Keisei Ueno Station is a compact railway station located a few meters south of the much larger JR Ueno Station. Here passengers can access train services on the Keisei Main Line and Narita Access Line as well as Skyliner services bound for Narita Airport. This station has one ticket gate and just four platforms, so it is very easy to navigate.
Transfers can be made from Keisei Ueno Station to JR lines and shinkansen services at nearby JR Ueno Station, and to Tokyo Metro services on the Hibiya and Ginza lines at Ueno Subway Station. This station is also well placed for Ueno’s shopping, dining and sightseeing locations.
General Orientation
Keisei Ueno Station is an underground station. The ticket office, ticket machines, and ticket gates are all located on the 1st basement (B1) level, and the platforms are located on the 2nd basement (B2) level. The station has two entrances above ground. The main entrance is on the east side of the station building on Chuo Dori Street.
The Ikenohata Entrance is a smaller entrance on the west side of the station. The street on this side of the station leads up to Ueno Zoo and so is called Dobutsuen Dori which literally means “Zoo Street”.
The ticket gates, ticket machines and Skyliner ticket counter are all located on the north side of the B1 concourse.
Buying Tickets
Ticket machines and the Skyliner ticket counter are located beside the ticket gates on the north side of the B1 concourse.
Above the ticket machines is a screen with departure information, information on fares for Skyliner and Eveningliner services, and bilingual fare charts with the fares for all destinations.
Ticket machines have English, Chinese, Korean and Japanese language options.
Platforms
There are 4 platforms in Keisei Ueno Station which are located on the B2 level.
Services on the Keisei Main Line and the Narita Sky Access Line as well as Skyliner services for Narita Airport can be boarded at any of these four platforms. Information screens on these platforms give departure information in both English and Japanese.
Transfers
To transfer to JR line and shinkansen services at JR Ueno Station go out the main exit on the east side of the station which is to the left of the ticket gates. From the exit it is a 3 minute walk north to JR Ueno Station.
Ueno Subway Station can be accessed from Keisei Ueno Station via an underground passageway. This passageway is open between the hours 4:40 and 24:20. It is located to the right of the Main Exit on the east side of the B1 concourse.
At Ueno Subway Station passengers can access the Tokyo Metro Ginza Line and Hibiya Line.
Taxis & Local Transport at Keisei Ueno Station
Taxis can be found easily outside the main exit of Keisei Ueno Station. There is also a taxi rank by the station parking lot. The passageway to this taxi rank is on the north side of the B1 concourse between the Skyliner ticket counter and the ticket gates. If you don’t find a taxi waiting here, you can push a button to call one.
Some sightseeing buses, such as the S-1 Shitamachi Bus and the East-West Route Megurin Bus, stop outside the main exit of Keisei Ueno Station.
Keisei Bus also has a stop a little to the north of Keisei Ueno Station’s main exit where passengers can board overnight highway bus services for Wakayama, Nara, and Kyoto. For more information on these services see our article Bus Services in Ueno.
Facilities
There are a number of useful facilities on the B1 concourse, outside the ticket gates. Here you can find ATM cash machines for both Japan Post Bank and Seven Bank.
Both Japan Post Bank and Seven Bank ATMs accept most major international bank cards such as VISA, MasterCard, American Express, Diners Club and JCB. All of these ATMs have English guidance and are easy to use.
There is also a foreign currency exchange counter right beside the Skyliner ticket counter.
Just across from the ticket gates is a Tourist Information Center with English speaking staff who can give you useful directions and maps of the area.
If you are hungry, there is a convenience store on the B1 concourse where you can buy some food, drinks and snacks.
There is also a Vie de France bakery where you can pick up some freshly made sandwiches.
If you require assistance from the police, there is a police box on Chuo Dori Street on the south side of Keisei Ueno Station.
For information on lockers at Keisei Ueno Station see our general guide to Lockers and Baggage Storage in Ueno.
Article and original photos by Michael Lambe. All rights reserved.