(1) Location & Access
- The Nihonbashi, Yaesu and Kyobashi areas are located on the eastern side of JR Tokyo Station, which is a major nodal point for transportation, and have long been office districts.
- Transport is convenient, featuring multiple subway lines, in addition to the JR Lines.


Nihonbashi

(2) Overview
The buildings in the area are relatively old, and their sizes vary from large to small. Due to its proximity to the Bank of Japan and the Tokyo Stock Exchange, the area once accommodated many securities companies and the Tokyo offices of regional banks, but in recent years, many of these offices have relocated or have been consolidated. Many convenience stores and discount shops have set up shop in the vacated ground floor spaces of these buildings, leading to a notable change in the overall atmosphere of the area. Relatively few foreign companies have offices in this area.

In contrast to the Marunouchi Area on the western side of Tokyo Station where a number of construction projects have steadily progressed, plans for new redevelopment projects struggled to take shape on the Yaesu side of Tokyo Station, with its many small and medium size buildings. A number of redevelopment projects in the Yaesu area have begun to materialize of late, however.

The Nihonbashi 1-chome Building, built to replace the Nihonbashi branch of the Tokyu Department Store after it closed, was completed in 2004, and was the first large building built in the area in recent years. The Nihonbashi Mitsui Tower was completed in 2005, housing the first luxury foreign hotel in the area, the Mandarin Oriental Tokyo.Now there are redevelopment plans for the entire area on the eastern side of the tower across the street. Several office and commercial buildings will be completed in the area by 2013.

Recent efforts include an initiative to relocate the expressway underground, which currently effectively separates the Nihonbashi and Yaesu areas, in an effort to improve the scenery of the area and increase the number of visitors. A twin-tower building was completed in November 2007 and the entire project including the station building will be completed by 2013.

Although the area is one of Tokyo's most famous business districts, it also doubles as a commercial area, sporting numerous department stores, specialty stores and restaurants. The Nihonbashi area has several long-standing businesses (known as "shinise" stores), specializing in such items as dried-bonito, laver, knives and Japanese confectionaries.


(3) Profile Data
1. Major office buildings: year completed, major owner
Nihonbashi 1-chome Building (Coredo Nihonbashi): Mitsui Fudosan
Nihonbashi Mitsui Tower: 2005, Mitsui Fudosan, Tokyu Land

2. Major companies and organization
Tokyo Stock Exchange Group, Bank of Japan, Merrill Lynch Japan Securities, Nomura Securities, Mitsui Fudosan, Tokyo Tatemono, TDK, Ajinomoto and Bridgestone

3. Major facilities
Department Stores: Mitsukoshi, Takashimaya, Daimaru
Specialty stores: Maruzen, Meidiya
Hotel: Mandarin Oriental Hotel Tokyo (Nihonbashi Mitsui Tower)