The “Tokyo Architecture Festival,” which features “special viewings” of buildings and spaces not usually open to the public, as well as guided tours and talk events, will be held again this year.
The festival debuted in 2024, covering the Nihonbashi, Kyobashi, Otemachi, Marunouchi, and Yurakucho areas. In 2025, the Ueno, Yushima, and Hongo areas, as well as Kanda, Kudan, and Minato Ward, were added. Now in its third year, the festival is expanding to Shibuya. A record 151 buildings are scheduled to participate.
Featured Special Openings
Here is a selection of buildings that are normally off-limits but will be open to the public during the Tokyo Architecture Festival.
Sakuraen-so (Former Karakida Family Residence)
Sakuraen-so (formerly the Karakida Family Residence), a traditional-style private home built during the Taisho era , will be open to the public for a special exhibition immediately following its renovation. This approximately 100-year-old residence overcame the threat of demolition and was designated a National Registered Tangible Cultural Property in 2024. The renovation preserved the existing design and structure while incorporating seismic reinforcement and adding new functionalities. Visitors can experience firsthand how historic buildings are passed down to future generations through the renovated spaces.
Tokyo National Museum Japanese Garden Tea House
A special public viewing of the tea house situated in the Japanese garden behind the Main Building of the Tokyo National Museum.Shunsoro, Ten’go-an, and Rokuso-an will open their doors, which are usually closed, allowing visitors to tour the interiors. The Kujo Pavilion will also be open for interior tours . Visitors can experience spaces that are normally closed to the public, each with its own distinct era and background, including the winding corridors, transoms carved with wisteria flower diamonds on a single slab of karin wood, and landscape paintings of pagodas and mountains by the Kano school .
Noah Building
The Noah Building, a landmark at the Azabudai-Iikura intersection, is the work of Seiichi Shirai, known as the “philosophical architect.” Its exposed-brick base and elliptical tower finished in copper sulfate bring a sculptural tension to the cityscape. For this event, the main entrance and the area in front of the underground entrance will be open to the public. Visitors can experience the charm of the interior space, where softness and rigidity, light and shadow intertwine — featuring a design that makes extensive use of arches, the depth created by light reflecting off black granite, meandering pathways, and starlike lighting.
Mitsui Main Building
The oldest surviving American-style office building. The main entrance, elevator, and 5th-floor office space—which tell the story of the building’s construction to centralize the headquarters functions of direct subsidiaries such as Mitsui & Co., Ltd. , the former Mitsui & Co., and Mitsui Mining & Smelting Co., Ltd. —will be specially opened to the public. Features preserved from the time of its construction include beautiful black-and-white floor tiles, the intricate ornamentation of the coffered ceiling, and the stately elevator, which remains in active use today.
Meiji Seimei Building
The “Meiji Seimei Building,” renowned as a masterpiece of the Classical style, was designated a National Important Cultural Property in 1997—the first Showa-era building to receive this distinction. To coincide with the Tokyo Architecture Festival, the 7th-floor auditorium, normally closed to the public, will be specially opened. The grand auditorium, featuring a double-height space spanning the 7th and 8th floors, has been restored to its original state. We invite you to experience its magnificence, including the wall reliefs and window frame designs that unfold beyond the cinema-style doors.
In addition, a total of 27 programs will be held to explore the depths of architecture, including guided tours led by building owners, architects, engineers, researchers, and others deeply connected to the sites—people with whom the public rarely comes into contact—who will share insights and anecdotes not usually heard, as well as talk events, networking sessions, and workshops.
