by James Ruggia
Last updated: 8:44 PM ET, Thu December 19, 2013
PHOTO: Don't be fooled by the futuristic exterior, the Andaz Tokyo interior features wood and other natural elements. (courtesy Japan National Tourism Organization)
Tokyo, Kyoto and Osaka are all seeing big name properties opening .
The 249-room Tokyo Marriott Hotel opened on a hilltop known locally as Gotenyama as Marriott's 12th hotel in Japan and the third under its flagship Marriott Hotels brand, which comprises 500 properties in nearly 60 countries.
The hotel shares its hilltop location with Gotenyama Garden, an oasis of green and the former site of the residential villa of Shogun Tokugawa Iemitsu (1604-1651). The hotel is located near the two main zones where the majority of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
Formerly the Gotenyama Garden Hotel Laforet Tokyo, the hotel was extensively refurbished by Mori Trust Hotels & Resorts, which entered into a management agreement with Marriott International.
The Osaka Marriott Miyako Hotel in Abeno Harukas will have its grand opening on March 7. The hotel occupies 19 floors in Japan's tallest building, the Abeno Harukas tower.
The hotel will have 360 rooms located from the 38th to 55th floors. The 57th floor restaurant will offer multi-national dining and panoramic views of Osaka. The Abeno Harukas is a new 984 feet tall skyscraper with 60 floors, and inside are dining, shopping art and business floors.
The 164-room Andaz Tokyo Toranomon Hills is coming this summer as part of a 52-story complex in Tokyo's Toranomon Hills. At 538 square feet, the hotel promises the largest rooms in the city and all with a panoramic view.
Though the building is futuristic in design, the interiors recall traditional Japanese design by using natural materials. Toranomon is an area characterized by embassies and global corporate offices.
On Feb. 7, the Kyoto Ritz-Carlton Hotel will open on the banks of the Kamo River with views of the Higashiyama mountains beyond. The Aman Resort Tokyo will also open in early 2014 in the city's Otemachi area, between the Imperial Palace and historic Tokyo station.
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