Hotel Century Southern Tower: Rooms Closed for Renovation

Guest rooms at Hotel Century Southern Tower have been suspended since 1 October 2026 for renovation. The hotel says a grand reopening is planned for April 2028 or later, with the booking start and exact reopening date still to be announced. As of 24 October 2026, do not plan a current Tokyo stay around its room inventory or treat a third-party listing as proof that a room is operating. The room comparison below explains what the pre-renovation hotel offered and what to compare when new inventory is announced.

The tower remains useful as a location reference: its South Exit, New South Gate and Busta Shinjuku geography explains why travellers liked it. The renovation announcement is the controlling fact for any booking decision now. Its room figures, view labels, laundry arrangement and parking benefit may change after the project; none should be purchased as a promise about the reopened property.

What is closed, and what remains on the schedule

The hotel announced that accommodation stopped on 1 October 2026. Breakfast service stopped from 2 October; Southern Tower Dining and South Court lounge have separate staged schedules, while guest-room sales have no announced restart date. A past reservation page saying “after October 2026” is less precise than the hotel’s dated suspension notice: the room operation has already stopped. The proposed April 2028 or later grand reopening is a plan rather than a confirmed date for a particular stay.

If a search result displays prices for 2027, check who is selling them, whether the product is actually bookable and whether the hotel has resumed accommodation. A room photograph or a live OTA page is not enough. For a trip before the hotel announces new sales, compare an operating south-Shinjuku room at JR Kyushu Hotel Blossom Shinjuku or the airport-bus arrangement at Sunroute Plaza. A longer stay with laundry needs points towards Tokyu Stay Shinjuku Eastside.

Why the original room hierarchy was unusual

Before closure, the hotel occupied floors 19–35 of the Odakyu Southern Tower, reception sat on floor 20, and its 375 rooms were on floors 22–35. Paying simply to escape a low floor was therefore a poor reading of the old offer. The real choices were room area, view direction, bed configuration and how often the South Exit location saved a walk. The reopening room inventory could differ, so keep these numbers in the historical column until new specifications appear.

The old Twin ladder began at a 26 m² Southern Tower Twin. Scenic Twin added five square metres to reach 31 m², and Panoramic Twin added another three to reach 34 m². All three used 110 cm-wide Twin beds. The 26-to-31 change was about 19% more published area; 31-to-34 was about 10%; 26-to-34 about 31%. Those percentages describe total listed floor area, not a measured clear patch for two open 28-inch suitcases.

For two people with separate-bed needs, 26 m² was a sound Tokyo baseline for a short stay. Over four or five nights, the 31 m² category could help if its extra area and specific view justified the total-stay price difference. Panoramic made sense when both the largest ordinary Twin layout and the Yoyogi-facing outlook mattered. A label such as “high floor” by itself did little work here because every pre-renovation room already occupied an upper floor.

The old Scenic Twin had one functional distinction beyond its area and view: it was the Twin category listed for an added third bed, subject to a charge. A party of three adults could not infer the same sleeping arrangement from a Panoramic Twin simply because its published floor area was greater. The hotel also described connecting rooms as limited to a particular Scenic Twin arrangement and dependent on availability. Those details illustrate why future family or group bookings must start with occupancy and bed rules, not only square metres. Renovation may change the categories or their capacity; a reopened rate page should be read as a new product.

Couples using one bed faced a different first decision. The old Comfort Double was 19 m², while Southern Tower King was 26 m², Scenic King 31 m² and Panoramic King 34 m². Moving from 19 to 26 m² added seven square metres, roughly 37% more listed area. That jump could matter with two full-size cases on a longer stay; for one night and light bags, the less expensive compact room might have been sufficient. The five-night Shibuya versus Shinjuku comparison offers a current alternative way to evaluate room space against district access.

The photos show a Twin room with a city window and a King room with seating by a park-facing window. They document the former room style; they do not establish how renovated rooms will look. The gallery also shows the building and its pedestrian-level entrance, which are more useful for understanding location than an obsolete inventory label.

South Exit access was the property’s durable advantage

The building’s second-floor entrance aligns with Shinjuku South Exit, New South Gate and Busta Shinjuku. The first-floor entrance served the Airport Limousine stop and taxi area. The hotel’s access description put it about three minutes from the JR South-side exits; Busta was also roughly a three-minute walk. Those physical relationships can still inform a district choice even while the rooms are closed.

A traveller taking a highway bus to Kawaguchiko could benefit from a South Exit hotel, while someone travelling only around central Tokyo may never use Busta. The Kawaguchiko train and bus comparison can establish whether that terminal is really part of the route. The Hakone transport guide does the same for a mountain trip. A station-adjacent premium only repays itself when you take the relevant journeys.

Airport buses demand equal care. A route may stop near the Southern Tower building, but bus stops and arrival terminals differ by service. The hotel’s transport help also describes a fallback at Shinjuku West Exit, around five minutes away on foot, if the desired limousine does not reach the building or Busta. For a late landing, the Narita late-arrival guide asks whether to cross the city at all that night. A room that is closed cannot solve the arrival; use the geography to choose a bookable alternative.

Nightlife changes the endpoint. A party spending every evening in Kabukicho might gain more by sleeping north of the station, even if the south-side building made a bus departure easier once. For a mixed Tokyo itinerary, the Shinjuku versus Shibuya guide and Tokyo Station versus Shinjuku comparison place the district choice before a room-category choice.

Another way to use the old location lesson is to compare repeated walks rather than one impressive journey. A four-night guest who arrives by bus once, spends two days around Shinjuku and takes a Kawaguchiko coach from Busta has several reasons to remain on the southern side of the station. Someone arriving by the same bus but making every evening trip to Kabukicho has a different daily pattern. If most sightseeing is in Ueno, Asakusa or eastern Tokyo, the Ueno-versus-GROOVE comparison shows how the base decision can outweigh one convenient airport arrival.

Laundry and parking were limitations of the old product

The pre-renovation hotel had paid laundry service but no in-house coin-operated machines. That made little difference to a two-night visit and much more to five to seven nights with recurring washing. For a current Tokyo booking, Hotel Niwa Tokyo offers a different shared-laundry and lounge arrangement, while Tokyu Stay Eastside can put laundry in the room. Decide which operating model you need before treating a former high-rise view as the stronger benefit.

The Odakyu Southern Tower building had 73 affiliated self-parking spaces, shared with other building users. The pre-closure hotel listed a ¥2,400 24-hour pass for registered guests, with no parking reservations and availability on a first-come basis. This price and guest privilege are historical room-operation details; neither is a current accommodation offer or a future guarantee. Even before closure, public transport was the more dependable plan for a first Tokyo trip.

Seven dimensions for an eventual reopening comparison

A reopened hotel may change room layouts and services. These seven dimensions tell you what to recheck when its reservation system returns, rather than assigning a score to a property with suspended room operations.

When the property reopens, compare exact rooms on the same dates, guest count and cancellation terms. The old 26 m² Twin was the entry two-bed product, not an automatic upgrade. A future rate table may use different categories. Room photos, view names, paid laundry and parking should all be checked again rather than copied from a pre-renovation guide.

compare bookable Shinjuku stays for your dates during the guest-room renovation instead of selecting an unavailable Century Southern Tower room.

These affiliate booking links are retained for a future availability check; they are not an invitation to reserve a suspended room. JapanLayer may earn a commission from a qualifying booking at no extra cost to you. Until the hotel announces an actual accommodation restart, use a bookable south-Shinjuku comparison. The Gracery area review and Kabukicho versus South Exit comparison help identify which side of the station your trip really uses.

More hotel and transport reading

JR Kyushu Hotel Blossom Shinjuku · Tokyu Stay Shinjuku Eastside · Tokyu Stay Shinjuku Eastside · Hotel Century Southern Tower — websi · Hotel Century Southern Tower — curre · Hotel Century Southern Tower — build · Hotel Century Southern Tower — Twin · Hotel Century Southern Tower — Doubl · Hotel Century Southern Tower — FAQ · BLOSSOM HIBIYA tower view · Osaka tower spa · Okinawa view room decision · Nyuto Onsen base · Sapporo station hotel · Universal City hotel · Goryokaku tower visit · Naha Terrace room · Sapporo rooftop spring · Fukuoka Tower visit · Lake Biwa view hotel · Fukuoka hotel budget · Osaka Station hotel choice