Four Seasons Hotel Tokyo at Chinzan

Japan
Asia

The Experience

With views overlooking the splendid 17-acre Chinzan-so gardens, this Four Seasons (the first in Asia when it opened in 1991) offers an instantly calming ambience in a very sedate, exclusive district. Mint green corridors, adorned with soft furnishings and giant painted porcelain vases, meander in several directions, adding a sense of manor-house mystique. Afternoon tea amid the greenery of the Tea Lounge is a decidedly European pleasure, while a unique no-smoking policy in all restaurants is a welcome relief from other establishments.

The Rooms

Large bay windows focus attention on the gardens and 1,000-year-old pagoda, but the rooms themselves are also easy on the eye. The light cream and turquoise decor of the standard room and executive suite is dressed with classic European furnishings; the result is an airy, unpretentious and extremely comfortable atmosphere. The beds are imported from the United States, with 45 percent of rooms in the Japanese-preferred twin formation. At 484 square feet, rooms are very spacious by Tokyo standards, but you’ll get 107 more square feet by upgrading to a deluxe room.

The Service

The supremely courteous staff execute their duties with unhurried grace, especially the concierges, whose diligence and customer care are exceptional. Kimono-clad waitstaff add an authentic touch to the gardenview Japanese restaurant.

The Highlights

The exclusive hillside Bunkyo-ku district is a retreat from the assault of downtown Tokyo, and you can escape even more in the 22,000-square-foot Yu spa. Visit the traditional Japanese garden and take a dip in the imported mineral waters of the spa’s onsen or the indoor pool with its retractable roof. Then sit down amid the European formality of the Italian restaurant Il Teatro, for a meal of saffron risotto with lobster and sea scallops, or the Japanese restaurant Miyuki; both look out over the gorgeous Chinzan-so gardens.

 

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