20 Best Japanese Street Markets

Tsukiji Outer Market 

Tsukiji Outer Market can be found in Chuo City in central Tokyo. This expansive market lines a few blocks with shops that sell all types of goods, as well as a collection of restaurants and food stands. 

The market opens at 5:00 a.m. and closes around 2:00 p.m., making it an ideal destination to start your morning with breakfast or early lunch before or during shopping. 

Tsukiji Outer Market Official Website

Curb Market

Curb Market is in Sapporo, Hokkaido, and is one of the best places to find some famous Hokkaido seafood, which is some of the best in Japan.

You can explore more than 80 shops, stalls, and food stands. If you don’t have a kitchen to bring seafood back to, you can enjoy very fresh seafood cooked at one of the eateries at the market. 

Location Via Google Maps

Sapporo Skyline

Hakodate Morning Market 

This market, just a few steps from Hokkaido’s JR Hakodate Station, is open daily from 5:00 a.m. or 6:00 a.m. to noon and is one of the top destinations for delicious seafood. 

The large market has stands spanning four blocks filled with seafood and seafood-based dishes, as well as restaurants and eateries that serve some of the most delicious breakfasts you can get in Japan. 

Hakodate Morning Market Official Website

Auga Market

Auga Market in Aomori is openly hidden in the basement of Auga Festival City shopping center.

While many of the stalls offer ingredients to put together a meal, you can also try some prepared foods at the market. Seafood sold at stalls here is caught from the nearby Aomori Port.

Auga Market Official Website

Shiogama Fish Market

The Shiogama Port on Sanriku Coast is an epicenter of Japan’s fishing industry, so it’s no surprise some of the best fish can be found here.

Shiogama Market Via Tripadvisor

Walking down the line of stalls, you’ll enjoy seeing a plethora of freshly caught fish as well as delicious snacks and meals prepared with fresh catch. 

There are also a couple of shops that allow you to make your own dishes with purchased ingredients, which is ideal if you want to improve your Japanese cooking skills. 

Miyako Fish Market

This fish market can also be found on the Sanriku Coast. Here, you can shop for a wide variety of fresh fish and produce.

Miyako City Fish Market

The market is open from morning to early evening every day except for Wednesdays and is regarded as having very affordable prices. 

Tanga Market 

In Kitakyushu in Kyushu, Tanga Market spans down a narrow road with shops lining the path up and down. Being so close to a river, fresh fish is delivered to the market for visitors to bring home. 

Shoppers can explore the various shops for fresh food, produce, prepared and dried foods, as well as plenty of other goods. 

Tanga Market Official Website

Nijo Market

Sapporo is also home to the Nijo Market, a small but popular spot in the center of the city. You can find a host of delicious seafood as well as produce and other foods.

The market is also home to a couple of restaurants worth checking out, especially if you want to try an authentic Japanese seafood breakfast. 

Nijo Market Website

Kushiro Washo Market 

Another popular market in Hokkaido, visitors can find rows of fresh seafood, produce, and more at this indoor market.

The kattendon is one of the prepared dishes that draw in shoppers, where you can add your choice of delicious seafood on top of rice. 

Occasionally, you can pick a piece of seafood that is fresh and in season and have it prepared at the market for you. 

Kushiro Washo Market Website

Toyosu Fish Market 

This is perhaps one of the largest and most modern markets you’ll find in Japan. There are two whole portions of the building dedicated to fresh fish, and one section for fresh vegetables and fruits.

You can go back and forth between buildings through enclosed walkways, and also take a break at one of the restaurants within the market. 

Toyosu Fish Market can be found in the Tokyo Bay area. 

Toyosu Market Website

Wajima City Market 

This historical morning market has been drawing in visitors and locals for over one thousand years. Shoppers can explore stalls selling produce, fish, and other wares.

The market is close to the harbor on the coast of the Sea of Japan. 

Wajima City can be found in the Okunoto region of the Noto Peninsula. The market is only open from 8:00 a.m. to noon, so be sure to get there early. 

Wajima Website

Wajima City Skyline

Omicho Market 

The streets are covered to encapsulate this historical market, found in Kanazawa in Ishikawa Prefecture.

You can also find a variety of goods at the market apart from fresh fish and other foods. You can also pick up some clothing and homewares at the market to take home with you. 

There are also restaurants within the market, but just keep in mind they get quite busy around lunchtime. 

Omicho Market Website

Nishiki Market 

This market has also earned the name Kyoto’s Kitchen, as it’s a treasure trove of items and ingredients for those who love to cook.

Outside of fresh foods to shop for, you can also enjoy prepared foods at restaurants, or skewered foods offered by some stalls that are ready to eat. 

Nishiki Market Official Website

Karato Market 

Karato Market is one place where you can find the famous pufferfish. The market stalls can be found within a large warehouse, and other goods such as fresh seafood and produce can be shopped here.

You’ll find Karato in Shimonoseki in Yamaguchi Prefecture. 

Karato Market Official Site

Kesennuma Fish Market 

This is one of the more expansive markets you can find in Japan, specifically on the Sanriku Coast. You can snatch up some extremely fresh fish, given that the market is right by the water.

Kesennuma Market Official Website

The market is known for offering a plethora of shark-based items and foods, but they also get a variety of popular and seasonal fish. 

Furukawa Fish Market 

This is another market that allows you to shop for ingredients, or put together ingredients for your own delicious donburi, consisting of fresh seafood and rice.

This market isn’t far from Auga in Aomori. Other stalls here offer more fish, produce, pickles, and various foods. 

Furukawa Market Website

Takayama Morning Markets

Takayama in Gifu Prefecture hosts two separate morning markets to explore. Shoppers can purchase a variety of farm-based products, from fresh produce to local wares made on farms.

There are also other goods and food products available at these markets, which usually run from 6:00 a.m. to noon. 

Takayama Morning Market

Kuromon Market

Kuromon Market in Osaka is an enclosed market with various stalls selling fish and other food. Shoppers can also find non-edible wares including clothes and houseware items.

It’s also worth stopping for some Japanese sweets within the market. 

Kuromon Market Website

Yobuko Morning Market 

This charming outdoor market is available for shoppers daily, offering produce, dried seafood, and other locally sourced food items.

Yobuko Official Website

You can also enjoy some prepared squid, which the region is known for. Yobuko can be found in Karatsu in Saga Prefecture. 

Kochi Sunday Market 

Kochi Sunday Market can be found in Kochi within the city’s center. It’s open from 6:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. each Sunday, and you can shop for local foods and other home goods at this market.

Kochi Market Via Visit Kochi

It’s also worth grabbing some prepared goods on your way through the market, as this market is known for vendors that make delicious food.

My fascination with Japan began several years back at a roadside bonsai stand while on vacation. I became more interested in the where and why's more than the trees themselves. My love of Bonsai led me to further research my interest in the gardens where they originated from and the places and people that surrounded those little trees. My curiosity was well rewarded upon visiting Saitama where the National Bonsai Museum was located and Omiya Village the bonsai mecca for lovers of this ancient art form. Exploring many towns and villages and even making my way to Japan's furthest southern prefecture of Okinawa. I hope to share my love of this wonderful and exotic place with all those who want to know more about Japan.