Japan: Nishi-Shinjuku -- views from Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building sky deck

Date: 27th March 2015

I had a packed day yesterday. A day that began at Senso-ji in the morning, Ueno Park and Zoo in the afternoon and Shibuya in the evening. I slept well — a bit too well because by the time I had breakfast and left the hostel, it was already noon.

Halc Odakyu mall Shinjuku Tokyo — I got off at Nishi-Shinjuku station and ended up at a Uniqlo (yes, again) and Bic Camera (electronics store)

Mode Gakuen cocoon tower Japan — I was in Nishi-Shinjuku mainly to go to the Tokyo Metropolitan Building for the free observation deck

Sompo Japan building Shinjuku Tokyo — Nishi-Shinjuku is the area of Shinjuku Ward dubbed ‘Skyscraper City’– which is why I wanted to see it as I appreciate tall structures and good architecture

Mode Gakuen Cocoon building Japan — It has the highest concentration of skyscrapers in Tokyo. Including cool-looking building like the Mode Gakuen Cocoon Tower — which houses three educational institutions

Nishi-Shinjuku business district Tokyo — Nishi-Shinjuku is home to the corporate offices of many major Japanese and international businesses

Love art installation Shinjuku Tokyo — Japan’s installation of artist Robert Indiana’s famous LOVE sculpture

Tokyo metropolitan building side view — I used Google Maps on my phone to guide me to the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building, the 8th tallest building in Japan

Tokyo Metropolitan Government building twin towers — Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building is the headquarters of the local government for the Greater Tokyo Area

The 48-storey, 243-metre high building rises to form a twin tower at the top and on the 45th floor of each tower is an observation deck which is open to public — completely free!

Entrance to Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building — There are a few other options across Tokyo for observation view points at a considerable height — Mori Tower at Roppongi Hills & Tokyo Skytree — but both charge an entry fee

Basement Tokyo Metropolitan Building Japan — To get to the top, you first have to go down — to the floor below the main entrance

Opening hours observation floor Tokyo — Here’s the schedule. There was a bit of a wait to enter the elevators but not too long.

North tower observation deck Tokyo — I first went to the north tower observation deck

Nishi-Shinjuku skyscrapers Tokyo — The views are not bad

View from North Tower Tokyo — To the right is Yoyogi Park

Yoyogi aerial view Tokyo — Yoyogi park is in Shibuya ward

Yoyogi national gymnasium Tokyo Japan — That’s the roof of the National Gymnasium

Tokyo Skytree from afar — That in the distance is Tokyo Skytree — the tallest structure in Japan

Mori Tower Roppongi hills Tokyo — That’s the Roppongi Hills Mori Tower — the 6th tallest building in Japan

Shinjuku park tower Tokyo Japan — Shinjuku Park Tower — the second tallest building in this ward — is right next to its taller counterpart

Shinjuku aerial view infrastructure Japan — Took out my 70-200mm zoom lens

House rooftops Shinjuku Tokyo — The more ‘down to earth’ buildings behind the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building

Tokyo city aerial view — The wards beyond Shinjuku

Mt. Fuji view from Tokyo — On a clear day, you can see the peak of Mt. Fuji from here

After I had seen enough from the north tower, I went back down and waited in line for the elevator to go up the south tower. I mean, it’s free, so I figured why not see both.

Gift shop observation floor Tokyo Metropolitan — You have gift shops and restaurants up here

Cityscape Tokyo from skyscraper — The view at the back

View of Tokyo city from skyscraper — From the front

Views from south tower Tokyo Metropolitan building — The views from the north tower are certainly better

Information center Tokyo Metropolitan building — I didn’t spend much time at the south tower as the views weren’t as good, so I went back down

There was a tourist information center (picture above; left) with English-speaking staff and so I made the most of it and asked a few questions about the trips I planned for the next few days in Tokyo.

Tokyo assembly building Japan — After that I walked across to the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Assembly Hall building

Tokyo government assembly hall Japan — It’s open to public (but not all the time)

Tokyo metropolitan basement Japan — Took this photo through the window

Tokyo assembly press seats Japan — I was now inside the assembly hall. By the way, there is security here, so don’t assume it’s not manned by staff or anything.

Tokyo assembly hall panorama — A panorama of the assembly hall

Afternoon Shinjuku business district Tokyo — With that, I was done

Shinjuku business district Tokyo — I used Google Maps to direct me back to Shinjuku station

Shinjuku underground pedestrian walkway Tokyo — I found myself entering a massive underpass that connected several buildings and eventually led to Shinjuku train station

Walkalator shinjuku underground Tokyo — And if walking the long stretch gets tiring for you, there are travelators on side. Amazing infrastructure!

It made sense. Plenty of offices in one area means huge pedestrian movement by foot before and after office hours. When you have space constraints above to accommodate wide footpaths beside the roads, just build such underpasses for pedestrian traffic and connect each building and shopping mall along the way.

Shinjuku train station Tokyo — Once I arrived at Shinjuku station, I wondered where to go next

It was too late to go to Yoyogi Park or Shinjuku Gyoen to see what the cherry blossom scene at both those parks was like, so I decided to explore a bit more of Shinjuku ward. That’s the next post.

Next post in this series:

Japan 2015: Shopping in Shinjuku, and Kabukicho

Japan 2015: Denboin garden, near Sensoji Temple

Japan 2015: Cherry blossom celebrations by Sumida River

Japan 2015: Boat ride to Odaiba; giant Gundam statue at DiverCity Mall

Japan 2015: Cherry blossoms at Tokyo Imperial Palace east garden

Japan 2015: Cherry blossom sightings at Shinjuku Gyoen

Japan 2015: Harajuku on a Sunday – Meiji shrine and Yoyogi Park

Japan 2015: Harajuku at night — Takeshita Street

Japan 2015 – Visiting Akihabara a second time, because why not?

Japan 2015: Cherry blossoms in full bloom at Ueno Park

Japan 2015: Rikugien garden’s weeping cherry blossom tree