Chuo, Tokyo: neighborhood guide

Chuo means "centre", and it has been Tokyo's commercial core since the Edo period. Today it is offices, banks, department stores and the old merchant streets of Nihonbashi, with Ginza on its western edge. It loses a little prestige to neighbouring Chiyoda, which holds the Imperial Palace, but it holds the money.

The ward is compact and flat. Its western boundary starts on the Yaesu (east) side of Tokyo Station, and from there most of what you would want to see is inside a 45-minute walk. Otherwise the subway does the work: the Tokyo Metro and Toei networks both run through the ward.

Tsukiji was home to the world's largest wholesale fish market for over 80 years. The inner market closed in 2018 and wholesale operations, including the tuna auctions, moved to Toyosu. The outer market stayed, and its stalls still sell fish, sushi, produce and kitchen tools to the public.

Stay in Chuo if your trip is built around rail. Tokyo Station is on the doorstep, so a Shinkansen to Kyoto or a Narita Express to the airport starts without a transfer. Ginza and Nihonbashi give you department stores, old shops and some of the best food in the city within walking distance, and Tsukiji rewards an early start.

Skip it if you want nightlife. Chuo is a business district and quietens after the last trains; the bar clusters are in Shinjuku and Shibuya. Budget beds are also scarce here, so backpackers usually do better in Taito, Toshima or Ueno.

The trade-off is price. Ginza and Nihonbashi hotels sit at the top of the Tokyo range, and rooms are small at every level. If you want Chuo's location without the Ginza rate, look at the Nihonbashi and Kayabacho edges, or stay one stop away and commute in.

Chuo eats well at every price. Tsukiji Outer Market is the breakfast move: arrive before 09:00, when stalls are busiest and the queues move, and expect most shops to close by early afternoon. Sushi, grilled seafood, tamagoyaki and rice bowls are the standard orders. Hours vary by shop and many close on Wednesdays and holidays.

Nihonbashi and Kyobashi hold old soba, tempura and eel houses that have served the merchant district for generations, plus the food halls under the big department stores, where you can buy a serious bento for a train. Ginza adds high-end sushi, French and Chinese, and the basement floors of its department stores are a cheap way to eat well.

For a quick lunch, the office blocks around Kayabacho and Hatchobori run cheap set meals and curry. Coffee is easy: the ward is full of chains and a few long-standing kissaten. Cash still helps in smaller shops, though cards are widely accepted.

Tokyo Station is the anchor. The Yaesu side is Chuo; the Marunouchi side is Chiyoda. From the station you can walk to Nihonbashi in about 15 minutes, to Ginza in about 20 and to Tsukiji in about 30. The ward is flat, so walking is realistic in good weather.

By subway, the Hibiya Line threads Ginza, Tsukiji and Naka-okachimachi; the Tozai and Hibiya lines meet at Kayabacho; the Toei Oedo Line serves Tsukiji-shijo. Fares are cheap and trains run from early morning to around midnight, after which taxis are the fallback.

From the airports, rail is the default. Narita connects to Tokyo Station by the Narita Express and by faster limited-express services; Haneda connects by monorail or Keikyu to the Yamanote loop. Allow time for the walk inside Tokyo Station, which is large.