One of Japan’s (and the world’s) coolest museums just reopened

Ask any Tokyophiles for their must-do experiences in the Japanese capital, and they will probably cite teamLab amongst them. A Japanese-born digital art collective, in a nutshell teamLab creates immersive installations which utilise cutting-edge technology. With offshoots in Osaka, Macao, Beijing, Singapore, and exhibitions so far in Melbourne, New York and Taipei, teamLab is consistently a major drawcard for international tourists.

TeamLab Planets in Tokyo recently ranked in the top five of the “Most Popular Museums in the World” in Google’s annual search rankings for 2023, while after four hugely successful years of operation including hosting 2.3 million visitors in its first year, the flagship, teamLab Borderless closed in 2022. However, it has just reopened, relocated to the Mori JP Tower in Tokyo’s new Azabudai Hills district. And the buzz is already loud.

Visitors can expect the trademark teamLab projections and light shows that move dynamically with the presence of humans. Sound and smell are as much a part of the art as sight, and a teahouse takes care of taste.

And if you need a good lie down after all that, in the same building, the hotel, Janu Tokyo is set to open in March.

At 330 metres, the Mori JP Tower is Japan’s current highest with 64 floors above ground. It was the last piece built to complete Azabudai Hills.

Spanning more than eight hectares, Azabudai Hills is a redevelopment of a long, narrow district in the heart of the city deemed rundown three decades ago when the redevelopment first hit the drawing board. Not far from Tokyo Tower, it was a largely wooden structured, traditional residential area.

Replacing an old-style neighbourhood with luxurious high rise development has been both controversial and lauded.