Getting dizzy at Tokyo's Sky Tree

It just opened in 2012 but the tallest building in Japan, and arguably the tallest transmission tower in the world, has quickly become a powerful Tokyo tourist destination. The tower is visible from any rooftop vantage, its top often lost in the clouds and nearly 2,100 feet high. What makes it most alluring is the chance to visit the observation decks at the 345^th floor (1,148 feet) and the higher Tembo gallery.

We visited on a warm spring day just past the height of the cherry blossom season and the crowds were imposing. Tour buses leave from the Tokyo Railway Station regularly and disgorge riders in the basement of the tower complex. Just before nine on a Thursday morning, lines were building and we waited for our appointed time to enter the elevators to the primary deck.

The elevators are a wonder. Built by the Toshiba Company, they have a capacity of 40 persons with maximum speed of over 1,900 feet per minute and are the fastest large capacity elevators in Japan. That is significant enough but the magic is in the smooth ride. Our ears were popping from the change in altitude before we realized we were moving!

The doors opened to a surreal vision. Wide gallery windows filled with the rooftops and skyscrapers of Tokyo central and beyond, just visible through the clouds, was Mt. Fuji. The crowds made it a bit tricky to navigate the circular passage, but excitement melted any stress. There were several low display tables with flat screens showing a rotating presentation of landmarks that melted into a into a 24-hour, time lapse vision of the view. In it, the sun passed across the sky setting finally before fireworks shot up from below.

There was the requisite coffee shop. A staged seating area held a rotating handful of tourists ushered onto a bench and given props by a small team of uniformed, young women all shouting instructions. For a price, new groups and photos were taken every three minutes. Everyone not going further up to the Tembo deck (another ticket required) had to take several sets of escalators past crowded gift shops and a more formal café serving striped, Jell-O parfaits with the Sky Tree branded star cookies. At one spot a glass floor drew people close and the vision was dizzying – all the way to the plaza below. A final elevator floated visitors back down to the fourth floor plaza. Beyond were shops, restaurants and even a school for the neighborhood.

The success of the tower is indisputable, given the crowds that have been visiting at considerable investments (It costs a family of four nearly $100 to ride to the primary deck). Walt Disney would be jealous.

Photos by the author, Elaine J. Masters