Nine properties worth another look

Tokyo has an interesting relationship with permanence. The megalopolis reinvents itself with clockwork regularity, yet certain institutions exist outside this cycle of perpetual renewal. The capital’s grand hotels fall firmly into this category—not because they don’t evolve (they do, constantly), but because they’ve mastered the art of remaining relevant while honoring their core purpose. The proof is in concrete and steel: The city’s finest properties trace an arc from 1915’s European influences through postwar modernism to today’s glass towers. Each era claimed its territory: pre-war survivors in Marunouchi’s diplomatic quarter, 1964 Olympic-era modernism in Toranomon’s business district, contemporary retreats crowning Akasaka’s new developments. The timing feels charged. As the Park Hyatt Tokyo—which defined vertical luxury in the 1990s—closes until late 2025, newcomers arrive with fresh perspectives. Aman spinoff Janu Tokyo brings social wellness, while 1 Hotel‘s hotly anticipated outpost promises sustainable luxury when it debuts in 2025. Yet established names maintain their edge by grasping what matters: preserving heritage while advancing service, honoring tradition while embracing change. In a city fixated on novelty, these properties prove that true luxury runs deeper than aesthetics and location.

The Okura Tokyo

The 2015 demolition of Hotel Okura’s emblematic lobby sparked international protest, with architecture devotees mourning modernism’s defining loss. Its 2019 rebirth emerged more resurrection than renovation, joining Leading Hotels of the World as one of its most distinguished properties. Under Yoshio Taniguchi, son of the original architect, the hotel’s 1962 masterwork lives again—from honey-hued paper lanterns to plum blossom-arranged furnishings. The $1 billion project divides into dual identities: a 17-story Okura Heritage Wing offering 140 rooms with steam saunas and traditional aesthetics, alongside the 41-story Prestige Tower’s 368 contemporary chambers. Original artifacts tell the hotel’s story: a 2,500-piece Asian art collection, vintage The Macallan bottles in the Orchid Bar, even the world clock’s LED display (now in muted blue rather than red) and those distinctive ringed-leaf door handles.

The Ritz-Carlton, Tokyo 

The world’s most expensive cocktail—a diamond-garnished martini at three million yen [around $19,500 on the day this was published]—headlines the bar menu at this Tokyo Midtown Tower aerie, but the real power moves are subtler as you ascend past the 45th floor. The hotel recently welcomed its redesigned Lobby Lounge, which serves afternoon tea on custom Arita porcelain from the same makers who once served Japan’s imperial court, while evenings spotlight the country’s craft gin boom with a roving cocktail cart. More telling: The Ritz lured chef Kei Kobayashi back from Paris, where he became the first Asian chef to earn three Michelin stars. His restaurant, Héritage, hits its first anniversary this January. Add a 22,000-square-foot wellness complex and that coveted Club Level, and you understand how this relative newcomer earned its spot among Tokyo’s old guard.

Imperial Hotel

Frank Lloyd Wright’s architectural DNA runs deep at the Imperial—most notably in the Frank Lloyd Wright Suite, the only one globally authorized to bear his name. The 2,303-square-foot space lifts design elements from Wright’s original 1923-1967 Imperial Hotel building, with views over Hibiya Park and the Palace gardens to match. Down in the Old Imperial Bar are more relics: Wright’s original counter and salvaged terra cotta  from the hotel’s first century. The culinary program keeps pace, too. Imperial Viking Sal introduced Japan to the buffet concept in 1958 (hence “Viking” becoming local shorthand for buffet dining), while Les Saisons and Nadaman hold court among Tokyo’s power dining spots. The recent addition of Rendez-Vous AWA brings champagne bar culture into the mix.

Aman Tokyo 

Aman Tokyo, barely a decade old, channels an older strain of Japanese hospitality where discretion trumps flash. Kerry Hill’s ryokan-inspired sanctuary atop Otemachi Tower nails the pre-war luxury basics: handcrafted materials, measured service, absolute privacy, and large rooms. His composition of paper, stone, and camphor wood, topped by that monumental light-filtering ceiling, connects past and present without trying too hard. The 84 rooms frame views from Imperial Gardens to Mount Fuji—borrowed scenery updated for the 21st century. The 26,900-square-foot spa, Tokyo’s largest, reinterprets traditional onsen rituals with a suspended black basalt pool. At eight-seat Musashi, the chef’s house-grown rice speaks to Japan’s obsession with provenance. As Aman expands locally with Janu’s social wellness concept and 91 Yabu Pushelberg-designed residences, the flagship stays focused on what matters: craft, calm, and precision.

The Capitol Hotel Tokyu

The Capitol Hotel Tokyu comes with pedigree. When architect Kengo Kuma reimagined the property—once home to the members’ only Hoshigaoka Saryo restaurant revered artist and gourmand Kitaoji Rosanjin—he created something distinctly neo-traditional. Japan’s only member of Preferred Hotels & Resorts’ Legend Collection reveals its DNA immediately: temple-inspired wooden beams in the two-story lobby, movable shoji screens in the 251 rooms offering a fresh take on space manipulation. The art collection impresses with works by 20th-century heavyweights like Toko Shinoda’s ink paintings and Sofu Teshigahara’s sculptures. From the sky-lit pool to the retro barbershop, it’s modern Japanese hospitality without the air quotes. 

The Tokyo Station Hotel

After a meticulous six-year revamp completed in 2012, this 1915 grande dame anchors Tokyo’s historic red-brick station building, crowned by restored domes that nearly disappeared in wartime. A separate entrance keeps Japan’s busiest railway hub at bay, while its Marunouchi location puts guests between the Imperial Palace and Ginza. The renovation enshrined its European bones—vaulted ceilings, chandeliers, generous public spaces—while modernizing 150 rooms and adding an underground onsen spa. The dome-view suites are the get, their arched windows overlooking those iconic cupolas. An audio-guided gallery tour fills in the backstory with railway artifacts and vintage photographs.

Palace Hotel

Opening in 1961 as the city’s first mixed-use hotel development, Palace Hotel made waves by wrapping its modernist facade in 1.6 million shigaraki tiles—winning the Building Contractors Society Prize in the process. After serving Tokyo’s elite for 50 years, they made a bold call in 2009: total rebuild from scratch. The 2012 rebirth worked, earning three “keys” from Michelin for extraordinary stays. Contemporary luxuries now lead—from Alain Ducasse’s Esterre to Japan’s only Evian spa—but carefully preserved touchstones maintain the thread: the original Royal Bar counter, the Chiyoda Suite’s ink wash painting, and those shigaraki tiles, repurposed throughout as quiet reminders of what came before.