Toyosu Fish Market Tours: Exclusive Access to Tokyo’s New Seafood Attraction

Toyosu Fish Market opens to the public 13 October 2018, and you can be one of the first visitors to Tokyo’s new seafood attraction. To get the most out of your tip, we’ve found the best Toyosu Fish Market tours with professional English-speaking guides.

Toyosu Fish Market Tours

Get insider information and a deeper understanding of the new market with a local expert.

Private Toyosu Market Tour

Enjoy a tour of Toyosu Market with Kiyoshi – a highly-acclaimed and experienced guide with over 200 reviews. A comprehensive tour of Tokyo’s new seafood market, not to be missed!

Starting 13 October 2018, you’ll be one of the first to see the new market.

• Explore the new Toyosu Fish Market with a hospitality expert
• Visit the fruit and vegetable market
• Learn about Tokyo’s food culture and why the markets moved to Toyosu
• Enjoy breakfast and coffee while speaking to Kiyoshi
• Opportunity for shopping or eating more seafood!
• Optional add-on: Discover the old market town of Tsukiji
• Duration: 3.5 hours

Private Toyosu Market Tour >>

Toyosu Fish Market Tour with Tsukiji

Get the best of both worlds on this tour of Toyosu new fish market and the traditional seafood stalls at Tsukiji. Full of contrast, this experience will reveal old and new Tokyo like no other.

Starting 15 October 2018, this tour begins a couple of days after the new market opens.

• Explore Toyosu Fish Market with exclusive early access
• See a diverse range of seafood like you’ve never seen before
• Taste Japanese-style omelettes, fresh oysters, sushi, sake and more
• Learn about the new and old markets
• Wander the narrow streets of Tsukiji, tasting fresh seafood as you go
• Duration: 3.5 hours

Toyosu Market & Tsukiji Tour >>

Toyosu Tuna Auction Tours

Find out what’s going on during the hustle and bustle with a Toyosu tuna auction tour from a knowledgeable and English-speaking guide.

Private Toyosu Market Tuna Auction Tour in English

Experience the excitement and energy of Tokyo’s famous tuna auction at its new home – Toyosu Market. And get a unique insight into Japan’s seafood culture.

• Watch the Toyosu Market tuna auction with an expert guide
• See the brokers’ inspect the tuna before the auction starts
• Explore Toyosu Market – the world’s biggest seafood market
• Learn about how the market works and its produce
• Recommendation for the freshest and tastiest sushi restaurant in Toyosu
• Enjoy an unforgettable travel experience
• Duration: 3.5 hours

Tour start date to be confirmed

Of course, taking a tour is one option, but you can go by yourself. Find out everything you need to know about visiting the Toyosu Fish Market and tuna auction.

Toyosu Market: What to Expect

Toyosu Market opens its doors to the public 13 October and offers a much different experience than the old market at Tsukiji. While you can’t get so close to the action, you’ll get a birds-eye view of the market.

The market consists of three main buildings: one for the tuna and seafood auction, one for the wholesale seafood and fish market, and one for the fruit and vegetables market and sale. The buildings are connected by a public access walkway and observation galleries one floor above the market level.

To access Toyosu Market and the walkways just head to Shijo-mae station and everything is signposted from there.

As well as the tuna auction and markets, visitors can enjoy eating at around 40 restaurants, shopping for kitchen and cooking utensils, panoramic views of Tokyo, and multi-lingual information boards around the site.

How much does it cost?

Admission to Toyosu Market is free, which gives you access to the viewing galleries, including the famous tuna auction. Visitors to Japan will no doubt find Japanese hospitality a refreshing change!

That said if you want to understand what’s going on at the market, have a passion for Japanese food and would like to gain a more in-depth knowledge of Japanese culture, it’s worth investing in an experienced guide. Find out what’s available with our Toyosu Fish Market and tuna auction tours.

Opening times

Toyosu Market opens to the public 13 October from 10am to 5pm. From 15 October 2018, visitors can see the tuna auction which starts at 4.30am. The market is closed Sundays, some Wednesdays and for public holidays (of which Japan has 20 days).

You can check which days the market is closed with this calendar, it’s in Japanese so you will have to translate it. The first day of the week, named ‘Day’ in English is Sunday!

Toyosu Market: Highlights

Toyosu Market has been built with both the market and tourists in mind, here are six highlights for your visit:

• Tuna auction
• Fish market
• Restaurants
• Shopping
• Rooftop garden
• Fruit and vegetable market and auction

Toyosu Market tuna auction

Tokyo’s world-famous tuna auction is already underway at Toyosu Market with a 214kg tuna fetching ¥4.28 million ($38,100) on the first day! Toyosu Market’s tuna auction occupies one big floor, as opposed to Tsukiji’s which had three smaller rooms.

Watching Tokyo’s world-famous tuna auction is a unique spectacle unmated anywhere in the world. You’ll see buyers’ inspect the tuna and hustling brokers’ before the frantic activity as the auction kicks-off.

How to visit Toyosu Market tuna auction

From 15 October, you can watch the tuna auction from an observation gallery one floor above the auction floor. Unlike Tsukiji where you got up close to the action (and tuna!), the elevated view at Toyosu gives you a clearer picture of how it all works.

From Shijo-mae Station, follow the signs to the ‘Fish Wholesale Market Observation Gallery’ which is where the tuna auction is held. Along the 400m walkway, you’ll also pass some information boards and restaurants.

The first stop from the station is an information area with multi-lingual boards. From there you’ll pass some shops before entering another area with more information and exhibit showing the largest ever bluefin tuna sold at Tsukiji, weighing nearly 500kg!

Continue on until you reach the tuna viewing gallery which is one floor above the tuna auction floor. Around the observation area, you’ll find information (in English and Japanese) which explain the hand-signs used by the buyers’ during the auction.

Looking down on the auction floor is an ideal viewpoint to see the scale of how much tuna is being sold, and how the various workers (auctioneers, buyers’, brokers’, clerks’ etc.) interact.

The double-glazed windows are not ideal for photography, so you’ll have to move around to find the best shots. But it does give you protection on the gallery from the chilly temperatures on the auction floor.

What time does the tuna auction start?

The tuna auction starts between 4.30-5.30am; but, you definitely should get in place at 4.30am. Before the auction starts, there’s plenty of activity to see including the buyers’ inspecting the tuna. The auction lasts for around one hour.

There’s no limit on how many people can watch the tuna auction, but you do need to get up early and find a good spot. Check out our list of hotels near Toyosu Market to make that very early alarm call that much easier!

Visiting Tokyo’s world-famous tuna auction is a once-in-a-lifetime experience and not to be missed. Taking a Toyosu tuna auction tour is something to consider, to find out how it works and it’s cultural context in Japan.

Visiting the tuna auction in 2019

From 15 January 2019, you’ll be able to get closer to the action via a small observation floor which sits a few metres above the tuna auction floor. From here, you’ll experience the sights, sounds and smells of the auction, and take better photos through a single-pane of glass.

It’s not been announced yet, how you can access this area, and an online registration process is being considered.

Other seafood auctions

Further along the walkway, there’s another observation gallery where you can see other seafood being auctioned. While it’s not the big-ticket tuna event, it’s a welcome addition not available at Tsukiji.

And don’t think it will be less exciting, at the first auction at Toyosu Market, a box of sea-urchins sold for a record ¥200,000 ($1,780)!

Toyosu Fish Market

To get to the fish and seafood market from the auction area, follow the signs to the ‘Fish Intermediate Wholesale Market Observation Gallery’. Here’s where hundreds of wholesale shops process the seafood bought at the auctions.

Like the auction floors, you’re not able to access the wholesale fish market floor. From the level above, there are some observation windows, but viewing is limited. With no public access – unlike Tsukiji – you won’t be able to buy seafood from the fish market.

The major draw for most visitors to Tsukiji was fish market’s bewildering array of seafood and watching people at work. Gone are the day of seeing men slicing tuna with long sword-like knives.

Let’s hope in the future at Toyosu, visitors will be able to see demonstrations of the work at the wholesale fish market.

Restaurants

Around 40 restaurants are already open at Toyosu Market, so rest assured you’ll get to eat the freshest sushi you’ll ever find. As well as sushi, there’s also seafood bowl, pork, beef and chicken restaurants.

While some sushi restaurants migrated to Toyosu Market, most of the ones from Tsukiji’s now closed inner market are no more. For top-quality sushi, we recommend visiting Tsukiji’s outer market which has dozens of seafood restaurants and stalls.

There are a few areas with restaurants at Toyosu Market, and you’ll find stalls dotted all around the complex.

If you’re more into eating sushi and tasting Japan’s fantastic seafood, you’ll discover more with a professional guide. We recommend taking a combined tour of Toyosu Market and Tsukiji ‘s outer market or a tour of Tsukiji.

Shopping

Around 60 shops are already open at Toyosu Market selling a whole range of kitchenware and culinary utensils.

Top of the list for many people are ‘made in Japan’ kitchen knives and you’ll find plenty of them here. Prices can be eye-watering high, but you’ll also find some that won’t break the bank. Trust me, if you’re into cooking, Japanese kitchen knives are well worth the investment. Not only are they razor sharp they’ll also last for years.

Also, look out for decorative tableware – such as plates, bowls and chopsticks – at reasonable prices. And plenty of Japanese foods like nori (seaweed), wasabi, pickles and fermented products.

Rooftop garden

On the fifth floor, a roof-top garden offering stunning panoramic views of Tokyo’s skyline and waterfront area. As well as seeing the sights, it’s a relaxing place to hang out.

Fruit and vegetable market and auction

Finally, at the other end of the main walkway is the fruit and vegetable market and auction building. While it doesn’t have the same allure as the seafood area, it has it’s own appeal, especially for foodies.

Again, you’ll be looking down on the fruit and vegetable area from one-level above. There are plenty of places for viewing, make sure you get there before 8am if you want to see the auctions.

Toyosu Market is visitor-friendly, and access for the public has been well thought out. While it’s easy to get around with some information about, foodies and people who want to know more should take a Toyosu fish market and tuna auction tour.

Places to Stay near Toyosu Fish Market

Situated on Tokyo’s waterfront area, Toyosu Market currently has limited places to stay nearby.

Visitors to the tuna auction at 4.30am will have to stay somewhere close as there’s no public transport at that time.

Other early morning visitors should also stay somewhere nearby to avoid Tokyo’s hectic rush-hour. And being 3.3km from Tsukiji’s outer market, it’s an ideal base to visit both places.

Check out the best places to stay near Toyosu Market.

* Distance measured in walking distance to from the hotel to Shijo-mae Station where you can access Toyosu Market’s public walkways. Taxi journeys may be slightly nearer or further away

Whether you take a Toyosu Fish Market tour or visit yourself have a wonderful time and don’t forget to set your alarm early for the tuna auction!

Discover more about Japan’s seafood culture on a tour of Tsukiji or what else Tokyo has to offer for foodies.