Japan · HND
Flights to Tokyo
Where the arrival airport changes your first evening
Tokyo rewards planning more than almost any city on this list, partly because the two airports are genuinely different propositions and partly because the two most attractive travel windows are also the two busiest.
The trip is long from anywhere in the US, so the details that decide whether it starts well are the arrival airport, the hour you land, and whether you have sorted local transport before you are standing in an unfamiliar station.
Getting to Tokyo
Airports
Haneda (HND) is close to the city and increasingly serves US routes. Narita (NRT) is around 60 to 90 minutes out. Given a genuine choice at a similar fare, Haneda usually wins on the strength of that difference alone.
Flight time
Roughly 11 to 12 hours non-stop from Los Angeles or San Francisco, and about 13 to 14 from New York.
Into the city
From Haneda, the monorail reaches Hamamatsuchō in about 15 minutes and the Keikyū line reaches Shinagawa in a similar time. From Narita, the Skyliner and the Narita Express both take around an hour to central stations, and the cheaper local trains take longer.
When to go
Demand rather than price is described here on purpose. Any fare we show you comes from a live search on your own dates, so a fixed figure on this page would be out of date before you read it.
Busiest
Late March to early April, and November
Cherry blossom and autumn colour are the two peaks, and both are short, weather-dependent and heavily booked. Late April into early May is a domestic holiday period and busier still.
Good value
May to June, and October
Pleasant conditions either side of the peaks, with early summer bringing a rainy spell that keeps demand down without ruining a trip.
Quietest
January to February
Cold and clear, with the lowest fares of the year and very little queuing. Mid-summer is also cheaper but genuinely hot and humid.
Good to know
- Currency
- Japanese yen (JPY)
- Language
- Japanese, with English signage on major transport
- Time zone
- Japan Standard Time, with no daylight saving
- Power
- Type A and B plugs, 100V
- Entry for US passports
- Visa-free for short tourist stays of up to 90 days. Confirm the current position with Japanese immigration before travelling.
Entry requirements change and we are not an immigration authority. Always confirm the current rules for your nationality with the relevant government before you book or travel.
Worth sorting before you fly
Get an IC card, not a rail pass, if you are staying in the city
A Suica or Pasmo card covers trains, subways and buses with a tap. The nationwide rail pass only pays for itself if you are making long trips out of Tokyo, and it is frequently bought by people who never leave the metropolitan area.
Carry some cash
Card acceptance is now widespread but not universal, and smaller restaurants, shrines and markets still work in cash. Convenience store ATMs reliably take foreign cards.
Cherry blossom dates cannot be booked in advance
Peak bloom shifts by a week or more year to year and lasts only days. If that is the point of the trip, build in flexibility rather than betting a fixed itinerary on a forecast.
Pick a base near a major line
Tokyo is enormous and the difference between a hotel two minutes from a Yamanote line station and one fifteen minutes' walk away compounds over a week.
Other destinations
FAQ
Tokyo — common questions
Airports, timing, and when it is worth talking to an agent.
Is it worth paying more to land at Haneda instead of Narita?
Often, yes. Haneda saves roughly an hour each way and puts you in the city while the trains are still running, which matters if you land late. Whether the fare difference justifies it depends on how much it is and how long your trip is — an hour saved matters more on a five-day visit than a three-week one. It is a straightforward thing to price both ways.
When is the cheapest time to fly to Tokyo?
January and February are the clear low season, and the early summer rainy weeks are also softer. We do not quote fare figures because a route this long swings substantially with season and demand, and a printed number would mislead you — the live search prices your dates.
How far ahead should I book for cherry blossom season?
Further ahead than for most trips, because demand is concentrated into a narrow window that both international and domestic travellers are targeting. The complication is that the bloom itself cannot be predicted that far out, so the practical approach is to book early for a plausible window and accept that you are buying the season rather than the peak week. An agent can talk through which fare types let you move if the forecast shifts.
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