Ginza is the most upmarket shopping area in Tokyo. It is located in Chuo district, south of Yaesu and Kyobashi, west of Tsukiji, east of Yurakucho and Uchisaiwaicho and north of Shinbashi. This is where you can find some of the finest, most luxurious department stores and boutiques in Japan. Ginza is also well renowned for its concentration of upscale branded stores.
The name Ginza means "silver place", and refers to the silver-coin mint that was located here in 1612, during the Edo period. When the Shogun Tokugawa Ieyasu moved the capital to Edo in 1590, Ginza was just marshland. But as soon as the marshes were filled in, merchants and traders started to move in, creating a bustling commercial district.
In 1872, a massive fire destroyed almost all the houses in Ginza. It was however an opportunity for a re-built, which resulted in a wave of two and three storey Georgian-style shophouses. Many of these have since been replaced with more modern buildings, but a famous one that still remains is the Wako Department Store building, at the junction of Chuo-dori and Harumi-dori.
Since the 1960's, Chuo-dori is closed to traffic on weekends, allowing pedestrians full access to the road, and bringing about even more shoppers to the area.
Getting there
Ginza is served by three subway stations: the Ginza Station (M16, H06, C08), the Ginza-itchome Station (Y19) and the Higashi-ginza Station (A11 and H09).
For full details about taking the subway, go to Tokyo Metro. You can also download the Tokyo Subway Route Map here.
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