Palace Hotel Tokyo Design Invokes Nature & Culture
Six design houses collaborate on a modern masterpiece of Japanese aesthetics
TOKYO (11 December 2012) – Tokyo usually doesn’t conjure thoughts of tranquillity andresplendent natural settings, but the new Palace Hotel Tokyo debuted earlier this year as a bounty ofrefreshing contrasts – bridging the megacity’s reputation as an adrenaline-fuelled business hub withthe serenity of the country’s much loved Imperial Palace gardens.
Opened in May, Japan’s most ambitious new hotel has been garnering recognition from some ofAsia’s most distinguished arbiters of style, a trend that’s gathering momentum worldwide as its design
attributes and indigenous appeal asserts itself on foreign shores.
In October, the hotel landed a spot on Destinasian’s ‘Luxe List’, a selective compilation of Asia’s mostnotable new hotels and resorts. The hotel was recognised that same month at HICAP - the mostprestigious Hotel Investment Conference in Asia Pacific - with an award for ‘Development of theYear’, overtaking leading contenders in the region operated by international brands.
With a history that spans over 51 years in the same location, creating the entirely new Palace HotelTokyo called for an intermingling of culture and design that would seamlessly meld its long traditionof distinguished Japanese hospitality with contemporary aesthetics.
The overarching concept was to build a hotel with presence – one that would complement the beautyof its natural surroundings and the uniqueness of the country’s heritage and do so with grace andelegance.
“It was never meant to just be another addition to Tokyo’s skyline or simply the latest entry into thecity’s luxury scene,” said Masaru Watanabe, the hotel’s Executive Director and General Manager.
“We wanted to build a hotel where real substance and presence could be felt in the spaces created
and the services offered. It’s about the authenticity in one’s experience when one stays at Palace
Hotel Tokyo - because it represents the best of Japan.”
Half a dozen design firms were called upon to form the dynamic collaboration that brought to life
the originality envisioned:• Mitsubishi Jisho Sekkei Inc. designed the mixed-use development’s weighty architecture• GA Design International dreamed up the lofty lobby level public spaces and dining outlets(including The Palace Lounge, Royal Bar and Grand Kitchen), the guestrooms as well as AmberPalace.
• A.N.D. (Aoyama Nomura Design) imagined the hotel’s signature Japanese restaurant Wadakura as
well as its in-house wedding chapel, winner of the 2012 DFA (Design For Asia) Grand Award andDFA Gold Award.
• Design Post Inc. worked up the concepts for the hotel’s French fine dining restaurant Crown,Lounge Bar Privé and also its Shinto shrine.

• MEC Design International collaborated with GA Design International on evian SPA TOKYO, theswimming pool and fitness centre, and also the meeting spaces.
• Even spaces within larger spaces were driven by an uncompromising attention to detail, with GJF(Global Japanese Food) having designed the outpost for Sushi Kanesaka within Wadakura.
Natural & Cultural Connections
Poised at 1-1-1 Marunouchi just opposite the ancient Otemon Gate of Edo Castle, the hotel waspurposefully designed to showcase Tokyo’s most inviting green space and the skyline that surrounds.
With all of its guestrooms featuring views of the Imperial Palace gardens and moats, the hotel
leverages its imitable location, yet with unassuming presence.
In a city as dense as Tokyo, the challenge was to create spaces from which the busyness of the city isinevitably visible in the distance, but not heard. Spaces which - through emphasis on heightening thefive senses - exude the richness of Japanese culture and tradition, yet allude to their roots with asubtlety that only Japanese aesthetics could convey.
Natural motifs - from the tracery of trees on the walls of Bar Lounge Privé and its leaf-shaped bar tothe hotel’s hand-tufted, deep green carpets - echo the connection to nature. The deliberate weavingof greenery and water to create an artistic tapestry of the changing seasons to be enjoyed from within
is most noticeably reflected in the tamukeyama momiji Japanese maple purposely planted outside one of
the lobby seating areas.
At the hotel’s signature Japanese restaurant Wadakura, a team of local artisans were brought together
to skilfully combine traditional Japanese techniques and building materials with contemporary artistic
interpretation to showcase new possibilities in craftsmanship.
Less subtle than these cultural connections is the hotel’s vast array of artwork, spotlighting the talentsof some of Japan’s finest contemporary artists and showcasing the country’s rich artistic heritage
throughout. Several of the approximate 1,000 paintings, watercolours, glass, metalwork and otherpieces were commissioned specifically for Palace Hotel Tokyo and took inspiration from its scenic
setting.
Residential Connections
To complement Palace Hotel Tokyo’s proximity to the gardens, GA Design International imagined
the enveloping spaces of the hotel as a grand residence. On the lobby level, the concept manifests
itself in The Palace Lounge’s lofty ‘living room’ and contemporary tea house, as well as in Grand
Kitchen’s open-style kitchen.
A large fireplace commands the Palace Lounge while opposite, a white Steinway and bespoke sixmeter-high shelving detailed with Macassar ebony trim lend to the luxurious sense of home.
“The aim was to not only make the hotel’s interiors attractive, but to also give them substance andmeaning - an enduring character that would evolve over time and become very personal to those who
pass through it,” said Terry McGinnity, Managing Director of GA Design International.

ABOUT PALACE HOTEL TOKYO
Opened in May 2012, Palace Hotel Tokyo redefines the fine art of Japanese hospitality. With 290rooms and suites, 10 restaurants and bars, an evian SPA and incomparable views of the city’s mostrarefied green space - the Imperial Palace gardens – the latest addition to Tokyo’s luxury scene is a
destination unto itself.
Rebuilt from the ground-up and yet heir to a legacy that goes back more than half a century, thecontemporary interpretation of Palace Hotel Tokyo presents travellers with an unfiltered celebrationof the country’s culture and an unparalleled experience of Japan.
Located at 1-1-1 Marunouchi, the hotel is a 10-minute walk from landmark Tokyo Station and mere
steps away from Marunouchi Naka Dori, one of Tokyo’s most upscale shopping and dining
destinations.
For more information, please visit www.en.palacehoteltokyo.com or contact:
Japan
Palace Hotel Tokyo
press@palacehotel.jp
Southeast Asia & Hong Kong
Balcony Media GroupJim Sullivan
jsullivan@balconymediagroup.com
All other regions
Berkati Marketing Communications
Tiana Kartadinata
tkartadinata@berkati.com

USAJG Group PR
Erin McKeon
erin@jggrouppr.com
United Kingdom
Mason Rose
Public Relations
pr@masonrose.com