After we had finished walking through the beautiful Hamarikyu Gardens, we went to a small pier at the eastern end of the garden and purchased tickets to ride a waterbus. This pier was where the shogun would receive guests via the river to his castle. The boat ride was a much less busy, albeit slower, option than the subway and provided us with a very different view of the city. We boarded the waterbus once it arrived. The ceiling of the boat was very low once we got to the seating area, and Taylor had to hunch over quite a bit to even fit. Once we and all the other passengers were seated, we embarked from the pier and headed towards the water lock at the south corner of the gardens. After the gates crept open we moved through them and into Tokyo Bay.

Before we headed north towards Asakusa, our boat made a quick stop at a Hinode Pier just to the south of the water lock to pick up more passengers for the journey. On the other side of the pier was a replica of a boat that was once used by the emperor, but now it serves as a floating restaurant. Once we were loaded up for the last time, we left and traveled north into the Sumida River. We passed by the Hamarikyu Gardens one last time and could see the trees reaching over the retaining wall.

On our way to Asakusa we passed under 13 bridges that cross the river. The bridges in order are: Tsukijio Bridge, Kachidoki Bridge, Tsukuda-Ohashi Bridge, Chuo-Ohashi Bridge, Eidai Bridge, Sumidagawao Bridge, Kiyosubashi Bridge, Shino Bridge, Ryogoku Bridge, Kuramae Bridge, Umayabashi Bridge, Komagatabashi Bridge, and Asakusa Bridge. Most of the journey was saw apartments and building of all shapes and sizes.

Along the route we passed by the smaller Kanda River that fed into the Sumida River. One of our favorite views was of many oriental-styled fishing boats that were docked on the sides of the river.

As we passed under the Asakusa Bridge we maneuvered into the pier to disembark from the waterbus. Across the river we could see the famous Asahi Headquarters and Beer Tower. The smaller building to the south has an odd shaped structure on top was originally supposed to be vertical. It’s shaped like a flame to represent the employee’s burning passion for their profession, but the city wouldn’t allow the flame to be constructed vertically for some reason, so they had to have the fire laid down horizontally. It’s become a joke to the locals, because now it looks more like a yam or dog excrement.

The Sumida River Cruise is a great way to see the city from a different point of view and doing a one way trip is a nice way to get around.

Start Google Maps Link: Hamarikyu Gardens Pier

End Google Maps Link: Tokyo Cruise Asakusa Pier