ONE@Tokyo

There are those among us for whom the mere fact of a Tokyo boutique hotel designed from top to bottom by the master architect Kengo Kuma is enough to motivate a click on the big orange “book now” button. For the rest of us — or to pass the time before departure — some more detail might be in order. ONE@Tokyo’s location, in Oshiage, near the foot of the enormous Tokyo Skytree broadcast tower, places it well to the east of the city center. But for so singular an experience, a few extra minutes on the train is a small price to pay. Kuma designed everything, down to the uniforms worn by the staff, and the result is a hotel that’s like nothing else.

The building is unmistakable, a ten-story concrete structure whose ground floor is sheathed in loose crisscrossing timbers. And if you know Kengo Kuma’s work, you won’t be surprised to find that wood and concrete dominate the interiors as well. There’s an unapologetic inelegance to the raw materials — plywood, salvaged timbers — but the composition is artful and the feeling is perversely warm. The Studio rooms are compact and hyper-efficient, Loft rooms rather more relaxed, and the Atelier and Library suites venture into luxury territory. Meanwhile the lobby café, with its absurdly long communal table, functions as an all-day restaurant and bar, and the rooftop terrace serves as a secondary lounge space, a “sky forest” with unique views of the Skytree tower and the city lights.