Tokyo Skytree Guide: Tembo Deck, Tickets, Views and Japanese to Use

Why Tokyo Skytree is worth going up

Tokyo Skytree was built to carry digital television and radio signals over a city full of skyscrapers, which had grown too tall for the older Tokyo Tower to broadcast over cleanly. It opened in May 2012, and at 634 metres it is the tallest structure in Japan. Its shape is a triangle at the base that becomes a circle as it rises, and its white steel lattice is lit at night in rotating colour schemes.

From the observation decks, Tokyo spreads out flat in every direction: the Sumida River and Asakusa directly below, the towers of Shinjuku and Shibuya to the west, Tokyo Bay to the south, and on clear days Mount Fuji beyond. At this height, the scale of the city, one of the largest urban areas in the world, is easier to grasp than from anywhere on the ground.

For a learner, Skytree is a gentle, practical workout. Tickets, lifts, floors and queues are all signed in simple Japanese, the staff are used to visitors, and the words you learn here, tōjitsuken, same-day ticket, and tenbō, view, are the same at every tower and observation deck in Japan.

Getting there: Tokyo Skytree Station and Oshiage

Two stations sit at the foot of the tower. Tokyo Skytree Station, on the Tobu Skytree Line, is one stop from Asakusa. Oshiage Station, sometimes signed as Oshiage (Skytree-mae), is served by the Tokyo Metro Hanzōmon Line, the Toei Asakusa Line and the Keisei Oshiage Line, which makes it easy to reach from central Tokyo and, via through services, from the airports. Both stations connect directly to Tokyo Skytree Town.

Inside the complex, follow the signs for the ticket counter, チケットカウンター, on the 4th floor, where same-day tickets are sold and the entrance lifts begin. If you walk from Asakusa, cross Azuma Bridge and follow the river and canal; the tower is always in view, and the walk takes about twenty minutes.

Tembo Deck, Tembo Galleria and the town below

The lifts from the 4th floor rise to the Tembo Deck, 天望デッキ, in under a minute. The deck has three levels: Floor 350, the main viewing level with the widest windows; Floor 345, with a restaurant and shop; and Floor 340, where a section of glass floor lets you look straight down the tower, and a café. The views are 360 degrees, so walk the full circle before you choose a favourite side.

From Floor 350, a second lift climbs to the Tembo Galleria, 天望回廊, at 445 metres. From there a glass-walled ramp spirals up around the outside of the tower to Floor 450, the highest point open to the public. Back on the ground, Tokyo Solamachi has hundreds of shops and restaurants, including many selling Tokyo souvenirs and regional food, and Tokyo Skytree Town also has the Sumida Aquarium and a planetarium.

• Tenbō Dekki (天望デッキ): the main deck, Floors 340 to 350.
• Garasu-yuka (ガラス床): the glass floor on Floor 340.
• Tenbō Kairō (天望回廊): the Tembo Galleria, the glass ramp from Floor 445 to 450.
• Tōkyō Soramachi (東京ソラマチ): the shopping and dining complex at the base.
• Sumida Suizokukan (すみだ水族館): the Sumida Aquarium in Tokyo Skytree Town.
• Night lighting: the tower is lit in changing colour designs after dark.

The words on the signs and tickets

Skytree's names use an unusual character. The usual word for an observation deck is 展望, tenbō, but the tower writes 天望, with 天, sky or heaven, in place of 展, to suggest a view of the sky. The reading is the same, so you can say tenbō either way.

The ticket words are worth learning for all of Japan. 当日券 is a same-day ticket and 前売券 is an advance ticket; 日時指定券 is a ticket for a set date and time. You will see these at theatres, museums and events as well as towers.

Japanese at the ticket counter and on the deck

Most visitors only need a few exchanges: buying a ticket or showing a booking, asking about the upgrade to the Tembo Galleria, and finding the café or the lift down. Staff use polite keigo such as o-motome kudasai, please purchase, and gozaimasu, there is; you can answer with plain desu and masu.

When you buy, say how many people and which ticket. Adults are otona and children are kodomo, and tickets are counted with mai, the counter for flat things: ichimai, nimai, sanmai.

Timing, weather and practical tips

A tower visit depends more on the sky than on anything else, so plan around the weather.

• Check the forecast and the tower's view information before buying; low cloud can hide everything.
• Clear winter mornings give the best chance of seeing Mount Fuji; summer is often hazy.
• Book a date-and-time ticket online for weekends, holidays and sunset, when queues are longest.
• Decide on the Tembo Galleria once you are on the Tembo Deck and can see the conditions at the top.
• Leave large luggage in coin lockers at the station or in the complex before you queue.
• Combine the visit with Asakusa across the river, and stay after dark to see the tower lit up.

Practise the visit before you go

The exchange below covers the two questions most visitors ask on arrival. Listen for yon-kai, the 4th floor, and the polite o-motome kudasai, please buy, in the replies. Practise the four lines until you can say yours without reading.

Then practise with someone who answers back. In Unihongo, choose the Sightseeing topic and ask your AI Sensei to play a ticket attendant at Tokyo Skytree. A few rounds of asking and listening to the reply makes the real counter much easier.

Official information

The tower publishes its ticket types, opening hours, weather closures and view information on its official site. Check it on the day, especially in stormy weather or when you are hoping to see Mount Fuji.

• Tokyo Skytree official website (English)
• Tokyo Skytree: tickets
• Tokyo Skytree: access by public transport