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View all Kyoto toursKyoto: Nishiki Market and Depachika Food Tour
Nishiki Market has been Kyoto's kitchen since the Edo period, a narrow five-block arcade running parallel to Shijo-dori where fishmongers, pickle sellers, and tofu makers have traded in the same...
Highlights
- Taste family-run stalls open since the 1950s
- Explore a depachika most tourists never find
- Sample pickles, yuba, and grilled skewers
- Guide translates and explains unfamiliar dishes
- Small-group pace through a 400-year-old market
Choose from 2 available options
Small Group Tour
Private Tour
Full description
Nishiki Market has been Kyoto's kitchen since the Edo period, a narrow five-block arcade running parallel to Shijo-dori where fishmongers, pickle sellers, and tofu makers have traded in the same stalls for generations. This tour threads through that chaos with a guide who knows which stall has been run by the same family since the 1950s and which vendor will let you sample before you buy. You'll taste things that rarely make it onto an English menu: tsukemono pickled in centuries-old brine recipes, yuba pulled fresh, dashi-simmered croquettes, and maybe a bite of wagyu skewer sizzled to order. From the market's covered arcade, the route drops into a depachika - the basement food hall of a Kyoto department store - an entirely different universe of glass cases, bento boxes, and seasonal wagashi that most first-time visitors never realize exists. Your guide translates labels, explains what's actually inside the mystery-shaped sweets, and points out the seasonal specialties that rotate weekly. This isn't a sit-down meal; it's a moving conversation about how Kyoto eats, told through a dozen small bites and the stories behind them. Come a little hungry, wear shoes you don't mind standing in for two hours, and be ready to say yes to food you can't quite identify. Book this if you want Nishiki Market to make sense on your first pass.
Tour Itinerary
The schedule below is a suggested plan and can be adjusted to suit your preferences.
Meet at Nishiki Market entrance
Group meets your guide near the Teramachi or Takakura entrance to Nishiki Market and gets a quick orientation on the market's 400-year history.
Pickle and tofu stalls
Sample tsukemono pickles and fresh yuba from family-run stalls, with explanations of traditional preservation methods still used today.
Street food tastings
Try grilled skewers, croquettes, and other ready-to-eat market snacks as you move through the covered arcade.
Specialty shops
Stop at a knife shop or tea merchant to see goods most visitors walk straight past without understanding their significance.
Depachika food hall
Descend into a department store basement food hall for a tour of bento, wagashi, and seasonal delicacies, with tasting where available.
Tour wrap-up
Guide shares recommendations for return visits and answers final questions before the group disperses.
Detailed Itinerary
Stop 1 - Meet at Nishiki Market entrance: Group meets your guide near the Teramachi or Takakura entrance to Nishiki Market and gets a quick orientation on the market's 400-year history.
Stop 2 - Pickle and tofu stalls: Sample tsukemono pickles and fresh yuba from family-run stalls, with explanations of traditional preservation methods still used today.
Stop 3 - Street food tastings: Try grilled skewers, croquettes, and other ready-to-eat market snacks as you move through the covered arcade.
Stop 4 - Specialty shops: Stop at a knife shop or tea merchant to see goods most visitors walk straight past without understanding their significance.
Stop 5 - Depachika food hall: Descend into a department store basement food hall for a tour of bento, wagashi, and seasonal delicacies, with tasting where available.
Stop 6 - Tour wrap-up: Guide shares recommendations for return visits and answers final questions before the group disperses.
Includes
- Guided walking tour with food tastings at multiple stalls and a department store food hall.
Excludes
- Additional food or drink purchases beyond the included tastings are not covered.
Important information
Meeting point
Kyoto (details confirmed with operator on booking)
Know before you go
- Free cancellation available up to 24 hours before the activity starts
About this activity
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Traveler Reviews
We loved it! It was just me, my husband, and our 13-year-old daughter, so Éloïse tailored the tour to what we liked and were interested in. She was super friendly! We totally recommend this tour, and we hope you get Éloïse as your guide! 😍
Très interessante. Nous appris beaucoup de choses. Marcelo était très dynamique.
The guide was so great about customizing our tour! He was very patient when we ended up lingering longer in some areas than most people probably do. (We did lose our minds a bit at Daimaru but wow what a cool place) He was fantastic about introducing us to some traditional Japanese food and showing us around the Nishiki market. We would definitely book again. Great for anyone who loves to try new and different food!
I liked the tour. We did a nice walk through the food court of the mall and then through the market. Vincent spoke great English, and we enjoyed the tour.
Parfait! Visite très agréable. Notre guide a pris son temps pour répondre à toutes nos questions et nous a fait découvrir des endroits que nous n’aurions jamais découvert seuls. Notre guide était aussi très sympathique. Je recommande
Me and my family loved seeing new things and tasting delicious original foods from Kyoto I say this experience was a 10 out of 10!! Thank you so much jasmine.
Great food! Lovely to walk around the fish markets and pay a visit to the Shrine. Mao was a great tour guide and gave us plenty of insight into the Japanese’s cuisine, while also buying us some food so we could try it. We weren’t pressured into buying any food from the markets and it was a really friendly atmosphere. She was very enthusiastic about everything and we really enjoyed eating everything she chose for us. It was also great to get some insight into the Shinto shrine located there and the meaning behind the different parts. A perfect start to our trip to Kyoto! Thank you, Mao!
Jasmine was our guide through Nishiki Market and did a great job! She provided lots of insights to the food we were trying and the history of the market. She also gave us plenty of opportunities for shopping while she organized the tastings. Great experience overall!