Neighbourhood guide

Kuramae sits on the west bank of the Sumida River in Taito, a short walk south of Asakusa. Its name means "in front of the storehouses": the shogun's rice granaries once lined the river here. Today the old warehouse streets are full of small workshops and the shops attached to them, which is why travel writers like to call it Tokyo's Brooklyn.

This guide lists only shops that design and make their own things and that you can walk into. A person checks each one before it appears, and shops never pay to be listed.

Updated 8 November 2026. The list of shops updates itself from the map.

Kuramae Station is served by the Toei Asakusa Line and the Toei Ōedo Line. The two lines have separate entrances a few minutes' walk apart, so check which exit you need.

From Asakusa it's about a 15-minute walk south along the river; from Asakusabashi, about 10 minutes north.

Most shops open late in the morning (around 11:00 or 12:00) and close around 18:00. Several close on one or two weekdays, often Monday, so check each shop's hours on its page before you go.

The neighbourhood is small and flat: you can walk from one end to the other in about 15 minutes, which makes it easy to see several workshops in an afternoon.