling asleep around 1am. Apart from me, no one touched a manga all evening.
WHAT TO DO IN A MANGA CAFÉ?
Most people sleep (especially at night). The others surf the net and some, more rare, read comics.
When you enter Com Com Manga Cafe, you must choose a “package” (how long you stay) and a “room”. The three options for the “room” are:
- “Mat”, a thin mattress (like those for gym) with a computer
- “Chair and Computer”, a reclining chair and a computer
- “Reclining chair”, a reclining chair with a footrest
I inquired in advance and opted for the 3 hour formula.
Here is a list of prices (1 euro = approximately 136 yen):
- 30 minutes = 250 yen
- 3 hours (between 6 a.m. and 5 p.m.) = 500 yen
- 3 hours (5 p.m. to 6 a.m.) = 980 yen
- 7 hours = 1500 yen
- Extra time (if you sleep more than expected) = 100 yen for 15 minutes
WHAT DO THE ROOMS OF A MANGA CAFÉ LOOK LIKE?
They were simply wooden cabins, except that the wood was fake wood and the doors were just thin curtains. In no case are the “rooms” soundproofed. I realized it when my neighbor started snoring like a man in agony.
Bring your passport/ID card, a night mask, earplugs and an alarm clock.
WHY COM COM MANGA CAFE?
Com Com Manga Cafe is just a 5-minute walk from Tsukiji Fish Market and 10 minutes from the Tuna Auction. If you take the last train to Com Com Manga Cafe (Ginza station), you can buy a 3-hour pass and arrive at Tsukiji market early enough to get a good ticket.
To summarize, Com Com Manga Cafe is the cheapest place to spend a night close to the market and be able to enjoy this unique place to the fullest!
