Abstract
Urban strategies and tourism policies directed towards the 2020 Tokyo Olympics regard restaurants agglomerated in commercial areas of cities as tourism and nightlife resources that attract much attention. This study clarifies the characteristics of three famous commercial areas in Tokyo (Shinjuku, Ginza, and Shibuya) in terms of the agglomeration of restaurants and their business hours. Using voluminous restaurant POI data, the spatial distribution of restaurants’ opening hours during the day (at 13 : 00 as a representational time), night (at 19 : 00), and late-night (at 25 : 00) were analyzed. The results revealed many restaurants that open at night, day, and late-night. This is because many restaurants located in these areas are “izakaya (Japanese style bars),” “dining bars, bars, and beer halls,” and “yakitori, meat dishes and skewers” and open at night. Some restaurants that provide alcoholic beverages continue or commence their business during late-night hours, although almost all other types of restaurants do not. This is one of the characteristics of entertainment districts. As for the spatial distribution, restaurants that open during late-night hours are concentrated over a certain range rather than ones that open at night (especially in Shinjuku and Ginza).
