WHAT’S IT LIKE? The Conrad chain is turning heads with properties such as the Conrad Bangkok and the Conrad Bali. Newly opened Conrad Tokyo, too, has the wow factor, starting with a truly dramatic lobby – high ceilings and large picture windows capturing the urban landscape of glass and steel – that artfully melds reception area, lounge and bar and several restaurants. Architectural features are sleek but still luxurious and always hint of Japanese aesthetics.
WHERE IS IT? Occupying the top eight floors of the 37-storey Tokyo Shiodome Building, encircled by more smart office towers that house headquarters of companies such as All Nippon Airways and Shisheido. Proximity to Shiodome Station, which links the Oedo and Yurukamome lines and Shinbashi Station where a number of trains and subway lines intersect assures guests easy access to all corners of this vast metropolis.
HOW MANY ROOMS? 290 rooms, designated as either a City View or Garden View category depending on whether it looks out onto the Tokyo skyline or the Royal Hamarikyu Gardens. Even the toiletries are customised for each category – burgundy for City View and green for Garden View.
ROOM FACILITIES: At 48 sqm, a Garden King Room offers more than enough space and all the amenities one needs when away from home: ironing board, yukata(cotton robe), hair dryer, broadband access (US$13.33 for 24-hour use), coffee and tea-making facilities, electronic safe and more. A lot of thought and investment seems to have gone into conceptualising the bathroom that make you go “Ohhhh” when the doors open to reveal what’s inside.
The enormous haloed mirror is a stunning feature, although the smallish sink (water kept splashing out and wetting the counter as well as our blouse) could have been designed a bit deeper, if not wider.
RESTAURANTS: Instead of dining at the hotel’s trophy outlets – a French restaurant by Gordon Ramsey as well as his Brasserie Cerisse, I opted for China Blue intrigued by its proposition to offer modern Cantonese cuisine. The selections were delicious, although I thought the lighting could have been turned up a bit to allow you to appreciate the chef’s presentations.
BAR: From a lively venue for meetings and high tea socials during the day, Bar & Lounge Twenty Eight segues into a dreamy setting after sundown when the lights are dimmed.
BUSINESS FACILITIES: Two ballrooms and three meeting rooms allow natural daylight in. Technology here and in the business centre is cutting edge.
LEISURE FACILITIES: A 25-metre indoor lap pool costs US$22.79 to use. Mizuki Spa’s 10 treatment rooms are some of the largest in the city.
VERDICT: A design icon that comes with impeccable service and all the right business tools.
PRICE: Rack rate of a City or Garden View Room is from US$489.96.
CONTACT: 1-9-1 Higashi-Shinbashi, Minato-ku, Tokyo 105-7337,Japan,tel 81 3 6388 8000, www.conradtokyo.co.jp
Margie T Logarta
