Fairmont Tokyo, the luxury chain's first outpost in Japan
Established in 1907 with the opening of Fairmont San Francisco, the chain is now part of the French group Accor, the company behind brands such as Raffles and Sofitel. While I was familiar with Fairmont Hotels & Resorts and had the pleasure of staying at the group's Manila outpost years ago, Fairmont has kept a relatively low profile in recent years, especially for Asia-based luxury travellers – unlike other hotel groups such as
The Peninsula , Rosewood, Mandarin Oriental and Aman.
This is set to change with the arrival of Fairmont Tokyo, its first hotel in Japan, which will give the city's other five-star luxury hotels a run for their money.
Advertisement
The hotel is located in the recently revitalised Shibaura neighbourhood. Photo: Handout
Located in the coastal Shibaura neighbourhood – a quiet area only a ten-minute taxi ride away from buzzy Ginza – the property is flanked on one side by Tokyo Bay and on the other by Tokyo Tower, one of the city's landmarks.
Given Tokyo's vast expanse, it's easy to forget that it's a port city – something you can truly appreciate if your room or suite faces the sea overlooking Rainbow Bridge, which lights up at night. It's a welcome change from Tokyo's urban sprawl, providing some respite from the density and high-rises typical of the metropolis.
The hotel occupies the top floors of a newly built skyscraper owned by Nomura Rea Estate Development Co, a key player in the recent redevelopment of Shibaura. At the waterfront neighbourhood, you can walk along lovely canals, take a break in lush gardens and have a bite at one of the casual eateries dotting the area.
The 20-metre swimming pool overlooks the city's skyline and Tokyo Bay. Photo: Handout
Like many luxury hotels these days, the journey begins on one of the upper floors, the 35th, where the lobby is located. The breathtaking views start here, thanks to the outdoor terraces that surround the expansive space, and they're definitely one of the hotel's main selling points. Also on the lobby level are a spa, a 20-metre indoor infinity swimming pool, an outdoor pool with a relaxation deck, and a well-equipped gym.
Fairmont is not necessarily known for its wellness offerings, but the spa was a very pleasant surprise. All treatments begin with a foot soak performed with a mix of home-grown ingredients such as azuki beans and matcha powder, which you can select before your session. I opted for a facial, which was performed with Japanese jeweller
Mikimoto 's pearl-derived skincare – an unexpected touch that definitely made a difference.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Standard
5 hours ago
- The Standard
Nissan begins talks with union to cut jobs at European regional office
A man stands in front of the global headquarters of Nissan Motor while its annual shareholder meeting is being held in Yokohama, Japan, June 24, 2025. REUTERS/Kim Kyung-Hoon/File Photo
South China Morning Post
6 hours ago
- South China Morning Post
SoftBank's growing stakes in Nvidia, TSMC show founder Masayoshi Son's focus on AI gear
The Japanese technology investor raised its stake in Nvidia to about US$3 billion by the end of March, up from US$1 billion in the prior quarter, according to regulatory filings. It bought around US$330 million worth of TSMC shares and US$170 million in Oracle Corp , the filings show. That was while SoftBank's signature Vision Fund monetised almost US$2 billion of public and private assets in the first half of 2025, according to a person familiar with the fund's activities. The Vision Fund prioritises its returns on investment and there is no particular pressure from SoftBank to monetise its assets, said the person who asked not to be named discussing private information. A representative of SoftBank declined to comment. At the heart of SoftBank's AI ambitions is chip designer Arm Holdings . Son, who serves as chairman and CEO at SoftBank, is gradually building a portfolio around the Cambridge, UK-based company with key industry players, seeking to catch up after largely missing a historic rally that had made Nvidia into a US$4 trillion behemoth and boosted its contract chipmaker TSMC to near a US$1 trillion value. 'Nvidia is the picks and shovels for the gold rush of AI,' said Ben Narasin, founder and general partner of Tenacity Venture Capital, referring to a concerted effort by the world's largest technology companies to spend hundreds of billions of dollars to get ahead. SoftBank's purchase of the US company's stock may buy more influence and access to Nvidia's most sought-after chips, he said. 'Maybe he gets to skip the line.'
South China Morning Post
7 hours ago
- South China Morning Post
Record heat grips Japan, turns Vietnam into ‘pan on fire'
Japan logged two new heat records in a day on Tuesday, with the mercury hitting 41.6 degrees Celsius (106.8 degrees Fahrenheit) and then 41.8 degrees, the weather office said, warning temperatures might rise further still. Advertisement Temperatures the world over have soared in recent years as climate change creates ever more erratic weather patterns, and Japan is no exception. The scorching temperatures in the city of Isesaki on Tuesday surpassed the previous record seen in the western Hyogo region of 41.2 degrees only last week. Japan's summer last year was the joint hottest on record, equalling the level seen in 2023, followed by the warmest autumn since records began 126 years ago. Last week in tourist hotspot Kyoto, the mercury hit 40 degrees, the first time any of its observation points – the oldest opened in 1880, the newest in 2002 – had seen such a high, authorities said. Advertisement Experts warn Japan's beloved cherry trees are blooming earlier due to the warmer climate or sometimes not fully blossoming because autumns and winters are not cold enough to trigger flowering.
