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Shinjuku / PLACE

Isetan Shinjuku

Behind an Art Deco façade, small rice-and-bean sweets below and glassware and furniture above make materials a useful way into the store.

Visit fitPeople interested in how fashion and design are displayed · shoppers with one department in mind

The 1933 Art Deco main building, which also absorbs the 1926 Hoteiya store, is a Tokyo Metropolitan Selected Historical Building. It positions itself as a fashion-led store, with the I-Garden on the main roof.

Good to know

The carved stone and bronze reliefs low down, the vertical piers above, the two corner towers on Meiji-dori and Shinjuku-dori. Inside, how one floor’s displays are edited.

Isetan Shinjuku’s main building with its corner tower
Isetan Shinjuku’s Art Deco main building
Image infoKakidai · 2025-08 · CC-BY-SA-4.0 · resized and cropped

Start at the façade

The 1933 Isetan main building joins the neighbouring 1926 Hoteiya building in today’s long façade. Stone and bronze ornament, vertical piers and corner towers give it an Art Deco character. Before shopping, look at the corner and front together from across the street to see how it addresses Shinjuku’s main road. Inside, choose a purpose: B1 for a sweet to eat today, 5F for something to use at home, or 7F for kimono and Japanese accessories.

WHERE · On foot from here

Which side of the station, and how far

North-east of Shinjuku-sanchome Station, about 10 m in a straight line from the station point. The shaded areas are about 5 and 10 minutes on foot from here.

1234Isetan Shinjuku伊勢丹新宿店Shinjuku-sanchome新宿三丁目駅Shinjuku新宿駅Shinjuku-nishiguchi新宿西口駅KinokuniyaHanazono ShrineSuehiroteiSekaido~5 min~10 minMeiji-dori Ave.100 mN1234Isetan Shinjuku伊勢丹新宿店Shinjuku-sanchome新宿三丁目駅Shinjuku新宿駅KinokuniyaHanazono ShrineSuehiroteiSekaido~5 min~10 min250 mN
This placeAbout 5 · 10 min on foot from here (computed, approximate)Read together

Walking bands are computed by FOW on the OpenStreetMap surface street network at 80 m/min and drawn as a smoothed approximate area around the streets reached. They ignore exit positions, station interiors, underground passages, signals, slopes and routes inside buildings — not directions; follow on-site signs.

Map data: © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL) · Walking bands: computed by FOW · Station and gate notes: official guidance (2026-10-16)

Choose two small sweets by their ingredients

At Suzukake on B1, Suzu-no-Monaka puts bean paste inside a bell-shaped wafer; Suzu-no-Enmochi resembles a tiny round dorayaki. The monaka uses Niigata Koganemochi rice, the chewy enmochi shell uses Saga Hiyokumochi, and both meet Tokachi azuki filling. The contrast is between a crisp shell and an elastic cake around the same kind of filling. The store’s product guide lists ¥128 each, making ¥256 a small two-piece comparison. These fresh sweets can sell out; for a gift to take onward, choose by shelf life and storage. Bamboo-basket assortments make the packaging part of the object too.

On 5F, look at how things are made

Home Essence lists makers including Kimura Glass, Karimoku New Standard and Akari. With Kimura, distinguish a Japanese brand from where and how a particular object is made. Its Piccolo 10 oz wine glass, for example, is 168 mm high and 340 ml, made by machine in Slovakia from potassium crystal. The maker’s shop lists ¥1,925; Isetan’s actual stock and price are separate. Look at the proportions of bowl and stem and the height needed for storage, rather than assuming handmade Japanese glass. Some Akari items use lottery sales. For a rooftop pause, I-Garden closes at 19:00 March–October and 18:00 November–February.

Read it with

Street view of the Kinokuniya Building entrance with its sign
Kinokuniya Shinjuku Main StoreA store’s selection versus a bookshop’s order.
Steps leading up to Hanazono Shrine’s main hall
Hanazono ShrineThe shrine next door.
Suehirotei’s wooden façade lined with performer name boards
Shinjuku Suehirotei“OLD / NEW EAST” · 1897 · timber hall 1946
Corner building in Shinjuku 3-chome with the vertical Sekaido sign
Sekaido Shinjuku Main Store“OLD / NEW EAST” · 1940 · as a frame shop

Before you go

Hours and fees
3-14-1 Shinjuku. Retail 10:00–20:00; the main building's 7F restaurant area runs 11:00–22:00.
Good to know
The Isetan-side gate at Shinjuku-sanchome Station opens one way only at certain hours.
Official information ↗
See this item in the Atlas ↗Read in the Mapbook ↗
Sources · image info
  1. 営業時間・アクセス | 伊勢丹 新宿店Isetan Mitsukoshi · as of 2026-09-29
  2. Isetan Shinjuku · Floor guideIsetan Shinjuku · as of 2026-10-19
  3. Isetan Shinjuku · Home Essence makersIsetan Shinjuku · as of 2026-10-19
  4. Isetan Shinjuku · Tea and wagashiIsetan Shinjuku · as of 2026-10-19
  5. Suzukake — rice, azuki and bamboo packagingIsetan Shinjuku · as of 2026-10-19
  6. Suzukake — Isetan product guideMitsukoshi Isetan · as of 2026-10-19
  7. Kimura Glass — Piccolo 10 oz wine glassKimura Glass / zizi Store · as of 2026-10-19
  8. Isetan’s historic Art Deco main buildingTokyo Metropolitan Government With! Tokyo Rekiken Project · as of 2026-10-19
  9. Isetan main building: the BELCA long-life awardBuilding and Equipment Life Cycle Association · as of 2026-10-19