Welcome to Tokyo! This loop explores Asakusa, starting at the Kaminarimon, the Thunder Gate, and walking up to Tokyo's oldest temple and its neighbouring shrine, then visiting an old amusement park and Kitchen Town before finishing by the Sumida River.
Each stop's audio starts by itself when you're within about 100 ft (free and unlocked stops only). Keep this page open with the screen on. Distances are straight-line, so follow the streets and watch for traffic.
Welcome to the Kaminarimon, the Thunder Gate, the outer of two great gates leading to the temple of Sensō-ji. The first gate was built in 941 by a military commander, Taira no Kinmasa, and it was moved to this spot in 1635. It has burned down many times, most recently in 1865. Ninety-five years later, Kōnosuke Matsushita, the founder of the company now called Panasonic, paid to rebuild it, and the present gate was dedicated in 1960.
Look at the front alcoves: on the east side is Fūjin, the god of wind, and on the west side is Raijin, the god of thunder, who gives the gate its name. Under the centre hangs a giant red lantern, about 13 feet tall and weighing about 1,540 pounds.
🚶 Walk to the next stop (0.2 mile · ~4 min walk): Walk north through the gate and up Nakamise-dōri, the shopping street, to the second, larger gate. About 4 minutes.
You've walked up Nakamise-dōri, the shopping street leading to the temple. This is the Hōzōmon, the Treasure-House Gate, the inner of the two gates. It's a two-storey gate, about 74 feet tall, and its upper storey stores many of the temple's treasures, including a copy of the Lotus Sutra that is a Japanese National Treasure. The gate was first built in 942, rebuilt in 1636 by the shogun Tokugawa Iemitsu, and burned down in the air raids of 1945.
The present gate, of flame-resistant steel-reinforced concrete, was built in 1964. On the south face stand two guardian statues called Niō, each about 18 feet tall. Walk through and look back at the north face: two huge straw sandals hang there, each about 15 feet long and weighing about 880 pounds.
🚶 Walk to the next stop (200 ft · ~1 min walk): Continue north a few steps across the courtyard to the main hall. About 1 minute.
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That was the last free stop. The full tour continues with 6 more stops: Sensō-ji, Asakusa Shrine, Hanayashiki, Kappabashi-dori, Sumida River, Asahi Beer Hall, each with narration, audio and walking cues.
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The first person to use code FIRSTTOKYO at checkout gets the full tour free.
