Nakano, Tokyo
Thought of as the second Akihabara, Nakano is an otaku haven as well as a photogenic, retro Tokyo playground.
Nakano is a neighborhood just a few minutes west of Shinjuku
The area is known as the second, less commercialized Akihabara, full of otaku entertainment
It’s a fantastic, less crowded sakura cherry blossom spot in the spring
Some say Akihabara has become just another tourist spot. So where else can people go to get their anime and manga fix? Or how about a place just to experience an authentic, retro Tokyo vibe?
Nakano.
For otaku and non-otaku alike, Nakano is a great area to visit because it still holds a lot of older, “Showa” Tokyo, post-World War II vibes.
How to get there
Nakano is really easy to get to as it’s just a 4~7 minute train ride west from Shinjuku station on either the JR Chuo or Sobu line.
About Nakano
For otaku and non-otaku alike, Nakano is a great area to visit because it still holds a lot of older, “Showa” Tokyo, post-World War II vibes.
After moving to Tokyo, it took me a while to discover Nakano and it wasn’t until I went to check out the cherry blossoms (More on that later on) there that I realized how cool the area was. I think it’s one of the more underrated areas in the city.
Nakano, particularly the north side of JR Nakano Station, has a bunch to explore whether you’re into anime and manga or not.
While not a hub for high fashion, there are over 3,000 shops in what is called Heartbeat Nakano [J], a shopping association consisting of 59 shopping areas divided into 10 blocks.
Walking north from the station, you’ll go through Nakano Sun Mall, an approximately 250 yard (225 meter) shopping arcade of restaurants and miscellaneous shops. At the end of this is Nakano Broadway.
Housing in Nakano
Being a larger neighborhood on a convenient train line, Nakano is seen as a desirable place to live by many. The average monthly cost for a 1K studio apartment is 98,100 JPY (USD $624) while a 1LDK single bedroom is 181,000 JPY (USD $1,151) as of June 2024. [J]
Nakano Broadway
An indoor shopping complex that dates back decades, Nakano Broadway has about four floors of shops selling anime and manga items, figurines, “idol” goods, collectables and more. Mandarake, a large chain for second-hand collectables, has a large presence here, and many come to sell and trade collectables.
It’s quite the geek playground.
It’s not limited to things Japanese either. I’ve seen a fair share of Star Wars goods, shops selling American toys from the 80s and 90s, military surplus items, classic Rolex watches - anything collectable, really.
https://nakano-broadway.com [J]
MAP
If you’re not into that type of thing?
Sanbancho (North Exit Alleys)
On the east side of Nakano Sun Mall and Nakano Broadway is an area of alleys with numerous bars and izakayas. Big signs displaying Japanese lettering and old steel and painted glass street lamps make you feel as if you’ve been transported back to old Tokyo.
The people are much the same with many dressed in retro fashion, living life by their rules, doing what they want. It’s a far and refreshing cry from the rush of black suits going through Shinagawa or Shinjuku Stations.
Nakano-dori Ave Sakura
Nakano is one of the best areas to see sakura, or cherry blossoms, in Tokyo.
To the north of JR Nakano Station, cherry blossoms line Nakano-dori Ave for about 2 km. Unlike many other cherry blossom spots around Tokyo, this one is big and isn’t as crowded.
There’s a cherry blossom festival at Arai Yakushi Park [MAP] on the weekend during the season’s peak, and a nice photo spot where the Seibu Shinjuku train passes under the pinkish-white sakura flowers. [MAP]
Nakano is one of the most underrated areas that I’ve come across in Tokyo. Otaku folk love it, but so do many others who want that more authentic Tokyo experience.
Daily Chiko
In the basement of Nakano Broadway is this popular soft-serve ice cream shop. If there’s no line or crowd of people enjoying their snack, you’ll notice this place by all the photos of Japanese celebrities on the walls.
Their most noted for their 8-layer challenge, an 8-inch (20 cm) tall colorful stack of soft-serve for about US $5. You can choose the smaller cones, of course, and they typically have flavors like vanilla, chocolate, ramune soda, matcha, etc. Refreshing.
MAP
Bia Hoi Chop
In the alley area of Nakano, is Bia Hoi Chop, a good option for anyone looking to take a break from Japanese food. Rated as a 1-star popular and highly recommended restaurant on Japanese food app Retty, this casual Vietnamese cafe is perfect to stop at for a bite to eat while exploring the area.
The ambiance is very laid back, with food being served to customers on plastic stools in a space decorated in colorful wall art. Perfect to match the area’s subculture vibe.
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Nakano and Obuse
A detour stop in Nakano city, a rural district in Nagano prefecture with amazing apples.
Nakano is a small city of about 50,000, and Obuse is an area next to it
It’s known best for its fruits, particularly Fuji apples and grapes
Between Nagano city and the end of the train line at Yudanaka are Nakano city and Obuse, small, local areas most known for their agriculture.
Visiting in Nakano wasn’t planned, actually, as we actually ended up in the city due to an unfortunate medical emergency while on a trip around Nagano prefecture. At least they have a capable hospital with good staff in Hokushin Hospital.
We had visited Matsumoto city, then had gone to see the snow monkeys in the Yamanouchi area when we ended up having to go to Nakano.
I was able to see a little bit of the area.
HOW TO GET HERE
Nakano city and Obuse are in between Nagano and Yudanaka stations. The Nagaden Snow Monkey, express and local trains going towards Yudanaka stop at these stations but the schedule varies. Here’s a timetable. In these areas though, I’d definitely recommend having a car.
There weren’t a whole lot of highlights given the reason why I was in the area, but there was one: Picking Fuji apples.
ONO RINGO-EN
It was my first time picking apples, and the trees at Ono Ringo-en were full of them. Just like how grapes in Koshu, Yamanashi were some of the best I’ve ever had, these Fuji apples we picked in Nakano were some of the juiciest ever. It became hard to eat a regular supermarket apple after.
There’s so many on the trees and they have awesome deals. All-you-can-eat while in the orchard, + 1 apple to take to go for 500 yen (less than $5 USD), +3 apples for 900 yen, + a basket for 1,500 yen… and there’s no time limit! You can also buy by weight as well.
We stayed at the Route-Inn in Nakano. There wasn’t really any other option but they had a decent public onsen-like bath, breakfast, and really nice reception staff.
Across the street was one of the food highlights of the area.
DAIGEN
A lucky find across the street of our hotel, Daigen was a good alternative to any of the chains nearby. It’s a quirky izakaya run by an older man and woman furnished in random, old items like old wooden skis, a tube TV and something that looked like Japanese rickshaw wheels. They’re fried chicken and spicy sauce stood out to me, and their soba was also pretty good.
TOGAKUSHI SEYA SOBA-TEN
Conveniently right across the street from the hospital, and near Shinshu Nakano station, was this good soba spot. They have a variety of foods to choose from, but their soba combo with their tempura really hit the spot. The soba is nice and firm and their tempura is so light and crispy. Really good quality and very reasonable.
KANAETEUCHI SOBADOKORO
This popular soba spot in Obuse is run out of a converted, local house. They’re a part of a local collective of locations that open their outdoor, Japanese garden to tourists for free. They have several different soba sets to order from, including ones made form 100% soba buckwheat flour.