Friday, September 28, 2007

47. Sightseeing Spot Review: Tokyo Midtown (Akasaka)

Tokyo Midtown, located on 569,000 square meters of land, consists of six main buildings filled with stores, restaurants, offices, a hotel, condominiums, museums, and more.

Previously home to the Japan Defense Agency, some of its current tenants include: Konami, Yahoo! Japan, Fujifilm/Fuji Xerox, and Cisco Japan. There is also a medical clinic associated with John Hopkins Hospital, and a 250-room Ritz Carlton Hotel is located on the 47th through 53rd floors of the Midtown Tower.
The Galleria, the main attraction of Tokyo Midtown, consists of five floors of stores and restaurants. The new Suntory Museum is also located here (see review #46 for details), in addition to Design Sight 21_21 - an exhibition gallery (free) and research workshop. Fuji Film / Fuji Xerox have two excellent photography galleries (also free) with often changing exhibitions.
Behind the entire complex is a beautiful 10 acre public park (see review #48).
I like Tokyo Midtown much more that Roppongi Hills. It is much easier to navigate and the stores are more appealing, especially those related to home interior. The restaurant selection is extensive - I was especially impressed with the selection of delicious, inexpensive choices below ground. Many of the more expensive restaurants upstairs have at least some 'open-air' dining, and they have great lunch deals.

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