Smoking Areas in Ginza: 2026 Guide (Chuo City bans street smoking outside designated smoking places / Sukiyabashi Park and in-facility smoking rooms)

About this guide and disclaimer

This is a third-party guide compiled from the Chuo City official site (https://www.city.chuo.lg.jp/) — its designated smoking place list, its Chuo City tobacco rules page, its page on the Ordinance on the Promotion of Measures to Prevent Second-hand Smoke, and its page on the Ordinance to Eliminate Smoking While Walking and Littering — reflecting the situation as of July 2026. For neighbouring Chiyoda City (Yurakucho), we refer to the Chiyoda City official site's free smoking area guidance. The locations, counts and operating hours of designated smoking places may change without notice. When you actually go, always confirm the latest information on each ward and each facility's official guidance. Smoking under the age of 20 is prohibited by law in Japan.

Chuo City tobacco rules — two ordinances and a "no fine, publish names" mechanism

What is worth understanding when looking for a place to smoke in Ginza is that Chuo City regulates outdoor smoking through a combination of two ordinances. First, the "Ordinance to Eliminate Smoking While Walking and Littering in Chuo City" (enacted 2004) bans smoking while walking and littering butts in public places. It applies to roads, parks and plazas in Chuo City managed by the ward and relevant administrative bodies. Second, the "Ordinance on the Promotion of Measures to Prevent Second-hand Smoke" (in force since 1 July 2020) bans smoking itself in public places (all roads, parks and plazas across the ward) outside designated smoking places. That ordinance was enacted to strengthen outdoor smoking measures after the revised Health Promotion Act and the Tokyo Metropolitan second-hand smoke prevention ordinance made indoor spaces non-smoking in principle from 1 April 2020.

• Ordinance to Eliminate Smoking While Walking and Littering in Chuo City (enacted 2004): bans smoking while walking and littering butts in public places
• Ordinance on the Promotion of Measures to Prevent Second-hand Smoke (in force since 1 July 2020): bans smoking on all roads, in parks and in plazas across the ward outside designated smoking places
• Both rules cover heated tobacco
• There is no administrative fine provision
• Where guidance and recommendations under the ordinance are not followed, the stated measure is publication of the name
• Patrol staff circulate through the ward and issue reminders
• 77 designated smoking places as of the 3 July 2026 update — 21 ward-run and 56 private

A common misreading here is "there is no fine, so it must be fine to smoke." It is true that Chuo City's ordinances set no fine, but that does not change the fact that smoking outside designated smoking places is banned by ordinance. It is only the enforcement design that differs from wards like Chiyoda (Yurakucho and the Marunouchi side), which impose a 2,000 yen fine; the substance of the rule — "do not smoke outside designated places" — is the same. Ginza is an extremely busy shopping and sightseeing area, with pedestrian-only streets on some days. For second-hand smoke prevention as well, always use a designated smoking place.

Ward-run (public) designated smoking places around Ginza

Chuo City operates 21 ward-run designated smoking places as of the 3 July 2026 update, and the Ginza and Tsukiji area includes the following. The easiest to find in central Ginza is Sukiyabashi Park, which faces the Sukiyabashi intersection.

• Sukiyabashi Park (Ginza 5-1-1, 7:00–22:30)
• Jonobashi-giwa green strip (near Ginza 1-2, 0:00–24:00)
• Tsukijigawa Ginza Park (near Tsukiji 1-13-20, 0:00–24:00)
• Tsukijigawa Kamejibashi Park (near Tsukiji 1-6-1, 0:00–24:00)
• Tsukijigawa Iwaibashi Park (near Tsukiji 1-11-13, 0:00–24:00)
• In front of Chuo City Hall (near Tsukiji 1-1, 7:00–19:00)

In practical terms, it helps that the Jonobashi-giwa green strip on the Ginza 1-chome side and the parks along the Tsukijigawa, east of Kabukiza toward Tsukiji, are listed as 0:00–24:00 (around the clock). If you are looking for somewhere late at night or early in the morning, these are the candidates. Sukiyabashi Park in the centre of Ginza, by contrast, has set hours of 7:00–22:30 and cannot be used late at night. Locations and hours can change, so check Chuo City official guidance before you go.

Private designated smoking places in Ginza (GINZA SIX, Kabukiza and more)

Chuo City also publishes on its official site the facilities set up by private operators that the ward has designated as "private designated smoking places." There are 56 in the ward as of the 3 July 2026 update, and the Ginza area includes the following. Many are indoor smoking rooms, which has the advantage of not depending on the weather.

• GINZA SIX (Ginza 6-10-1, 9:00–21:00)
• GINZA KABUKIZA Kobikicho Hiroba smoking room (Ginza 4-12-15, 8:00–21:00)
• GinzaNovo (Ginza 5-2-1, B2F, 11:00–21:00)
• GINZA Smoking Room ~Pocket of Time~ (Ginza 4-4-13, Ginza Ryuei Building 3F, 11:00–19:00)
• Ginza Komatsu West Building (Ginza 6-9-5, 7F, 11:00–20:00, closed year-end/New Year)
• GS Park Ginza 5-chome parking (Showa-dori side) (Ginza 5-12, 9:00–19:00, closed weekends/holidays and year-end/New Year)
• GS Park Ginza 5-chome parking (Miharabashi side) (Ginza 5-12, 9:00–19:00, closed weekends/holidays and year-end/New Year)

If you are sightseeing on foot in Ginza, the smoking room at Kabukiza's Kobikicho Hiroba (Ginza 4-12-15) is open 8:00–21:00, from morning to evening, and sits close to the Ginza 4-chome intersection, which makes it easy to work into a walk. If you go as far as Ginza 6-chome, GINZA SIX (9:00–21:00) is the reference point. Note that these facility names, addresses and hours follow the wording on the Chuo City official list. Actual operation follows each facility's business days and hours, so check the facility's own guidance as well before you go.

West of the Sukiyabashi intersection is Chiyoda City — that side carries a 2,000 yen fine

A practically important point when walking around Ginza is the ward boundary. West of the Sukiyabashi intersection, toward Yurakucho, is Chiyoda City, whose rules are stricter than Chuo's. Under its "Ordinance on Development of a Safe and Comfortable Living Environment in Chiyoda City," Chiyoda was the first municipality in Japan to attach penalties to street smoking, and the entire ward has been a no-street-smoking zone since 1 April 2010. Smoking on the road draws a 2,000 yen fine (up to 20,000 yen under the ordinance), and heated tobacco became subject to fine collection on 1 November 2024. Remembering that the Chuo side has no fine while the Chiyoda side does will keep you on the safe side.

The Chiyoda City official free smoking area list (updated 21 May 2026) includes the "Ginza Inz 1 & 2 smoking booth" (Yurakucho 0-banchi, Chiyoda City, 10:30–23:15, closed New Year's Day). It is near Sukiyabashi but located on the Chiyoda side. If you head toward Yurakucho after shopping in Ginza, it is another option. Either way, in both wards smoking on the street is banned by ordinance.

About smoking rooms in department stores and commercial facilities

Ginza has a concentration of department stores and commercial facilities including Matsuya Ginza, Ginza Mitsukoshi, Tokyu Plaza Ginza and Wako. We could not confirm official primary information from the facilities' own sites on whether they have smoking rooms and, if so, on which floor and from what hours. This article does not assert the existence, location or hours of smoking rooms we cannot confirm. If you want to use an in-building smoking room, always check each facility's official site or in-building signage for the latest information. The facilities Chuo City publishes as "private designated smoking places" are as listed above, and those can be confirmed on the ward's official list. Under the revised Health Promotion Act, fully in force since April 2020, indoor spaces including department stores and restaurants are non-smoking in principle, and smoking requires a dedicated smoking room meeting the standards.

Heated tobacco and e-cigarettes

Chuo City's tobacco rules include heated tobacco within their scope. So even with heated tobacco such as IQOS, glo or Ploom, you cannot use it on the ward's roads, in parks or in plazas outside designated smoking places. Indoors, the revised Health Promotion Act has made spaces non-smoking in principle since April 2020, and restaurants and commercial facilities are indoor non-smoking in principle. Smoking requires a dedicated smoking room meeting the standards, and for heated tobacco a dedicated smoking room may be provided in some cases. Either way, the basic rule is to use a smoking room indoors and a Chuo City designated smoking place outdoors. As a matter of second-hand smoke prevention too, please stick strictly to designated places.

Find nearby smoking areas with MottoSuitai

If you want to find smoking areas around Ginza, Sukiyabashi or Kabukiza, you can list nearby smoking areas from MottoSuitai's map. For a list of smoking areas in the Ginza area, see smoking areas in the Ginza area. For the Nihonbashi area under the same Chuo City rules, see the Nihonbashi smoking guide, and for Chiyoda City (Yurakucho and Marunouchi) west of Sukiyabashi, see the Tokyo International Forum, Yurakucho and Marunouchi smoking guide.

Before you go: always check official information

This third-party guide was compiled from the Chuo City official site's designated smoking place list (updated 3 July 2026), its Chuo City tobacco rules page and the pages on its two ordinances, and the Chiyoda City official free smoking area list, as published as of July 2026. The locations, counts and operating hours of designated smoking places may change. When you actually go, always confirm the latest information on the Chuo City official site (https://www.city.chuo.lg.jp/) designated smoking place list and map, and each facility's official guidance.