Tokyo: Toyosu Market Entrance & Shibuya Station — Guide Masa

What Is a Private Early-Morning Toyosu Fish Market and Tsukiji Tour in Tokyo Like? A Licensed Guide's Report

The guests were visitors from North America, both visiting Japan for the first time. One of the guests runs a car rental business, mainly dealing with Japanese vehicles.

They had arrived at Narita Airport two days earlier and traveled to their hotel by Narita Express (Hotel).

The day before yesterday, they strolled around Asakusa and Shibuya, and in the evening they enjoyed sushi.

Yesterday they went to Nagoya. After visiting the Toyota museum, they said, "The hitsumabushi we had for lunch was delicious."

They would be staying in Japan for a total of 16 days. They planned to spend four days in Tokyo, then visit Kyoto, Osaka, Nara, and Naoshima, before returning to Tokyo and heading home.

At 5:00 am, we met on schedule at the south side of the main gate of Toyosu Market.

First, we went to the seafood wholesale building and watched the tuna auction with great interest.

I explained "the history of Tokyo's fish markets," "the difference between Toyosu Market and the Tsukiji Outer Market," and "the difference between the wholesale market and the intermediate wholesale market."

There were questions and explanations about "Where is tuna caught?", "Is all the tuna from around the world sent to Toyosu Market?", "When is the market closed?", and "What kinds of tuna are there and which type is the most expensive?"

There was also a question: "How much does a single tuna cost?"

From the second-floor public viewing corridor, the "fresh tuna" auction below could not be seen well. The guests commented, "It's a shame we couldn't watch from the special viewing deck."

After this, we visited the intermediate wholesale building.

There were questions such as "What kind of people come here to buy?" and "I'd really like to go inside and look around — is that not allowed?"

They said, "It's been a hot topic on social media, so I'd really like to go to 'Sushi Dai.'" Unfortunately, a reservation for that afternoon could not be secured, and after confirming the reservation, they said, "We'll come back in the afternoon to eat."

We took the Yurikamome and the subway, transferring to reach the Tsukiji Outer Market, and slowly made a full loop around the area.

We looked around at various shops, and they bought and sampled "ice cream," "onigiri," and "mochi."

They commented, "The whole town is clean. There's no litter on the ground."

They also commented and asked, "I don't see any homeless people," and "There are no trash cans out on the streets. Why is that?"

Since they said, "I'd like to go to Shibuya before heading to 'Sushi Dai,'" I saw them off to Shibuya Station, and we parted ways.

Click here for more details: Toyosu Tuna Auction & Tsukiji Local Food Tour, Licensed Guide

Tour Report by Masa

Guiding career:
Guide work started in July 2022. A guide focused on FIT compliance.
FY2022 results: 17 cases, FY2023 results: 97
Destinations: Various places in Tokyo, Hakone, Kamakura and Nikko
As a recent group travel record, in October 2023, we have a track record of guiding a group of 33 people from Singapore to Narita Airport transfer plus sightseeing in Tokyo.
Self-introduction:
In the past, I was stationed in Canada, the United States, and Mexico as an expatriate of a Japanese bank for over 11 years.
Since I have been mainly involved in the financing business in the United States for a long time, I think I am able to provide interpretation and translation services related to business and finance.
I am a certified CPA in the United States.
In addition, for three years from April 2016, I will be engaged in Japanese-English translation work (part-time), and I can also handle translation work.
Although I don’t have a qualification in Spanish, but I think I can handle day to day conversation in Spanish without any problems.
My hobby is trekking and from time to time, take a walk around mountains near Tokyo like Mt. Takao, Tanzawa, etc. I think it is possible to provide tourist information here as well.
Since April 2015, I have been working as a Tokyo Metropolitan Tourism Volunteer and Tokyo Metropolitan Disaster Prevention Volunteer.
One more, I have a separate house near Asuka Village, Nara prefecture, and I stay there for a total of about 30 days every year and have been enjoying sightseeing personally in the vicinity. Therefore, I think in the Kansai region, especially in Nara, Asuka, Yoshino, Koyasan, Kumano Kodo, etc., where I think I will be able to tour guide with confidence.