A cool vibrant area in the city center is called the anime quarter and electronic city of Akihabara. They sell computers, new and used electrical goods with might and main. Find out why these places are so popular with tourists and manga and anime fans, what to see on the streets, and how to get to Akihabara.
History of the Akihabara area
Officially, the Tokyo area is called Soto Kanda, but to visitors it is known as Akihabara. Translated from Japanese, it means "valley of autumn leaves". Residents of Tokyo talk about the area briefly - Akiba.
In the Edo period, low-class samurai lived here. The first electronics sellers came to the Akihabara area after the end of World War II. In the 2000s, tourists from all over Japan and other countries came here to shop. Everyone wanted to become the owners of new gadgets and cheap household appliances!
Then the Internet business developed, and small shops went bankrupt. In 2010, Akihabara opened clubs, restaurants and bars for otaku - fans of manga, anime, retro video games, card games and figurines from the 1970s and 80s. When opened made cafe and manga kissa - a comic book café, the quarter has become the center of Tokyo's youth subculture.
What to see in Akihabara
The Akihabara area is famous for its colorful signage, loud music, barkers and walking people dressed as heroes of popular anime and comics. Every Sunday from 13:00 to 18:00, the main street of Chuo Dori turns into a pedestrian zone. It houses shops big and small that sell new computers, cameras, watches, games, and hobby goods. Used electronics are sold on side streets.
Travel advice... What you see on the ruins and stalls in the Akihabara district of Tokyo should be treated with caution. It's not that there are a lot of fakes in places like this. Japanese electronics are designed for a different mains voltage than ours. Take your time and you will definitely find a quality product at a good price!
How to get there
The Akihabara area is located in the center of Tokyo, in Chiyoda. Busy Akihabara Station is crossed by the Yamanote Line, Keihin-Tohoku Line, Sobu Rapid Line, The Tsukuba Express and Tokyo Metro - Hibiya Line. In the northern part of the district, there is a metro station of the Ginza - Suehirochō-EKI line.
