How to enjoy a rainy day in Shinjuku, Shinagawa, Tokyo, and Odaiba. Recommended spots in Tokyo where you can stay dry

*Business hours and menu items may be subject to change.

[Shinjuku] BEAMS JAPAN: A hub for collecting the charms of Japan from all over the country

BEAMS JAPAN is a shop that gathers and disseminates the charms of Japan from all over the country. Based on BEAMS' unique aesthetic sense, each floor from the basement to the 5th floor has a different theme. It is a magnificent space where a wide variety of items come together, including "food," "famous products," "fashion," "collaboration," "culture," "art," and "craft." It is a place that connects things, people, and events born from Japan's commitment.

The entrance floor (1st floor) is lined with nostalgic items, local specialties that evoke a sense of Japanese tradition and the present, and Shinjuku souvenirs that you'd never imagined coming. The second floor also offers Japan-made clothing and the latest in fashion. The third floor has limited items that are unique to BEAMS, which has led the "bespoke" culture in Tokyo. There is a wide space where you can enjoy fashion that is unique to BEAMS. Furthermore, the fourth floor is a collection of Japanese pop culture, and the fifth floor is themed around Japanese art and folk crafts, and there is a gallery that holds various exhibitions throughout the year, making it a floor where you can enjoy art at your leisure.

On the basement floor is CRAFT GRILL, a restaurant where you can casually enjoy the traditions and flavors of a long-established restaurant from lunch to dinner. You can enjoy Western food culture with a delicate Japanese twist, as well as craft beer from various regions.

From the basement floor to the fifth floor, the entire building is filled with items that reflect the aesthetic sense of BEAMS, allowing you to enjoy shopping, dining, and art appreciation at BEAMS JAPAN. Find your special favorite, from dishes that can only be tasted here to limited items that can only be found here.

Beams Japan

[Shinjuku] BOOK AND BED TOKYO SHINJUKU: A "bookstore where you can stay overnight" with a stylish space lined with books

"BOOK AND BED TOKYO SHINJUKU" is a hot topic due to its unique concept of "a bookstore where you can stay overnight" and its stylish and fashionable interior. If it rains and you don't feel like going out for an active trip, but you still want to spend some quality time, this is the perfect spot for you!

When you're reading a book or manga, before you know it, time has passed and you're feeling sleepy, but you still end up falling asleep while immersed in the world of your favorite book! This is a space where you can enjoy that happy "moment of falling asleep" experience to your heart's content, something that everyone has probably experienced at least once.

The 2,500 books covering a wide range of genres selected by SHIBUYA PUBLISHING & BOOKSELLERS are lined up in a row, making for an overwhelming sight (up to 4,000 books can be stored). The lineup includes not only Japanese books, but also English books and even travel guides to Japan, so it's no wonder that it's attracting attention from overseas visitors.

There is also a cafe space with free Wi-Fi that is available to non-guests as well. This is available from 12:00 to 20:00, making it a great spot to drop in and take shelter from the rain.

Furthermore, if you are staying overnight, you can choose from four different room sizes to suit your taste. Although they are called rooms, they are spaces separated by curtains like a closet between bookshelves, so you will feel like you are sleeping inside a bookshelf. Of course, the showers, toilets, and washrooms are available 24 hours a day, so if you want to relax and immerse yourself in the world of books, we recommend staying in one.

Whether you stay the night or not, BOOK AND BED TOKYO SHINJUKU promises you a blissful time surrounded by books in a stylish space. It will be such a wonderful time that you will be grateful for the unfortunate rain.

BOOK AND BED TOKYO SHINJUKU

[Shinagawa] Maxell Aqua Park Shinagawa: A cutting-edge entertainment facility that combines sound, light, video, and creatures

Maxell Aqua Park Shinagawa is an aquarium located inside the Shinagawa Prince Hotel, about a two-minute walk from the Takanawa Exit of Shinagawa Station. Rather than an aquarium, it is a cutting-edge entertainment facility that combines sound, light, video, and living creatures, and is an "intuitive theme park." The wonderful space will make you want to take photos.

The attractions go beyond the scope of an aquarium, such as the "Dolphin Party," a merry-go-round surrounded by music and LED lights on a 12-meter wall, and the dynamic "Port of Pirates," where you can experience a world of zero gravity on a giant pirate ship.

In the immersive area "Patterns," penguins and sea lions will appear, along with a limited-time performance in collaboration with digital art. You can spend a fantastical time experiencing the "immersive illumination" that is unique to aqua parks.

There is also a special plan that includes a visit to the restaurants of Maxell Aqua Park Shinagawa and Shinagawa Prince Hotel, so if you want to spend a relaxing day on a rainy day, this is definitely the best deal. After enjoying the unlimited lunch buffet, why not head out to a dazzling world of sounds, lights, images, and creatures?

Maxell Aqua Park Shinagawa

[Shinagawa] A trip to the extraordinary where the scent soothes the soul "SPA THE SAKURA"

Why not take the time to improve yourself and experience the ultimate relaxation on a gloomy rainy day? If you do so at a hotel spa where you can feel especially elegant, your mood is sure to be lifted. "SPA THE SAKURA" on the B1 floor of The Prince Sakura Tower Tokyo is a Japanese-style spa where you can receive Japanese-style "hospitality" in a tranquil space. "Nature" from each season, "fragrance" that has been passed down since ancient times, and the "Zen" spirit of hospitality are incorporated throughout the spa.

The treatment uses ingredients from YON-KA, a brand with over half a century of history that has been loved by top spas and salons in over 50 countries. It is a professional phyto-skincare brand that is considered the best in France. The "tailored treatment" is customized to each individual's goals, symptoms, and skin type, and because it is a product developed for therapeutic purposes, it is natural, high quality, safe, and reliable. Enjoy the blessings of nature, including plants grown in soil that is free of chemical fertilizers, fruit extracts, and marine ingredients, with a focus on raw materials and harvesting times.

After your treatment, you can enjoy some after-tea in a luxurious, chic space, soaking in the afterglow. It's a trip to the "outside of the ordinary" where you can feel the gentle and calm flow of time and be healed. Why not let yourself be purified in body and mind, and let yourself be seduced by this comfortable time as your vitality for the next day is awakened? The bright mood you will experience after the treatment will make you forget even the cloudy skies.

SPA THE SAKURA

[Tokyo] The Cafe by Aman: A luxurious time spent in the forest of Otemachi

The Cafe by Aman is a casual French restaurant at Aman Tokyo located in Otemachi Forest, an oasis in the city center. Otemachi Forest is a natural forest created by transplanting trees and flowers selected from surveys of the original vegetation of Otemachi and the green spaces around the Imperial Palace, which were cultivated over a period of three years in the Kanto area and transplanted to Otemachi. This realistic forest, close to the natural ecosystem, can be viewed not only from the outdoor terrace seats, but also from the seats inside the restaurant, which have large glass windows.

You can feel the change of seasons with beautiful greenery, autumn leaves, and winter forests, and it's a space that will make you forget you're in the city. Why not try spending a relaxing time here on a rainy day?

Lunch or tea time in a soothing space surrounded by greenery is exceptional.
Even if a sudden rain shower causes your sightseeing plans to be cancelled, you can still enjoy a superb breakfast surrounded by greenery, reset your mind and get ready for a great start to your day.

The Cafe by Aman

[Tokyo] Enter the world of modern art housed in an impressive red brick building: Mitsubishi Ichigokan Museum

The Mitsubishi Ichigokan Museum opened in Marunouchi in the spring of 2010. It holds special exhibitions three times a year on modern art from the late 19th century to the early 20th century. The most striking feature of the museum is its red brick building, a replica of the Mitsubishi Ichigokan (designed by Josiah Conder) that was built by Mitsubishi in 1894.

The collection is centered on late 19th century Western art from the same period as the building, and includes works by Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, Odilon Redon, and Félix Vallotton. The building also houses the museum cafe and bar "Café 1894," the museum shop "Store 1894," and the Marunouchi History Archive, a space where you can experience the history of Marunouchi, so you can spend your time leisurely without worrying about the weather or time.

The adjacent Café 1894 is a museum café and bar with a classic feel, recreating the space that was used as a banking office when Mitsubishi Ichigokan was built in 1894 (Meiji 27). The café menus offered in conjunction with the special exhibitions are also something you should definitely check out. On a rainy day, why not enjoy some art while thinking about history?

Mitsubishi Ichigokan Museum

[Tokyo] Good Design Award-winning products gathered at "GOOD DESIGN STORE TOKYO by NOHARA"

On a rainy day, why not try shopping at KITTE, located close to Tokyo Station? Among the many shops that exude Japanese aesthetics and sophistication in KITTE Marunouchi, the "GOOD DESIGN STORE TOKYO by NOHARA" on the third floor is an especially eye-catching store with a stylish display. This is a design store that only carries Good Design Award-winning products.

The interior design of the store, designed by Jasper Morrison, is comfortable and evokes the image of good design in everyday life. The store is based on the concept of being a place where people can encounter good design and discover new comfort, and is filled with ideas for comfortable living surrounded by what the Good Design Award considers to be "good design."

The spacious store, covering approximately 180 square meters, displays over 400 Good Design Award-winning products, from the most recent to standards that have won the Long Life Design Award.

As you choose various items while imagining the scenes of your daily life, you will feel so excited that the blues of a rainy day will be blown away. The item that catches your eye, attracts your heart, and you pick it up may help design a comfortable life for the future.

GOOD DESIGN STORE TOKYO by NOHARA Marunouchi store

[Odaiba] TeamLab Borderless: A museum without maps and borderless art at Odaiba

*The museum is scheduled to close on August 31, 2022 and relocate to Azabudai Hills in 2023.

The MORI Building DIGITAL ART MUSEUM: teamLab Borderless is a mapless museum that has been attracting worldwide attention and was selected as one of the "World's Greatest Places 2019" by TIME magazine, an international news magazine from the United States. Located in Palette Town in Odaiba, the museum is an immersive space that combines the visual projections and physical installations of the art collective teamLab.

In the first year since its opening, it attracted approximately 2.3 million visitors from over 160 countries around the world, bringing the number of visitors to rival that of other famous Japanese art museums and museums such as the Tokyo National Museum and the 21st Century Museum of Contemporary Art, Kanazawa.

"TeamLab Borderless" is a single, borderless, connected world. You can immerse yourself in the borderless art, wandering and exploring the enormous, complex, three-dimensional world of 10,000㎡, and create a new world together with others.

The artworks in the museum change depending on the time and location, so you can't see them all in one day. Some artworks also change with the seasons, so you can have a different experience every time you visit. The artworks are drawn in real time by computer programs and continue to change. You will never be able to see this moment again.

Photography is permitted inside the museum, so you can share your experience on social media. Night passes are also available on weekends and holidays, allowing you to enter after 6pm, so you can enjoy art at night. This is recommended for active people who want to plan a whole day of sightseeing.
*The Odaiba facility closed on August 31, 2022.

TeamLab Borderless Odaiba *Scheduled to move to Azabudai Hills in 2023. Please check the website for details.

[Odaiba] Madame Tussauds Tokyo: An attraction where you can take commemorative photos with celebrities from around the world

Madame Tussauds Tokyo has over 70 life-size figures of stars and celebrities from around the world, including Hollywood stars, musicians, historical figures, and athletes. The hands-on attraction where you can take pictures, touch, and dance is perfect for those who want to be active even on rainy days. It is located on the 3rd floor of Island Mall at Decks Tokyo Beach, so you can get there from the Yurikamome line without getting wet.

"Madame Tussauds" is an attraction named after its founder, the French figurine maker Madame Marie Tussaud. For over 250 years, it has enjoyed unwavering popularity, with millions of people visiting Madame Tussauds around the world every year, not only in Europe but also in America and Asia.

At Madame Tussauds Tokyo, not only can you take photos with celebrities from around the world, but you can also enjoy dancing with celebrities at the Hologram Dance Theater Celebrity and You, and make your own handprint out of wax at the Wax Hands corner, making for a full range of activities. It's definitely something to add to your repertoire as an attraction you can enjoy even on rainy days.

Madame Tussauds Tokyo

[Odaiba] Experience everything from the latest technology to the mysteries of life at the Miraikan, the National Museum of Emerging Science and Innovation

If it rains on the day you had planned to go sightseeing, why not change things up a bit and enjoy a new educational experience?

Miraikan, the National Museum of Emerging Science and Innovation, is a science museum where you can enjoy a wide variety of activities, including exhibitions, talk sessions, and workshops. You can experience current science and technology on a variety of scales, from the latest technology to everyday questions, the global environment, exploration of the universe, and the mysteries of life.

The permanent exhibition is divided into three zones: "Exploring the World," "Creating the Future," and "Connecting with the Earth." All of the exhibits have been created under the supervision of leading scientists and engineers, and are well worth seeing. There are also exhibits that will give you a chance to reconsider the existence of humans as you compare androids. Don't miss the "Alter," which expresses a sense of life with its complex movements, and the "Otonaroid," which looks just like a human.

The research area is also unique in that it allows visitors to get a glimpse of cutting-edge research sites where researchers in a wide range of fields compete with the world. To help society understand their research activities, researchers cooperate with Miraikan staff to actively organize events, demonstration experiments, and science communication activities.

In order to further promote a global perspective among science museums, we hosted Asia's first Science Museum World Summit (SCWS2017) in 2017. As a hub for science communication open to the world, we continue to question the role of science and technology, and work to gather "wisdom" from all fields to contribute to the future society of global humanity.

Talk events, experience events, and special tours, held mainly on weekends, are sure to provide an opportunity for you to think deeply about a variety of topics while also having fun.

Miraikan (National Museum of Emerging Science and Innovation)

Shopping, relaxation, food, art, and experiential attractions. Tokyo is always a place where the latest and most fashionable things and experiences are gathered, so you can have a fulfilling time even on bad weather. To make the most of Tokyo, it might be a good idea to check out the spots that you can enjoy regardless of the weather in the tourist base areas in advance.

*First posted on November 11, 2019
*Some content was updated on January 18, 2023.

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