What it’s like to stay in Asakusa/Sumida City and what to see and do there. Plus: Is it worth going to Tokyo Skytree?

When I searched for an Airbnb in Asakusa, the only options that came up were in Sumida City, which is just across the river from Asakusa. Being in Sumida City ended up being a good thing because we could easily walk to Tokyo Skytree the night we arrived and to Senso-ji Temple and lovely Ueno Park in Asakusa on the following day.

Sumida City is not a pretty neighborhood AT FIRST GLANCE. The buildings are nondescript, the streets are narrow, and there are overhead electrical wires everywhere. BUT when you are walking on the side streets, you will be surprised at how pleasant they can be. Even the most nondescript shops decorate their front with lovely potted flowers (as you can see in the photo above.).

Click here to see the Airbnb listing for the apartment we stayed in. It worked for us, but note that the place is MUCH smaller than the photos make it seem.

This was the first Airbnb we stayed in on our trip to Japan and we didn't realize how good we had it until we stayed in two others. The building is a commercial property with short-term rentals that serve western travelers well. The apartment is modern, there was no street noise, the beds were comfortable, the heat worked perfectly (we were there in February), the kitchen was large enough to cook in, the refrigerator was large, and (this is a big one in Japan) you could see out of all the windows. In our other Airbnbs, some of the windows were frosted (this is common in Japan) and one of them had NO windows you could see through--we had to open the front door to see if it was snowing! Here, every room had clear windows.

This is the building exterior. Notice the potted plants in front of our building and the building in the background.

That is a tiny terrace outside the window and the typical view you’ll have in Sumida—roofs, electrical wires and satellite dishes. Temper your expectations!

Here is another view out the glass door with Tokyo Skytree visible in the distance.

You can see how small the living room actually was now that two people are standing in it. The pullout couch was just behind the kitchen counter.

The kitchen was quite large for a Tokyo apartment. It had a big refrigerator and shelving, a multi-burner stove, and counter space. These are luxuries in many Japanese Airbnbs.

Like every Airbnb we stayed in in Japan, the room where you shower was separate from the room with the toilet. Here, the shower room was separated by a partition from the room with the sink where you brush your teeth. The washing machine was in the room with the sink.

Most Japanese apartments (and restaurants!) DO NOT HEAT the restrooms! (But they DO heat the toilet seats!) This apartment actually heated the room with the toilet. We didn’t know how lucky we were to have that until we encountered our next two Airbnbs! It can be mighty cold in a Japanese restroom (where insulation is typically not great) in February.

This is the view to the left of our building entrance. Like many small side streets, there is no sidewalk. Most homes have bicycles parked in front. Tokyo is definitely bicycle-friendly and that is how many residents get around. Surprisingly, almost NO ONE wears a helmet. (In 14 days, I saw only one child wearing one.) Maybe that’s because bikers share the sidewalks and streets with pedestrians and, so, bike quite slowly. But, still, I was surprised.

What we did in Sumida City

We were very happy to be able to walk to Skytree on the night of our arrival. The walk is along a busy, unattractive, commercial street, but we enjoyed it. (I was surprised to see how many of the stores had pots of blooming flowers in front of them—in February!) Walking inside the shopping mall at the base of the Skytree tower was a great way to stretch our legs after such a long flight.

Skytree is built on top of the shopping mall and the entrance to Skytree is on the fourth floor of the mall. If you are a remote worker, it will be good to know that the mall has a lot of window side tables where you can sit and work.

I wouldn’t go out of your way to see the mall unless you have young children who want to go to the Kirby Café (Kirby is a character in a Nintendo video game) or to the Pokemon store.

This is me and my son Eric in front of the Pokemon store. Fifteen years ago this would have been his idea of heaven. (I never realized how much taller he is than me until I saw this picture!)

What I WOULD go out of the way for is the huge, gorgeous supermarket (called Life) that is across the street from Skytree. It had the best Fuji apples I have ever had and is one of the few stores that sold high-quality chicken breast. Good restaurant food in the tourist areas is hard to come by, and we were thrilled that we were able to cook our own food sometimes using the great Asian sauces we picked up at Life. They have a huge selection of everything and lots of prepared Asian food that is discounted after 8:30 PM. People lined up by the deli for that. (Their “deli” was gyoza and yakitori!)

Here are a few links that will help you decide if Skytree is worth visiting if it isn’t super convenient for you to do so. Most people, including me, do not recommend going out of your way to fit it into your first-time itinerary.

This link gives you great info on the mall and tower. The complex is adjacent to the Sumida River. We saw Skytree only at night, but the walk along the adjacent river looks like a pretty walk to take during the day. Make sure you scroll to the top of the page the link goes to for a great photo showing the riverside area alongside the tower.

This post has so many pictures of the experience that you’ll feel as if you’ve been there in case you decide to skip it! The photos are great to look at so that you have a sense of how Tokyo is laid out and what a large river runs through it.

What other travelers have said about what it’s like to stay in Sumida City:

“Sumida is the Sumo neighborhood and if you get up in the morning you can see them all over the place, riding bikes and such.”

My Comment: We didn’t see any Sumo wrestlers. Maybe we didn’t get up early enough, or maybe because we were there in February.

“Near Sumida is Mozen Nakacho, a really nice little residential area which I enjoy. On the way there is Kiyosumi Park, an amazing garden that cost $1-2 dollars to get in and its so beautiful, full of birds and turtles. Walking along the Sumida River is very nice and I overly enjoyed walking around the residential area from Sumida to Monzen Nakacho.” Here is info on the Monzen Nakacho neighborhood: https://www.cntraveler.com/activities/tokyo/monzen-nakacho.

My comment: If I ever went back, or had had more time in Tokyo, I would have checked out that neighborhood.

I hope this post helped you decide whether staying in Sumida City is right for you!