Hassleless travelling to and from Japan in comfort?

January 20, 2006 3:34 PM

A friend of mine and I are going to Japan in a couple months and are getting our tickets now. We'll be leaving from Washington, DC and will be arriving in Tokyo and leaving from Osaka later. I'm worried about comfort, he's worried about price. We're both worried about the hassle of switching/transferring between the two Tokyo airports on the way back. Suggestions?

Basically, I really am worried about how long the trip is and being comfortable. I've heard good things about ANA and JAL and am somewhat worried about flying an American airline (he wants to do American or United since it's cheaper, but I've been reading some bad things about their flights) due to possibly lower service/amenities.

We were originally going to fly ANA over and back, but ANA makes one go from Osaka to HND, then having to travel cross Tokyo to get to NRT to fly out... within three hours, and it (supposedly) takes 75 minutes to get from one airport to another.

Does anyone have any experiences/suggestions regarding what to do? Am I just carrier-phobic? Do we really not so much to worry about transferring between the two airports?

Domo Arrigato!

posted by tittergrrl to travel & transportation (14 comments total)

It does indeed take about 75 minutes to get from Narita to Haneda. However, there are two ways to get from Narita to Haneda fairly quickly by train.

There are also limousine buses -- but be very careful about using them during morning and evening rush hours.
posted by armage at 3:55 PM on January 20, 2006

How quick is "fairly quickly?" Ballpark. Just so I can let my friend know.

Do you happen to know how bad customs would be? Since, as I said, we would be outgoing and don't know if that would add an appreciable amount to our wait time. Does the "get there two hours before" rule apply in Japan?
posted by tittergrrl at 3:57 PM on January 20, 2006

By "fairly quickly" I mean under two hours. Actually, I just realized: if you have a JR Rail Pass, you can take the Narita Express to Shinagawa and transfer to the Keikyu Line to Haneda. (You can take NEX without the pass, but it costs about 3000 yen.) The NEX leg takes 65 minutes, and the Keikyu leg takes about 15-20. That will probably be the fastest way to get there, I think. (Reverse that if you're coming from Haneda, of course.)

Customs is... a variable experience. What day are you flying in? When I arrived on a Sunday in September, customs took an hour. When my girlfriend came after Christmas, it took her ten minutes. I came on a 747, though, so that may have had an effect. It's hard to tell, but I'd allow an hour for customs anywhere. And yes, the "two hours before" rule does apply, but you could probably shave that down to an hour if you're in a rush. Security was never a problem IIRC, since they don't make you take off your shoes and all that rigamarole here in Japan.
posted by armage at 4:06 PM on January 20, 2006

If you can avoid it, though, just fly to/from Narita or Kansai airports. Transferring, although doable and fairly quick given the distance, is a hassle if you're talking about a layover of 3 hours like you are. I suspect you'll be pulling your hair out if you just miss a train that only comes once an hour (which happens).
posted by armage at 4:10 PM on January 20, 2006

Thank you so much for helping me!

Um, we're flying from Osaka to Tokyo and from Tokyo to the US on April 12th, which is a wednesday. The flights I found on ANA are in the morning. Like, arrive at Haneda at 8:03, flight back to the states at 11:08 from Narita. If that information helps at all.

Also, any recommendations on airlines? American vs. Japanese? Other options? Am I just getting worked up over nothing? :)

(Admission: this is my first "real" vacation in like five years, so I'm looking for as little problems as possible ;) )

Thank you again, so much. And anyone else who might be able to help!
posted by tittergrrl at 4:12 PM on January 20, 2006

If you can avoid it, though, just fly to/from Narita or Kansai airports.

That is what we may do. United offers that. Just, again, I'm a little wary of an American airlines. But I'd rather not be crying stuck in Japan too. ;)
posted by tittergrrl at 4:13 PM on January 20, 2006

No problem, it's my pleasure :-)

Yeah, with that tight of a schedule, I don't recommend transferring between airports. A layover of four hours would give you peace of mind, but two hours is near impossible, I'm afraid. You'll be sleeping (I assume) for a good chunk of the time on the plane, so whether it's an American airline or a Japanese one won't matter too much. (Though I love flying with ANA, too -- they haven't been cutting down their amenities nearly as much as the US airlines have...)

I hope this helped you out. If you have any other questions about Japan, airport-related or otherwise, feel free to drop me an email!
posted by armage at 4:20 PM on January 20, 2006

typically asian airlines have slightly nicer in-flight services. slightly better food, nicer flight attendants, and depending on the carrier and plane you happen to get, maybe your own little TV and video games etc. but to be honest, it's not really worth the extra $500 or whatever it costs to fly on ANA.

in my experience, flights on american carriers to asia tend to have a higher level of service than you get on domestic or european flights.

a tip: lots of airlines offer special food choices. i've noticed on flights on united, anyway, that if you ask for 'asian vegetarian' this stuff is typically WAY better than the typical airline crap, fresher and more interesting, and plus they bring it out to you first before they start serving the rest of the passengers.

also, it is important to book early and choose your seats carefully before they fill up. try to get an emergency exit row. that extra six inches/foot of space is REALLY worth it on a 10-hour flight. seriously.

also, in the question you said that you were flying into tokyo and out of osaka, but then seemed to reverse this in your followup comment? i don't know about narita, but at kansai in osaka, when i was there anyway, departing international passengers got socked with a $50 "international departure fee" that wasn't included in the ticket price. you had to buy a card from a little machine in the airport and present it before you were allowed to go through to your gate. i don't know if they still do this, but be prepared for it if you fly out of kansai. you could probably find out with a little surfing.

also, it may be cheaper and easier to try and book an "open jaw" flight, which is an arrival/departure from different cities. depending on your luck, this is sometimes not much more expensive than a regular roundtrip. so call up some airlines and ask about it. hecka easier than trying to hoof it across tokyo and catch your return flight.

cheers!
posted by sergeant sandwich at 4:32 PM on January 20, 2006

I like JAL. I recommend booking through JTB USA. (JTB is Japan Travel Bureau, a gigantic travel agency that aggregates a huge number of seats, and also happens to like JAL. They have a number of offices around the USA--just google them.) I've also had good experiences with Korean Air and Malaysian Airlines.

I would also look into booking an open-jaw. That'd be ideal. You can take the shinkansen between Tokyo and Osaka that way. And if you can avoid a tightly scheduled transfer between Narita and Haneda, so much the better.

It is a long trip, no question, but it can be tolerable, especially if you take a nip of scotch and a dramamine right after take-off. Zzzz.

Sergeant Sandwich—Narita also has a ¥4000 (?) "departure tax" that's not included in your ticket.
posted by adamrice at 4:42 PM on January 20, 2006

I love this thread - I'm looking at taking the same trip (into Narita, out of Osaka KIX) later this year.

Regarding airfare, it looks to me like the best prices for airfare are from travel agents who specialize in Japan tourism (JTB sounds like a good bet). You may be surprised at how cheaply you can get an open-jaw via a travel agency versus trying to book yourself. I found a recommendation elsewhere on AskMe for TourEast.ca (a Canadian tour company). Their open-jaw from Toronto > Tokyo and Osaka > Toronto is easily half the cost of a corresponding ticket booked thru Expedia or Travelocity.
posted by Gortuk at 5:08 PM on January 20, 2006

Right now, American and United (IIRC) have $400 RT fares from various US cities to Kansai, which is a nice deal. If you spend some money on a very useful Japan Rail Pass you can land in Kansai, see the sights of Nara, Kyoto, Osaka, and Kobe and still be able to make day trips to Hiroshima and Tokyo for a day, if you wanted to.
posted by armage at 5:29 PM on January 20, 2006

Unless you are traveling business class a 10 hour flight is not the most enjoyable, no matter what carrier. I would go for the best rate possible.
I regularly take 15 hour flights and find the real trick is to see my doctor before hand. Discuss my anxiety of a long flight and worry about being able to sleep in such a cramped manner. They will prescribe valium/sleep aid. The flight is over in no time and I always arrive well rested and relaxed.
posted by arruns at 9:19 PM on January 20, 2006

Kansai International Airport (KIX) Departure Tax is ¥2650, included in ticket price since 2002. Narita International Airport (NRT) Departure Tax is ¥2040, also included in ticket price.
posted by planetkyoto at 9:03 AM on January 21, 2006

Customs took me 30 minutes in 2004. I almost forgot to dump the Sudafed coming in from Thailand. You should have a place to stay at least the first night -- address, phone number -- at your ready during your Customs visit. The Customs woman was surprised I didn't have anything lined up, but she still let me slide. Customs.

If you are lucky you will get a JAL flight that has the super videogame/plane cam in-seat remote. This also probably means that you will get to play bingo with all the other passengers - they pass out cards, two flight attendants stand off to the side holding/displaying the prizes, etc. Such a hoot.
posted by user92371 at 9:47 AM on January 21, 2006