Dōgenzaka

Shibuya & Shimo-Kitazawa


Dōgenzaka, named for a 13th-century highway robber, is a maze of narrow streets. Home to one of Tokyo's largest clusters of love hotels (hotels for amorous encounters), it's also known as Love Hotel Hill. It's more than a little seedy, but some of the older hotels have fantastical (if not a bit chipped and crumbling) facades.


Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby Shibuya & Shimo-Kitazawa attractions

1. Bunkamura

0.11 MILES

Meaning ‘culture village’, Bunkamura has a theatre, concert hall, cinema and museum. Offerings swing between commercial and artsy; the Tokyo Philharmonic…

2. Toguri Museum of Art

0.2 MILES

The Toguri Museum of Art has an excellent collection of Edo-era ceramics, displayed in informative, thematic exhibitions with English explanations – great…

3. Shibuya Center-gai

0.2 MILES

Shibuya's main drag is closed to cars and chock-a-block with fast-food joints and high-street fashion shops. At night, lit bright as day, with a dozen…

4. Spain-zaka

0.23 MILES

This narrow, winding brick lane is a classic example of Tokyo-style bricolage with a mismatch of architectural styles, cutesy clothing stores and a…

5. Shibuya Crossing

0.26 MILES

Rumoured to be the busiest intersection in the world (and definitely in Japan), Shibuya Crossing is like a giant beating heart, sending people in all…

6. Hachikō Statue

0.26 MILES

Every evening, Akita dog Hachikō would go to Shibuya Station to greet his companion. It's a practice he kept up everyday for 10 years after the professor…

7. Mag's Park

0.28 MILES

The rooftop of the Magnet by Shibuya 109 department store has the best views over Shibuya's famous scramble crossing. It's screened with plexiglass, so…

8. Myth of Tomorrow

0.34 MILES

Okamoto Tarō's mural, Myth of Tomorrow (1967), was commissioned by a Mexican luxury hotel but went missing two years later. It finally turned up in 2003…