Tokyo is bursting at the seams with thrilling things to see and do, especially when it comes to food! However, no visit is complete without a trip to one of the Tokyo fish markets!
This truly is the heart of the city’s culinary scene, where you’ll get to witness the intricate workings of these magical places. However, it’s important to select an experience that is well-reputed with a guide who knows what they’re talking about.
I’ve gone ahead and curated a comprehensive list of the top Tokyo fish market tours of 2024 that will actually be worth your time and money. Let’s get into it!
Be sure to see our reviews of Mt Fuji Day Trips from Tokyo, Mario Kart Tours and Private Tours of Tokyo.
Best Fish Market Tours in Tokyo
| Tsukiji Fish Market Food and Culture Walking Tour | Tsukiji Fish Market Visit with Sushi Making Experience | Tsukiji Fish Market Walking Food Tour | |
|---|---|---|---|
 | |||
 |  |  | |
| Location: | 3-chōme-15-1 Tsukiji, Chuo City, Tokyo | 3-chōme-15-1 Tsukiji, Chuo City, Tokyo | 3 Chome-9 Tsukiji, Chuo City, Tokyo |
| Start: | 8:30 AM | 8:30 AM | 11:00 AM |
| Duration: | 3 hours | 4 hours | 3 hours |
| Includes: | Local professional guide, Food (Japanese omelette, fried fish cake, Sake, Japanese tea, Fish bowl), Snacks | Lunch (your own made sushi), Sushi workshop at Sushi restaurant, Local and professional guide, Transportation fee to Sushi restaurant | Seafood Lunch (Vegan menu available), 3 hours with a local guide, Tour photos, 2-3 food samplings in the market |
Quick Answer: The 5 Best Rated Tokyo Fish Market Tours For 2024
- Tsukiji Fish Market Food and Culture Walking Tour
- Tsukiji Fish Market Visit with Sushi Making Experience
- Tsukiji Fish Market Walking Food Tour
- Tokyo Food Tour Tsukiji Old Fish Market
- Stroll through Tokyo’s Kitchen: Smells & Sights of the Tsukiji Fish Market
Best Tokyo Fish Market Tour Reviews
1. Tsukiji Fish Market Food and Culture Walking Tour
- Duration: 3 hours
- Departure: 3-chōme-15-1 Tsukiji, Chuo City, Tokyo 104-8435
- Departure Time: 8:30 AM
- Includes: Local professional guide, Food (Japanese omelette, fried fish cake, Sake, Japanese tea, Fish bowl), Snacks
When I first arrived to Tokyo, I knew that I wanted to focus primarily on two things: trying authentic food, and learning about local history/culture. This first tour combines those two subjects perfectly, taking us through the highlights for an experience many don’t get the chance to have.
The Tsukiji Fish Market Food and Culture Walking Tour took us to try the freshest seafood, traditional dishes, as well as lesser-known delicacies.
The tour starts out by meeting your guide at the main gate of Tsukiji Honganji Temple at around 8:15 am, so you’ll be back in time for lunch (although you’ll probably be too full to want it!).
This is the best time to experience the market, as you get to avoid most crowds while seeing everything before it sells out. Before we set out, our guide filled us in about what to expect, as well as answer any questions we had, which I love as I’m definitely a planner.
We then made our way into the maze-like market, learning all about its history and why it’s the go-to for Japan’s upper echelon of chefs while checking out the outer stalls.
Expand To See More
The sea urchin (uni) organized in boxes, as well as the pufferfish in tanks really was striking, as it’s not something I’d ever seen before. I love trying new things, but I wasn’t too interested in trying the pufferfish just because I knew of the potential dangers associated with it.
I, however, loved the samples we tried along the way: the Japanese-style omelettes, fried fish cakes, Dashi soup, and Katsuobushi were my favorites.
However, the Japanese tea, sake, and sushi were incredible, as well. I loved getting to learn all about the different styles and ingredients, which I’ll surely take with me no matter where I am in the world.
More Information & Tour Booking
100% refund for cancellations within 24 hours of tour experience
Other Experiences You May Enjoy:
2. Tsukiji Fish Market Visit with Sushi Making Experience
- Duration: 4 hours
- Departure: 3-chōme-15-1 Tsukiji, Chuo City, Tokyo 104-8435
- Departure Time: 8:30 AM
- Includes: Lunch (your own made sushi), Sushi workshop at Sushi restaurant, Local and professional guide, Transportation fee to Sushi restaurant
If you’re a huge sushi fan like I am, you can’t pass up the opportunity to learn how to make the delicious dish, yourself!
The Tsukiji Fish Market Visit with Sushi Making Experience Tour is quite possibly the best opportunity to learn, as you’ll be learning from the very best!
Of course, the tour is so complete that we even got to explore one of the world’s biggest seafood markets, learning all about the products and what they’re used for!
This tour also starts quite early in the morning, which I found to be the perfect time as we avoided most of the tourist crowds! This is important, because Tsukii can get incredibly packed later in the day, making it more difficult to enjoy the food and environment.
Our guide was clearly very knowledgeable about the fish market, and I learned so much about the hundreds of wholesale vendors – I’d love to come back for the 5 am tuna auction!
Before, the Tsukiji market used to have an incredible inside section as well, but these days, it only consists of the outer market (which is still impressive).
Expand To See More
We got the chance to learn about different Japanese delicacies, why they’re so popular, and how they began, thanks to our guide’s encyclopedic knowledge!
This informative experience led us perfectly into our sushi-making workshop, which was invaluable in understanding how important seafood is to Japanese culture.
We then began our sushi-making class, which was easily one of the highlights of our trip and was surprisingly easy to catch onto!
Of course, we didn’t learn how to make super intricate rolls, but it was more about the experience than the taste. This was such a fun time, and we learned so much, that I’d recommend it to any sushi lover!
More Information & Tour Booking
100% refund for cancellations within 24 hours of tour experience
3. Tsukiji Fish Market Walking Food Tour
- Duration: 3 hours
- Departure: 3 Chome-9 Tsukiji, Chuo City, Tokyo 104-0045
- Departure Time: 11:00 AM
- Includes: Seafood Lunch (Vegan menu available), 3 hours with a local guide, Tour photos, 2-3 food samplings in the market
Are you a foodie looking for one of the most unique tour experiences in Tokyo? Perhaps you can’t get enough seafood and would like to try some of the best in the world? Whatever the case may be, the Tsukiji Fish Market Walking Food Tour is right up your alley!
It’s important to note that this tour does start significantly later in the day than the others, which all start in the morning. This tour is more of a lunchtime experience, though I did notice that the fish market is also a bit more busy – mostly with tourists.
Start out by meeting your guide at Exit 1 of Tsukiji Station, where they’ll greet you and offer a briefing as to what you can expect over the next few hours.
We learned how this is one of the most famous markets in the world, known for its supreme quality of seafood – so much so, that it’s a go-to for many Michelin-star restaurant chefs.
While I got to see how the ultra-fresh seafood is traded and put on display, I also got to learn quite a bit about the history and culture of Japan.
Expand To See More
There are various important national shrines located in Tsukiji, making it quite an interesting “hidden gem” in that regard. Of course, there was no way we were going to see all that delicious seafood without getting to try some of it!
We not only enjoyed various interesting food samples at many different shops and stalls – we also got a full seafood lunch at Tsukiji (I highly recommend the crab!).
If you’d like to not only learn about, but also try some of the best seafood in the world, this tour is a must.
More Information & Tour Booking
100% refund for cancellations within 24 hours of tour experience
4. Tokyo Food Tour Tsukiji Old Fish Market
- Duration: 2 hours
- Departure: 4-chōme-8-1 Tsukiji, Chuo City, Tokyo 104-0045
- Departure Time: 9:30 AM
- Includes: Brunch, guided tour
If it’s your first time in Tokyo, it can be easy to fall into tourist trap eateries where they serve “less than authentic” foods.
However, if you’re looking for the real deal, Tsukiji Fish Market offers nothing but the very best. The Tokyo Food Tour Tsukiji Old Fish Market has the freshest seafood not only in Japan, but quite possibly, the world!
We met up with our guide, where he shared with us a briefing of the history of Tsukiji Fish Market, which was constructed in the 20th century and was part of the land reclamation in Tokyo Bay.
It opened nearly 100 years ago to replace the market that was there prior, which was unfortunately destroyed by a massive earthquake (Tsukiji is now virtually earthquake-resistant).
Our guide then led us through the bustling market, where we got to see and sample a wide selection of interesting (yet delicious) seafood such as sushi, oysters, and tuna.
Expand To See More
Make sure you don’t eat before, as they serve up anywhere from 5 to 8 different samples! These aren’t Costco samples either – they gave us a pretty generous serving of each one!
There’s no way I would’ve been able to try and even discover these stalls without our professional guide, as it was simply too crowded and a bit chaotic.
We tried so many more things than we would have on our own, and I even acquired a couple of new favorite dishes I look forward to exploring later in Tokyo! For a tour with lots of food and history involved, it’s hard to beat this excursion!
More Information & Tour Booking
100% refund for cancellations within 24 hours of tour experience
5. Stroll through Tokyo’s Kitchen: Smells & Sights of the Tsukiji Fish Market
- Duration: 3 hours
- Departure: 4-chōme-10-１０先 Ginza, Chuo City, Tokyo 104-0061
- Departure Time: 8:00 AM
- Includes: Local English-speaking guide, sake tasting, famous fish market visit, Japanese snack and sushi tasting
This next tour is very similar to the others, but has more of a “VIP” twist to it, if you will. The Stroll Through Tokyo’s Kitchen: Smells & Sights of the Tsukiji Fish Market Tour is a 3-hour experience that caters to foodies in a very small-group setting!
This tour has the smallest group capacity (just 6 participants allowed) of any that I’ve tried, which allows for more personalization and attention from the guide.
One thing I know a couple of other people in my group really appreciated, was that they catered to vegetarians, vegans, those who are gluten-free, etcetera, so everyone could participate.
We started at the Kabuki Theatre, where we learned about the history of Kabuki that originated way back in the 17th century (the architecture is breathtaking, too!).
After our little history lesson, we then headed into the labyrinth-like alleys of the market, where we got to see plenty of foods that literally only exist in Japanese culture.
I had a great time observing the different types of exotic fish, veggies, even pickles and dried foods that looked delicious! We had plenty of samples and snacks as we cruised along, learning about each one as our guide regaled us with intriguing stories and backgrounds behind the dishes.
Expand To See More
One of my favorite parts was the sake tasting, where we got to try a few different types of sake while learning about the differences and how each is made.
I will say I felt it a bit early to be drinking sake, but you know what they say: when in Tokyo! We then headed to the Namiyoke Inari Shrine, where we learned about its cultural significance relating to the great fire and the construction of the new market.
It is a fantastic testament to the importance the Japanese place in worship, faith, and the care they take in literally everything they do.
More Information & Tour Booking
100% refund for cancellations within 24 hours of tour experience
Tour Guides
Value
The Tsukiji Fish Market Food and Culture Walking Tour is our Editors Choice for the best Tokyo fish market tour
