As the year-end season got underway last month, Grand Hyatt Tokyo hosted 21 children aged 3 to 12 from Aiiku Gakuen, a special needs school in Minato Ward, for a Christmas event with Santa Claus.
The event was part of the hotel’s annual holiday charity program. Under this year’s theme of “Grand Love,” the hotel hopes to use the charity campaign to share great acts of kindness, embrace the entire world with love and wish everyone a holiday season overflowing with happiness.
After a run from 2016 to 2019, the event was suspended for the COVID-19 pandemic but resumed in 2021.
On the day of the event, the children arrived at the hotel in two separate groups and were greeted by Santa Claus in the first-floor lobby. Seeing St. Nick brought bright smiles to their faces, and each received his help decorating one of the hotel’s Christmas trees with hand-made cork ornaments.
The lobby was transformed into a stunning, sparkling red display symbolizing the Grand Love theme. Twenty beautiful heart motifs were artfully placed within the decorations to celebrate the hotel’s 20th anniversary.
The ornaments were made by people with disabilities at the nonprofit organization Re Kikou by reusing wine and Champagne corks gathered by the hotel.
The ornaments can be bought throughout the hotel and are included in the Christmas hampers sold at the hotel’s Fiorentina Pastry Boutique until Dec. 25. All proceeds will be donated to NPO Kids Earth Fund to bolster their efforts to help children suffering from war, illness and disasters around the world. In addition, donation boxes are set up in the lobby to help support the work of Kids Earth Fund.
Toward the end of the event, each child was given a Christmas present from Santa to take home. Some of them hugged Santa and did not want to leave so quickly. They took a group photo with Santa and the hotel’s executive chef, Andreas Fuchs.
Upon leaving, the children waved goodbye, and some of them said “Merry Christmas,” “See you” and “Thank you” in a clear tone, leaving a warm Christmas feeling in the lobby.
For more information on Grand Hyatt Tokyo and its holiday charity program, access tokyo.grand.hyatt.com.