AC Hotels’ 20-Minute Edit Highlights Spots in Walking Distance
Visit tastemaker-approved locations within a twenty minute walk from the property like we did in Tokyo’s Ginza district with Ryo Takashima
There is a distinct art to navigating a metropolis on foot. In an era of packed itineraries and endless saved lists, the most meaningful urban discoveries often happen within a tightly bounded radius, and AC Hotels by Marriott’s new AC 20-Minute Edit series turns that idea into a guide, mapping cultural, culinary, art and fashion destinations within a 20-minute walk of each hotel. The series launches at eight AC Hotels locations—Tokyo, Melbourne, Montreal, Portland (Maine), Naples (Florida), Lima, Glasgow and Krakow—with each market teaming up with local creators, chefs, designers and cultural curators who embody the design-forward ethos of their respective cities.
We experienced this firsthand in Tokyo, spending time with Ryo Takashima, founder and fashion director of the retailer +81 and founder and creative director of the minimalist label Clesste. His popular Instagram shares his passion for Japanese fashion and creative culture. He took us to some of his favorite spots near the AC Hotel Tokyo Ginza, which sits amid some of the city’s best shopping, and many of them also appear on our own list of Ginza favorites.
We stay at the AC Hotel Tokyo Ginza often, and AC Hotels are always on our list when we’re paying our own way at CH or traveling personally. They’re nearly always in central neighborhoods, with simple, modern and considered design, and they offer what we typically need while skipping the things we don’t need or have to pay for. Rooms are usually just the right size—comfortable and not claustrophobic, though rarely large (the Ginza location’s Superior rooms are larger for a modest bump in rate). If a trip is mostly work or mostly out and about, and you want to be comfortable and productive in between, they’re well worth a look.
Takashima’s Tokyo 20-Minute Edit selections (all within a 20-minute walk of the hotel):
Known to every CH reader with any interest in fashion, DSM is a fixture on our itineraries, and visitors to Tokyo are welcomed by the company’s largest shop in the world: six floors of avant-garde garb, art installations, books and more. Rose Bakery makes a welcome pit stop for coffee and a quick snack, and the store’s selection of Porter bags is consistently on point.
Recognized for its striking facade designed by Yoshio Taniguchi and the art installations that fill its interior atrium, Ginza Six houses top-tier design houses, luxury fashion boutiques and a rooftop garden with panoramic views of the Tokyo skyline. Alongside global luxury brands, the mall carries Japanese labels including Evisu, Jotaro Saito and and wander, plus plenty of snack and dining options.
Selected by Takashima for its refined approach to retail, this destination highlights contemporary tailoring, understated luxury and meticulous Japanese craftsmanship that directly mirror his minimalist design aesthetic.
An experimental public space and gallery that reopened in 2025 after a substantial renovation, Ginza Sony Park mixes technology, music, media art and urban landscape architecture with an impressive calendar of events. It offers an ever-changing, interactive glimpse into Japan’s visual culture.
New York’s go-to department store lives on in Japan (and in Seoul as Barneys New York Beauty), though none of these outposts are owned by the original entity. The Ginza location will feel familiar to anyone who has visited a Barneys, with a well-curated selection of international fashion designers, fine jewelry and modern lifestyle goods in a sleek, sophisticated environment.
We couldn’t not add a few of our own neighborhood favorites to explore on your next visit to Ginza. The 280-year-old Kuboki Tatami offers tasteful tatami accessories including placemats, coasters and one of our new obsessions: tatami phone mats.
Founded in 1948, Sakura Seisakusho makes iconic midcentury modern furniture, including George Nakashima’s designs. Whether you’re shopping or just browsing, it’s a block away from the AC Hotel Tokyo Ginza and absolutely worth a visit. Hungry after all that shopping? Nair’s Restaurant, the oldest authentic Indian restaurant in Japan, is just steps from the hotel. The small, very casual joint is known for its Murgi Lunch: spiced chicken curry—deboned at your table—served with mashed potatoes, boiled cabbage and rice. There’s nearly always a line, and it’s worth the wait.
Whether it’s before your day gets started or upon your return, you can enjoy breakfast or a casual meal at the AC Kitchen and Lounge on the ground floor or have a drink at the bar. And on your way up to your room with all of your duty-free goods, pick up one of the brand’s signature Lavender Turndown sachets to keep the mood mellow.
What are your thoughts?