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Hotel offers new levels of hospitality, luxury

Seated high above the bustling Tokyo metropolis in the Club International Lounge on the 35th floor of the ANA InterContinental Tokyo, recently appointed hotel General Manager Michel Chertouh sees a bright future for the iconic Tokyo property.

That future starts in November with the opening of the hotel’s all-new Club Rooms on the 32nd to 35th floors. “These rooms will introduce a new category of hospitality within the ANA InterContinental Tokyo. They will be our top-level rooms and in addition to offering fantastic views of the city, they will be innovative when it comes to technology, as well as the look and feel of the design,” Chertouh, the former regional general manager of InterContinental’s resorts in Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand, said.

When the renovations are complete, there will be 85 rooms and suites created in a mold of comfort and sophistication. Chertouh noted: “The rooms will be integrated with the club lounge and will be all about bringing a new level of hospitality to our guests. The renovations are a complete redesign and rebuild, offering a major improvement when it comes to the facilities. Additionally, we are going to try to integrate them with the outside experience and make sure that when guests stay in these rooms, they can have an immediate connectivity to what Tokyo can offer.

“What we aim to offer our guests is the total Tokyo experience from the moment they arrive in their rooms. These are much more than simply rooms, they are an experience tied into the club lounge, as well as the city itself,” he said.

The rooms are designed infused with the spirit of Kintsugi, or the art of repairing broken pottery with lacquer mixed with powdered gold, silver or platinum. Similar to the idea of wabi-sabi, which embraces the notion of imperfection and transience, Kintsugi doesn’t merely repair damaged pottery, it treats damage as part of the history of an object, rather than something to hide. Chertouh pointed out that guests can experience new levels of luxury, with the revamped rooms boasting Ferragamo amenities, as well as complete access to the full range of perks, benefits and services of the club lounge.”

He continued: “Our lounge offers a true reflection of what Tokyo is; there is a connection through the large windows, giving guests a chance to take in the unique night view that is very urban; we want to provide that type of connectivity. There are not many skylines that can compete with Tokyo’s and it helps our guests to connect with the city.”

Chertouh also commented on the hotel’s blend of East and West. “With the number of international arrivals growing, bringing our international framework, but preserving the soul of our Japanese hospitality, is essential and making sure that those two worlds work together. I really see us continuing in that direction and keeping that identity that I feel will fascinate many of our future visitors,” he said.