No, Aman Tokyo SAYS it is opening this summer, big difference. If I'm near Tokyo station when I am in Tokyo next month, I'll go take a look.

The location is only about 300 meters from the FS.

Heard today from Aman HQ is was opening this summer, but yes...I know what you mean!

We are going this coming weekend, for 8 nights, and will be sure to provide a TR of our adventure.

I gave a great deal of thought about which hotel to stay in, in Tokyo. With the Pen, MO, and the Four Seasons all represented with strong properties this wasn't an easy decision. And, I have enjoyed every extensive trip report that has been contributed to this forum. Find below a few of my musings about why I chose the Four Seasons:

The facilities of the Peninsula look exceptional and I do appreciate both a nice pool and good gym. But, we have never been to Tokyo so the time we spend relaxing at the pool would be minimal.

And, the gym at the Pen has no view, while the Four Seasons gym has a great view of the trains at the station (which I'm looking forward to!).

Being in such a large city for the first time, we also wanted a smaller hotel with intimate service. (We have only been chatting with the concierge and the front desk at the FS for a few days and I already feel like they really understand what we want).

Similarly, the restaurant at the Four Seasons, Ekki, will serve our needs perfectly for breakfast but we are still steps from wonderful restaurants in Ginza for dinner. I also like the location of the Four Seasons restaurant in the hotel (7th floor) for breakfast better than the Pens breakfast location in the lobby.

The MO usually charges for access to their spa for hotel guests so I don't spend much time considering staying with them. The location also doesn't seem to be as good for our purposes as the Four Seasons Tokyo.

Regarding Aman Tokyo, I look forward to visiting it and taking a tour but we likely won't stay there. This is probably sacrilegious to say but the Aman properties don't appeal to me. I enjoy seeing other people enjoy the hotel and I appreciate greater amenities than Aman properties can usually offer. The Aman properties I've visited feel empty to me (though I understand that some people appreciate this quiet private atmosphere). Even when I've visited the properties in Bali and Jackson Hole and compared them to Four Seasons I have preferred the service, look and feel of Four Seasons.

Thank you, Robyn for your Trip Report it gave us a wonderful preview of our upcoming adventure!

It sounds like you have made a good choice with FSM given your priorities. Just FYI the gym does not have a view of the trains or train station, it overlooks the street on the other side of the building.

There is an Aman Tokyo? When is it opening? Should be worth a try.

In Otemachi. I am sure it will be a nice hotel, but living in Tokyo I can't say I am very interested in it. I don't consider Tokyo to be a worthy location for an Aman.

Yea, it's an odd location for an Aman. Kyoto I could see, if they ever get their act together.

+1 on both points.

This hasn't really come up in the discussions of Tokyo properties, but I'm hoping to visit in a couple of months and am shooting for a challenging dinner reservation. I'm wondering if there's any significant difference in people's experiences with the concierge team at various luxury properties in Tokyo--is anywhere going to be more likely to secure reservations? I've always found the Four Seasons Maronouchi to be very responsive, but they've not actually had much luck in securing reservations at spots where I'd expect I would need help in the first place (e.g., Quintessence or Sushi Saito).

At the high-end hotels there will not likely be a material difference in concierge performance. I agree FSM concierge is good. MO, GH, and PH are also excellent. BTW, there are even better sushi restaurants where getting a reservation with a few days notice, or sometimes even at the last minute should not be a problem.

Generally I fully agree with you here. But one item I have noticed, at least at the PH, GH and RC is that when posing a question such as this, "Can you please recommend a good romantic Italian restaurant within 20 minutes from the property?", I often find the lack of creativity in the suggestions of the concierge to be daunting.

To be specific, I posed this question some time back to the GH staff, then during another stay to the PH staff. They came up with one option. Granted not a bad option, but just one option. Then when posing the question months later, they suggested the same option. Don't get me wrong, there's something to be said for sticking to a known good quantity, but I'd like to see them do some research and come up with something unique and creative; work with me to find a good solution and brainstorm a bit. Certainly this will vary to the individual concierge as well, not to mention how busy they are that day, etc.

On the other hand, when I ask for something specific - please book this restaurant at this time, or please find me a Christmas tree available for delivery that is less than 1 meter in height with a cost of less than US $100, they have done flawlessly. In fact, the GH staff in particular has really pulled a rabbit out of a hat a few times, sending their own staff as couriers to pick things up across the city that I needed immediately.

Since it seems like the concierge team is regarded as being as good as anyone's, given the lack of success by the Four Seasons in taking on some of the tougher restaurant reservations in Tokyo, I'm wondering if this implies that the role of relationships/connections is less of a big deal in the Tokyo reservations scene (as compared to other cities where good concierges will often be able to get access to some tables ahead of the general public or when a restaurant is otherwise "sold out"), or if some reservations are just so tough that it just doesn't matter which concierge you use, it's essentially random when you'll be able to get into those places?

This is an interesting point. Many restaurants in Tokyo aren't run as a business, or even for the profit motive, but more for the personal and intellectual satisfaction of the chef, who's most times the owner. They run restaurants for their friends, family, and others who extend their acquaintance through introductions or word of mouth. In that case, unless the concierge is a serious member of the Tokyo food intelligentsia (which is unlikely) you're SOL.

You'd probably do better by befriending a chef or a maitre'd at some highly-regarded restaurant, and have them help you intermediate a reservation at a highly-coveted table.

I think part of this is a cultural issue, as Japanese tend to be reluctant to go out on a limb by suggesting something such as a restaurant that they have not yet been to, or perhaps that has not been "pre-approved" by their superiors as a restaurant to recommend to guests. Part of the reason may be to avoid being blamed for a bad recommendation, or simple lack of personal experience in the relevant restaurants. The best people to ask at the hotel for restaurant recommendations are probably F&B management.

As excellent as service can be in Japan, it does often suffer from inflexibility. As you have pointed out, they are capable of performing flawlessly when given specific instructions, or when working within the parameters of their prescribed rules. When a guest's needs necessitate a flexible, customized solution that requires a creative approach their performance is often less impressive.

Exactly. In particular the most popular/famous restaurants already have many locals lining up with cash who want reservations, and tend to have a lot of regular customers who may receive priority for reservations. In most of these cases it will not make any difference which hotel's concierge you use.

So... Heading to Japan in March and looking for a hotel in Tokyo for 4 nights. Right now I am primarily looking at the 4S and the Grand Hyatt. Thoughts on these? I'm sure the 4S is better service, but what about facilities - want a great room, but am relatively low maintenance? I think I prefer the GH location, but am willing to be swayed.

The clincher would be if one has a significantly better concierge. I'll be looking for reservations at some combination of the following: RyuGin, Narisawa, Sawada, and/or maybe a top fugu place. Thoughts as to who would be better positioned to work magic?

FWIW, if there is another hotel that would be better, particularly for the concierge, I'm all ears. The Park Hyatt seems a bit pricey for what it is and I'm not enamored with the location, but maybe the MO? We stayed at the Conrad before and liked it, but were probably looking to stay elsewhere.