2020-03-24

The Most Luxurious Residential Neighborhoods in Japan

Advice

Finding homes with the right level of privacy, security, and accessibility can sometimes be challenging for business owners and C-level executives. This is especially true when it comes to a global metropolitan city like Tokyo, which comprises 23 special wards, 26 cities, five towns, eight villages, and 11 islands.

We’ve compiled a list of the three most luxurious neighborhoods in Tokyo that offer the perfect level of comfort, prestige, and convenience for even the most discerning property investor.

1. Azabu, Minato

Azabu was predominantly an agricultural region for most of its history. However, Azabu has undergone a rapid transformation in recent decades, and it would not be an exaggeration to say that it is today the Bel Air of Tokyo.

The trendy streets of Azabu. Image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons

One in ten residents here are company presidents, an average home (approximately 1,147 sq. ft) costs in excess of ¥120,000,000 yen (roughly $1.1 million USD), and it has a large expatriate population. Naturally, the neighborhood is also the location of many foreign embassies and consulates, including those of Qatar, Romania, Russia, San Marino, Switzerland, Slovakia, Tonga, Ukraine, Uruguay, Bolivia, and Yemen.

Azabu is also well-known for its restaurants, which serve a varied range of international cuisines. Oh, did we mention that Azabu has a thriving festival, art, and music scene?

2. Omotesando, Shibuya

Omotesando is the fashion capital of Tokyo and boasts dozens of boutiques of international fashion brands displaying haute couture designs. It is also famed for the modern architecture of its buildings. The streets here are filled with trendy cafes and stores, which are like magnets for hipsters. It’s arguably the best destination for luxury shopping in Tokyo. Even New York’s Museum of Modern Art is getting in on the action – it has opened its first-ever MoMa Design Store outside of the US here!

The Tokyu Plaza in Omotesando will elevate the heart rate of any shopaholic. Image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons

And if you like indulging in a few adult beverages while wearing a green costume and a top hat, you might be interested to know that Omotesando hosts an annual St. Patrick’s Day parade.

3. Kichijōji, Musashino

While you won’t find the radicalism found in great American college towns like Berkeley and Austin in Kichijōji, this university town is nonetheless still as cool, intellectual, and vibrant as its American counterparts. Revel in its large parks, eclectic cafes and bistros even as you spend time contemplating about the miracles of matter and your purpose in life inside one of the many Buddhist temples and shrines in the neighborhood.