Much has changed in the Japanese capital over the past few years, especially in the hotel sector. There had been significant investment in all segments of the accommodation market, driven by the need to accommodate the expected 40 million tourists for the 2020 Olympics.
While the Games were postponed and then went ahead a year later in 2021, international spectators were banned from attending due to the ongoing pandemic, but the good news in 2023 is that these new properties are ready to welcome international travellers now that borders have reopened. They include luxury brand debuts, boutique boltholes and high rise properties with sweeping views of the famous cityscape.
The burgeoning demand for travel to Japan is also encouraging further investment in the hospitality world, with the resumption of delayed developments and an exciting pipeline of projects set to open in the capital over the next ten years. Here we round up the new openings since 2020 and the expected arrivals through to 2028.
NEW HOTEL OPENINGS IN 2020 and 2021
Four Seasons Hotel Tokyo at Otemachi
Four Seasons opened its second hotel in Tokyo in September 2020 during the pandemic. The hotel occupies the top six floors of the 39-storey Otemachi One Tower in the business district of Otemachi. It is larger than its sister property in Marunouchi and offers 190 rooms, four F&B venues including the Michelin-starred Est, a spa and ample meeting and events space.
Business Traveller was amongst the first international press to visit in November 2022, owing to the reopening of borders the month prior. See our Tried and Tested reviews of both Four Seasons properties in the March 2023 issue of the magazine or online:
Four Seasons Hotel Tokyo at Otemachi
Kimpton Shinjuku Tokyo
The hotel opened in October 2020 close to the well-known Shibuya Crossing and Shinjuku Station.
Inspired by New York’s art and fashion scene, the hotel offers 151 well-appointed guestrooms blending artisanal Japanese woodwork and contemporary elements. Venues include all-day dining at The Jonas Café and Bar and modern brasserie District.
The hotel houses an art gallery space for hosting exhibitions, which can also be used as an events space.
The Tokyo Edition Toranomon
The Marriott brand debuted in Tokyo in October 2020 with a 206-room hotel with three restaurants, three lounge bars, a spa with six treatment rooms, gym and 387 sqm of event space.
The hotel has been designed by Kengo Kuma and features views of the Tokyo skyline. A second Edition is set to open in the Ginza area this year – see below.
Mustard Hotel Shimokitazawa
This youthful brand debuted in Tokyo in 2018 with a property in Shibuya. Its second hotel opened in the trendy district of Shimokitazawa in September 2021, featuring design by architect Shin Ohori.
The hotel has 60 rooms, all of which include a record player (you can rent vinyls from the shop in the lobby for free during your stay), as well as an outpost of Sidewalk Coffee and a shochu bar.
Hyatt Regency Tokyo Bay
Hyatt opened its eighth property under its Hyatt Regency brand in Japan in July 2021, located in Urayasu city in the Chiba Prefecture.
The newly renovated 350-room hotel is located in Urayasu city in the Chiba Prefecture, a 30-minute train journey from central Tokyo and close to attractions such as Tokyo Disney Resort and Makuhari Messe convention centre.
It houses 350 rooms, many of which offer ocean views with a spacious terrace, and contemporary interiors with natural woods and colour palettes of blue and teal.
The hotel has four restaurants and bars which include all-day European-style The Garden Brasserie and Bar, traditional Edomae sushi restaurant Sushi Ema, and Teppanyaki Rukitei. A rooftop bar offers panoramic views of Tokyo Bay and cocktails.
Additionally, there is a 24-hour fitness centre, club lounge and two function rooms.
NEW HOTEL OPENINGS IN 2023
Bulgari Hotel Tokyo
Japan’s first Bulgari hotel opened in April, occupying the top six floors of a skyscraper in the Yaesu 2-Chome North District. It is within walking distance of attractions including the Imperial Palace, and shopping area Ginza.
The hotel features design by Italian architectural firm Antonio Citterio Patricia Viel and includes 98 rooms and suites, as well as the Bulgari Bar, Il Ristorante – Niko Romito, sushi restaurant Hoseki, the Bulgari Lounge, a pasticceria and chocolate boutique Bulgari Dolci, and a ballroom with a large outdoor space. Leisure facilities will include a 1,000 sqm spa on the 40th floor, a fitness centre and 25-metre indoor pool.
Pan Pacific Hotels Group
The hotel group opened two hotels in Tokyo’s Shinjuku in May, located within the 48-storey Tokyu Kabukicho Tower.
Bellustar Tokyo, A Pan Pacific Hotel occupies floors 39 to 47 of the tower, and offers 97 rooms starting from 41 sqm along with five one-bedroom penthouse suites.
Facilities include a 45th floor Teppanyaki restaurant, a sushi restaurant, French venue Bellustar and a bar, as well as a private sky lounge for Penthouse suite guests.
Meanwhile Hotel Groove Shinjuku, A Parkroyal Hotel is housed on floors 18 to 38 of the building, and offers 538 rooms “furnished with an eclectic mix of unique art and music, inspired by the energetic entertainment scene of Shinjuku’s Kabukicho district”.
There is a 17th floor social hub with a restaurant and bar, as well as a rooftop terrace equipped with a giant screen and live entertainment.
Hotel Indigo Tokyo Shibuya
This “urban jungle” themed hotel opened in August within the Dogenzaka Dori mixed use complex in the city’s Shibuya district, within walking distance of the famous Shibuya Scramble Crossing. The hotel has 272 rooms, restaurant Gallery 11, which offers Mediterranean and Japanese fusion cuisine, and coffee shop Shibrewya.
Design includes fashion-led artworks throughout the 12th floor reception adorned with denim and leather motifs, while rooms feature a selection of vinyl records and views of Tokyo Skytree and Mount Fuji on a clear day.
This marks the fourth Hotel Indigo-branded property in Japan, and its debut in Tokyo, joining Hotel Indigo Hakone Gora, Hotel Indigo Karuizawa and Hotel Indigo Inuyama Urakeuen Garden.
Trunk Hotel Yoyogi Park
Boutique hotel brand Trunk opened its third property in Tokyo in September, located in the Tomigaya neighbourhood. The property features 25 rooms including five suites, all of which boast balconies, and further facilities include a rooftop bar and infinity pool, and an all-day Italian restaurant.
The brand debuted in the city’s Shibuya district five years ago with a 15-room hotel housed inside two adjacent four-storey buildings designed by Mount Fuji Architect Studio. The brand also has a one-bedroom townhouse hotel called Trunk House. Another Trunk Hotel is set to open in 2027 in Shibuya, under the label Trunk Hotel Dogenzaka.
Hotel Toranomon Hills
This hotel opening in December 2023 marked the first property in Tokyo under The Unbound Collection by Hyatt brand.
Situated within the new Toranomon Hills Station Tower, the hotel is within walking distance of the Imperial Palace and directly connected to the Toranomon Hills subway station via the tower for the Hibiya Line.
Designed by Danish firm Space Copenhagen, the hotel offers 205 rooms and suites, flexible working duplex space The Lounge designed for business travellers, and street-level restaurant and cafe Le Pristine Tokyo, offering contemporary European cuisine from Dutch chef Sergio Herman.
UPCOMING OPENINGS
Mercure Tokyo Hibiya (2023)
Accor has announced plans to open a Mercure property in the Japanese capital in December 2023.
Mercure Tokyo Hibiya will be housed within the existing Uchisaiwaicho Heiwa Building, close to JR Shimbashi and Uchisaiwaicho stations.
Features will include 178 rooms, a restaurant with outdoor terrace and garden, a fitness centre, and an executive lounge with a theatre and cigar lounge.
Interiors will offer “a contemporary take on traditional theatre design elements” – a nod to the Yurakuza Theatre and The Imperial Theatre which were built in the Hibiya district in the 1920s.
Tokyo Edition Ginza
The Edition is opening its second hotel in Tokyo with a new property in the commercial district of Ginza, located just off Chuo Street. The hotel is opening in preview on 12 December, 2023 but will officially launch in early 2024.
The newly constructed 14-storey hotel, designed by Japanese architect Kengo Kuma, will include 86 rooms and suites, a Japanese-inspired modern brasserie, “Japan’s only punch-focused cocktail bar and Ginza’s first natural wine bar”, as well as a meeting studio and fitness centre.
Janu Tokyo (2024)
Luxury hotels and resorts group Aman is set to debut its sister wellness-oriented brand Janu in Tokyo in March 2024.
The hotel will be located across 13 floors of the Residence A Tower, designed by Pelli Clarke & Partners, in the eight-hectare Azabudai Hills development.
The property will comprise 122 guest rooms and suites, a 4,000 sqm wellness centre and eight dining venues.
Rooms will feature floor-to-ceiling windows, with the majority offering private balconies, and range from 55-284 sqm. Reservations are currently open for the property.
The Aman Residences, Tokyo, meanwhile, will occupy the top 11 floors (floors 54-64) and include 91 residences designed by Yabu Pushelberg, plus a residents-only 1,400 sqm Aman Spa with panoramic city views.
Hyatt House Tokyo Shibuya (2024)
Hyatt is set to debut its extended stay Hyatt House brand in Tokyo in February 2024.
The 126-room property will be located close to Shibuya station, which is currently undergoing a major redevelopment project, and steps from the city’s Shibuya Scramble Crossing.
Hyatt House Tokyo Shibuya’s rooms will range in size from 32 to 85 sqm and include amenities such as a kitchen, living room, and washer and dryer.
Facilities will include a rooftop garden, indoor swimming pool, fitness centre, lounge, bar and restaurant.
Yotel Tokyo (2024)
The 244-room hotel will be located in the city’s Ginza neighbourhood and include the brand’s signature robot concierge Yobot, motorised SmartBeds and contactless technologies from reservation up to check-out.
There will also be a 24-hour fitness centre, a grab-and-go café with locally sourced products, meeting space and an outdoor terrace.
The hotel is a 15-minute walk from Tokyo station, which offers access to other parts of Japan via the Shinkansen high-speed rail and access to the Narita International airport via the Narita Express.
OMO5 Tokyo Gotanda (2024)
This property from Japanese hotel group Hoshino Resorts will open in the Shinagawa Ward in April 2024. The 188-room hotel will be under the group’s OMO brand, which focuses on urban-based mid-range hotels.
The hotel will occupy the high-rise floors in the brand new Gotanda JP Building, which is set to be complete in December 2023, with views over Shinagawa and Meguro.
Rooms will be inspired by “the bustling eateries of Gotanda” and feature neon signage, exposed brick and retro soft furnishings. Further facilities include a communal lounge on the 14th floor, a sky garden, an all-day café, a shop and a “dog garden”.
Guests will also be able to request a neighbourhood map for local sightseeing, or book a guided tour with OMO Rangers.
Fairmont Tokyo (2025)
Accor’s Fairmont brand will debut in Japan’s capital, with a 219-room hotel occupying the upper floors of the south tower of the Shibaura Project. The project will consist of two towers, with the south tower expected to open in 2024 followed by the north tower in 2030.
Facilities will include three restaurants and bars, a spa, fitness centre, swimming pool, and meeting and event space.
JW Marriott Hotel Tokyo (2025)
Spring 2025 will see the debut of the JW Marriott in Japan’s capital.
The project will be part of the 9.5-hectare Takanawa Gateway Urban Development project and the 200-room hotel is slated to occupy the 22nd to the 30th floors of the Station Complex Building (South).
There will be interior design by Yabu Pushelberg featuring a deep indigo colour scheme, an all-day restaurant, a speciality restaurant and a lobby lounge with a Croissant Bar. Leisure facilities will include a 25-metre indoor swimming pool, a fitness centre and spa. Additionally there will be an executive lounge, 740 sqm of event space and 250 sqm of pre-function space.
The hotel will be within walking distance of the Shinagawa Station, the terminus for the upcoming Linear Chuo Shinkansen rail service which is set to connect Tokyo with other major cities in Japan.
Dorchester Collection (2028)
The group’s first hotel in Asia is set to open in the highest building in Japan – Tokyo’s ‘Torch Tower’ in the city centre, which is currently under development by Mitsubishi Estate Co. Ltd. and Tokyo Century Corporation.
While the group has not provided many details on the forthcoming hotel, it said that the upper floors will offer panoramic views of Tokyo Bay, the city centre and Mount Fuji.
