How to visit the Tsukiji Market Tuna auction in Tokyo

When I was in Tokyo one of high things on my list was to visit the tuna auction at the Tsukiji fish market. The market is also one of the best places in Tokyo to get your sushi. One of the main problems to visit the tuna auction is that it is very early in the morning and there are only limited spaces. So be prepared to get up early to visit this market. And with early I mean 3 am.

For me this meant it was impossible to go there directly from my hostel. So there were a couple of options, go to a nearby KTV, go for clubbing till 3 or find a different place to get some rest. The last thing is what I did. Of course you can sit down on a bench in a park but this was personally a bit more comfortable.

I went to the Com Com Manga Cafe in Ginza district. This is definitely one of the cheapest options. Cheaper than taking a taxi from your hostel or stay in a hostel nearby the fish market. The reason to choose this café is that it is 5 minutes walking to the fish market. You need to be there at 4 am to be sure you will have a ticket (what is nothing more than a coloured vest) to visit the market.

Manga Cafe with wooden cubicle in front

Originally people visit Manga cafés to read Manga and you are able to do this. However most of the people come here at this time to sleep. There are private cabins that are nothing more than (fake) wooden cubicles, where the cubicle isn’t higher than just below my shoulders. Be prepared that those cubicles aren’t soundproof.

You have three packages in Com Com Manga Cafe. You can sleep in a cubicle with a “mat”, “computer chair” or a “reclining chair”. People sleep, browse internet or read manga’s here. I cannot read any Japanese so I decided just to sleep in a computer chair. The rates are the follows:

My sleeping place

• 30 minutes = 250yen
• 3 hours (between 6am and 5pm) = 500yen
• 3 hours (after 5pm and before 6am) = 980yen
• 7 hours = 1500yen
• Time extension (in case you oversleep) = 100 yen for every fifteen minutes

I didn’t have a lot of sleep because someone in another cubicle was snoring. But for the 3 hours that I stayed here it was fine. I was on time at the auction and was able to watch the tuna auction in the morning and have some delicious fish afterwards. This is definitely the best option if you want to do it the cheap way.

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