I have a weakness for viewing platforms of any kind (as long as they aren’t church towers with narrow stairs or rickety ladders). So it was clear to me that I absolutely had to go up to the Tokyo Sky Tree. I couldn’t say no to enjoying the view over the entire city at a height of 450 m and, if I was lucky, even see Mount Fuji. In contrast to many other attractions, I actually managed to get a ticket for Monday relatively easily. The combined ticket for the gallery and the “normal deck” at 350 m was not exactly cheap at 3100 yen, but I couldn’t pass on the opportunity to “climb” the third tallest building in the world.
At first, I thought about just walking there – it wasn’t that far from Ueno. But then I was quite late and since it was expressly stated that you absolutely had to be on time, I took the subway. As always, everything went smoothly – by now I knew the routes at the stations.
Up to the Sky Tree
I booked for 10 a.m., right after it opened. When I arrived, the line was already quite long. In typical Japanese efficiency, we were carefully sorted into groups and searched for weapons and other dangerous goods, just like at the airport. After about 15 minutes of waiting, we were finally allowed to enter the elevator. The elevator was quick, but not the fastest I’ve ever experienced. My ears popped nevertheless.
You then arrive at the Tembo Deck at a height of 350 m. Even from here, the view was sensational. The many visitors were spread out quite well and you could take great photos. The tinted glass made this a little more difficult than expected, but with a digital camera, you have virtually endless attempts.
You basically walk around the tower and then arrive at the end about 10 floors down. From there you can take a separate elevator back to the deck or continue down.
All the way up
But I quickly lined up for the Tembo Gallery at a whopping 450 m. And it was absolutely worth it. There were far fewer visitors there and the view was a lot better, also because the windows reached much lower. Of course, I could see all the places I had already been to: Asakusa, the park in Ueno with all the museums, Minato and Odaiba, and even the Shinjuku Gyoen. And the highlight was that the view all the way to Fuji was fairly clear. That was to remain the best opportunity on this trip to photograph the holy mountain.
But there were also many other interesting details, such as the main building of the Asahi brewery with a strange “thing” on the roof, or the Sakura Bridge over the Sumida. The endless rows of houses that stretched to the horizon were impressive on the one hand, but also a bit frightening on the other. For the first time in my life, I got a feeling for the dimensions of a mega city.
Chillaxing
Time was running out though – you only have one hour to stay, although I couldn’t see anywhere how this was controlled. Nevertheless, I still had other things planned for the day. So I went back to the “lower” floor wistfully. I still had about 20 minutes left.
I strolled around a bit, then remembered that there was a glass floor there. Now, I’m terrified of heights (strangely not in such solid buildings), but it seemed pretty safe to me. So I bravely stood on the window, held my breath, and looked down. It’s pretty crazy! It really goes straight down, with nothing in between. You can only see the supporting structures of the tower, otherwise there’s NOTHING! So not for the faint-hearted. But I coped well with it and even let myself be persuaded to have a few pictures taken of me at the photo booth.
Now it was really time to go back down. But I just didn’t feel like it and decided to hang out in the cocktail bar for a while. There, as I had cleverly discovered, there was no time limit. No sooner said than done! After another 10 minutes of queuing, I was allowed in, ordered a “layer cake” and the “Sky Tree” signature cocktail (with lots of Blue Curaçao!), and sat down by the window. I leisurely ate the delicacies and enjoyed the view once again. Cocktail, cake, and a breathtaking panorama – what more could you want?