Review / 2 stellar luxury hotels to check out in Tokyo in 2023: Four Seasons Hotel Tokyo at Otemachi boasts views of the Imperial Palace while Bulgari Hotel’s sushi bar is headed by a 3 Michelin-starred chef

Hongkongers love Japan, and after finally making my first trip to the nation’s bustling capital Tokyo this summer, it’s easy to see why. Convenient transport, delicious – and incredibly cheap – food, and of course, the shopping make it a hotspot for many global travellers.

Being a first-timer though meant having to find my bearings in a sprawling region that’s often regarded as the biggest city in the world.

Four Seasons Hotel Tokyo at Otemachi

A good place to start was in the heart of Tokyo’s popular Otemachi district, which placed me in the smack-bang midst of it all amid the regal Imperial Palace and its forested grounds and within close access of Otemachi, the city’s largest subway station, and Tokyo Station, the launch pad for the iconic bullet trains. Tourist-favourite shopping districts like Ginza, Shinjuku and Shibuya are only stops away by train.

Now is probably a good time to mention the hotel I stayed at that made this prime location possible. Four Seasons Hotel Tokyo at Otemachi, which opened in August 2020 at the height of the pandemic, is the Canadian luxury hospitality group’s second outpost in the city, being just a 10-minute drive from its sister property in Marunouchi, which is considerably smaller in comparison.

This stylish new addition is situated in a bustling financial district but offers plenty of greenery with views of the nearby East Gardens of the palace. On clear days, you can also enjoy glimpses of Mount Fuji.