Kobe Motomachi Shopping Street

The Kobe Motomachi Shopping Street is a historic shopping arcade in Chuo Ward, Kobe, Hyogo Prefecture. It is said to have been more than 140 years since the area was named “Motomachi,” and together with the neighboring Nankinmachi (Kobe Chinatown), it forms the commercial heart of Kobe. Along with Tokyo’s Ginza and Osaka’s Shinsaibashi, it is also regarded as a prestigious shopping district lined with long-established stores. Access is about a 3-minute walk from JR Kobe Line / Hanshin Railway Motomachi Station (toward Motomachi 1-chome) or about a 10-minute walk from JR Kobe Line Kobe Station (toward Motomachi 6-chome). The street runs about 1.2 km and is home to roughly 300 shops. About 20 of them have been in business for more than 100 years, yet new stores continue to open, making it a lively “new and nostalgic” shopping street. Many events are held here, including Halloween and Kobe Motomachi Music Week. The most famous is the “Motomachi Night Market” held every July, when lanterns decorate the arcade and numerous food stalls line the street. Women in yukata, office workers on their way home, and families on summer vacation gather in large numbers, filling the area with a festive summer atmosphere.