Guide · Getting there

Boarding a yakatabune from Asakusa, Etchujima, Ryogoku or Shinagawa

Boarding a yakatabune from Asakusa is the classic start, but Tokyo's dinner boats also leave from Etchujima, Ryogoku, Harumi and Shinagawa. Here is how to reach each pier and how early to arrive.

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Editorial team, yakatabunedinnercruise.comUpdated October 22, 20266-minute read31 sources

This guide's tour Sumida River yakatabune dinner cruise 4.6 (897 reviews) 2.5 hoursDinner of about 14 dishesFree-flow drinks included from$102per person Check availabilityFree cancellation up to 10 days before

Quick answer

01Our cruise: Azumabashi Pier, across the river from Asakusa station.
02Walk from Asakusa: About 5 minutes from the Ginza line, exit 5.¹
03Arrive: At least 20 minutes before departure.
04Etchujima: 3 minutes from exit 1 of the JR Keiyo line station.²
05Shinagawa: Funasei pier, 10 minutes from Kita-Shinagawa.³

Tokyo's dinner boats leave from many piers

A yakatabune does not sail from one central terminal. Each operator uses its own or a shared pier along the Sumida River and the inner bay, and your booking tells you which. Amitatsu, the operator of the cruise this site sells, lists ten piers it can use: Harumi, Ariake, Etchujima, Edogawa, Azumabashi and Sakurabashi in Asakusa, Takeshiba, Odaiba, Ryogoku and Hinode.⁴

Several of these are shared piers used by more than one company. At the Azumabashi pier, Amitatsu asks guests to tell the pier keeper which operator they booked with when they arrive.⁵ That small step saves confusion when several boats are tied up in a row on a busy evening.

The listing you book is what counts. The cruise this site sells boards at the Azumabashi Pier embarking point; the Shinagawa bay cruise boards at the Funasei pier; the Etchujima cruises board at Etchujima. Read your confirmation, save the address, and plan your route before the day. If you book through GetYourGuide, the pier also appears on the listing page and in the confirmation email.

Asakusa, step by step

From the station to the Azumabashi pier

Before you leave

Save the pier address

The pier is at Azumabashi 1-23 in Sumida City.⁵
At Asakusa

Use exit 5 or A5

Ginza line exit 5, Toei Asakusa line A5.¹
About 5 min

Walk to the pier

Across the river from the station.¹
On arrival

Name your operator

Tell the pier keeper who you booked with.⁵
20 min before

Ready to board

The boat leaves on time, so be there early.

Azumabashi: the Asakusa pier

For the cruise this site sells, you board at the Azumabashi Pier embarking point, across the river from Asakusa station, and the listing asks you to arrive at least 20 minutes before departure because the boat leaves on time. Amitatsu gives the pier's address as Azumabashi 1-23 in Sumida City.⁵

The walk is short. Amitatsu puts the pier about 5 minutes on foot from Asakusa station on the Tobu line, from exit 5 of the Ginza line station and from exit A5 of the Toei Asakusa line, and the same from exit A3 of Honjo-azumabashi station.¹ From the Asakusa side you cross the Sumida by the Azuma Bridge to reach it.

Allow for the crowds. Asakusa is busy in the evening, and finding a pier you have never seen in the dark takes longer than a map suggests. Aim to reach the riverside well before the 20-minute mark, then use the spare time for a photo of Tokyo Skytree across the water. On the way back, the cruise ends at the same pier, so you finish the evening in Asakusa with trains and taxis close at hand.

Walking time

Minutes on foot from the nearest station

min

Shortest walk each operator gives from the nearest station exit.² ⁶ ¹ ⁷ ³

Piers at a glance

Where Tokyo's dinner boats board

Pier	Nearest station	On foot	Cruises on this site
Azumabashi	Asakusa	5 min	Sumida River dinner
Etchujima	Etchujima, JR Keiyo	3 min	Sukiyaki, tea ceremony
Funasei	Kita-Shinagawa	10 min	Bay dinner
Ryogoku	Ryogoku, JR Sobu	3 min	Other operators
Hinode	Hinode, Yurikamome	1 min	Restaurant ships

Walking times from the operators' own pier pages; cruises as the GetYourGuide listings state their piers.¹ ² ³ ⁶ ⁸

Boarding points

Asakusa, Etchujima or Shinagawa

Our cruise

Azumabashi

Asakusa, Sumida City

Station: Asakusa
Walk: About 5 min
Arrive: 20 min early

Short cruises

Etchujima

Koto City

Station: Etchujima
Walk: About 3 min
Arrive: 15 min early

Bay dinner

Shinagawa pier

Kitashinagawa

Station: Kita-Shinagawa
Walk: About 10 min
Check-in: 30 min before

Decision helper

Which pier suits your hotel?

Start from where you are staying

I am staying in Asakusa I am on the JR Keiyo line I am in Shinagawa I want sumo and a cruise I am in Shimbashi or Ginza

Azumabashi

The pier is about 5 minutes on foot from Asakusa station.¹

Etchujima

Exit 1 of Etchujima station on the JR Keiyo line is 3 minutes away.²

Funasei pier

About 15 minutes on foot from Shinagawa station's Konan exit.³

Ryogoku

The pier is next to the Ryogoku Kokugikan sumo arena.⁹

Hinode pier

Three stops from Shimbashi on the Yurikamome, then a minute on foot.⁸

The Ryogoku pier is located near the Ryogoku Kokugikan sumo arena.

Tokyo Metropolitan Government (Tokyo Updates)Source 9

Etchujima: the pier for the short cruises

The shorter sukiyaki and tea ceremony cruises use Etchujima, in Koto City near the mouth of the Sumida. The tea ceremony listing gives a meeting point at 1-3-23 Etchujima in Koto City, which is the taxi drop-off point, and a final boarding point at 1-3-3 Etchujima; it asks you to arrive 15 minutes early, and late arrivals are not accommodated.

By train the pier is easy. Amitatsu puts the Etchujima pier about 3 minutes on foot from exit 1 of Etchujima station on the JR Keiyo line, and about 8 minutes from Tsukishima and Monzen-nakacho stations.² A night tour that starts with a cruise from Etchujima Pier also asks guests to meet 15 minutes early.

If you book an option that adds Tokyo Tower, note that one listing says you arrange your own transport between Tokyo Tower and Etchujima Pier. Plan that leg on your phone before you go, and leave a little margin. If you come by taxi, give the driver the drop-off address from the listing rather than the pier's name, then follow the signs on foot.

Map

Piers, bridges and towers on the yakatabune routes

The Sumida River from Asakusa down to Kachidoki, then Tokyo Bay with Rainbow Bridge and the Shinagawa pier, and Yokohama's harbour.

Map of the Sumida River from Sakurabashi and Asakusa down to Kachidoki Bridge, with the Azumabashi, Ryogoku and Etchujima piers and Tokyo Skytree — Sumida River

Map of inner Tokyo Bay with Rainbow Bridge, Odaiba Seaside Park, Hinode pier, Tokyo Tower and the Funasei pier in Kitashinagawa — Tokyo Bay

Map of Yokohama harbour with Pukari Pier at Minato Mirai and the Yokohama Bay Bridge — Yokohama

1
Azumabashi pier
A shared pier at Azumabashi 1-23, about 5 minutes on foot from Asakusa station; the site's cruise boards here.⁵ ¹
In Google Maps ↗
2
Tokyo Skytree
The 634 m tower that boats on the Sumida route stop to look at near Sakurabashi.¹⁰ ¹¹
In Google Maps ↗
3
Sakurabashi
The footbridge where the first fireworks venue of the Sumida festival begins.¹²
In Google Maps ↗
4
Ryogoku pier
Beside the Ryogoku Kokugikan sumo arena, about 3 minutes from the west exit of JR Ryogoku station.⁹ ⁶
In Google Maps ↗
5
Kiyosu Bridge
Built in the mid-1920s and modelled on a German suspension bridge.¹³ ¹⁴
In Google Maps ↗
6
Eitai Bridge
First built of timber in the late 1600s; the present bridge dates from the mid-1920s.¹⁴ ¹³
In Google Maps ↗
7
Etchujima pier
A shared pier about 3 minutes from exit 1 of Etchujima station on the JR Keiyo line.²
In Google Maps ↗
8
Kachidoki Bridge
The movable bridge completed in 1940, an Important Cultural Property.¹⁵
In Google Maps ↗
9
Rainbow Bridge
798 m long and lit from about 30 minutes after sunset until midnight.¹⁶ ¹⁷
In Google Maps ↗
10
Odaiba Seaside Park
Where many yakatabune gather after dark, off the artificial island of Odaiba.¹⁸ ¹⁹
In Google Maps ↗
11
Hinode Pier
The pier of the big restaurant ships, 1 minute from Hinode station on the Yurikamome.²⁰ ⁸
In Google Maps ↗
12
Tokyo Tower
The 333 m tower seen from the bay side of most routes.²¹ ²²
In Google Maps ↗
13
Funasei pier
The Shinagawa pier at 1-16-8 Kitashinagawa, about 10 minutes from Kita-Shinagawa station.³
In Google Maps ↗
14
Yokohama Pukari Pier
Where a Yokohama shared yakatabune boards for a 2-hour cruise.²³
In Google Maps ↗
15
Yokohama Bay Bridge
Seen lit at night from the boats in the Port of Yokohama.²⁴
In Google Maps ↗

Open the map in Google Maps

Checklist

Finding your pier

Before the day

The pier name from your voucher
Your station and exit number
When check-in closes

On the day

Leave big luggage at the hotel
Tell the pier keeper your operator
An umbrella for the walk

Video

[GUIDE] Yakatabune Boarding Place: Azumabashi Pier

Nothing is loaded from YouTube until you press play on the video.

Ryogoku and Harumi

Ryogoku is the sumo district, and its pier sits beside the sumo arena. Tokyo Updates notes that the Ryogoku pier is near the Ryogoku Kokugikan, and Amitatsu puts it about 3 minutes on foot from the west exit of Ryogoku station on the JR Sobu line.⁹ ⁶ Harumiya, one operator, runs a 2.5-hour dinner cruise from Ryogoku.²⁵

Harumi is the bay-side pier near Kachidoki. Amitatsu lists it about 5 minutes on foot from exit A3b of Kachidoki station on the Toei Oedo line, and Harumiya gives the same 5 minutes from exit A3.⁷ ²⁶ It is the pier Amitatsu uses for shared boats in cherry blossom season instead of Azumabashi.²⁷ ²⁸

Neither of these is the pier for the cruise this site sells, but they matter if you book another operator's cruise, or if the course changes for a special date such as a festival night. Always check your voucher for the boarding pier rather than assuming, and if two piers share a name with a district, look at the address, not the station name.

Shinagawa: the bay dinner pier

The three-hour bay dinner boards at the Funasei boat pier in Shinagawa City. Funasei gives the address as 1-16-8 Kitashinagawa and says the location is difficult to find, so it suggests printing the map.³

On foot, the pier is about 15 minutes from the Konan exit of Shinagawa station, 10 minutes from Kita-Shinagawa station on the Keikyu line, and about 15 minutes from Tennozu Isle station; there is no parking.³

Time matters more here than anywhere. The listing says the departure falls between 5:00 PM and 6:30 PM and is emailed once confirmed, that check-in is 30 minutes before departure, and that if you are late you will not receive a refund. Treat the emailed time as fixed and work back from it. Save the address offline before you set out, and allow a few minutes to find the entrance.

Hinode, Odaiba and the water bus piers

The big restaurant ships leave from Hinode pier, a minute's walk from Hinode station on the Yurikamome, three stops from Shimbashi, or about 12 minutes on foot from the south exit of JR Hamamatsucho; boarding procedures close 30 minutes before sailing.⁸

The water bus has its own piers. Tokyo Cruise's Asakusa pier is at 1-1-1 Hanakawado, about 1 minute from Asakusa station on the Ginza line, and the water bus ticket on GetYourGuide boards there for the run to Odaiba Seaside Park.²⁹ It is a different pier from Azumabashi, on the Asakusa side of the river, so do not mix the two up.

The small sunset boat meets in front of the Tokyo Water Taxi office, where staff guide guests on a short walk to the pier. Odaiba Seaside Park, finally, is less a boarding point than a meeting point on the water: after dark, many yakatabune converge there, and from the shore you can watch their lanterns gather off the beach.¹⁸

Getting there on time

The rule for every yakatabune is the same: the boat leaves on schedule. The Asakusa cruise asks for 20 minutes, the Etchujima tea ceremony cruise for 15, and Amitatsu's own shared boats for 5 minutes before departure at the pier, with latecomers possibly unable to board and not refunded.³⁰

Leave luggage at your hotel. Harumiya says there is no cloakroom at the pier or on board, though a small suitcase may come aboard.³¹ The Asakusa listing excludes hotel pickup, and the Shinagawa cruise offers it only as an option.

Finally, save the pier address offline, note the exit number of your station, and allow for rain. A short walk in a downpour, followed by taking your shoes off at the door, is more pleasant with a few spare minutes in hand.

Your night on the river