Kyoto Tower is the highest building in the city and probably will long remain his. The fact that the construction of the tower caused a lot of controversy: some believe that the structure disfigure the face of the old capital of Japan, others believed that the image of Kyoto need to modernize a bit. As a result, the tower was built, but legally restricted altitude of new buildings, and now the lights of the tower, reminiscent of a candle or the lighthouse serve as a guide to visitors. In addition, the observation deck of the tower with all-round visibility makes it possible to enjoy views of Kyoto and surrounding it on three sides by mountain ranges Higashiyama, Kitayama and Arashiyama from the highest point of the city.

Interestingly, and to the history of the tower in the life of Kyoto there were times when its population was divided into two camps. For example, in the XV century, in the troubled war years Onin the city was divided into two parts, called Lower capital (Shimogyō-ku) and Upper Capital (Kamigyō-ku). For some time the two parts of Kyoto lived like two completely different cities. Kyoto Tower is located in an area that once was called the Lower capital. At the site of the tower is the central post office.

The tower began to build in the early 60-ies of the last century, in time for the opening of the Olympic Games in Tokyo in autumn 1964. First visitors climbed the tower on February 28. The height of 131 meters, the author of the project - Makoto Tanahashi. The tower, which weighs 800 tons, is located on the roof of the nine-storey building, which houses the three-star hotel and shops. Nearby there is another modern building - Kyoto Station, in front of which a mirrored tower is reflected in all its glory.

The design of the tower is designed to withstand typhoons and earthquakes and gale-force wind speeds of up to 90 meters per second. It is made of steel rings stacked on top of each other. The design also coated sheet steel with a thickness of 12 to 22 millimeters.