Mandarin Oriental and Peninsula, two luxury hotel brands with a long-established presence in Asia and a growing presence in the United States will both make their first venture into the competitive Tokyo market during the next couple of years. Both new hotels will be in central Tokyo, near the Imperial Palace, and both target high-end corporate customers already familiar with their properties in such destinations as New York and Hong Kong.
Hongkong and Shanghai Hotels Ltd., in partnership with Mitsubishi Estate Co., recently broke ground on the Peninsula Tokyo, a 315-room property that, when it opens in 2007, will be the eighth Peninsula brand hotel. The 24-story hotel is in the Marunouchi district, southeast of the Imperial Palace and within walking distance of the Ginza, Tokyo's major commercial area.
"The location of the Peninsula Tokyo will be very attractive to business visitors, as it is in the heart of the commercial district and very close to a principal train station," said Kate Kelly, HSH manager of corporate affairs in Hong Kong.
Kelly added the new hotel is part of general revitalization taking place in the Marunouchi district that also includes the addition of high-end retail and entertainment facilities designed to enhance the area's overall appeal to international visitors.
"We have been interested in Tokyo for a long time, but our policy has been only to go into a destination when all the elements are right, such as the right location and local partner," Kelly said. "We have looked at a number of projects over the years, but the site in Marunouchi, as well as our partners in Mitsubishi Estate Co., presented the ideal combination."
Meeting space at the Peninsula Tokyo will include a main ballroom, junior ballroom, pre-function areas and a variety of conference rooms. Among the recreational amenities will be a swimming pool, fitness center and full-service spa with treatment rooms. Food and beverage outlets at the hotel will include Japanese, Chinese and international restaurants, all with private dining rooms available. As at other Peninsula properties, there will be a grand lobby area serving breakfast, lunch, dinner and afternoon tea.
Accommodations, which will include 46 suites, will feature several technological innovations such as dual electric sockets that eliminate the need for adapters. There also will be hands-free telephones positioned at the bathtubs and in-room barometers that record outdoor humidity and air temperatures.
Set to open in 2006, the Mandarin Oriental Tokyo will occupy the top 10 floors of a new 41-story office building, which is being incorporated into the 72-year-old Mitsui building in the Nihonbashi district. Along with close proximity to the Ginza, the hotel site is near the Stock Exchange, Central Tokyo Station and headquarters of the Bank of Japan and Nomura Securities.
The hotel will offer panoramic views of downtown Tokyo from its 179 guest rooms as well as from the lobby, multiple restaurants and meeting and banquet space. Amenities at the property will include a full-service health club and spa.
According to Wolfgang Hultner, CEO of Mandarin Oriental Management (USA) Inc., the hotel expects the corporate market to comprise slightly less than half of its overall business, with the majority of business travelers coming from the United States. He said the presence of the Mandarin Oriental properties in New York and Washington, D.C., will stimulate interest in the Tokyo property among the U.S. market.
"These hotels have had an extremely positive impact on the visibility of our brand globally," Hultner said. "A Tokyo location will be a significant benefit for the group's U.S. corporate business."
Similarly, Kelly said HSH expects the Peninsula Tokyo to do well with the U.S. corporate market, partly because of the reputation of the Peninsula brand hotels in New York City, Chicago and Beverly Hills, Calif.
The two new properties are part of a larger wave of high-end properties with international brand names scheduled to open in Tokyo over the next several years
(BTN, April 26, 2004). Others include a 296-room Conrad Tokyo opening later this year in the Shidome business district, and a 250-room Ritz-Carlton expected to open in 2007 in the Roppongi business and entertainment district. The forerunner of this new wave, the Grand Hyatt Tokyo, opened in April 2003.
According to hotel consultant Joseph Toy, president of Honolulu-based Hospitality Advisors, Japan's strengthening economy and attractive real estate values are behind Tokyo's hotel development boom. "Tokyo is a growing business center where there's a lot of capital available for new development right now," he said. "It's not too surprising that some of this includes hotels."
Despite the increased competition, both Kelly and Hultner said they are confident their properties will find a strong market, particularly among international business travelers and Japanese leisure travelers.
"We have no problem with the timing now," according to HSH's Kelly. "We have had interest from existing corporate clients with business in Tokyo. Conversely, within Japan itself there is also high-brand awareness and the Peninsula Tokyo will help to further cross-sell our other properties to the domestic market."