heritagearchitecture

Nihonbashi: the old merchant city

The bridge that is kilometre zero, the lions on the store steps, and the shops that outlived the shoguns.

Photo: Sitao Xiang / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0

Drafted by Claude — the editor hasn’t walked this one yet. We’ll update this notice once it’s been verified on the ground.

Distance

2.6 km

Time

~ 70 min

Difficulty

Easy

Start

Mitsukoshimae (Metro)

End

Nihombashi (Metro)

Best at

morning

Right now

30°C· Partly cloudy

Open in Maps for turn-by-turn, or take it offline as GPX.

Nihonbashi is where Edo did business, and four hundred years on it still does — the oldest department store in Japan, a seaweed shop trading since 1849, a paper merchant since 1653, and the bridge that every road in the country measures itself from. Two and a half kilometres, best in the morning when the old shops open and the towers haven't filled.

Start at the Mitsukoshi flagship, descended from a 1673 kimono shop, two bronze lions on its steps. Across to Coredo Muromachi, glass towers with an arcade of old trades at the foot — knives, dried fish, sake. Then the small survivors: Yamamoto Nori, selling nori on the same corner since 1849, where the sushi shops buy theirs.

The bridge is the heart of it. The 1911 stone arch carries the marker for kilometre zero — every national road begins here — and has carried the expressway on its shoulders since the 1960s. A plan to bury the road is finally moving; see it under concrete while you still can.

End at Ozu Washi, a paper house since 1653, and the Bank of Japan, Tatsuno Kingo's 1896 stone pile, before Nihombashi station.

The route

On the map.

A soft dashed line, numbered stops. It’s a suggestion, not a turn-by-turn.

Elevation

↑ 56 m·↓ 52 m·10–34 m ASL

Stops along the way

Things to notice.

01
1
Mitsukoshi flagship and the lions
Start at the head office of Mitsukoshi, Japan's oldest department store, descended from a 1673 kimono shop. Two bronze lions guard the main steps — modelled on the ones in Trafalgar Square, cast in 1914, the agreed meeting spot for generations. The atrium hall inside is worth a look up.
01
Mitsukoshi flagship and the lions
Start at the head office of Mitsukoshi, Japan's oldest department store, descended from a 1673 kimono shop. Two bronze lions guard the main steps — modelled on the ones in Trafalgar Square, cast in 1914, the agreed meeting spot for generations. The atrium hall inside is worth a look up.
02
2
Coredo Muromachi
Across the street, the newer Muromachi blocks — glass towers with an old-trades arcade at the base: knife shops, dried-fish merchants, a sake stand. The contrast is the point. Old *Nihonbashi* sold things; new Nihonbashi sells the idea of having sold things, and does it well.
02
Coredo Muromachi
Across the street, the newer Muromachi blocks — glass towers with an old-trades arcade at the base: knife shops, dried-fish merchants, a sake stand. The contrast is the point. Old *Nihonbashi* sold things; new Nihonbashi sells the idea of having sold things, and does it well.
03
3
Yamamoto Nori-ten
A seaweed merchant on the corner, trading *nori* since 1849 from the same spot. *Nori* is the dried sheet seaweed; this is where the city's sushi shops buy theirs. Buy a tin even if you don't cook — the packaging alone is a souvenir of old commerce.
03
Yamamoto Nori-ten
A seaweed merchant on the corner, trading *nori* since 1849 from the same spot. *Nori* is the dried sheet seaweed; this is where the city's sushi shops buy theirs. Buy a tin even if you don't cook — the packaging alone is a souvenir of old commerce.
04
4
Nihonbashi bridge
The bridge itself — the 1911 stone arch with its bronze *kirin* and lions, and the marker that makes it kilometre zero for every national road in Japan. The expressway was thrown over it in the 1960s and has shadowed it since; a plan to bury the road and free the sky is finally underway. Read the bridge while you still have to read it under concrete.
04
Nihonbashi bridge
The bridge itself — the 1911 stone arch with its bronze *kirin* and lions, and the marker that makes it kilometre zero for every national road in Japan. The expressway was thrown over it in the 1960s and has shadowed it since; a plan to bury the road and free the sky is finally underway. Read the bridge while you still have to read it under concrete.
05
5
Ozu Washi
A paper merchant founded in 1653, still selling handmade *washi* — the traditional Japanese paper — by the sheet, with a small museum upstairs. *Washi* is light against a window and impossible to walk past without buying one beautiful useless sheet.
05
Ozu Washi
A paper merchant founded in 1653, still selling handmade *washi* — the traditional Japanese paper — by the sheet, with a small museum upstairs. *Washi* is light against a window and impossible to walk past without buying one beautiful useless sheet.
06
6
Bank of Japan
End at the central bank, a stone neo-baroque pile of 1896 by Tatsuno Kingo — the same architect as Tokyo Station — said to be laid out in the shape of the character for *yen*. Free guided tours run on weekdays if you book; otherwise admire the dome from the street and walk down to Nihombashi station.
06
Bank of Japan
End at the central bank, a stone neo-baroque pile of 1896 by Tatsuno Kingo — the same architect as Tokyo Station — said to be laid out in the shape of the character for *yen*. Free guided tours run on weekdays if you book; otherwise admire the dome from the street and walk down to Nihombashi station.

Nihonbashi: the old merchant city

On the map.

Things to notice.

Mitsukoshi flagship and the lions

Mitsukoshi flagship and the lions

Coredo Muromachi

Coredo Muromachi

Yamamoto Nori-ten

Yamamoto Nori-ten

Nihonbashi bridge

Nihonbashi bridge

Ozu Washi

Ozu Washi

Bank of Japan

Bank of Japan

Two more, on similar days.

Marunouchi: the red brick and the boulevard

Akihabara: electric town and the old centre