Hotel Indigo Tokyo Shibuya video tour by Rosie Bell

1) The backstory

In three words, Hotel Indigo Tokyo Shibuya is approachable, vogueish, and refreshing. This 272-room boutique marvel opened in August 2023 as IHG Hotels and Resorts’ fourth property in Japan. With its prime spot just a stone’s throw from the world-famous Shibuya Crossing, you’ve got the best of Tokyo right at your doorstep, ready to be devoured.

2) The rooms

Space is Tokyo-tight, but the designers knew what they were doing. Efficient layouts, clever use of space, and bathrooms (with automatic toilet seats) that make you feel like you’ve won at Tetris mean you’re more comfortable than cramped.

Vinyl records and modern art pay homage to Shibuya’s pop culture, and large floor-to-ceiling windows remind you that the city never sleeps—even if you eventually will, thanks to the blackout curtains and soundproofing that keep the chaos at bay.

Accessibility isn’t an afterthought at Hotel Indigo Tokyo Shibuya. Elevator buttons have Braille, and there are three accessible rooms that inter-connect so carers can be close by. After opening, the hotel consulted with guests with special needs and made changes based on the feedback, including things like the location of handrails and toilet roll holders.

As the hotel is very much about celebrating the destination, there is a bit of a Hachikō theme going on. Hachikō is a Japanese Akita dog renowned for his unwavering loyalty as he waited over nine years at Shibuya Station for his deceased owner. A statue now stands there in his honor. All the rooms at Hotel Indigo Tokyo Shibuya have three Hachikō Easter eggs hidden for guests to find (hint: look at the tea cups).

Most rooms have Shinjuku and Yoyogi park views, but do yourself a favor and bag one of the corner rooms, which always start with 25 or 01. I was in 2501 and the views—oh, the views. I had a front-row seat to the Shibuya Scramble, the world’s busiest pedestrian crossing. Heavy rains one afternoon meant I was “stuck” inside, and I found myself rather pleased with that outcome. The night view was absolutely incredible from my scramble view room. The other corner-view rooms are more relaxing, and from there you can see Mount Fuji on a good day.

3) Food & drink

Start your day at Shibrewya Café on the third floor with tea or coffee sourced from Nakameguro’s ONIBUS Coffee, paired with a chicken katsu salmon katsu panini shaped like Hachikō. These are almost too cute to eat—almost. Background tunes are laidback, current, and atmospheric.

The 11th-floor Gallery 11 restaurant is a standout, not just for the food but for the art that fills the space. It feels like walking into a scene from Sex and the City, circa season six, when Carrie is in her chic, fluffy dress and art phase with Aleksander Petrovsky. There are 16 big, bold paintings by artists with strong ties to Shibuya telling their own stories about the area.

Gallery 11 is the hotel’s all-day dining venue with a menu of fusion Mediterranean and Japanese cuisine, served up in an open kitchen setting where you can watch the chefs work their alchemy. It’s a warm place where you genuinely want to spend time, and the breakfast buffet was sublime. I had fluffy pancakes topped with kiwis, grapes, and oranges, and the purple sweet potato soup was creamy, sweet, and delicious.

After your meal inside Gallery 11, you can head out to its large, green open-air patio to sip, savor, and watch the hustle of Shibuya from a peaceful perch.

4) Services & amenities

The hotel’s reception and service counter are up on the 12th floor, and staff speak some of the best English you’ll find in Tokyo, which is wonderful news for first-timers.

The gym is on the same floor as the lobby, and there is a reminder that “you’ve got this” as you walk in. You’ll find 10 sets of dumbbells, Technogym equipment, and upbeat music playing at a palatable volume. The gym overlooks Shibuya’s streets, making that last mile on the treadmill a bit more bearable.

There are two separate lifts. One goes up to reception on the 12^th floor, and another is behind the lobby and goes up to the rooms. The highest floor is 28.

Also of note, the hotel has curated a unique, detailed neighborhood map, which is accessible via a QR code in the rooms.

When I visited Hotel Indigo Tokyo Shibuya, I was on a two-week trip in Japan, staying at various hotels. This was my favorite one. Each room has eight music records, and there are 272 rooms, so if you work the numbers, that’s more than 2,000 records on the property. Shibuya is known as a record shopping area for Japanese people, and it earned a Guinness World Record in 2017 for having more record stores than anywhere else in the world. In light of this, as part of room service, you can request (by calling or using the app) to have a record player brought up to your room free of charge.

5) Style, decor & character

Hotel Indigo Tokyo Shibuya is a mashup of color, geometric patterns, and cultural references. The theme here is a “kaleidoscopic urban jungle,” a fitting tribute to the vibrant, ever-changing neighborhood it calls home.

The lobby is a statement in itself and there is impeccable attention to detail and something of ocular delight everywhere you look. For instance, bedside light fixtures are reminiscent of a spinning record, and when you order tea at Shibrewya or Gallery 11, the tea strainer is dinosaur-shaped.

I loved the inviting scent in the lobby. I was so enraptured by it that I had to enquire for its name so as to procure one for myself: Moonshot by Air Aroma. It’s a divine blend of mimosa, acacia flower, orris, rock minerals, and sandalwood.

Guest-facing staff enjoy a very relaxed dress code. It’s Doc Martens for all and funky uniforms designed by Cote Mer. The designer uses old kimono material and old clothes and combines them to make new fashions. The uniforms, like the rest of the hotel, reflect Shibuya’s culture, with a big emphasis on the Shibuya Crossing. You’ll spot those lines on the staff shirts, on walls, and on carpets. Staff can also choose any badge to affix to their uniforms and are free to have any hair or nail polish color.

This upscale lifestyle hotel manages to balance being cool without being pretentious. There is a genuinely friendly vibe whereby you might see the executive chef out and about mingling with guests at breakfast.

6) Location & nearby sights

Location, location, location. Hotel Indigo Tokyo Shibuya is smack in the middle of Shibuya’s Dogenzaka area. Step outside, and you’re practically at the Shibuya Crossing, the iconic intersection where thousands cross paths in perfect chaos. Shibuya’s skyscrapers are your neighbors, and Tokyo’s largest metropolis stretches out as far as the eye can see.

For those with a shopping itch, you’re surrounded by some of the best retail therapy in the world—from the Shibuya 109 shopping center to hidden boutiques that stock the latest from Tokyo’s hottest designers. A 24-hour multi-level Don Quijote is right opposite the hotel. Go there to stock up on all your rare Kit-Kat flavors to gift friends back home.

Whether you’re here to shop till you drop, explore the local music scene, check out nearby shrines, or just soak in the neon lights, you’re perfectly positioned to do it all. And with Shibuya Station just a few minutes away, the rest of Tokyo is at your fingertips.

7) Who it’s right for & what to pack

If you’re looking for a hotel that screams “Tokyo,” this is it. Hotel Indigo Tokyo Shibuya is perfect for pop culture lovers, those who appreciate design-forward spaces, urban explorers, night owls, and travelers who want to be in the thick of it all but still crave a slice of style and comfort to retreat to when the day is done. It’s also a great pick for anyone new to Japan, thanks to the hotel’s English-speaking staff.

Shibuya translates to “bitter valley,” and the area is called Bit Valley for short due to the tech boom from the 70s and 80s. The hotel receives a lot of tech industry folk and Japan bucket-list travelers who want to be in the heart of Shibuya.

Pack light. The rooms are well-designed but compact, so less is definitely more here.