The Westin Tokyo

The 22-story Westin Tokyo opened in 1994, and though the outside looks like any other urban hotel from that time period, the inside takes its design inspiration from the classical European era. The palatial lobby is covered in black marble, highlighted with pink marble and tinged with gold and bronze. Connected to the ritzy Yebisu Garden Place, there's even an underground passage here that lets guests enter Yebisu's huge health club, which includes a lap pool (with free entry to Starwood Preferred Guests). Some of the elements may strike guests as more 1990s than Old World, however, especially the busy corporate carpeting found in many areas. Given the hotel's location outside the city center, expect many of the guests to be business travelers.  

The Westin Tokyo is on a quiet road at one end of the Yebisu Garden Place commercial complex (note: Yebisu is known locally as Ebisu). The huge development includes a movie theater, the Mitsukoshi department store, the Tokyo Metropolitan Photography Museum, and the Yebisu Beer Museum, which was the original home of the famous Sapporo Brewery. Though the hotel is in a mostly residential neighborhood outside the heart of Tokyo, far from most of the popular tourist sights, it's a 10-minute walk to the Ebisu Station, which is on the all-important Yamanote Line that circles Tokyo, providing easy access across the city.

The hotel's 438 rooms are all decorated in a traditional European style with wood furnishings that have a neoclassical flair. Color palettes vary slightly between rooms, with green, blue, or gray carpets and accents, but all have rich wood furniture with decorative inlays. Some elements look more 1990s than Old World, especially the busy patterned carpets and some of the sofa or chair upholstery. The 26-inch flat-screen TVs are small by modern standards, especially given the size of the rooms -- the smallest are 452 square feet, impressively spacious by any standard but especially for Tokyo. Coffeemakers and mini-fridges come standard. Deluxe Rooms are the same size but add slightly larger 32-inch TVs and have better city views. Other room types are geared toward business travelers, with work desks and extras like Nespresso machines. The standard bathrooms are decked in pink or black and white marble, with walk-in showers and separate bathtubs. Both smoking and non-smoking rooms are on offer. 

Ryutenmon restaurant earned a Michelin Star in 2010 for its dim sum and inventive Cantonese cuisine. Mai serves Japanese cuisine, kaiseki-style, with sushi prepared with fresh seafood from the famous Tsukiji Fish Market. There are also Western dining options at Victor's, a traditional French restaurant with a formal atmosphere and a casual deli. The Compass Rose on the 22nd-floor is a bar and cigar lounge with a great view of Tokyo (though expect to encounter the smell of smoke here). 

The hotel's Le Spa Parisian has a sauna and steam baths, along with several treatment rooms, offering the usual range of massage therapies. The fitness center is thoroughly equipped with treadmills, stair climbers, stationary bikes, as well as weight-training machines and free weights. It also has extras like yoga mats and a machine that measures blood pressure. For even more serious fitness buffs, an underground passage connects the hotel to The Club at Yebisu Garden (for an extra fee, or free for SPG members), which has its own large fitness center as well as squash courts and a lap pool.