Tokyo / Kagurazaka / Shrine

Akagi Shrine

赤城神社 あかぎじんじゃ

A 700-year-old shrine rebuilt by Kengo Kuma in glass and cypress, with a café and a Sunday market at the top of the hill.

Worth itArchitecture · Modern · Quiet · Free · Craft

The shrine at the top of Kagurazaka was falling down in 2010 when the neighbourhood, a developer and the architect Kengo Kuma agreed on a rebuilding: a hall of glass and cypress lattice, an apartment block whose rent funds the shrine, and a café on the courtyard. It is the most modern shrine in Tokyo and one of the most beautiful, with a lion-dog statue in white marble by a contemporary sculptor. On the fourth Sunday of most months the courtyard holds the Akagi Marché of crafts and food; the rest of the time it is the quiet end of a walk up the slope.

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A hand-drawn sketch for orientation — each place links to an exact map.
Tip
Enter from the Kagurazaka station side and walk down the hill through the district; downhill is the easy direction.
Best time
Late afternoon; fourth Sunday of the month for the market.
Allow
30 min
Station
Kagurazaka (Tozai line), exit 1, 1 minute
Official site — hours, prices, closures
www.akagi-jinja.jp · Map

Appears in

In this area: Kagurazaka

Street Essential

Kagurazaka's stone lanes神楽坂の石畳の路地

Hyogo Yokocho and Kakurenbo Yokocho — black fences, lanterns, cobbles, and the geisha quarter that still works.

60 min · Iidabashi (JR / Tozai / Yurakucho / Namboku / Oedo lines), exit B3, 3 minutes uphill
District Worth it

Dining in Kagurazaka神楽坂で食べる

Kaiseki behind black fences, French bistros from the institute's shadow, a hundred-year-old sweet shop, and pétanque on Sundays.

150 min · Iidabashi or Kagurazaka, the whole slope between them
Temple For a second visit

Zenkokuji Bishamonten善國寺 毘沙門天

The red temple halfway up the slope, guardian of the district since 1595, with tigers for lions and a night market of lanterns.

15 min · Iidabashi, exit B3, 5 minutes up the slope

All places — Kagurazaka →