Discovering Tokyo's Highlights Near Hotels | Explore the stylish city - Roppongi / Azabu area
While multifunctional complexes such as the Roppongi Hills and Toranomon Hills tower over the city, shrines, temples, and art museums also have a strong presence in this area, which represents the concentrated area of Tokyo’s metropolitan charm.
Tokyo Tower
The Tokyo Tower is one of the famous symbols of Tokyo. It is currently the second tallest structure after the Sky Tree. The top and main decks offer a panoramic view of central Tokyo.
The building below the tower: the “Foot Town” has a wide range of stores and the “RED°TOKYO TOWER” theme park, where various e-sports can be enjoyed. Also, enjoy a fantastic moment watching the lights of Tokyo Tower at night.
Hie Jinja (Hie Shrine)
The shrine is revered as the guardian deity of the Imperial Palace, the “Imperial Castle Shrine”, and people come to visit from all over Japan. Monkeys, instead of the guardian dogs called Komainu are placed in the precincts of the shrine. The monkeys said to be “Masaru”, a messenger of the gods, have been respected. The statue of a mother holding a baby monkey is for “family safety,” “child bearing,” and “safe childbirth,” and the father monkey is often petted to pray for “business prosperity,” “prosperity of the company,” and “removal of misfortune” from the word “Masaru,” which means “the evil disappears” or “to overcome anything”.
Roppongi Hills
It is Japan’s leading complex, featuring diverse functions including offices, residences, commercial and cultural facilities, hotels, cinemas, and a broadcasting center. With not only shopping and dining but also a movie theater and art museum, visitors can spend an entire day here without getting bored. There are more than 100 restaurants. It is also a good place to get popular Tokyo sweets as souvenirs.
The open-air rooftop sky deck offers a 360-degree view of central Tokyo, and at night you can even enjoy stargazing while in the city, making it a very special space.
Okura Museum of Art
Located on the grounds of The Okura Tokyo, it is the oldest existing private art museum in Japan. The museum exhibits antiques and modern Japanese paintings collected over many years by businessman Kihachiro Okura and his son, Kishichiro Okura.
The museum’s collection includes approximately 2,500 works of art. Special exhibitions are also held, so visitors can enjoy artwork with different themes at different times of the year.
