The Tobacco & Salt Museum is a great museum for kids in upper elementary to adults to learn about the history, production, and trade of tobacco and salt. The multi-floor modern museum, opened in 2015, is beautifully laid out with multimedia, 3D some hands-on exhibits. The museum is subsidized by various trade organizations which makes it almost free – 100 JPY for adults and 50 JPY for kids and seniors. There is also a lovely little gift store on the first floor where we picked-up some retro match sticks & boxes, flavored salts and a kids salt experiment book. The Tobacco & Salt Museum is located very close to the Sky Tree, Asakusa, and Ryogoku so you can combine a visit with some of our favorite
designations; Edo-Tokyo Museum, Sumida Aquarium, Drum Museum, Kappabashi (Kitchen Town), and the Wanariya Indigo Dyeing and Weaving Workshop.
Tobacco & Salt Museum, Sumida-Ku – History and Science Museum
On the second floor, you learn about global salt production and trade. There is a
wonderful area about the slat caves of Europe to how salt was produced in Japan by flooding fields with sea water. For the more geeky science for there is an entire room on the different types of salts and chemical make-up and production. Definitely the most in-depth info I have seen anywhere in the world on salt.
The third floor is the tobacco floor which traces the history of tobacco from latin American to today. Very interesting explanation of how tabasco habits spread and the creative marketing to make it spread. There is also an entire wall of smoking paraphernalia.
Tobacco & Salt Museum, Sumida-Ku – History and Science Museum
Tobacco & Salt Museum Details
Address: 1-16-3 Yokokawa, Sumida, Tokyo
Phone: 03-3622-8801
Business Hours: Closed Mondays, open all other days 10:00 – 18:00 (Check here for great Tokyo area attractions open on Mondays)
Cost: Adults 100 JPY, kids and seniors 50 JPY
Website: https://www.jti.co.jp/Culture/museum_e/visit/access/index.html
Access: 12 min walk for the Sky tree at Oshiage Station (Exit B2) on the Hanzomon Line, Keisei Line, Toei Asakusa Line and TOBU SKYTREE Line.
Notes: Very stroller and wheelchair friendly elevators and bathrooms
Tobacco & Salt Museum, Sumida-Ku – History and Science Museum
Other more niche museums that we enjoyed include the
The Sumida Incineration Plant (Sumida, Tokyo)
The Drum Museum (Taito-ku, Tokyo)
The Origami Museum (Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo)
The Parasite Museum (Meguro, Tokyo)
The Samurai Museum (Shinjuku, Tokyo)
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