Why is this cool? Well, just look at the building. Not only is it one of those buildings that you just can’t seem to stop taking pictures of, but you can head inside and go to the top of one of the 48 story towers, for free. You would think that a building that cost about one billion dollars in tax payer money might want to recoup some of that by at least charging tourists to take the elevator, but you’d be wrong. Free.

Before heading to the top you should swing by the tourist information center and pick up the free maps and guides that are available. One of the maps I grabbed here has returned to Tokyo with me more than once.

When you reach the observatory you’ll find a wide open space with unbelievable views of Tokyo, a cafe, and of course, a souvenir shop. If you come early in the morning on a clear day you can sometimes see Mt Fuji in the distance. I’ve only ever seen the outline, or shadowy shape, of Mt Fuji from here, but I’ll keep trying. If you’ve been lucky enough to get a shot of Mt Fuji from one of the observation decks, please leave a link to your shot in the comments, I’d love to see it.

Another nice thing about the observation decks is that they’re open late, really late, try 11:00PM late, so you can get great shots of Tokyo at night as well. So if you’re putting together an itinerary for your first, or next, trip to Tokyo, make sure you add the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building, it’s free and it’s worth it.

Open:      9:30AM – 11:00PM (Admission until 30 minutes before closing)
South Observatory opens until 5:30PM (Until 11:00PM if North Observatory is closed)
Closed:    South Observatory: 1st and 3rd Tuesday
North Observatory: 2nd and 4th Monday
Open if the above day falls on a public holiday and closed on the following day.
Closed from December 29 to 31, January 2 and 3, and on TMG Building inspection days.
Observatory Information Desk – 03-5320-7890

Here’s a short video I took from one of the observation decks when I visited with my friends Luke and Travis.

If you happen to be in Shinjuku, and you want some high quality produce to snack on, go check out the fruit stand on the corner, outside the Shinjuku Station East Exit, just to the left of the Alta building and screen.

They sell fruit on a stick for ¥100-¥200 a piece and it’s so good it’s insane. I usually get the pineapple when I drop by and it may be the best pineapple I’ve ever eaten, and I’ve spent some time in Hawaii. Yeah, it’s that good.

While you’re snacking on your cantaloupe, watermelon, honeydew, strawberries, or pineapple you can browse the rest of their offerings. They sell durian fruit which is awesome in my opinion. Durian fruit is apparently an extremely delicious fruit that smells like hot garbage and is actually illegal to carry on public transit in Singapore, I must assume due to the fact you might fall and crack open your nasty smelling treat, but I digress.

This fruit stand also has some of the ridiculously priced melons I’d heard about long before my first trip to Tokyo, though the most expensive cantaloupe is only a little over $50, which seems entirely reasonable, if you play for the NBA. I’ve been told that these melons are as close to perfection as you can get as far as melons go and are normally given as gifts. So apparently at Japanese weddings $50 cantaloupes are the new toaster. I have to admit though, there is a part of me that wants to know what one tastes like. Would you spend the money on one of these melons, even just once, just to see how good it was?

So anyway, when you’re exploring Shinjuku make sure you make a detour to grab some fruit on a stick, I promise you, it’s worth it.

Here’s a short video of me going to and buying some fruit at the stand, the video is actually taken from the year prior to the pictures in this post though it’s still the same.

Image Credit: Personal Collection