Tokyo
The Imperial Palace behind its moats, Asakusa’s temple among the towers, eleven three-star kitchens, and a business-jet gate at Haneda that never closes.
- Arrival
- Tokyo Haneda · HND
- To the city
- About 30 minutes to the centre by train
- Private jets
- Business jet gates at Haneda and Narita
- Best time
- April to May · October to November
The city
A capital of many centres.
Tokyo is a city of districts, each with its own centre. The Imperial Palace sits behind its moats in Marunouchi, with the East Gardens open to all; Senso-ji, the oldest temple in the city, anchors Asakusa; and the shrine of Meiji Jingu stands in a forest planted from 100,000 trees sent from every part of Japan. Eleven restaurants hold three stars in the current MICHELIN Guide.
Spring and autumn are the best times to visit. April and May bring days around 20 °C; October and November are mild before a cool, dry winter. June is the wettest month, and July and August are hot and humid, with typhoons most likely late in the summer.
Arriving
Haneda for the city, Narita for space.
Haneda is about half an hour from the centre by train. Narita is about an hour away by the Narita Express, or twenty minutes by chartered helicopter to the ARK Hills heliport in Akasaka.
- Seoul 1 h 55
- Shanghai 2 h 35
- Hong Kong 4 h 05
- Ho Chi Minh City 5 h 55
- Geneva 12 h 55 long-range jet
When to go
April to May, and October to November.
Tokyo has four distinct seasons. April and May, then October and November, are mild, with highs between 17 and 23 °C. June and September are the wettest months at around 180 mm, July and August are hot and humid, and winter is cool, dry and often sunny.
- 10° J 43
- 10° F 58
- 13° M 94
- 19° A 119
- 23° M 132
- 25° J 181
- 29° J 128
- 31° A 147
- 27° S 181
- 21° O 158
- 17° N 84
- 12° D 44
What to see and do
Days in and around Tokyo.
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Landmark
Senso-ji
Tokyo’s oldest temple, in Asakusa, whose first hall for the Kannon statue was built in 645.
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Landmark
Meiji Jingu
A shrine completed in 1920 inside a forest of 100,000 trees given from all over Japan.
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Landmark
The East Gardens
The eastern part of the Imperial Palace grounds, open to the public and free to enter.
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Culture
Tokyo National Museum
Founded in 1872 in Ueno Park, Japan's oldest museum holds about 120,000 objects, 89 of them National Treasures, plus the Gallery of Horyuji Treasures.
Official site -
Culture
Nezu Museum
Behind a 2009 building by Kengo Kuma in Aoyama lies a private collection of over 7,400 objects, including Ogata Korin's Irises screens, shown each spring, and a large garden.
Official site -
Opera & music
Kabukiza Theatre
Rebuilt and reopened in 2013, this Ginza kabuki theatre sells single act tickets on the day for seats and standing room on its fourth floor.
Official site -
Opera & music
Suntory Hall
Opened in 1986 in Akasaka, the 2,006 seat vineyard hall that Karajan called a jewel box of sound has a Rieger organ of 5,898 pipes.
Official site -
Food & wine
Toyosu Market
Tokyo's wholesale fish market moved here from Tsukiji in October 2018, and its tuna auction can be watched from about 5.30 am.
Official site -
Nature
Mount Takao
Eight trails, a funicular and a chairlift lead up the 599 metre peak in Meiji no Mori Takao Quasi National Park, past Yakuoin temple.
On the calendar
Dates to plan around.
Dates as published by the organisers. Runways, hotels and slots fill early around these weeks: the sooner we know, the more choice you have.
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29 Nov 2026
Horse racing
Japan Cup
An international Grade 1 turf race over 2,400 metres at Tokyo Racecourse in Fuchu, west of central Tokyo.
Tokyo Racecourse
In 4 weeks
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24–25 Jul 2027
Motor racing
Tokyo E-Prix
Formula E double header on a street circuit around Tokyo Big Sight, closing the 2026-27 season.
Tokyo Street Circuit
In 9 months
Where to stay
Above the palace moats and the towers.
Shown for information. We have no arrangement with any of these hotels.
- Bvlgari Hotel Tokyo Near Tokyo Station, with a spa and an indoor pool on the 40th floor behind floor-to-ceiling windows.
- Palace Hotel Tokyo Across the moat from the Imperial Palace, and more than half the rooms have a balcony of their own.
- The Capitol Hotel Tokyu Shoji screens and natural wood beside Hie Shrine, and a hidden bar overlooking the garden.
- Hotel New Otani Tokyo – Executive House Zen Two private floors within the New Otani, with a rose garden and cypress-wood baths in the suites.
- Mandarin Oriental, Tokyo Rooms between the 30th and 36th floors of the Nihonbashi Mitsui Tower, with Tokyo Skytree in the window.
- The Okura Tokyo Two towers in Toranomon, and a lobby recreated by Yoshio Taniguchi after his father’s original design.
- The Peninsula Tokyo Conceived as a Japanese lantern between Marunouchi and Ginza, and open since 2007.
- The Prince Gallery Tokyo Kioicho, a Luxury Collection Hotel Opened in July 2016, its 250 rooms sit some 180 metres above the street; one MICHELIN Key.
- The Ritz-Carlton, Tokyo The hotel takes the top nine floors of Tokyo Midtown, and its spa on the 46th has a twenty-metre pool.
- Park Hyatt Tokyo Reopened in December 2025 after a restoration of nineteen months, with the New York Grill & Bar kept on the 52nd floor.
- Andaz Tokyo Toranomon Hills 164 rooms high in Toranomon Hills, and an open-air bar with a tea counter on the 52nd floor.
- Conrad Tokyo Floors 28 to 37 of a Shiodome tower, looking over Tokyo Bay and the Hamarikyu Gardens.
- Takanawa Hanakohro Garden suites whose shoji screens slide open onto a Japanese garden, given Five Stars by Forbes six years in a row.
- The Tokyo EDITION, Ginza Ian Schrager and Kengo Kuma designed its 86 rooms, a rooftop bar and a Punch Room.
- Four Seasons Hotel Tokyo at Otemachi In the Otemachi One tower, looking over the palace gardens, with Mount Fuji in view on clear days.
- Aman Tokyo Six high floors of the Otemachi Tower in washi paper, stone and wood, under high ceilings.
- JANU Tokyo Opened in 2024, with eight restaurants and many rooms turned towards Tokyo Tower.
Where to dine
Eleven kitchens with three stars.
From the MICHELIN Guide 2026, shown for information. We have no arrangement with any of these restaurants.
- Kanda Three Michelin stars Japanese ¥¥¥¥ Toranomon Hills, Minato
- Azabu Kadowaki Three Michelin stars Japanese ¥¥¥¥ Azabu-Juban, Minato
- Myojaku Three Michelin stars Japanese ¥¥¥¥ Nishi-Azabu, Minato
- L’Osier Three Michelin stars French contemporary ¥¥¥¥ Ginza
- L’Effervescence Three Michelin stars French contemporary ¥¥¥¥ Nishi-Azabu, Minato
- RyuGin Three Michelin stars Japanese ¥¥¥¥ Tokyo Midtown Hibiya
- Sazenka Three Michelin stars Chinese ¥¥¥¥ Minami-Azabu, Minato
- Kagurazaka Ishikawa Three Michelin stars Japanese ¥¥¥¥ Kagurazaka, Shinjuku
- Harutaka Three Michelin stars Sushi ¥¥¥¥ Ginza
Elsewhere in Japan
More reasons to come.
- Kyoto Some sixteen hundred temples, the bamboo of Arashiyama, and kaiseki dinners.
- Osaka The kitchen of Japan, and the airport for Kyoto.
- Hakone Hot springs and ryokan, with views of Mount Fuji.
- Kanazawa A castle town, the Kenroku-en garden, and gold leaf.
- Niseko Deep snow from December to March, and an onsen after the slopes.
Flying to Tokyo?
Choose how you arrive.
A Business or First Class seat on a scheduled airline, or an aircraft of your own. Tell us the date and how many are travelling, and we reply with one final price, our margin included.