Guide to Historic Narita, a Quick Train Ride from Narita Airport

While you’ll certainly have a fulfilling time simply exploring the Naritasan historic temple district, immersive tours are also on offer here. The Narita Monzen Terminal (monzen meaning: the area in front of a temple’s main gates) has tour programs for those who would like a deeper experience in Narita. The Visit Chiba team, looking to see a new side to Narita ourselves, took a visit to the Narita Monzen Terminal headquarters to try out their tours. On the day of our visit, two tours were on offer: An ART KIMONO experience and a Japanese Pressed Sushi cooking lesson. Visitors here can take part in the tour of their choosing, or can enter both like we did, and we started with the ART KIMONO experience.

The Narita Monzen Terminal headquarters is found inside the Naritasan “Monzen” branch of a locally beloved souvenir chain, Nagomi-Yoneya, which specializes in Japanese confectionery. More than just a shop, this facility doubles as a welcome center for visitors, and it’s where you’ll be greeted by the Narita Monzen Terminal team. First we met our English-speaking guide, Reiko Yokota, and then she introduced us to Yuu-sensei, our professional kimono dresser, who got us started on the ART KIMONO experience.

The ART KIMONO provided for this tour were designed by Yusuke Shimura, a contemporary artist based in Tokyo and New York, and a native son of the town of Sakae, just west of Narita. He’s known for producing and presenting works all over the world, and for establishing the Narita Airport area’s first modern art base, Fuwari no mori, where he currently serves as art director. The concept behind these ART KIMONO is that the wearer becomes a mobile art piece, moving between sightseeing spots while donning the garment. Each kimono exhibits its own original design and the collection features a variety of colorful motifs, many representing odes to the Narita area, drawn by Shimura.

Our ART KIMONO experience began by taking a pick of our favorite designs. From there, Yuu-sensei took over with her professional expertise, helping us get fitted and dressed in our selected kimono. With the dressing completed, it was time to hit the town, as we headed to the shop-lined Omotesando temple road, and then through the temple gates. As we walked around the centuries-old grounds in our ART KIMONO, we weren’t just immersed in the surrounding beauty of the traditional architecture and natural spaces, we became part of the mosaic itself. Check us out in the pictures below!

For more information about the ART KIMONO experience, please see:
Narita Monzen Terminal Tours

After the ART KIMONO experience, we changed back into our casual clothes, but then slipped on a chef’s coat and hat over those in preparation for our next Narita Monzen Terminal tour: a Japanese Pressed Sushi cooking lesson. While you may be more familiar with nigiri sushi or sushi rolls, oshizushi, or pressed sushi, is a layered sushi dish made by pressing sushi rice and other ingredients in a wooden mold called an oshibako.

Participants in this tour are guided on a step-by-step process for making a pressed sushi dish by the Narita Monzen Terminal’s cooking teacher, Hirano-sensei. Accompanying the meal is miso soup and Japanese salad, which you’ll also help prepare, plus complimentary local sake and a traditional Japanese confectionery dessert. Hirano-sensei, with the help of our translator Reiko-san, kindly guided us through processes like frying and rolling an egg in the Japanese style, cutting greens and vegetables, and grinding sesame seeds.

Once our sushi was neatly pressed and side dishes prepared, we sat and enjoyed the lunches while talking with Hirano-sensei about her background and her 14 years of teaching experience. We learned about how watching her grandmother cook as a child influenced her approach and how she’s learned to greatly appreciate many aspects of Japanese culinary culture. Japanese cuisine and dishes like pressed sushi place an emphasis on a balanced selection of nutritious ingredients, drawing on the craftsmanship and dedication that goes into each step of the farm-to-table process.

It seemed to us that most of all, Hirano-sensei enjoys sharing her love of the craft with the guests who join these tours. Many overseas tourists to Japan may not get the chance to enjoy home cooked meals while they are here, and as Hirano-sensei pointed out, they are very unlikely to get to witness the intricate processes and devotion that goes into a handmade Japanese meal. Her and Reiko-san went on to say that these lessons often lead to a cultural exchange that results in such fulfilling conversation that they barely even have time to eat their meals!

For more information about the Japanese Pressed Sushi cooking lesson, please see:
Narita Monzen Terminal Tours

*The ingredients can be altered based on the participants’ dietary needs and restrictions.

Unagi:
Freshwater eel, or unagi, are raised in the nearby Inbanuma Lake, helping to make unagi dishes the trademark cuisine of Narita City. There are dozens of restaurants serving unagi here in Narita, many of which can be found along the Omotesando temple road. You can even see cooks preparing unagi dishes in storefront kitchens as you stroll down the Omotesando.

Tea & Sweets:
One of our favorite tea houses along the Omotesando is Miyoshi-ya, which is tucked away in a small courtyard just off the main road. Their English menu features a variety of coffee, tea, matcha and fruit drinks. You can also indulge on scrumptious desserts featuring favorites like sweet adzuki beans, mochi dumplings, ice cream, and more!
Location   |   Website, scroll to the bottom to change to English
For Japanese-style omiyage souvenir confectionery, take a stop by the flagship store of a local institution, Nagomi-Yoneya. Here you’ll find traditional favorites like yokan and dorayaki, and peanuts monoka, a local specialty inspired by Chiba’s famous peanuts!
Location   |   English website

Local Sake:
If you’re a fan of Japanese sake, check out these two locally-based sake brands which have shops along the Omotesando road:
Nabedana Brewery Shop | Location and Visit Chiba article
Chomeisen Brewery Shop | Location and Website (Japanese)

Kimono Studio Hanabi:
In addition to the “ART KIMONO” introduced above, you can also find more traditional-style kimono rentals at Kimono Studio Hanabi. They have information in English on their website HERE.

Many travelers who use Narita International Airport also choose to stay a night in Narita, and there are plenty of hotels near the airport to accommodate them. To learn more about our recommendations, please check the link below:

Hotels near Narita: Make Narita your easy destination | Visit Chiba