Tokyo / Asakusa / Craft

A kimono day in Asakusa

浅草で着物の一日 あさくさできもののいちにち

Rent a kimono, be dressed by hand, and walk the temple town the way it was built to be walked.

Worth itCraft · Photogenic · With children · High-end

Asakusa has more kimono rental houses than any other district, most within five minutes of the station, and being dressed in one is the fastest way to understand the garment: the layers, the obi tied by a professional in ten minutes, the way you walk. Choose the quieter houses that use silk rather than polyester and dress you in a private room; a hair set is usually offered. Then the town: the temple grounds, the rickshaw men who know where the good backgrounds are, tea in a garden. Return by evening; many houses also offer a next-day return.

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A hand-drawn sketch for orientation — each place links to an exact map.
Tip
Book ahead for weekends; reserve the earliest slot so the temple is quiet when you reach it.
Best time
Spring and autumn; summer yukata from July.
Allow
240 min
Station
Asakusa (Ginza / Asakusa lines)
Official site — hours, prices, closures
www.asakusa-kankou.com · Map

In this area: Asakusa

Temple Essential

Sensoji Temple浅草寺

Tokyo's oldest temple, founded in 628 — a gate, a lane, a five-storey pagoda and a hall that is never closed.

60 min · Asakusa (Ginza / Asakusa lines, Tobu), exit 1
Street Essential

Kappabashi kitchen streetかっぱ橋道具街

Eight hundred metres of restaurant supply — knives, lacquer, ceramics, and the plastic food in every window in Japan.

90 min · Tawaramachi (Ginza line), 5 minutes; or walk 10 minutes west from Sensoji
On the water Worth it

Sumida river water bus隅田川の水上バス

Down the river from Asakusa under twelve bridges to the shogun's garden or the bay.

45 min · Asakusa (Ginza / Asakusa lines), exit 4 to the pier

All places — Asakusa →