Japan Guide
Around Tokyo
Minato Mirai 21 (MM21)
In a bid to beat Tokyo at its own game, Yokohama now boasts Japan's tallest building and is in the process of creating a mini-city of apartment blocks, offices, recreational and cultural facilities occupying over two square kilometres of reclaimed land and disused dockyards, which is radically changing the face of Yokohama. Minato Mirai 21 – or MM21 as the development is better known – can be accessed from either the Minato Mirai station on the Tōkyū-Tōyoko-line or Sakuragichō train and subway station, from where a covered moving walkway whisks you towards the awesome, 296-metre-tall Landmark Tower.
Inside, an ear-popping, forty second ride by lift takes you up to the 69th-floor Sky Garden observation deck (July & Aug daily 10am–10pm; Sept– June Mon– Fri & Sun 10am–9pm, Sat 10am–10pm; ¥1000). On clear days, when Fuji is flaunting her beauty, superb views more than justify the entry fee. Alternatively, if you don't mind missing the thrill of the elevator, you can enjoy a coffee for about the same price in the opulent Sirius Sky Lounge on the seventieth floor of the Royal Park Hotel, or splash out on an early evening cocktail as the city lights spread their magic; after 5pm there's an additional music charge of ¥1000 to ¥2000.
Next door, the Landmark Plaza consists of a swanky shopping mall set around a five-storey-high atrium. Here you'll find flash boutiques, Yurindo bookstore on the fifth floor – with an excellent foreign-language section – and plenty of restaurants, bars and coffee shops, some of which are built into the stone walls of an old dry dock. Off to the east, the stepped towers of Queen's Square – another vast complex of shops, offices, a concert hall and the sail-shaped Intercontinental Hotel – fill the skyline. 
www.minatomirai21.com