Platform runs along the outer moat and a fishing pond, with low-rise flats and detached houses on former daimyo estates
The closest neighborhoods in the same city.
The JR platform at Ichigaya Station runs right along the Sotobori moat, which even has a fishing pond in it. On the Chiyoda City side, the embankment is Sotobori Park, with a walking path on it and plenty of cherry trees.
On the Shinjuku City side, Ichigaya Sadoharacho's 1-chome and 2-chome are mostly low-rise apartments, while 3-chome has more and more detached houses the further in you go. 3-chome and the neighboring Ichigaya Funagawaracho and Haraikatamachi were all daimyo residences in the Edo period. Ichigaya Tamachi has campus buildings for Hosei University, Chuo University, and Musashino Art University.
In 2020, about 14% of this neighborhood's residents were under 15, higher than Shinjuku City's 8%, and about the same as Chiyoda City's 13%. About half of the homes here are owner-occupied, higher than in either city.
From our street photos, cleanliness ranks 12th among 395 neighborhoods in Tokyo, the highest-ranking item for this neighborhood. Street environment ranks 24th as well.
Ichigaya Station has four lines: JR, two Tokyo Metro lines, and the Toei Shinjuku Line. There are interchange ticket gates between each pair of the three operators, something found only at this station in Japan.
More people work in Gobancho and Sanbancho than live there. Gobancho had about 1,000 residents in 2026, but about 6,500 people worked there in 2021. Sanbancho had about 4,200 residents in 2026, but about 9,700 people worked there in 2021.
Public transit ranks 68th, and daily shopping also ranks 70th; healthcare ranks 93rd, the lowest-ranking item for this neighborhood. Very little water flows into the Sotobori moat, so when the water temperature rises in summer and the water sits still for a long time, blue-green algae can grow in large quantities.
The Sotobori moat was dug around 1636, and Ichigaya Kamegaoka Hachimangu, which had originally stood inside the castle gate, was moved to its current location as a result. Even after the Meiji era began, the embankment along the moat remained off-limits.
In 1921, Hosei University moved to a site outside this neighborhood by the Ushigome-bori moat, and students often climbed up onto the embankment without permission. The university and local residents jointly petitioned for access, and the section from Ushigome to Shinmitsuke was opened first in 1927, before the area was renamed Sotobori Park in 1933.
In March 2026, the Tokyo Metropolitan Government drew up an implementation plan to purify the Sotobori moat by connecting the Tamagawa Josui waterway to the moat, with water diversion expected to begin in the mid-2030s. Once water is diverted into the Ichigaya-bori, Shinmitsuke-bori, and Ushigome-bori moats, the water in the moat could be fully replaced in about 5 days.
Compared with the 395 Tokyo neighborhoods in this guide (scores 0–10)
Hospitals with inpatient beds (2020 data), public elementary and junior high schools whose catchment covers this area, high schools and universities within 1 km, stations, parks of 1 ha or more, and large shopping malls and department stores. Many Tokyo junior high students attend private schools, so junior high catchments are only a guide.
Maps show the shops and the sights. What a street is like, you only know by walking it. TidyMap uses AI street imagery analysis and public facility data to turn each area's street environment and everyday convenience into something you can compare. Search an address and look at the street outside first.
How to read it: yellow = poor, blue = good; grey = not enough data
TidyMap rates the street environment and everyday convenience. It does not assess the home itself, safety, noise or actual living experience. Street environment scores use AI assessments of imagery; convenience scores use public facility data.
Content is for personal browsing. Official TidyMap neighborhood cards may be shared as generated; anyone using one commercially is responsible for their own compliance (sharing guidelines). Bulk extraction, APIs and dataset redistribution require a data licence — email us. This site uses Google Analytics and Cloudflare Analytics.