Edo-Tokyo Open Air Architectural Museum

Set 30 minutes outside of central Tokyo, the Edo-Tokyo Open Air Architectural Museum opened in 1993 as a satellite site of the Edo-Tokyo Museum. Here, in a huge space in Koganei Park, buildings that once stood in Edo/Tokyo but can no longer be preserved in their original locations are relocated, reconstructed and preserved for visitors to explore. There are 30 structures, ranging from the 17^th to 20^th centuries, including private residences, farmhouses and traditional businesses like izakayas (pub), sentos (public bathhouses) and ryokans (traditional inns).

Split into three zones covering different eras, some of the buildings have been placed into a reconstructed townscapes, allowing you to step into the past as you wander in and out of each structure to explore. It is said that animator Hayeo Miyazaki did exactly this as he searched for inspiration during the creation of Studio Ghibli’s Spirited Away.