Various ways to enjoy yourself…you’ll never get tired during a day at Landmark Tower
Minato Mirai 21 began as a shipyard built over reclaimed land. Later in the 1980s, the area underwent a metamorphosis as the waterfront city was redeveloped. Minato Mirai 21 became a gigantic tourist district bringing together skyscrapers, a shopping mall, an event hall, an amusement park and other facilities, and with the open-air atmosphere of the old port and the modern vista of an ocean city, MM21 has been selected as having one of the top 100 city views.
Yokohama Landmark Tower, true to its name, is the landmark for MM21 as the core of the district. With 70 floors, the 296.33m tower mainly has offices, a hotel, and a shopping mall with its top floor containing an observation deck and a multi-purpose hall. In addition, there is the Dockyard Garden which is used as an event facility and was once a shipyard. The dockyard has been designated as a National Important Cultural Property, and even now highlights its important heritage concerning the prosperity of Yokohama’s old shipbuilding industry.
Landmark Tower has a variety of ways to be enjoyed so that you will never get tired during a day there. You can enjoy shopping at the Landmark Plaza which has 170 stores in an open-air 5-floor facility that is 200 meters in total length. For dining, head for Tower Dining on the 5th floor. There are plenty of Japanese and Western-style restaurants and cafes. In addition, the underground floors of B1 and B2 that make up Mirai Yokocho at Dockyard Garden are also not to be missed. At this zone which was built with an image of a bar avenue for a world-class port, there are restaurants and bars which you can enjoy for the exoticism of a port town.
And speaking of Landmark Tower which boasts its status as the second-tallest building in Japan, there is the scenery of Yokohama seen from that height. Go up to the Sky Garden on the 69th floor. There is a direct high-speed elevator to reach the Sky Garden observation deck, and with a top speed of 45 km/h, it takes a mere 40 seconds to get up there (operates at a safe speed depending on the weather and wind speed). In the transformed city that spreads out from under you, you can view the giant Ferris wheel of the Cosmo World amusement park, the ocean, and on sunny days, even Mt. Fuji. At night, the beautifully illuminated night view is also romantic. You can enjoy a waterfront scene that is different from the nightscape of Tokyo.
Let’s return to ground level. At the Important Cultural Property of Dockyard Garden, a project mapping performance is held every day at sunset. In the docks of the former shipyard, amazing images 10m in height and 29m in width and music are featured as 180°sensory project mapping. The movies change depending on the schedule and have received favorable reviews for showing features with themes such as “Star Wars”. Tickets are required for viewings, so please get them in advance at the entrance to the Sky Garden on the 3rd floor.