The Best Place To Find And Buy A Kimono In Tokyo

A beautiful, lustrous kimono is the perfect souvenir to bring home from Japan.
As you may know there are kimono retail stores and there are kimono rental stores in Japan. Keep in mind most retail stores don’t rent and lots of rental stores don’t sell (although some do.)

Renting a kimono is another great idea especially for visiting temples and shrines. I saw many Japanese women dressed in kimonos when visiting temples, especially at Kiyomizu-dera in Kyoto.

When it comes to buying a kimono they can be expensive but they don’t have to be. While many stores sell tailor made kimonos, there are shops that sell used kimonos that look like new for very good prices. There are also stores that sell brand new ready-to-wear kimono, that often have a sales rack off to one side, where you might find great discounts on brand new kimonos.

Everywhere I went in Japan I always kept my eye open for the best place to shop for a kimono. I found what I think is the absolute best location and along the way a couple top contenders as well.

red and black and grey abstract flower kimono — Woodcut by Ishikawa Toyonobu, 1741 from the Library of Congress on Unsplash

woodcut women in kimono with cherry tree by Ishikawa from 1741 — Woodcut by Ishikawa Toyonobu, 1741 from the Library of Congress on Unsplash

I wasn’t sure if I should add multiple shopping options or just stick to the best, because number one really is hands down the best place in Tokyo to find a kimono, but I wanted to be thorough so I have included two other locations. If you want to skip the second and third best options, then just scroll down to number one.

Number #3 Harajuku

A top runner up, the Harajuku area of Shibuya, Tokyo has some good kimono stores scattered about.
One store, with a couple locations in Harajuku, is called Chicago. While they have some used kimono, they have other clothes besides kimono as well, so it is not a store that specializes in Kimonos and their selection at any given time will probably vary. Harajuku has a ton of thrift stores in general, and only a couple have just kimonos.
The shops in Harajuku, can be a little hard to find, don’t be scared to get a little lost down alleys off Takeshita St (the main shopping street) and keep your eyes peeled for stairs going up to little stores with no signs.
In addition to thrift stores there are also a couple high end designer stores in Harajuku. A block or two past Takeshita St, is a store called Kimono by Nadeshika ( *now called Kimono Arch). Selling brand new gorgeous kimonos, (they had these absolutely divine kimonos made out of delicate lace, oh my goodness!) this store had both tailoring and ready made. While most of the Kimonos here were a bit of a splurge, with the average price being around 300 dollars, (the dreamy lace ones were $500) they also had a sales rack and when I was there some were marked down as low as 60 and 80 dollars.
A men’s kimono store called Robe Japonica is also located just two blocks up from Takeshita St.

Number #2

Another solid option for kimono shopping is the Shinjuku area of Tokyo. Most of the shops are within relative proximity to Shinjuku station. There are some wonderful kimono rental stores here as well. Most of the retail stores sell brand new kimonos and yukatas, the prices aren’t great, but they might have sales racks worth checking out. A notable exception is the store Fuku Fuku Recycled Kimono, just a little further away from the station, but worth the walk. Fuku Fuku is a nice used kimono store with shelves of gently used kimonos.

One downside to the runner up locations is that they are scattered about among the chaos of highly congested shopping districts, which can make them difficult to find.

What is the number one best place to buy a kimono, to take home, for yourself or as a gift?

Number #1

ASAKUSA

Asakusa, Tokyo! Asakusa is hands down the best place to find a kimono of any kind, from used kimonos, to rental kimonos and even bespoke kimonos.

There is a little street here with kimono stores all lined up together, one after another and very easy to find. Just south of Senso-ji Temple and slightly west, it is called Orange St.
(There are even more kimono stores located just off this street as well.)

The shops here range from rentals, to high end kimono tailors to, more importantly, tiny little shops that sell ‘like new’ used kimonos and yukatas for amazing prices! I bought a ‘hardly’ used kimono here for 10 dollars! It was so so beautiful. The Obi (the wide sash/belts for the kimono) are sold separately but this is usually the case with Kimonos. The one I picked out to match, (or rather contrast) with my kimono was another 10 dollars. Don’t forget to grab a few simple ties as well, they go under the obi and they’re only a few cents or so but you’ll need them. Most stores will probably give you a few for free when you buy a Kimono.

I hope this helps take the stress out of finding good stores so all that’s left is to have fun shopping!