“Is Gajoen becoming a Hilton?” The short answer is yes. Hotel Gajoen Tokyo (ホテル雅叙園東京) in Meguro will join LXR Hotels & Resorts, Hilton’s top-tier luxury brand, as announced by Hilton on 27 April 2026. The “Gajoen” name survives the rebrand: the new name will be Gajoen Tokyo, LXR Hotels & Resorts (雅叙園東京 LXRホテルズ&リゾーツ). The hotel itself has already resumed operations as “Gajoen Tokyo” since 27 July 2026, and you can stay there today. As for when it opens as an LXR, Hilton’s original announcement said 2027, while the notice issued at reopening (8 July 2026) said it was “scheduled to open … by the end of this year” — no official opening date had been announced as of this writing (September 2026). This article looks at the property from a guest’s point of view: what happens if you book now, how the guest rooms are configured, and whether the yukata plans and the Hyakudan Kaidan exhibitions are running.

What has been happening at Gajoen – a timeline

Gajoen, home to the wooden Hyakudan Kaidan (“Hundred-Step Stairway,” built 1935 and designated a Tangible Cultural Property by the Tokyo Metropolitan Government), went through a major change of hands from autumn 2025. Here is the sequence of events.

Under the new structure the building is owned by Brookfield and operated by Hilton. LXR sits at the top of Hilton’s brand hierarchy; in Japan this is the second property after ROKU KYOTO in Takagamine, Kyoto, and the first in Tokyo. Foreign hotel brands are lining up a broader wave of Japanese openings between 2026 and 2031, and Gajoen is one of the Tokyo entries in that wave. Ownership and operating structure, and what the rebrand means for the market, are questions for investors; this article stays with the guest’s view.

What happens if you book now? The name changes, but “Gajoen” stays

The hotel currently takes bookings as normal under the name “Gajoen Tokyo.” Reservations are accepted through the hotel’s official website and also through Hilton’s official site. Four restaurants are operating: the Chinese restaurant Shun-yu-ki (旬遊紀), the Japanese restaurant Tofutei (渡風亭), the all-day dining room Kanade Terrace, and Kanade Lounge (as announced at the July 2026 reopening).

Name, Hyakudan Kaidan, facilities – what changes and what stays

The natural worry is whether becoming an LXR turns it into a different hotel altogether. It does not: the new name is “Gajoen Tokyo, LXR Hotels & Resorts,” and “Gajoen” remains as the leading element of the name. Hilton’s announcement explicitly states that the Hyakudan Kaidan, a Tokyo-designated Tangible Cultural Property, will continue to be preserved, and that the hotel will have five food-and-beverage outlets, a fitness center, a spa, and roughly 5,700 m² of meeting space. Because guest-room renovations and the new fitness gym will be carried out in stages ahead of the opening, which facilities are available may depend on when you stay. It is worth checking the latest notices on the official website before you book.

Here is what changes and what does not between “Gajoen Tokyo as it is now” and “Gajoen Tokyo once it opens as an LXR.” Items that have not been announced are marked “unannounced” rather than left blank.

As for Hilton Honors (Hilton’s loyalty program), Hilton’s announcement mentions member benefits, but the specific conditions and start date for using points and applying benefits at Gajoen Tokyo remain partly unannounced as of this writing. If Honors benefits are the reason you are booking, check on Hilton’s official site at the time of reservation whether the stay qualifies.

60 rooms in total – every one of them 70 m² or larger

The hotel has 60 guest rooms. Our own hotel database also records 60 rooms both for the former “Hotel Gajoen Tokyo” and for “Gajoen Tokyo” after the reopening, matching the official figure (as of September 2026, HotelBank Editorial Team research). According to the notice issued at the July 2026 reopening, the rooms occupy floors 6 to 8 and are all 70 m² or larger. They range from the 240 m² “Gajoen Suite” to the 80 m² Japanese-style Premium Room, each furnished differently. The property was known even in its former incarnation for billing every room as a suite — a rare configuration in Tokyo — and that spaciousness carries over unchanged.

For a sense of rates, the average advertised OTA price for the deluxe-hotel category in Tokyo is ¥83,000 per night (per room, two adults per room, tax included; N=57 properties, as of September 2026, HotelBank Editorial Team research). That is roughly twice the ¥41,700 average for Tokyo’s city-hotel category (N=115 properties, same date, same basis). Actual rates at Gajoen Tokyo vary widely by date and room type, and pricing during the run-up to the LXR opening may be limited in scope, so the reliable way to see a specific figure is to enter your dates on the official website. Several other ultra-luxury properties are due to join this Tokyo price band over the next few years, which will make the segment considerably more crowded than it is today.

What about the yukata plan and the Hyakudan Kaidan events? Nothing announced for 2026

The 2026 yukata plan and summer exhibition are unannounced

A direct answer for anyone searching “Gajoen yukata 2026”: the 2026 yukata plan and the summer Hyakudan Kaidan event fell within the closure period (1 October 2025 to 26 July 2026), so no edition can be confirmed, and no plans for either have been announced since the reopening as of this writing. Check Gajoen Tokyo’s official website for the latest information.

The most recent edition with confirmable pricing is the 2024 plan

The most recent event held was under the former operator in 2025: “Japanese Lights x Hyakudan Kaidan 2025 – Hyakki Ryoran” ran from 4 July to 23 September 2025 (admission ¥1,800 general, ¥1,200 university and high-school students, ¥1,000 junior-high and elementary students). For the 2025 yukata plan, however, no published material giving prices or sales dates could be found as of this writing. The former operator’s official website has already been replaced by the notice of its withdrawal, so the terms on sale at the time cannot be traced back.

The most recent edition whose pricing can be confirmed in published material is 2024: sold from 17 June to 30 September 2024 in three price tiers, with lunch and tea from ¥15,500 and dinner from ¥18,000 (both tax and service included). It was a day-use package with no overnight stay, bundling a full yukata set to take home (with obi, geta, and drawstring bag) chosen from roughly 250 designs for women and 100 for men, dressing assistance, a meal at one of five restaurants in the building, and a voucher for 50% off general admission to the Hyakudan Kaidan exhibition. Note that ¥15,500 and ¥18,000 are the difference between meal options within the same 2024 plan, not a year-on-year price increase. Having become a fixture of every summer, the plan’s revival under the new operator is something to watch for.

The Hyakudan Kaidan itself is explicitly being preserved

The Hyakudan Kaidan itself was built in 1935 as Building No. 3 of the predecessor Meguro Gajoen, and is the only wooden structure that survives on the site: a corridor of 99 steps linking seven rooms, each decorated in a different style. It was designated a Tangible Cultural Property by the Tokyo Metropolitan Government on 16 March 2009, and Hilton’s announcement states explicitly that it will be preserved. No schedule has been announced for the resumption of public viewing or exhibitions, but staying inside a piece of heritage architecture should remain the core of what Gajoen offers. On that note, Gajoen has architectural relatives elsewhere in Japan: Kanaguya in Shibu Onsen, Nagano — a ryokan whose four-storey wooden Saigetsuro wing was built in 1936 — names Meguro Gajoen on its own website as a building of the same era and lineage, and the resemblance in craftsmanship is easy to see.

Frequently asked questions

Q. Is Gajoen becoming a Hilton?
Yes. On 27 April 2026 Hilton announced that Hotel Gajoen Tokyo in Meguro would join LXR Hotels & Resorts, its top-tier luxury brand. Hilton will operate the hotel, and the building is owned by Brookfield, one of the world’s largest investment firms.

Q. Will “Gajoen” disappear from the name?
No. The new name is “Gajoen Tokyo, LXR Hotels & Resorts,” keeping “Gajoen” as the leading element. The Hyakudan Kaidan inside the building, a Tokyo-designated Tangible Cultural Property, is also explicitly stated in Hilton’s announcement as being preserved.

Q. Can I book now, and where?
Yes. Room reservations opened on 8 July 2026, and the hotel has been operating as “Gajoen Tokyo” since 27 July. Bookings are accepted through the hotel’s official website and also through Hilton’s official site.

Q. When does it open as an LXR?
No official opening date had been announced as of this writing (September 2026). Hilton’s announcement of 27 April 2026 gave 2027, while the notice issued at the reopening (8 July 2026) brought this forward to “the end of this year.”

Q. How are the rooms configured? Is it really all suites?
There are 60 rooms in total, on floors 6 to 8, all 70 m² or larger. They range from the 240 m² “Gajoen Suite” to the 80 m² “Japanese-style Premium Room,” each furnished differently, and the property billed every room as a suite even in its former incarnation as “Hotel Gajoen Tokyo” — a rare configuration in Tokyo.

Q. Are the yukata plan and the Hyakudan Kaidan exhibitions running?
Nothing has been announced for 2026. The 2026 yukata plan and the summer Hyakudan Kaidan event fell within the closure period (1 October 2025 to 26 July 2026), so no edition can be confirmed, and no plans have been published for either since the reopening. The most recent edition whose pricing can be confirmed in published material ran from 17 June to 30 September 2024, at from ¥15,500 for lunch and tea and from ¥18,000 for dinner (tax and service included).

Q. Can I earn Hilton Honors points?
The specific conditions and start date for earning points and applying benefits on stays are unannounced. For dining, the official restaurant site carries an offer of up to 25% off for Hilton Honors members across Asia Pacific. If Honors benefits are the reason you are booking, check on Hilton’s official site at the time of reservation whether the stay qualifies.

Methodology and sources

■ Data sources

The content of the rebrand, the new name, and the facility plans come from Hilton’s announcement of 27 April 2026; the reopening date, the date reservations opened, the room configuration, and the food-and-beverage outlets come from Gajoen Tokyo’s announcement of 8 July 2026; the end of the former operation and the temporary closure come from the notice issued by Meguro Gajoen Co., Ltd. (all originals verified by the HotelBank Editorial Team on 9 September 2026). The Tokyo category averages cited as a guide to rates are advertised OTA prices compiled by the HotelBank Editorial Team (as of September 2026, per room, two adults per room, tax included). The figure of 60 rooms was confirmed as matching between the official announcement and the measured value in our own accommodation database.

■ Basis of estimates

The deluxe-hotel figure of ¥83,000 per night (N=57 properties) and the city-hotel figure of ¥41,700 per night (N=115 properties) are both property-level averages of advertised prices for Tokyo properties in the relevant category, and are not the rate for Gajoen Tokyo itself. Category assignment follows our own classification criteria. The yukata plan prices are the lower bound (“from” prices) of a day-use plan that does not include an overnight stay, and there were three price tiers depending on the meal.

■ Limitations and caveats

This article reflects information published as of 9 September 2026. The official opening date as an LXR, the conditions and start date for Hilton Honors on stays, and any plans for yukata packages or Hyakudan Kaidan exhibitions from 2026 onward are all unannounced as of this writing, and this article does not speculate about them. The announcement of the 2025 yukata plan has already been lost from the former operator’s official website, and its prices and sales period cannot be verified against a primary source, so only the 2024 figures are given. Because construction ahead of the opening proceeds in stages, the facilities available may depend on when you stay. Please check the latest notices on the official website before booking.

■ References

• Hilton, “Hilton to open Gajoen Tokyo, LXR Hotels & Resorts in 2027” (27 April 2026) (the rebrand announcement, new name, 60 rooms, five food-and-beverage outlets, roughly 5,700 m² of meeting space, preservation of the Hyakudan Kaidan, second property in Japan after ROKU KYOTO, ownership by Brookfield)
• Gajoen Tokyo, “Room reservations open today ahead of the start of operations on 27 July 2026” (8 July 2026) (date reservations opened, reopening date, 60 rooms all 70 m² or larger, floors 6-8, the 240 m² Gajoen Suite, the 80 m² Japanese-style Premium Room, four restaurants beginning operation, the “end of this year” LXR opening plan)
• Meguro Gajoen Co., Ltd., “[Important] Notice of the end of operation of Hotel Gajoen Tokyo by Meguro Gajoen Co., Ltd.” (1 October 2025) (the end of operation on 30 September 2025 on expiry of the fixed-term building lease, and the temporary closure from 1 October 2025)
• Gajoen Tokyo official restaurant site (the four food-and-beverage outlets in operation — Shun-yu-ki, Tofutei, Kanade Terrace, Kanade Lounge — and the offer of up to 25% off for Hilton Honors members across Asia Pacific)
• Event information for “Japanese Lights x Hyakudan Kaidan 2025 – Hyakki Ryoran” (the run from 4 July to 23 September 2025, and admission prices)
• Hotel Gajoen Tokyo “yukata plan” event information (2024) (the sales period from 17 June to 30 September 2024, lunch/tea from ¥15,500, dinner from ¥18,000 including tax and service, the yukata set to take home, dressing assistance, and the 50% discount on the Hyakudan Kaidan exhibition)
• Meguro City, “Meguro Gajoen Hyakudan Kaidan, Tokyo-designated Tangible Cultural Property (structure)” (the designation date of 16 March 2009, the seven rooms, and the 99-step indoor stairway)
• Let’s Enjoy Tokyo, “Gajoen Tokyo, the cultural property Hyakudan Kaidan” (built in 1935, and the only wooden structure surviving on the site)
• Fashion Press, “Hotel Gajoen Tokyo yukata plan” (2024) (the number of yukata designs — roughly 250 for women and 100 for men — and the breakdown of the price tiers)
• HotelBank Editorial Team research (compilation of advertised OTA prices as of September 2026; measured room counts from our accommodation database)