What's New

Here are the latest openings, offerings, and events in Tokyo.

Planning Your Trip to Tokyo

Getting from Narita Airport to Tokyo -- You can save money on transportation to and around Tokyo with tickets available only to foreigners at Narita Airport, including a ¥3,500 ($29/£15) combination ticket for the Narita Express (N'EX) train into Tokyo and a Suica card that can be used for all forms of transportation in Tokyo and even designated vending machines. The Airport Limousine & Metro Pass combination ticket includes a bus trip to the city plus 1 day of unlimited rides on Metro subways for ¥3,100 ($26/£13).

ATMs

Getting cash has never been easier, thanks to new ATMs in 7-Eleven convenience stores (most are open 24 hrs.) throughout the country that accept most foreign bank and credit cards.

Getting to Know Tokyo

After suffering for years under a sluggish economy, Tokyo is abuzz with many new developments, including the Marunouchi (east) side of Tokyo Station with new high-rises, hotels, and brand-name designer shops; the upscale Omotesando Hills shopping center in Harajuku; the huge urban development Tokyo Midtown in Roppongi with Tokyo's tallest building; and a revamped Akihabara, which now boasts Japan's largest appliance store, an increasing number of anime and manga shops, and the Tokyo Anime Center.

Where to Stay

The shuttering of several longtime hotels -- including Capitol Tokyu, Sofitel, and President -- sent shock waves through the city, especially since their fall comes as several international luxury chains have crashed the local hotel market. First to open was the Mandarin Oriental, Tokyo, 2-1-1 Nihombashi Marumachi (tel. 866/526-6567 in the U.S. and Canada, or 03/3270-8950), occupying the top floors of a soaring skyscraper across from the venerable Mitsukoshi department store. In 2007, The Ritz-Carlton, Tokyo, 9-7-1 Akasaka (tel. 800/241-3333 in the U.S. and Canada, or 03/3423-8000), upped the ante with Tokyo's largest rooms in the upper stratosphere of Tokyo's tallest building. Newest kid on the block is The Peninsula Tokyo, 1-8-1 Yurakucho (tel. 866/382-8388 in the U.S., or 03/6270-2888), located in Marunouchi just opposite the Imperial Palace and offering the best that money can buy.

Luckily for travelers of more modest means, several moderately priced hotels have opened, notably Ginza Washington Hotel, 7-10-1 Ginza (tel. 03/6686-1000), with a superb location in the Ginza and tiny but smartly decorated rooms; and the even less expensive Hotel Villa Fontaine Shiodome, 1-9-2 Higashi-Shimbashi (tel. 03/3569-2220), a no-frills business hotel just minutes from the Ginza in Shiodome.

Meanwhile, several existing hotels have formed new alliances in a bid to outshine competitors, including The Strings by InterContinental Tokyo (formerly The Strings Hotel Tokyo), and Sheraton Miyako Tokyo (formerly Miyako Hotel Tokyo).

But the best result of the accommodations shakeout is that hotels are wooing customers with added facilities, such as spas, and more services, including free Internet connections (though you may have to provide your own phone cable or LAN connection).

Where to Dine

Tokyo's new urban developments have brought a slew of new restaurants as well. In Omotesando Hills, which stretches from Harajuku to Aoyama on Omotesando Dori Avenue, newcomer Miyashita on the third floor, 4-12-10 Jingumae (tel. 03/5785-0707), offers fusion French and Japanese creative dishes you won't find anywhere else. In Tokyo Midtown, La Colina, 9-7-4 Roppongi (tel. 03/5413-0092), is an upscale Mexican restaurant offering creative fare in a modern setting with an outdoor terrace.

Tokyo's most interesting newcomer is Waentei-Kikko, 2-2-13 Asakusa (tel. 03/5828-8833), nestled in a traditional house near Sensoji Temple. It offers free shamisen (a traditional three-stringed Japanese instrument) and other traditional Japanese music performances along with moderately priced obento lunches and kaiseki dinners.

What to See & Do in Tokyo

Two new museums have opened in Roppongi, signaling a new center for the arts in Tokyo. The National Art Center, Tokyo, attracts huge crowds even though it doesn't have a collection of its own. Rather, it exhibits shows organized by Japanese artists' associations, its own curators, and joint efforts by mass-media companies and other art institutions, in spacious galleries housed in an innovative building. The nearby Suntory Museum of Art showcases a private collection of Japanese antiques and art, as well as visiting exhibits. Together with the nearby Mori Art Museum, opened in 2003 as Tokyo's highest gallery, the three museums form what has been dubbed the Art Triangle Roppongi.

Shopping in Tokyo

Akihabara, with Japan's largest concentration of electronics and electrical-appliance shops, is now home to Japan's largest electronics shop, Yodobashi Camera, offering six floors of cameras, computers, games, DVDs, appliances, and more. Akihabara is also increasingly a mecca for fans of manga and anime, with more and more shops devoted to the genre and the new Tokyo Anime Center, complete with a 3-D theater.

Tokyo After Dark

Liquidroom, formerly in Shinjuku but now ensconced in new Ebisu digs at 3-16-6 Higashi (tel. 03/5464-0800), is the happening place for live music and stage events. A quieter, more sophisticated venue is the Cotton Club at 2-7-3 Marunouchi (tel. 03/3215-1555), named after Harlem's legendary club and offering top-quality entertainment, from traditional jazz to salsa. Birdland, a Roppongi fixture for 34 years, has moved to a new home at 3-16-7 Akasaka (tel. 03/3583-3546), while Fiesta International Karaoke Bar has a new Roppongi address at 7-9-3 Roppongi (tel. 03/5410-3008). Finally, you'll get the chilliest reception in town at Absolut Icebar Tokyo, 4-2-4 Nishi Azabu (tel. 03/5464-2160), made entirely of ice imported from Sweden, right down to the chairs and glasses.