TOKYO TOWER

TOKYO TOWER - Tokyo Tower is a famous Japanese and Tokyo icon and landmark made famous through many Japanese films and anime. Tokyo Tower is modelled on the Eiffel Tower.

Tokyo Tower as seen from Roppongi at night

Tokyo Tower has been made famous by its appearance in many movies and cartoons. Tokyo Tower is really one of few icons of Tokyo. Tokyo Tower (東京タワー Tōkyō tawā) is a tower in Minato-ku, Tokyo, Japan, at 35° 39′ 30″ N 139° 44′ 43″ E, whose design is based on the Eiffel Tower in Paris, France. The Tower is 333 meters tall (9 meters taller than the Eiffel Tower, or 33 if the latter's TV Antenna is not included) making it the world's highest self-supporting iron tower.

Unlike the Eiffel Tower, Tokyo Tower is located in the middle of a city block. The tower only weighs about 4000 tons, which is extremely light compared to the 10100 ton Eiffel Tower, and it is painted in white and orange according to aviation safety regulations. From dusk to 11 PM, the tower is brilliantly illuminated in orange. The lighting is occasionally changed for special events; for the Japan premiere of The Matrix, for instance, the Tower was lit in neon green.

In the postwar boom of the 1950s, Japan was looking for a monument to symbolize its ascendancy as a global economic powerhouse. Looking to the Occident for inspiration, the Tokyo Government decided to erect its own Eiffel Tower. It was completed by the Takenaka Corporation in 1958 at a total cost of ¥2.8 billion. At the time it was built it was the tallest structure in Tokyo, but it has since been superseded by several buildings in the Shinjuku and Ikebukuro districts. Although it chiefly functions as a radio and television broadcasting antenna, the Tower is best known as a tourist destination, though it is decried by some as overpriced and inconveniently located, and as having poor amenities.

Tokyo Tower as seen from the very base.

The first floor houses an aquarium, home to 50,000 fish, the third floor is a wax museum and an attraction called the Mysterious Walking Zone, and the fourth floor a Trick Art Gallery. There are also two observatory floors, the main observatory (at 150 m) and the so-called "special observatory" (at 250 m); both afford a spectacular 360 degree view of Tokyo and, if the weather is clear, Mt. Fuji.

In much the same way the Eiffel Tower has become a cliche in American cinema, the Tokyo Tower is often used in anime and manga, with series such as Digimon, Sailor Moon, Tenchi Muyo!, X, and Magic Knight Rayearth often featuring climatic events occurring at the Tokyo Tower. It has also been used often in the monster films by Toho, having been destroyed by Mothra, Godzilla and also the location of the final battle of King Kong Escapes in which King Kong takes on his mechanical double.

Tokyo Tower can be seen from many points in Tokyo; recently, one of the best vantage points for viewing the Tower has been the Roppongi Hills complex, which has an outdoor terrace offering a panoramic view of the Tower and surrounding skyline. The Tower can also be viewed from Tokyo Bay and from the east gardens of the Imperial Palace.

Tip: you'll get better views from higher up for free if you visit Shinjuku's Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building observatory instead.

Tokyo Tower is located in Minato (港区) is a ward in central Tokyo. The name means "port", referring to its seaside location, although due to reclamation many areas in the district are quite far for the sea these days.

Getting to Tokyo Tower

Minato is a fairly sprawling ward with no centre as such. The main train stations along the JR Yamanote line are Shinbashi (新橋), connection point to the Ginza subway line as well as the Yurikamome line to Odaiba, and Hamamatsuchō (浜松町), terminus of the Tokyo Monorail from Haneda Airport.

Looking for accommodation in Tokyo?
Please support our site by using our hotel reservation system

Tokyo Hotel

(Article based on Wikipedia article and used under the GNU Free Documentation License)