Jiu Jitsu Gym Near Me by Asakusa: CAVE BJJ at Honjo-Azumabashi

CAVE BJJ is so close to the subway that its access page measures the walk from Exit A3 of Honjo-azumabashi Station in seconds. The gym is on the second floor of the Ose Plaza Station Building, 2-3-12 Azumabashi, Sumida-ku, Tokyo, across the river from Asakusa, and it is open from 7:00 to 23:00. A visitor day costs ¥3,300 including tax, and the gym closes on every date that ends in a 9.

The head of the gym is Go Utsugi, a black belt whose staff page lists a bronze at brown belt at the 2019 IBJJF Las Vegas Open, silver at black belt at the 2024 SJJIF Worlds, and back-to-back JBJJF All Japan Masters black belt titles in 2025 and 2026. For a gym of this size, having the reigning national masters champion as the head coach is a real draw for anyone thinking about competing.

The gym does not publish a founding year or a lineage chart, so we will not invent one. What it does publish is a sister gym, CAVE in Oshiage, which handles MMA, kickboxing and weights, and a Master plan at ¥16,500 a month that covers both buildings for people who want striking as well as grappling.

Morning classes are the reason many people choose CAVE. On Monday, Wednesday and Friday a 7:30 class (Basic with sparring on Monday and Wednesday, plain Basic on Friday) is finished in time for a commute toward Nihonbashi or Higashi-Ginza on the Asakusa Line. Evenings start at 18:30. On Tuesday that means a beginner class with sparring and an all-level class at 20:00; on Thursday a beginner class at 18:30 and a Basic at 20:45; on Monday and Wednesday a Basic, an all-level class at 20:10 and a 22:00 drill time for people who finish work late.

Friday is the only evening with a dedicated no-gi class, at 20:00 with sparring, followed by a 21:15 Basic. The doors open 20 minutes before each class, so a 7:30 student can change and stretch without rushing.

Saturday opens with a 10:30 family class and an 11:30 kids class, then a 13:00 beginner class and a 14:30 all-level class. Sunday and holidays run a 10:00 beginner class, 11:30 all levels, a 13:15 question and answer class, and, on Sundays only, a 14:15 competition class restricted to white belts with three or more stripes and above.

Open mat here is drills only, with no sparring, which surprises visitors used to free rolling. Our honest recommendation for a first visit is the Sunday 13:15 Q&A class: you can bring a position you cannot solve, and you avoid the competition crowd that arrives an hour later.

Visitors must email in advance. The English visitor page lists a single day at ¥3,300, two days within a week at ¥5,500, three days at ¥7,700, a full week at ¥8,800, two weeks at ¥11,000 and a month at ¥16,500. One visitor day covers any number of classes on that date, so a traveller can take the 7:30 class and come back for the evening.

If you need to borrow kit, the kimono rental is ¥1,100 per use on the price page and includes gi, rash guard, belt and towel. The FAQ quotes ¥1,000 for a gi and belt, which appears to be the older, smaller package. If you keep training after a sparring class, the house rule is to change into a clean gi.

Children aged 6 to 12 train at 17:00 on Monday and Friday and at 11:30 on Saturday, and the 10:30 Saturday family class lets parents and children share the mat. Elementary-school members pay ¥8,800 a month, the same as the adult 4 Days plan.

The 17:00 kids slot finishes before the 18:30 adult classes, so a parent who trains can stay for the next hour while a partner collects the child. The Saturday family hour is the gentlest introduction for a nervous child, because a parent is on the mat with them.

Monthly plans include tax: Fulltime ¥13,200, Ladies and students from junior high ¥9,900, elementary-school kids ¥8,800, and a 4 Days plan at ¥8,800. The one-time costs are an enrollment fee of ¥10,000, an admin fee of ¥1,100 and sports insurance of ¥2,000 a year, though the current campaign waives the enrollment fee and leaves only the admin fee.

The free trial is once per person in the beginner-focused Hajimete Jiu-Jitsu or Basic class, with free gi rental. Arrive 15 minutes early with a T-shirt or rash guard to wear underneath.

The second floor has two shower rooms, three changing rooms, a washroom and hair dryers, plus a pull-up bar, gymnastic rings, kettlebells and bands. There are no weight machines, so serious lifting happens at the Oshiage sister gym.

The room has ventilation and air conditioning, and body-care products are set out in the changing area, which is welcome after a humid August session. There is no car parking. A partner bicycle park sits about 130 metres away, so arrive by subway, by bicycle or on foot from Asakusa.

Senso-ji temple at 2-3-1 Asakusa, Taito-ku is across the Sumida River, and the gym's access page puts Asakusa Station on the Ginza Line eight minutes away on foot. After a 7:30 class you can cross Azumabashi bridge and reach Kaminarimon while the Nakamise shopping lane is still shuttered and the temple grounds are quiet.

In the other direction, Tokyo Skytree Station on the Tobu Line is nine minutes from the gym, so an evening class pairs easily with dinner in Oshiage. If you are only in town for a few days, check your dates against the 9th, 19th and 29th before emailing, since a visitor pass bought for those days is useless.

CAVE BJJ, Ose Plaza Station Bldg 2F, 2-3-12 Azumabashi, Sumida-ku, Tokyo 130-0001. Phone 03-6240-4697. Open daily 7:00–23:00 except dates ending in 9, and the business-day calendar on the access page runs to September 2027. Honjo-azumabashi Station Exit A3 on the Toei Asakusa Line is directly below; Asakusa Station Exit 5 on the Ginza Line is eight minutes away. Visitors book by email.