Asakusabashi Station, servicing the JR East Chuo-Sobu Line, is located in an interesting wholesale business district of Tokyo. Opened in 1932, Asakusabashi station and its surrounds have been an important wholesale business district of Tokyo for many years. Wedged between the famous districts of Akihabara and Ryogoku, Asakusabashi manages to hold its own charm with an impressive array of wholesale goods and souvenir specialty shops. Goods range from balloons, fireworks and streamers, to authentic Japanese dolls, beads, jewelry, fabric and stationary.
The Chuo-Sobu line will link you with areas such as Akihabara and Shinjuku to the west, and Kinshicho and Chiba to the east. The TOEI Asakusa subway line also operates below the JR east terminal. One thing you will notice as you disembark is the accessible layout of the station itself. The platforms are wide enough to accommodate the estimated 50,000 commuters per day, wide stairwells make it easy to navigate on one hand, but will also make it a little more challenging if you’re lugging around a large suitcase. There are plenty of turnstile gates so you won’t get that bottlenecked feeling at peak hours and also numerous ticket machines, a JR reservations office and information booth.
There are two main exits, east and west. The east exit will bring you out to Edo Dori where you can find multiple souvenir stores, convenience and general goods stores. Exiting to the west will put you smack bang in the middle of the wholesale shopping streets of Asakusabashi where you can wander the streets in search of bargain gifts and accessories. As is typical with many JR East stations, there are a large number of standing bars, izakayas and yakitori restaurants underneath the tracks that come alive later in the day. Being a wholesale district, the surrounding stores are often closed on weekends and holidays, so be sure to keep this in mind if you are making a trip to Asakusabashi later in the afternoon or weekends.
Asakusabashi station is your gateway to a unique, authentic and interesting wholesale business neighborhood of Tokyo.
