Car-friendly Tokyo accommodation

The Hyatt Regency Tokyo is offering a special accommodation plan called Summer Stay, through Sept. 30.

The special plan allows hotel guests use of the parking lot, swimming pool and fitness gym without any additional charges. Ten percent discounts will also be offered for use at the hotel's restaurants, bars and spa.

Accommodation and breakfast for children aged 12 or younger is free of charge. Check-in is from 5 p.m., checkout at 11 a.m. and guests can use the parking lot until 3:30 p.m. on the day of checkout.

The Summer Stay plan is ¥12,650 per person for one night with breakfast, which is a choice of Western or Japanese buffet. If guests prefer, they can exchange breakfast for lunch at Caffe, which is available from 10:30 a.m. to 2 p.m.

The swimming pool is available for children aged 5 or older, but those younger than 10 must be accompanied by an adult. The fitness gym is available for anyone aged 18 or over.

The Hyatt Regency Tokyo is a 1-minute walk from Tochomae Station (Oedo Line). For more information, see goo.gl/jKPiH.

An Asian cruise in the heart of Tokyo

The international cuisine restaurant Trader Vic's on the fourth floor of the Hotel New Otani Tokyo will offer an Oriental Cruise lunch and dinner from July 1 through Aug. 31.

Composed of Southeast Asian cuisine, the lady's lunch's theme is a cruise of the Malay Peninsula, and it includes tom yum goong, satay, salad with various fresh vegetables and cashew nuts, nasi goreng spicy fried rice and watermelon sorbet.

The dinner's theme is an Asian resort country cruise, offering satay from Malaysia, tom yum goong spicy shrimp soup from Thailand, cucumber salad with spiced yogurt from India and bulgogi beef filet steak from South Korea.

The lady's lunch costs ¥2,800 (men will be charged ¥3,500 for the same menu), and is available from 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. on weekdays and Saturdays. The cruise dinner is ¥10,500 and is served from 5 p.m. to 10 p.m.

The Hotel New Otani Tokyo is a 3-minute walk from both Nagatacho station (Hanzomon, Namboku and Yurakucho lines) and Akasaka-Mitsuke station (Ginza and Marunouchi lines). For more information, see www.newotani.co.jp/en/tokyo.

Three original pancakes by the bay

The New York Lounge at the Intercontinental Tokyo Bay Hotel has begun serving three kinds of original pancakes under the themes Healthy, Beauty and Fresh.

The Healthy pancake is a Japanese-style pancake with spinach mixed into its batter, and served with gyuhi soft mochi and adzuki red beans.

The Fresh pancake is a Western-style pumpkin pancake topped with fruit and custard, that balances the tartness of fresh fruit with the sweetness of custard cream.

The Beauty pancake is a collagen souffle pancake that has a rare grainy texture and contains plenty of collagen to help make your skin smoother.

The pancakes are all served with sauces of your choice: honey, brown-sugar syrup, caramel, chocolate and maple syrup.

Each dish costs ¥1,200 and all are available from 10:30 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. at the lounge every day. A drink set with the pancakes is also available at ¥1,800 on weekdays and ¥2,000 on weekends. Prices include tax and service charge.

The Intercontinental Tokyo Bay Hotel can be directly accessed from Takeshiba Station (Yurikamome Line). For more information, visit www.interconti-tokyo.com.