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Awesome Things to Do In Japan: Most Popular Spots in Ueno! (March 2020 Ranking)

Awesome Things to Do In Japan: Most Popular Spots in Ueno! (March 2020 Ranking)

Date published: 20 April 2020

These are the top recommendations for Ueno, with travel tips and more, according to LIVE JAPAN, a top-class travel website for visitors to Japan. Our ranking is based on the most popular pages viewed by foreign visitors in a given category.

For instance, Niki no Kashi in Ameyoko (The first Store), Incense, Incense Burners Specialty Store kohgen, Yushima Tenman-gu (Yushima Tenjin) and other related spots will be listed. Be sure to check them out during your visit to Ueno!

1.Niki no Kashi in Ameyoko (The first Store)

1.Niki no Kashi in Ameyoko (The first Store)

Niki no Kashi has been a vendor and wholesale distributor of candy and snacks in the Ameyoko shopping district of Ueno since 1947, and this location is Niki no Kashi’s first candy and snacks shop.
The store at this location has a price system where you can buy just one item and still get a good price, while there is also the option of making bulk purchases to get a greater discount if you buy the minimum fixed quantity.
The 1st and 2nd floors are stacked with an impressive array of candy and snacks, and also region-specific snacks such as Kit Kats from different regions throughout Japan can all be bought in this one spot.
Souvenirs, including favorites such as Kororo, Umaibo, Oyatsu Calpas, Cheese Oyatsu, etc. are fully stocked and many other products, like wasabi and green tea flavored snacks and gift items are available as well.
The product selection changes from season to season, and new products that are popular in Japan on any given day can be found right here.

2.Incense, Incense Burners Specialty Store kohgen

2.Incense, Incense Burners Specialty Store kohgen

Our Kohgen Tokyo Ueno Sakuragi store is one of Japan's leading incense speciality stores, with more than 5000 products including incense, fragrant wood, rosaries and bracelets.

Including our original incense, we also stock products from incense manufacturers from all over Japan. Not all incense shops can test the scent.But in our store you can try the scent of your interest for free.
Why don't you find while enjoying your favorite fragrances such as traditional Japanese scents, flowers, and Western scents?As an incense concierge, we will assist you in choosing your fragrance.
In addition, we have an Incense Museum on the 2nd floor, where perfumed pillows from the Edo period and collections of rare incense goods are on display. We also have educational spaces where you can experience Japanese incense culture, such as a corner where you can test the ingredients of incense.
We're looking forward to your visit.

  • Incense, Incense Burners Specialty Store kohgen
    Goods
    • Address 1-10-16 Uenosakuragi, Taito-ku, Tokyo, 110-0002
      View Map
    • Nearest Station Ueno Station (Hokkaido Shinkansen Line / Tohoku Shinkansen Line / Akita Shinkansen Line / Yamagata Shinkansen Line / Joetsu Shinkansen Line / Hokuriku Shinkansen Line / JR Keihin-Tohoku Line / JR Yamanote Line / JR Tohoku Main Line / JR Utsunomiya Line / JR Takasaki Line / JR Joban Line / JR Ueno Tokyo Line / Tokyo Metro Ginza Line / Tokyo Metro Hibiya Line)
      14 minutes on foot
    • Phone Number 03-3827-6666

3.Yushima Tenman-gu (Yushima Tenjin)

3.Yushima Tenman-gu (Yushima Tenjin)

Yushima Tenjin Shrine is said to have been constructed in 458 by the Imperial order of Emperor Yuryaku. The official name is Yushima Tenmangu Shrine. This shrine was originally established to worship Ameno-tajikaraono-mikoto, one of deities that appears in the Japanese myths. But later, the spirit of Michizane Sugawara, a historical great politician, was also enshrined to venerate his extraordinary virtue and performances as a scholar. Since then scholars and writers have worshiped the shrine. Today many people, especially students visit the shrine to pray Michizane Sugawara. About the shrine pavilions, the Honden (main) building is connected with the Haiden hall where people pray. They were built with 250 year old Kiso cypress trees according to the tradition of shrine architecture. The precincts were selected by a famous Japanese ukiyo-e artist in the Edo era, Hiroshige Utagawa as a subject for his One Hundred Famous Views of Edo and were very popular as a recreation area for local Edo people. Plum trees were Michizane Sugawara’s favorite and approximately 300 plum trees are planted here and in the peak of blossoming, February, the shrine receives a lot of visitors. You can also see a large bronze statue of a cow, a typical feature of a Tenjin shrine known as a nade-ushi (stroking cow) as well as mikoshi portable shrine and artifacts in the museum. A two-minute walk from the Exit 3 of Yushima Station on the Subway Chiyoda Line.

4.Ueno Park

4.Ueno Park

Ueno-onshi-koen, or the Ueno Park, is one of the most famous cherry blossom viewing sites in Japan, and there are about 1,200 cherry trees in the park. Every spring, when the cherry blossoms bloom, nearly 2 million people visit the park for hanami, or cherry blossom viewing (a custom in which food and alcohol are enjoyed under blooming cherry trees). In the evening, bonbori (paper lanterns) are lit, and the cherry blossoms look fantastic as they appear in the soft illumination of the paper lanterns. There are various festivals held in the summer such as enthusiastic performances by various artists, music concerts on the outdoor stage, and a bon-dance festival. (Bon is a religious observation.) A beautiful autumn foliage can also be viewed, and it attracts many visitors who want to experience a tasteful walk. In winter, there is an exhibition of beautiful peonies at the Ueno Toshogu Shrine, which is situated within the park. Peonies are some of the auspicious flowers celebrating a new year. Also, a zoo, a museum, and an art gallery are placed within the park premises, so the premises is widely known as bunka-no-mori (translated as the forest of culture). It is a two-minute walk from the Ueno Station on the JR (Japan Railways), the Tokyo Metro Ginza Line, or the Hibiya Line.

  • Ueno Park
    • Address Uenokouen, Taitou-ku, Tokyo, 110-0007
      View Map
    • Nearest Station Ueno Station (Hokkaido Shinkansen Line / Tohoku Shinkansen Line / Akita Shinkansen Line / Yamagata Shinkansen Line / Joetsu Shinkansen Line / Hokuriku Shinkansen Line / JR Keihin-Tohoku Line / JR Yamanote Line / JR Tohoku Main Line / JR Utsunomiya Line / JR Takasaki Line / JR Joban Line / JR Ueno Tokyo Line / Tokyo Metro Ginza Line / Tokyo Metro Hibiya Line)
      1 minute on foot
    • Phone Number 03-3828-5644

5.Yanaka Ginza Shopping Street

5.Yanaka Ginza Shopping Street

Yanaka Ginza Shopping District is a local shopping street in downtown Tokyo that retains the good old shitamachi atmosphere. The friendly service, the close rapport between staff and the customer, and the human warmth keep customers coming back. This district is located in an area called Yanesen, which is the connected areas of Yanaka, Nezu and Sendagi. It is so popular that many people come from afar, especially on weekends. There are 70 stores along the 170-meter-long street, mainly older private shops. Not only locals but tourists as well can enjoy traditional Japanese sweets, cakes, crafts, take-out dishes, cafes and so on. Enjoy a stroll along this pleasant street with its charming awnings, signboards and cat-motif street furniture. A five- minute walk from Nippori Station on the JR Yamanote Line, Jouban Line, Keisei Line and Toei Toneri Line.

6.Nezu Shrine

6.Nezu Shrine

The ”Nezu Shrine” was built in Gongen-zukuri in 1706. All the buildings from the main hall to the hall of offerings, the hall of worship, the Karamon (a type of gate seen in Japanese architecture), the Nishi-mon (west gate), the Sukibei (lattice-windowed wall) and the two-storied gate still exist today, and they have been designated as National Important Cultural Property. Its history traces back 1900 years ago, when the shrine was (allegedly) established by Yamato Takeru where Sendagi exists now. During the Bunmei era (1469 - 1486) the main building of the shrine was established by Ota Dokan (1432 - 1486) and during the Edo period (1600/1603 - 1868) Tokugawa Tsunayoshi (1646 - 1709) - the fifth shogun - established the main building of the current shrine which he then relocated from Sendagi where the old shrine existed to its current location, also in Sendagi. Also, on the premises is a 6,600 square-meter azalea garden where about 3,000 azaleas of 100 different types bloom in Late Apli (depending on the climate of the year). During this period, street stalls such as Amazake-chaya (traditional Japanese teahouse famous for its Amazake: a traditional Japanese (alcoholic and non-alcoholic available) drink made from fermented rice) and Ueki-ichi (flower market) are lined up at the premises. It is a 5-minute walk from ”Nezu” Station and ”Sendagi” Station of the Metro Chiyoda Line and ”Todaimae” Station of the Metro Namboku Line.

7.World currency shop atre' Ueno

7.World currency shop atre' Ueno

World Currency Shop (WCS) is a foreign currency exchange shop operated by one of Japan’s megabanks, the Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group (MUFG). Rest assured, our rates are the same as those ofMUFG Bank. Our services are quick and easy-to-use. Please see our website for more detailed information on the WCS and rates.

  • World currency shop atre' Ueno
    World currency shop atre' Ueno
    ワールドカレンシーショップ アトレ上野店
    • Address Atré Ueno EAST 2F, 7-1-1 Ueno, Taito-ku, Tokyo, 110-0005
    • Nearest Station Ueno Station (Hokkaido Shinkansen Line / Tohoku Shinkansen Line / Akita Shinkansen Line / Yamagata Shinkansen Line / Joetsu Shinkansen Line / Hokuriku Shinkansen Line / JR Keihin-Tohoku Line / JR Yamanote Line / JR Tohoku Main Line / JR Utsunomiya Line / JR Takasaki Line / JR Joban Line / JR Ueno Tokyo Line / Tokyo Metro Ginza Line / Tokyo Metro Hibiya Line)
      2 minutes on foot
    • Phone Number 03-5826-5771

8.Ueno Toshogu

8.Ueno Toshogu

Located in Ueno Park, Ueno Toshogu Shrine is a cultural property of significant value. It was built in 1627 as a shinto shrine enshrining Tokugawa Ieyasu, the founder of the Tokugawa shogunate. Later in 1651, the third shogun Iemitsu ordered massive scale reconstruction. Its main hall was richly decorated with gold foils, which eventually gave the nickname of the ”shrine of gold”. In the shrine precinct you can enjoy viewing the essence of the every season such as peonies and cherry blossoms in spring colored leaves in Autumn. Any time of the year the shrine is filled with people who pray for their academic achievement and better luck. The shrine is also a popular tourist attraction for overseas visitors because it is the place to see a genuine Edo/Tokyo style building right in the middle of Tokyo. It is only a five-minute walk away from Ueno Station on the Yamanote Line, Keisei Line and Tokyo Metro Line.

  • Ueno Toshogu
    • Address 9-88, Uenokouen, Taitou-ku, Tokyo, 110-0007
      View Map
    • Nearest Station Ueno Station (Hokkaido Shinkansen Line / Tohoku Shinkansen Line / Akita Shinkansen Line / Yamagata Shinkansen Line / Joetsu Shinkansen Line / Hokuriku Shinkansen Line / JR Keihin-Tohoku Line / JR Yamanote Line / JR Tohoku Main Line / JR Utsunomiya Line / JR Takasaki Line / JR Joban Line / JR Ueno Tokyo Line / Tokyo Metro Ginza Line / Tokyo Metro Hibiya Line)
      5 minutes on foot
    • Phone Number 03-3822-3455

9.Fukumitsuya Okachimachi Shop/Gashapon Yokocho

9.Fukumitsuya Okachimachi Shop/Gashapon Yokocho

The Gashapon Yokocho / Fukumitsuya Okachimachi store opened in Ueno in October 2018 as a souvenir store with a capsule toy vending machine.We have more than 250 types of capsule toys. The second floor has Japanese themes and the third floor has the theme of characters, and from the third floor it is also popular as a view spot where you can enjoy a spectacular panoramic view of Tokudaiji Temple.

  • Fukumitsuya Okachimachi Shop/Gashapon Yokocho
    Fukumitsuya Okachimachi Shop/Gashapon Yokocho
    福光屋 御徒町店・ガシャポン横丁
    Has Health & Safety Measures
    • Address MYS Okachimachi 1-3F, 4-1-7 Ueno, Taito-ku, Tokyo, 110-0005
    • Nearest Station Okachimachi Station (JR Keihin-Tohoku Line / JR Yamanote Line)
      3 minutes on foot
    • Phone Number 070-3830-2580

10.Ameyoko Shopping Street

10.Ameyoko Shopping Street

The Ameyayokocho shotengai(shopping street) is located between JR Okachimachi Station and JR Ueno Station. It is a lively market with the charming atmosphere of historic downtown Tokyo and is visited by many shoppers every day. In addition to the well-known fish and crab, there is a wide variety of shops selling everything from clothing to Asian food, as well as food stalls. Looking back at its history, it is said to have grown out of a black market that sprung up in the years following the end of World War II. Initially, when sweets were valuable, many shops sold sweet potato candies and candies called amedama, but once the Korean War started in 1950, many shops began selling articles procured from the American military forces and the Market gradually changed from a black market to a shopping district. Because it was selling imported goods, it began to be called Ameyoko, which is a combination of ”Ameya-yokocho” (candy store lane) and ”Amerika-yokocho” (America lane). Even today, there is an ”Ameya-yokocho” sign on the Ueno side where many food stores are, and an ”Ameyoko” sign on the Okachimachi side, where many import stores are. It is well-known as a market full of shoppers buying fresh food at the end of the year to prepare for the New Year. It is a short walk from the central exit of JR Ueno Station.

  • Ameyoko Shopping Street
    • Address 4, Ueno, Taitou-ku, Tokyo, 110-0005
      View Map
    • Nearest Station Ueno Station (Hokkaido Shinkansen Line / Tohoku Shinkansen Line / Akita Shinkansen Line / Yamagata Shinkansen Line / Joetsu Shinkansen Line / Hokuriku Shinkansen Line / JR Keihin-Tohoku Line / JR Yamanote Line / JR Tohoku Main Line / JR Utsunomiya Line / JR Takasaki Line / JR Joban Line / JR Ueno Tokyo Line / Tokyo Metro Ginza Line / Tokyo Metro Hibiya Line)
      1 minute on foot
    • Phone Number 03-3832-5053
*This information is from the time of this article's publication.
*Prices and options mentioned are subject to change.
*Unless stated otherwise, all prices include tax.

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