Where the name Takeshiba comes from, what stood here before the station, and what you can still spot on a walk today. Then the events near the station that we have checked on the official pages.
Takeshiba has an unexpected connection to classical Japanese literature. According to Minato City's historical account, the name is associated with the legend of Takeshiba Temple, recorded in the eleventh-century Sarashina Diary. The story tells of a man from Musashi Province who brought a noblewoman from the capital to eastern Japan. Their home was later said to have become a temple. Takeshiba Temple is traditionally associated with the Hijirizaka area of present-day Mita, although its precise location and the historical truth of the story remain uncertain.
The modern Takeshiba waterfront is much younger. The land east of the former Shiba Imperial Villa was created through reclamation, and Takeshiba-cho became an official neighborhood name in 1927. In 1936, it was merged with nearby Hamasakicho into Kaigandori 1-chome. The present address is Kaigan, but the historical name lives on in the pier and railway station.
Walk west from Takeshiba Station toward the Former Shiba Rikyu Gardens, then turn east toward Tokyo Bay. The contrast between the historic garden and the reclaimed waterfront is striking. Takeshiba is a place where a medieval literary legend, twentieth-century land reclamation, and modern maritime transportation meet.
→ From Takeshiba Station, look west toward the Former Shiba Rikyu Gardens and then walk east to the passenger terminal overlooking Tokyo Bay. The contrast between the old garden and the reclaimed waterfront helps explain how an ancient legendary name became part of modern Tokyo's port.
Sources (in Japanese): 港区デジタル版『新修港区史』海岸, 港区「竹芝橋・橋の由来」
Much of the land surrounding Takeshiba Station did not exist during the Edo period. To the west, however, stood a major waterfront estate. In 1678, Okubo Tadatomo, a senior official of the Tokugawa shogunate, established his residence on the site of today's Former Shiba Rikyu Gardens. The garden's pond was designed to use tidal water from nearby Tokyo Bay. In 1875, the Imperial Household acquired the property from the Kishu Tokugawa family, and it became the Shiba Imperial Villa the following year.
During the early twentieth century, Tokyo expanded its port through extensive land reclamation. The new neighborhood of Takeshiba-cho appeared in 1927, and Takeshiba Pier was completed in 1934. The pier developed into an important departure point for passenger ships traveling between Tokyo and the Izu Islands. After World War II, the facilities were requisitioned by the Allied occupation authorities for a period extending from around 1945 to 1952.
Modern redevelopment reshaped the district once again. The Yurikamome railway opened along a former freight railway corridor in 1995, alongside improvements to the passenger terminal. Waters Takeshiba and Tokyo Port City Takeshiba opened in 2020. Walk from the historic garden toward the waterfront and you cross successive layers of Tokyo's development: a feudal seaside estate, reclaimed port land, and a modern gateway to the islands.
→ Visit the tidal-style pond and stonework of the Former Shiba Rikyu Gardens, then walk through the Takeshiba area to the passenger terminal. From the waterfront deck, look toward the piers serving the Izu Islands. The route connects an Edo-period garden with the reclaimed land of Tokyo's modern port.
Sources (in Japanese): 竹芝エリアマネジメント「竹芝地区の歴史」, JR東日本「高輪築堤跡保存活用計画書・史跡の概要」
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We list events we could confirm on the official page or official Instagram of the venue or organiser. Details can change, tickets sell out and venues close, so check the official page before you go. Distances are straight-line and travel times are rough estimates. Photos show the venue or its surroundings, not the event itself. Titles and descriptions are our own translations from Japanese. This site contains affiliate links (ads).