Tokyo’s Tsukijishijo World’s Biggest Fish Market

I’m not sure why, but the Tsukiji Fish Market (Tsukijishijo) is considered one of Tokyo’s prime attractions. The myth built around the biggest fishing market in the world is that you can’t miss going there early in the morning, 5-6am, to catch the auctioning, and then enjoy a Sushi breakfast at one of the local restaurants there.

Now that I’ve done that, to some extent, I’m not sure what the hype is about. Sure, it’s a fish market, and there are lots of fish and seafood and they’re quite large and exotic, but that’s all that it is – a very busy fish market. The locals don’t have time for you, they seem annoyed by your presence as you’re in the way of their work, and cameras are not their thing. The sushi in the local restaurants is rather expensive and the tourists lines are long, making the breakfast option much less appealing. I’m no sushi expert, so you’d understand if I told you I couldn’t make the difference between their sushi and the ones I had in other Tokyo restaurants.

This is roughly what it looked like :

To really get the feel of things, watch this next terrific video (not mine) :

That’s about it, you’ve seen it all. The thrill! the excitement!

So, unless you’re really into markets and all that, you can easily wake up at a normal hour and make a quick stop on the way to the Kabuki show on Ginza.

More info and photos on the Tsukijishijo Tsukiji Fish Market :

• Tsukiji Fish Market