Where to See & Learn About Tokyo’s Architecture

Tokyo’s modern design and architecture embraces originality. Odaiba houses many of Tokyo’s ultramodern structures most notably Fuji TV Building, resembling an erector set with its steel geometric design and Tokyo Big Sight, reminiscent of an alien spacecraft ready for departure. Roppongi combines striking architecture and high-end shopping with Mori Tower and Tokyo Midtown. Maman, a giant metal spider created by Louise Bourgeois, welcomes you to the shops at Mori Tower. The nearby Tokyo Midtown’s extensive grounds include metal sculptures jutting out of the earth and the sleek 21_21 Design Sight museum. A central feature of Tokyo’s skyline is the prominent Cocoon Tower, which received the 2008 award for Skyscraper of the Year.

In recent years the construction of Roppongi Hills Mori Tower and Tokyo Midtown has made Roppongi a high end shopping destination. Tokyo Midtown and Mori Tower combine art and fashion. Tokyo Midtown tauts stores like Pleats Please Issey Miyake, Boss Orange and museums including 21_21 Design Sight and The Suntory Museum of Art. While Mori Tower has The Mori Art Museum, and designer shops including Alexander McQueen, Diane Von Furstenberg, and Kate Spade. Both complexes have a rich assortment of traditional Japanese restaurants and global cuisine. Sukiyabashi Jiro Sushi is the Roppongi Hills sushi restaurant run by the son of Takashi Jiro, Tokyo‘s famous sushi chef featured in Jiro Dreams of Sushi.

Far above the city streets on the 52nd and 53rd floors of the Roppongi Hills building, the Mori Art Museum houses contemporary works by primarily Japanese and East Asian artists in a range of mediums, including photography, design, fashion, architecture, and video installations. There’s also an observation deck on the 52nd floor with an open-air Sky Deck, a lounge, a café, and a restaurant with outstanding views of the city. Keep in mind, though, that there are a myriad other dining options as well on the lower floors of the Roppongi Hills building, one of the tallest in the city.

21_21 Design Sight is a museum designed by one of Japan‘s most famous contemporary architects, Tadao Ando. The naturally lit space, of which some 80 percent is underground, is home to Japan’s first design museum. The simple lines of the building’s steel-and-concrete roof are typically Japanese in their emphasis on modesty. The museum is nestled in a green park, which softens the sharp exterior. Temporary exhibitions typically focus on the role design plays in daily life and how we interact with it. The museum is near the Tokyo Midtown complex in Roppongi, a short walk from Nogizaka Station.

Japanese fashion designer Issey Miyake created this experimental design museum, and star Japanese architect Tadao Ando constructed the building. The museum always has great installations by artists such as the industrial designer Naoto Fukasawa. —Kashiwa Sato

Both Tokyo‘s largest and oldest Buddhist temple, Senso-ji is one of the city’s must see sights. The streets leading to Senso-ji are filled with souvenir shops where you can find tapestries, kimonos, kitschy key chains, and finger foods. Surrounding the temple you’ll also find yatai (food stalls) selling Japanese favorites like yakisoba (fried buckwheat noodles) and okonomiyaki (savory pancakes with a mix of ingredients including eggs, noodles, beef, octopus, squid, and green onion). Inside Senso-ji receive your omikuji (fortune) and if it’s not to your liking leave it behind on the wall of bad fortunes. Take your time exploring the grounds around Senso-ji, which are rich in pristine Japanese landscape design.

Touring Tokyo via Rickshaw is something I never thought I would do. For whatever reason it always seemed wrong to have a man standing where a horse would be in other cultures. But then again, every country is different and I soon learned that this was a popular, albeit expensive, form of transportation for tourists. That said, I thoroughly enjoyed my thirty minute ride and I was surprised how much information my guide presented. I was also impressed by his physical fitness level but that probably goes without saying. The area surrounding Asakusa Shrine is perhaps the most popular part of Tokyo and it was thrilling to see scenes of local life while taking photos from my rickshaw seat.

The serenity of the Meiji Jingu Shrine is a notable contrast to the crowds of Harajuku hipsters just beyond the giant torii gates. The Shinto shrine complex, which was dedicated to Emperor Meiji and Empress Shoken in 1920, is inside a forest that shuts out the noise and energy of the city. This temple is a popular site for celebratory events such as weddings and children’s festivals, so chances are good that visitors will happen upon families dressed up in traditional kimonos.

The Shinjuku Gyoen National Garden is a gorgeous park that’s just a short walk from Shinjuku Station. There are several gardens within the space, including a formal French one, an English landscape garden, and a traditional Japanese design. While the admission fee is nominal (about $2), it helps assure that it is surprisingly quiet, with fewer visitors than parks open to the public for free. If the weather is good, consider picking up a bento from nearby Takashimaya’s depachika. Convenience stores sell plastic “blue sheets” for impromptu picnics. The only downside to this park is that it is alcohol-free; if you want to drink sake at your picnic, head down the road to Yoyogi Park.

The residence of Japan’s imperial family is located inside a lovely park in the heart of Tokyo. The palace was originally built in 1888, after the capital moved from Kyoto to Tokyo, and then restored following damage incurred during World War II. Its grounds are not open to the public, but standing in Kokyo Gaien, the Imperial Palace plaza, you can see the 16th-century watchtower Fushimi-Yagura, which originally stood in Kyoto, and the Nijubashi bridges, which lead to the palace’s inner grounds.