Asakusa station

Asakusa is one of the birthplaces of the Japanese subway. On December 30, 1927, an underground line opened between Asakusa and Ueno, the first stretch of today's Ginza line and the first project of its kind in Asia. The station then served a district already famous for the Sensō-ji temple, its theaters, and its places of entertainment. Toei added the Asakusa line in 1960, creating a second underground identity connected to the first. Nearby, the Tobu terminal serves Nikko and the north of the region. Together they now link old working-class Tokyo, contemporary tourist routes, and several generations of railway infrastructure.

At the 1927 opening, the Asakusa–Ueno trip lasted only a few minutes, but the novelty drew an immense crowd. The first travelers reportedly sometimes waited nearly two hours to experience this short underground journey.

Opening

1927

Heritage

First subway in Asia

Neighborhood

Sensō-ji and old Tokyo