Sumida Hokusai Museum
Ryogoku, Tokyo
- Tue to Sun
- 9:30 to 17:30
- Mon
- Closed
Last entry 30 minutes before closing. When Monday is a public holiday, it closes the next weekday instead. Closed 29 December to 3 January.
Source: hokusai-museum.jp, checked 5 Oct 2026.
The Sumida Hokusai Museum is a mirrored aluminium building by Kazuyo Sejima devoted to Hokusai, who was born here and spent nearly all his life in this neighbourhood. The permanent collection shows how The Great Wave came to be.
Insider tip
You can see it in an hour. Combine it with the sumo neighbourhood of Ryogoku and a chanko nabe stew for lunch.
What the guides say about Sumida Hokusai Museum
East-side trips. The Edo-Tokyo Museum, the Sumida Hokusai Museum and Kyu-Yasuda Garden are all within fifteen minutes' walk of the station. Asakusa and Kuramae are a 20 to 30 minute walk up the Sumida River, and Akihabara is two stops west on the Sobu Line.
The Sumo Museum is inside the Kokugikan, and during tournaments you'll need a ticket for that day to get in. Next door, the Edo-Tokyo Museum reopened in March 2026 after a four-year renovation. Kyu-Yasuda Garden, a free stroll garden a minute from the hall, is the quiet counterpoint to a loud afternoon, and the Sumida Hokusai Museum is a ten-minute walk east. Many fans also gather by the hall entrance in the afternoon to watch the top wrestlers arrive. The Ryogoku neighbourhood guide covers the district in full.
Tickets and tours
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What's on at Sumida Hokusai Museum
Upcoming events at Sumida Hokusai Museum and within a ten-minute walk, from the weekly Tokyo events calendar.
Best of the Sumida Hokusai Museum: the Sumida River scroll and masterpieces (10th anniversary)
開館10周年記念 特別展 ベスト オブ すみだ北斎美術館ー隅田川両岸景色図巻と名品ー
Time See the museum's page Station Ryogoku (Oedo Line), 5 min walk; Ryogoku (JR), 9 min walk
The museum's own Hokusai masterpieces for its 10th anniversary, led by his long handscroll of both banks of the Sumida River.
dconvertini, CC BY-SA 2.0 Hokusai Crossover: gathering in Sumida across the ages (10th anniversary)
開館10周年記念 北斎クロスオーバー 時代を超えて“すみだ”に集う
Time Open 2, 3 and 11 Jan; closed 27 Dec to 1 Jan and 12 Jan Station Ryogoku (Oedo Line), 5 min walk; Ryogoku (JR), 9 min walk
Hokusai and his pupils' views of Sumida, with work tied to the writers he knew, such as Ota Nanpo, and to later authors like Masaoka Shiki, for the ward's 80th year.
dconvertini, CC BY-SA 2.0 NHK Taiga Drama Special Exhibition: Toyotomi Brothers
江戸東京博物館リニューアル記念 NHK大河ドラマ特別展「豊臣兄弟！」
Station Ryogoku (JR Chuo-Sobu Line), 3 min walk
A special exhibition tied to the NHK historical drama series, focusing on Toyotomi Hidenaga, the younger brother of Toyotomi Hideyoshi. The show is held at the renovated Edo-Tokyo Museum and runs through the first week of November.
Joe Mabel, CC BY-SA 2.0 Fukagawa Edo Museum 40th anniversary special event
深川江戸資料館40周年記念特別イベント
Time 9:00 to 17:00, acting 13:00 to 14:00 and 14:30 to 15:30, music or rakugo at 14:00 Station Kiyosumi-shirakawa Station
Actors from Fukagawa Tokkuri-za play Edo townspeople inside the exhibition room, with shinnai on 14 November and rakugo on 15 November.
The Tokugawa Shoguns from Bakumatsu to Meiji: Tenshoin Atsuhime and Her Times
徳川将軍家の幕末・明治―天璋院篤姫とその時代
Station Ryogoku (JR Sobu Line), 3 min walk; Ryogoku (Oedo Line), 1 min walk
An exhibition on the Tokugawa shogun family through the end of the Edo period and into Meiji, told through Tenshoin Atsuhime, the wife of the 13th shogun. It's held in the renovated Edo-Tokyo Museum.
Joe Mabel, CC BY-SA 2.0 Smaller local events nearby
Watashimo Hokusai: 10th Anniversary Event Week Performance
3 to 8 Nov · Sumida Hokusai Museum, MARUGEN100 lecture room, Ryogoku
Week of performances and workshops such as Suzume dance live and Hokusai yoga at the Sumida Hokusai Museum lecture room, with some paid workshops.
Free · 10:00 to 17:00 · Map · Source: Sumida Hokusai Museum · 開館10周年記念イベント「ワタシモ北斎」
Oedo Sumida Craftspeople Fair Market
25 Nov to 6 Dec · Midoricho Park, Ryogoku
Sumida craftspeople show and sell their work in Midoricho Park, organised by the Oedo Sumida Shokunin-ten committee.
Free · Map · Source: Sumida City · 大江戸すみだ職人展
Nearby
Around Ryogoku
Sumo town on the Sumida, with Hokusai and a tidal garden next door
Ryogoku is sumo's home. The national stadium is beside the station, the stables are in the side streets, and you'll see wrestlers in yukata on the platform. Around the Kokugikan sit the newly reopened Edo-Tokyo Museum, a Hokusai museum in the district where he was born, and a small garden built to follow the river tides. It's one of the easiest half-days in east Tokyo.
Ryogoku has 11 places on the Roam Tokyo map: 4 museums, 2 parks and gardens, 2 bathhouses, 1 landmark, 1 bar and 1 restaurant. Read the Ryogoku guide.
Good to know
- What is the address of Sumida Hokusai Museum?
- 2-7-2 Kamezawa, Sumida-ku, Tokyo (in Japanese: 東京都墨田区亀沢2丁目7番2号).
- What are the opening hours of Sumida Hokusai Museum?
- Tue to Sun 9:30 to 17:30; Closed Mon. Last entry 30 minutes before closing. When Monday is a public holiday, it closes the next weekday instead. Closed 29 December to 3 January.
- How do I get to Sumida Hokusai Museum?
- The nearest station is Ryogoku (Oedo Line). Sumida Hokusai Museum is in Ryogoku, Tokyo.
- How much does Sumida Hokusai Museum cost?
- Sumida Hokusai Museum is cheap, marked ¥ on the site's price scale.
- How long do you need at Sumida Hokusai Museum?
- Plan for 1 hour.
- When is the best time to visit Sumida Hokusai Museum?
- Any, fully indoors.
Stay near Sumida Hokusai Museum
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Median US$199 a night across 109 listings within 1.2 km for a two-night stay a month out, sampled 20 October 2026. Cheapest quarter under US$162. See the weekly index for every neighbourhood.
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