Imperial Palace to Tsukiji Hongwanji, Tokyo: free self-guided walking tour
Quick answer. A free self-guided walking tour from the Imperial Palace to Tsukiji Hongwanji in Tokyo: 4 stops, about 4.6 km, about 60 minutes of walking plus about 26 minutes of listening. Start on the gravel plaza before the Main Gate of the Imperial Palace and its Nijubashi bridge, where the mansions of the great daimyo once stood. Walk south into Hibiya Park, reclaimed from the sea and opened in 1903 as Japan’s first Western-style park, then east to Kyobashi and the National Film Archive of Japan, the country’s only national institution devoted to film. Finish at Tsukiji Hongwanji, a temple with an ancient Indian silhouette, rebuilt in concrete after the 1923 earthquake.
- Stops:
- 4
- Distance:
- about 4.6 km
- Walking:
- about 60 min
- Listening:
- about 26 min
Two ways to do this walk
Tokyo with Mappu
Walk Mode, in the free Mappu app
It knows where you are, tells you about everything you pass between the stops, answers your questions and keeps you on the route. Your phone stays in your pocket.
A 2-hour live walk, €4.99.
50 credits from the Starter pack. One-time purchase, no subscription.
Self-guided audio walk. No guide accompanies you. Not affiliated with the sites.
Free: the audio guides
Listen to each stop’s audio guide in your browser and find your own way between the stops.
Walking directions in Google MapsImperial Palace to Tsukiji Hongwanji, Tokyo: how long does the walk take?
About 86 minutes in all: about 60 minutes on foot over about 4.6 km, plus about 26 minutes of audio at the 4 stops. Time inside the sites is extra.
Imperial Palace to Tsukiji Hongwanji, Tokyo: in what order should you visit the stops?
Follow the stops in this order: Imperial Palace and Nijubashi, Hibiya Park, National Film Archive of Japan, and Tsukiji Hongwanji. The longest stretch between two stops is about 1.9 km, about 26 min on foot.
Route and map
Indicative route. While you walk, watch where you're going, mind the traffic and follow local signs and rules. The map is an aid, not a safety guide. Terms
Follow Mappu’s map: the route runs along the streets from stop to stop, and the stories keep playing as you walk.
To get to the first stop, or if you’re far from the route, Google Maps has walking directions through every stop.
Stop 1
The gravel plaza before the Main Gate of the Imperial Palace and its Nijubashi bridge, once lined with daimyo mansions, between Marunouchi’s towers and the palace walls.
about 7 min of audio
Next stop: Hibiya Park · about 1.3 km, about 17 min on foot
Stop 2
About 40 acres of lawns and flower beds on the reclaimed Hibiya Inlet, opened in 1903 as a Western-style garden, with a pond and a crane fountain.
about 5 min of audio
Next stop: National Film Archive of Japan · about 1.9 km, about 26 min on foot
Stop 3
Japan’s only national institution devoted entirely to film, founded in 1952 as a museum film library, with screenings, exhibitions and a library in Kyobashi.
about 6 min of audio
Next stop: Tsukiji Hongwanji · about 1.4 km, about 19 min on foot
Stop 4
A Jodo Shinshu temple of the Nishi Hongwanji with an ancient Indian silhouette, rebuilt in reinforced concrete after fire and the 1923 earthquake.
about 8 min of audio
The stop stories are AI-generated audio guides and can contain mistakes. Check opening hours and tickets on the official sites.
Planning a trip to Tokyo?
Get your plan
Mappu sketches your days free in the chat, no account needed. Then take the full plan with you:
- Weekend trip, €9.99: Your day-by-day plan plus 2 live walks
- Save your trip’s free guides on your phone in the Mappu app: they play with no signal
Before you go
- Check opening hours, tickets and access on each site’s official page before you go.
- Distances and times are estimates: the walking route between stops, from OpenStreetMap, at 4.5 km/h. Your route on the street may differ.
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Plan more days in Tokyo
These day-by-day Mappu itineraries include Tokyo. The day links open the days that visit stops on this walk.
Useful for your visit
Tickets, tours and practical extras for this trip, from Mappu's partners.
- Tokyo Imperial Palace: guided tourViator · Partner(opens the partner's site in a new tab)
- Tokyo Imperial Palace and more: guided tourViator · Partner(opens the partner's site in a new tab)
Partner links (Airalo, Amazon, Booking.com, GetYourGuide, Klook, Tiqets, Trip.com, Viator, Welcome Pickups): if you book or buy through them, Mappu may earn a commission, at no extra cost to you.
Route checked by Mappu on November 1, 2026. Stop descriptions come from each place’s published Mappu audio guide. Mappu is a Fenutech product.