Ota Market (Visits possible, but not for tourists)
The Ota Market is located about midway between Shinagawa and Haneda Airport in the southern part of Tokyo. They have a small fish section like Tsukiji, but most of their space is for vegetables, fruits and flowers. By the late morning, this modern market might only look like a big warehouse, but in the early morning hours visitors can watch the auctions for the fresh produce and flowers from a close distance.
This is not a market for tourists and there is nothing a visitor can buy here as they are all wholesale. However it is not entirely closed off to outsiders and visits through a designated path is allowed.
When to go
The market is open for visits free of charge from 5am-3pm on days the market is operating. (They are closed on Sundays/Holidays and most Wednesdays)
The only thing of any special note to the casual visitor would be the auction, which is held at the below schedule.
Vegetables auctions start 6:50 for about 15-20 minutes
Fruits auctions start 7:00 for about 20 minutes
Flower auctions start at 7:00 but continue on until about 8:30.
The vegetables and fruits auctions are held in the same building, with the former occurring near the entrance. There is a designated visitor area and you will be looking down on all the action from the second floor, though you are still fairly close to all the action.
The flower auctions has a more modern auction system of a button and monitor rather than the hand language used in the fruit zone. It is held at a separate building about a five minute walk away.
How to go
The market is about 20 minutes on foot from the Ryutsu Center Station of the Tokyo Monorail, requiring a walk through a dull warehousing district . This is the line originating at Hamamatsucho Station that continues to Haneda Airport.
Visitors who prefer to avoid the walk might find it easier to take the direct Toei Bus Route 98 departing from the Konan exit (eastern side) of Shinagawa Station. The ride is about 30 minutes.
In either case, it is quite far from most central parts of Tokyo, but it is relatively close from the Haneda Airport (which is probably one of the reasons why the market was built here).
The security staff at the entrance should be able to provide you with brochures in English though they are unlikely to speak any English.
Part of the designated visitor course has English signage, though overall explanation is very poor. You might need the help of Google Translate to figure out the way.
