Nakamise is a shopping lane that extends for about 250 meters from Kaminarimon Gate to Hozomon Gate, and is lined with brick and vermilion-lacquered buildings.

The approximately 90 shops that line both sides of the lane include stalls selling ningyoyaki (a baked confection with a thin skin filled with a rich bean jam), handmade rice crackers, crafts of Shitamachi old town and other souvenirs, in addition to merchandise from theatrical performances and dances well loved even by the pros. The street sees a flurry of visitors from all over Japan and around the world.

Nakamise was first formed around 1685 when the 12 subsidiary temples belonging to the Senso-ji Temple that lined both sides of the street were permitted to put out souvenir stalls in front of local houses in exchange for a promise by local residents to keep the area clean. It began to be called Nakamise (“inner shopping street”) because it is located between the shops of Kannondo-mae and the Asakusa-Hirokoji path.