Would you like to explore the 'food capital' of Japan? This is a food-themed tour, which takes you to ①Tsukiji, the bustling fish and vegetable market, ②Ginza, the elegant shopping area where food takes on a different note, ③Asakusa, an old temple town with traditional sweets, and ④Kappabashi, the 'kitchen town', where you can make your own food replica!
This itinerary can be customized to meet your needs and preferences. Send me a message with your requests!
Meeting Point
At your central Tokyo hotel or at any station convenient for you in central Tokyo
Your central Tokyo hotel or station in central Tokyo
Pick up / meet up
Tsukiji Market
Tsukiji was the world's No.1 fish and vegetables market until 2018, when its wholesale section was moved to Toyosu. The retail section and a part of the wholesalers remained in Tsukiji, and the place is bustling with ordinary customers and professionals as before. The shelves are packed with seasonal goods of superior quality that cannot be found elsewhere and sampling them would be a good introduction to understanding our rich food culture. Ideal place to have an early lunch of sushi!
Ginza
Two stations from Tsukiji is Ginza, Tokyo's most expensive and elegant shopping district. At the basement floor of a department store, you will find an incredible array of foods at delicatessen section.
Asakusa
Asakusa is a temple town retaining an old-Edo (former Tokyo) feel. The Thunder Gate, with its iconic giant red lantern, and the Nakamise Shopping Street are the approach to the Senso-ji Temple. You can try various traditional sweets and enjoy looking at Edo-style goods sold along the street. At the Main Hall of the temple, let's pray for your safe trip!
Kappabashi
Kappabashi, the 'kitchen utensils town', lies next to Asakusa. It is an 800m street almost entirely populated with shops supplying the restaurant trade. What you cannot miss here is the elaborate replica food, a Japanese invention. They are often displayed outside restaurants to show what you should expect for what price you pay. You may have found them very helpful when no English menu is provided. And they do look very tasty, don't they? Here you can actually make wax replica yourself. You would be really surprised to know how miraculously they are made, so come on, let's try!
(If you and your group wish to try other experiences instead of food replica making, like traditional indigo dyeing, please let me know.)
Fee: replica food making - ¥3,000/person, indigo dyeing experience - ¥2,000~/person
Tawaramachi Station or Asakusa Station
End of the tour
Optional: Tokyo Skytree (Tour extension is possible with extra fee)
The tour ends here, but if the weather is fine and you are still full of energy to call it a day, the Tokyo Skytree is right in front of you, so why not extend the tour a little and see the daytime view from its observation deck gradually change into the gorgeous night view? Tokyo Skytree is the world's tallest TV tower. At the foot of the tower is Soramachi, with 300 shops and restaurants, aquarium, planetarium, etc.
You can decide on the tour extension on the day of the tour, because the visibility depends largely on the day's weather. Extra hour cost: ¥6,000 per hour / group.
Admission Fee (adult/weekday or holiday): up to Tembo Deck at 350m ¥2,100 or ¥2,300/person, up to Tembo Galleria at 450m ¥3,100 or ¥3,400/person
Ending Point
At the place of last visit or at a pre-arranged place
This tour can be customized to meet your needs and preferences. Click below to send me a message with your requests.
guide fee
hotel pick-up within central Tokyo area
transportation fee of you and guide: about ¥1,000 / person
lunch cost of you and guide (please pay the whole bill)
experience fee (please refer to the itinerary)
Please note that in case of extension of the tour, the followings will be added:
extra hour cost: ¥6600 per hour / group
entrance fee of you and guide (please refer to the itinerary)
・Tsukiji Market is closed on Sundays, most Wednesdays and on National Holidays. This TOUR WILL NOT BE HELD ON MARKET HOLIDAYS. Please contact the guide for holiday information.
・Replica food making / indigo dyeing experience requires prior reservation. Children aged 4 or older can participate in the experience. Please contact the guide before booking the tour.
・Many shops in Tsukiji do not accept credit cards, so please bring cash.
・Please inform the guide in advance of any FOOD RESTRICTIONS.
・I am basically available from Thursday through Sunday. As for Monday through Wednesday, please contact me for availability.
・Some of the experiences/visits require prior reservation. Please send a direct message to me before booking a tour.
Hello! I’m Keiko.
The memories of travels are somehow linked with foods: I absolutely agree with this. How about you? Travel and food are the two things I love, and I would be delighted to share my passion with you!
Before becoming a government licensed guide, I worked for 40 years as a bank manager. Throughout my career, I was always in contact with overseas, communicating with many people from across the world. Also, I lived in London for 3 years and went to elementary school there. Having such a background, I naturally became very much interested in cross-cultural exchange. Whenever I travel abroad, I always try to experience local culture, because it gives me a chance to encounter many interesting things.
As a guide, I wish to not only introduce the beauties and wonders of Japan, but also to take you on a first-hand experience tour of our country, especially focusing on Japanese culinary culture. It will be nice if you can take home what you experienced here and enjoy cooking Japanese dishes in your county – a lasting souvenir! My 40 years’ experience in traditional Japanese kaiseki cuisine might be helpful here.
Come and explore Tokyo with me!
Rosemary C.
Tuna Auction at Toyosu, and Tsukiji Market
Customized
“Excellent Guide”
We had a wonderful tour with Keiko. She answered many of our questions prior to the tour and was very accommodating! She knew many of the shop owners at the Tsukiji Market. Our tour was fun and informative! Thank you Keiko and Happy New Year!
Keiko O.
Rosemary-san, John-san and Ethan-san, thank you very much for your lovely comment! Pre-dawn tour is not an everyday thing for me, and I very much enjoyed doing the tour with your family. The year-end weather turned out to be quite warm, so I hope you enjoyed the rest of your stay in Tokyo, too. Last but not least, thank you so much for the nice present you have brought for me - I love See's chocolate!
Susan B.
Full day tour of old and new Tokyo (Tsukiji, Akihabara and Asakusa)
Customized
“A great introduction to Tokyo with Keiko”
Keiko was very helpful and listened carefully to what we wanted from the tour. She met us in the hotel reception. Keiko was very informative, her knowledge was very good. We enjoyed a lovely first day ever in Tokyo and felt we had a wonderful introduction. Thank you Keiko!
Keiko O.
Susan-san, Paul-san, thank you very much for your wonderful comments! I hope I was able to fully introduce to you the various aspects of Tokyo. Since we have so many interesting places, I hope you will come back and continue exploring this megacity sometime in the not-too-distant future.
“Wonderful day with Keiko”
Keiko showed us around the fish market and the Imperial garden. She knew the history of both and shared a lot of interesting facts. We had the opportunity to try many new dishes. The garden was beautiful and she knew a lot about the design of the original palace. We had a great day with Keiko!
Keiko O.
Julie-san, thank you very much for your wonderful comments! It was indeed my pleasure to show you around the market and the garden, two of my favorite places, and I am glad to know that you have enjoyed both of them. Japan has a rich and diverse food culture. I hope you will try various things and encounter new delicious tastes during your stay in Japan.
$297/ per group