Kyoto Tower

Kyoto Tower is the tallest structure in the city, a white steel tower rising directly opposite Kyoto Station and completed in 1964. Its design, meant to evoke a lighthouse or a candle rather than any temple form, made it controversial in a city famous for low wooden architecture. An observation deck near the top gives wide views over the tiled roofs of the old capital toward the surrounding mountains, and coin-operated telescopes pick out distant landmarks. The building below houses shops, eateries, and a hotel.