Conceived by the Ministry of Health and Welfare to commemorate the International Year of the Child in 1979, the Children's Castle holds various activity rooms for children of all ages (though most are geared to elementary-age kids and younger). The third floor, designed for spontaneous and unstructured play, features a large climbing gym, a computer playroom, building blocks, a playhouse, dolls, books, and a teen corner with table tennis and other age-appropriate games; there's also an art room staffed with instructors to help children with projects suitable for their ages. On the fourth floor is a music room with instruments the kids are invited to play, as well as a video room with private cubicles where visitors can make selections from a library of English-language and Japanese videos. On the roof is an outdoor playground complete with tricycles, while in the basement is the family swimming pool (¥300/$2.50/£1.25 for adults, ¥200/$1.65/85p for children). Various programs are offered throughout the week, including puppet shows, fairy tales, and origami presentations.

Copyright: Excerpted from Frommer's Tokyo, 10th Edition, (c) 2008, Wiley Publishing, Inc.

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