Ueno Okachimachi

Ueno Okachimachi Station is an underground subway station on the Toei Oedo Line located in Tokyo’s Taito Ward. It is situated to the east of the main Ueno Station towards Okachimachi. Ueno Okachimachi Station is connected to Ueno Hirokoji, Okachimachi, and Naka Okachimachi Stations through underground passageways.

Ueno Okachimachi Station is located close to the famous Ueno Ameya-yokocho Market, called Ameyoko for short.

Ameya-yokocho Market (Ameyoko)

Ameyoko, located in the area between Ueno and Okachimachi, is a busy bazaar-style market. It has hundreds of stalls for about 400 meters alongside and under the elevated track that runs between JR Okachimachi Station and JR Ueno Station. Ameyoko is famous for its unique atmosphere - jam packed stores, buyers bargaining and negotiating with the sellers, and vendors out-shouting each other at the top of their lungs to attract buyers.

Ameyoko originated as a black market after World War II. According to one theory, that is how the name ‘Ameyoko’ came about – ‘Ame’ from America and ‘yokocho’ meaning alley in Japanese. The market originally sold left-over things from the American forces in its alleys, thus the name ‘Ameyoko’. Another theory says that the name ‘Ameyoko’ comes from “ameya”, meaning a shop selling sweets, as the area had many shops that sold candies and other traditional sweets.

Today Ameyoko is an open-air market of over 500 shops, stalls and hawkers selling practically everything from spices to high-class imported goods, and from cheap clothes and accessories to fresh fish and seafood. All goods are sold at reasonable prices, and so it is always crowded with shoppers. The market is also popular for its many food stalls that sell such traditional foods as curried rice, ramen noodle, and sushi.

Ameyoko, or Ameya-yokocho Market, is a “don’t miss” experience and a great place to buy souvenirs to take back home.