Tokyo Tower Reaches 170 Million Visitors Milestone

Above, a street view of Tokyo Tower in the background.  Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Tokyo Tower has been overshadowed by the much-taller Tokyo Skytree Tower in attention and visitors of late, and it has been relegated to back-up status once the Skytree began its life as the primary broadcasting tower for Tokyo this year.

But there's still life in the old girl yet.

According to Kyodo News:

The total number of visitors to the observation deck of Tokyo Tower reached 170 million Friday since its opening in 1958, its operator said. 

Around 2.4 million people visited the deck 150 meters above the ground last year, compared with the largest-ever annual figure of 4.9 million marked in 1959, according to Nippon Television City Corp.

Tokyo Tower is patterned after France's Eiffel Tower and is a little taller.  It has also served as a battleground for a number of giant monsters over the years.

Above, a view of Tokyo Bay, the Rainbow Bridge and Odaiba from
the observation deck of Tokyo Tower.  Photo by Armand Vaquer.

First, it was used to support Mothra's cocoon in Mothra (1961).  More recently, it was shown as a ruin in Godzilla Final Wars in 2004.  In the years in-between, Tokyo Tower suffered abuse by such monsters as Gamera, Gyaos, Godzilla, King Kong and Mechani-Kong. All this activity garnered Tokyo Tower a spotlight in The Monster Movie Fan's Guide To Japan on page 30.

To read the full article on Tokyo Tower, go here.