Best Observation Decks in Tokyo

Observation decks in Tokyo range from a $9.49 Main Deck ticket to a 451.2 m skyscraper, and the four I compare here answer different questions. The cheapest is Tokyo Tower at $9.49, the most reviewed ticket is Tokyo Skytree’s at 4.54 from 15,970 reviews, and the highest deck is the Skytree Galleria at 451.2 m. My first-visit pick among Tokyo observation decks is Shibuya Sky, and I’d go about an hour before sunset. The free option is the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building.

Every Tokyo Observation Deck at a Glance

Here are all the observation decks in Tokyo side by side. Heights come from the official Tokyo Tower site and from Wikipedia (Skytree on its list of public observation decks, Shibuya Scramble Square and Roppongi Hills Mori Tower). Prices are the cheapest listing on GetYourGuide, and ratings are from the top ticket of each deck. Each deck name opens its own ticket page.

Deck	Deck height	Open-air?	Price from	Top ticket rating	Page
Shibuya Sky	228.3 m	Yes, the rooftop	$72.51 (guided tour)	4.71 from 166	Tickets
Tokyo Skytree	451.2 m	Not in my data	$12.66	4.54 from 15,970	Tickets
Tokyo Tower	250 m	Not in my data	$9.49	4.63 from 4,558	Tickets
Tokyo City View	229.3 m	Indoor	$11.39	4.42 from 374	Tickets

I’d read the table this way: height varies by a factor of two, but price barely separates the decks, apart from Shibuya Sky. Shibuya Sky has no plain ticket on GetYourGuide, only guided tours that include entry, which is why its price looks so much higher. The official site sells the ticket alone, so check it if you want the roof without a guide.

1. Shibuya Sky: My Pick Among Tokyo Observation Decks

Shibuya Sky is the one I’d book first, because it puts an open-air roof beside the Scramble Crossing. It is the rooftop of Shibuya Scramble Square, which opened in 2019 and was designed by Nikken Sekkei per Wikidata, and Wikipedia gives the roof as 228.3 m. Google Maps rates it 4.6 from 27,432 reviews, the highest of the paid observation decks in Tokyo I compare.

The catch is the ticket. GetYourGuide sells it only inside guided walks, and the most reviewed is the $92.59 night view and crossing tour, rated 4.71 from 166 reviews. The whole route takes two hours, and the deck is your finale.

Night tour

MARKEVISION株式会社

Shibuya Sky Night View, Crossing & Local Vibe Tour

• ★ 4.7 (166 reviews)
• 2 hours
• Free cancellation

My pick: The most reviewed way in: a two-hour night walk through the crossing that ends on the roof, at $92.59.

from

$92.59

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If sunset matters more than the crowd, the Alva Japan sunset or night walk costs $91.70 and is rated 4.87 from 94 reviews, and you pick the departure. That is the combination I would choose in winter, when sunset is before 17:00. My full breakdown of the roof, the hours and the escalator is on the Shibuya Sky tickets page.

Night tour

Alva Japan Tours🇯🇵

Shibuya Sky Sunset or Night View & Walking Tour

• ★ 4.9 (94 reviews)
• 2 hours
• Free cancellation

My pick: A small-group walk with a sunset or night departure, the best rated Shibuya Sky listing at 4.87.

from

$91.70

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2. Tokyo Tower: The Best-Value Tokyo Observation Deck

Tokyo Tower is the one of the observation decks in Tokyo I would pick for value, and it is also the one most visitors recognise. The official site lists the Main Deck at 150 m and the Top Deck at 250 m, and the 333 m lattice tower opened in 1958. The admission ticket costs $9.49, the lowest of any deck here, and 4,558 reviewers rate it 4.63.

LINKTIVITY Inc.

Tokyo Tower Admission Ticket

• ★ 4.6 (4,558 reviews)
• 24-hour ticket

My pick: The plain Main Deck ticket: $9.49, 4.63 stars from 4,558 reviews, valid for 24 hours.

from

$9.49

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The Top Deck is a separate step, and it is included in the VIP tour with lounge access at $44.30. That listing has no rating yet, so I treat it as an upgrade to read about, not a proven product. Anyone choosing between this tower and the taller one should read my Tokyo Skytree vs Tokyo Tower comparison, and my Tokyo Tower vs Shibuya Sky page covers the other decision most people face.

LINKTIVITY Inc.

Exclusive Tokyo Tower VIP tour with Lounge Access

• 24-hour ticket
• Free cancellation

My pick: The route to the 250 m Top Deck with lounge access at $44.30, for people who want the highest point of this tower.

from

$44.30

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3. Tokyo Skytree: The Highest Observation Deck in Tokyo

Tokyo Skytree is the highest of the observation decks in Tokyo and I’d choose it when the sky is clear. The tower is 634 m tall according to Wikidata, and the official site describes a panorama in which you can see Mount Fuji on clear days. The Tembo Deck is at 350 m and the Tembo Galleria at 450 m, and the ticket I’d start from is $12.66, rated 4.54 from 15,970 reviews.

LINKTIVITY Inc.

TOKYO SKYTREE® Observation Deck Admission ticket

• ★ 4.5 (15,970 reviews)
• Free cancellation

My pick: My default Skytree ticket: the Tembo Deck at $12.66, with the Galleria as an option and a night view choice.

from

$12.66

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At that height the horizon is about 75.8 km away on a clear day, which is the longest sightline of any of the observation decks in Tokyo. Use the calculator below to see how far you can look.

If you want to fill a family day, the combination with the Sumida Aquarium costs $27.85 and takes about two hours. It has only 9 reviews, so I would read the listing closely first. For a head-to-head with the newer rooftop, read Shibuya Sky vs Tokyo Skytree, and the full ticket list sits on the Tokyo Skytree tickets page.

LINKTIVITY Inc.

TOKYO SKYTREE® Admission Ticket with Sumida Aquarium Entry

• ★ 4.6 (9 reviews)
• 2 hours

My pick: Deck admission plus the Sumida Aquarium for a two-hour combined visit, for families with a free afternoon.

from

$27.85

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4. Tokyo City View: The Quiet Roppongi Observation Deck

Of the observation decks in Tokyo, Tokyo City View is on the 52nd floor of the Roppongi Hills Mori Tower, and Wikipedia lists the observatory level at 229.3 m. Google Maps rates it 4.4 from 3,500 reviews, which is far fewer than the other big decks, and that is its appeal: it is the one I would try when the others have long lines. One listing calls it an indoor deck.

HANATOUR JAPAN CO.,LTD.

Roppongi Hills Observatory Ticket

• ★ 4.4 (374 reviews)
• 24-hour ticket

My pick: The Roppongi Hills observatory ticket at $11.39, rated 4.42 from 374 reviews, valid for 24 hours.

from

$11.39

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You exchange the voucher at the ticket office on the 3rd floor, and the listing is non-refundable, so book a date you are sure of. There is a second listing, the indoor admission ticket at $12.66, rated 4.51 from 47 reviews. It is a good alternative if you prefer a different operator, though its review count is low.

LINKTIVITY Inc.

Tokyo City View (Indoor Observation Deck) Admission Ticket

• ★ 4.5 (47 reviews)

My pick: The indoor-deck admission ticket at $12.66, an alternative operator to the Roppongi Hills listing.

from

$12.66

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Free Viewpoints and Rooftop Bars

Tokyo has a real free option, which is rare among the observation decks in big cities. The Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building in Shinjuku has two decks on floor 45 at 202 m, and Wikipedia says they are free of charge to the public. Google Maps rates the south deck 4.7 from 3,252 reviews and the north deck 4.5 from 9,375. I would use it as a free add-on to a paid deck, not a replacement, since at 202 m it is lower than all four paid decks above.

“free of charge to the public”

Hours matter here. Per Google Maps the south deck is open 9:30 AM to 9:30 PM and closed on Tuesdays, while the north deck closes at 5:30 PM and is closed on Mondays. The building is about 3.5 km (2.2 miles) from Shibuya Sky. Two more viewpoints from Google Maps are in the grid below.

Odaiba Seaside Park is open 24 hours per Google Maps and rated 4.7 from 402 reviews, and the SkyTree View Point is rated 4.6 from only 24 reviews. I have no rooftop bar prices in my data, so I will not quote any.

Best Time to Visit Observation Decks in Tokyo

Weather is the same for every one of the observation decks in Tokyo, so I use Shibuya Sky’s year of data as the reference. Per Open-Meteo, January was the clearest month in 2025 at 35 percent cloud cover, with December at 39 percent, and May was the cloudiest at 87 percent. Sunset falls at 16:29 in December and 18:58 in June.

Month	Sunset (Tokyo time)	Cloud cover	Sunshine a day	Rainy days
Janclearest	16:50	35%	8.1 h	3
Febclearest	17:22	37%	9.1 h	2
Mar	17:48	64%	7 h	16
Apr	18:14	61%	8.2 h	14
May	18:39	87%	6.5 h	16
Jun	18:58	73%	9.1 h	13
Jul	18:57	60%	10.9 h	11
Aug	18:30	60%	10.8 h	9
Sep	17:48	63%	8.7 h	17
Oct	17:06	78%	5.3 h	14
Nov	16:34	44%	7.2 h	5
Decclearest	16:29	39%	7.3 h	7

For any of the observation decks in Tokyo I’d arrive 45 to 60 minutes before sunset, so you see the city in daylight, in gold and then lit. In winter that means a late-afternoon slot, and in June a slot after 18:00. Cloud varies more than the clock does, so if you can choose only one thing, choose a clear month. The spring and early summer months are the poorest bet: March had 16 rainy days and May 16 in the data.

How Far Apart Are the Observation Decks in Tokyo?

The decks sit in three clusters, and the distances decide what you can combine in a day. From coordinates in my data, Tokyo Tower and Tokyo City View are only 1.47 km (0.91 miles) apart, and Shibuya Sky is 3.93 km (2.44 miles) from Tokyo Tower and 2.47 km (1.53 miles) from Tokyo City View. A Shibuya, Roppongi and Shiba afternoon is realistic.

Skytree is the outlier, in the east of the city. It is 8.22 km (5.11 miles) from Tokyo Tower, 9.22 km (5.73 miles) from Tokyo City View and 11.36 km (7.06 miles) from Shibuya Sky in a straight line. I’d give it a morning of its own, and Senso-ji is only 1.4 km (0.9 miles) away. If you want two of the observation decks in Tokyo, I’d pair Shibuya Sky with Tokyo Tower for different views at very different prices, or Skytree with Senso-ji for height in the east.

Opening Hours Across the Observation Decks in Tokyo

Hours decide more than people expect, because the best light and the cheapest crowds are at the edges of the day. Per Google Maps, Tokyo Tower is open 9 AM to 11 PM every day, which is the longest window of the four. Shibuya Sky runs 10 AM to 10:30 PM and Tokyo City View 10 AM to 10 PM. Tokyo Skytree opens at 9 AM on Saturday and Sunday and at 10 AM from Monday to Friday, and closes at 10 PM.

That makes a late evening easy to plan. In December the sun sets at 16:29, so every deck here still has about five hours of lit city after dark, and in June sunset at 18:58 leaves about three. The official sites are the authority on last entry and on closures for weather, so check them for your date before you pay.

Day or Night at Observation Decks in Tokyo?

I’d split the difference and go at golden hour, but if you must choose, the night is the stronger case for the lower decks. Tokyo Tower is the one I’d book after dark, because a 150 m Main Deck sits among the lights instead of above them, and reviewers on the $9.49 ticket praise the night scene. One reviewer wrote that it is best to book just before dusk, to photograph both day and night from the top deck.

Daytime is for Skytree, the daytime favourite among observation decks in Tokyo. At 451.2 m the whole Kanto plain opens up, and the official site mentions Mount Fuji on clear days, which needs good visibility. Cloud cover in January was 36 percent at Skytree against 86 percent in May, so winter days are when I would spend the money on the Galleria. If your dates fall in the rainy months, a night visit is the safer plan, because the lit city shows through thin cloud better than a distant mountain does.

How I’d Choose Among the Observation Decks in Tokyo

I’ve kept this to one line per visitor, so you can find yourself quickly.

• First visit: Shibuya Sky, via the $92.59 night walk or the $91.70 sunset walk, for the open-air roof.
• The cheapest: Tokyo Tower, Main Deck ticket at $9.49, rated 4.63 from 4,558 reviews.
• The highest: Tokyo Skytree, $12.66, with the Galleria at 450 m on a clear day.
• Fewer crowds: Tokyo City View, $11.39, in Roppongi Hills.
• Families: the Skytree and Sumida Aquarium ticket at $27.85.
• Free: the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building, open to the public per Wikipedia.

If you can afford only one of the observation decks in Tokyo, I’d book Shibuya Sky for sunset. If you can afford two, I’d add Tokyo Tower for the price, or Skytree if the forecast is clear and you want height.