So, on an upcoming flight I have to change airports in Tokyo, going from HND to NRT, international flight inbound and out, on ANA (the result of a change in schedule on a rewards ticket - I would never book that craziness).
There’s a decent amount of info on FlyerTalk and some other places about
a) connecting international to domestic from Narita to Haneda; and
b) coming into Haneda late night and getting thorugh customs / immigration (because of the fact that mass transit stops running before some people can get out of the airport)
I’m looking for slightly different experiences/details. I know about the Limo-Bus and I’m good to go there.
What I’m curious about is
how long it takes to clear customs and immigration (US citizen) at Haneda when you land in the morning - I get in at 7:40 am on a Tuesday.
how bad the traffic is going from HND to NRT on a weeday morning?
Now, obviously, the traffic isn’t going ot be good. But I’m hoping it isn’t quite as bad as the reverse NRT-HND, because I’ll be going out of Tokyo instead of into it (or so I think, I don’t have any experience with Tokyo).
as far as check in at NRT, how early do you typically need to get there if you’re checking in first class?
I realize this is pretty specific and there may not be anyone who has details, but I figure it can’t hurt to ask.
I’ve never had to switch from one airport to another, in Tokyo, and I think I only ever had one flight from Haneda, so I can’t say much.
If you take a train, you don’t have to worry about traffic, so you might consider that. Even if it’s more roundabout, you’ll know exactly what the schedule is. (The Japanese would also know the exact schedule of the bus, since they’ll have incorporated traffic into the scheduling, but that information is probably harder to track down).
As a non-resident you’ll have to go through the foreigner line in customs. They have it streamlined so that residents get their pick of several customs agents and foreigners all have to wait in line for one or two. This could take 25-40 minutes on its own, besides walking the huge distances of Narita, getting your luggage, and waiting for trains/busses.
What time you arrive is less of a factor than how many other international flights will be arriving just before your arrival time. Strangely, I do not see a flight arriving at 07:40 on a Tuesday at Haneda. There are about five scheduled international arrivals between 06:00 and your scheduled arrival and depending on if/how late they are, you will get stuck in immigration before the other passengers. Assuming everything goes smoothly, it should take you about 15-20 minutes to clear immigration and then another 10 minutes to clear customs assuming you get priority handling of your checked luggage (if your flight to Haneda is flight class as well).
I’m not sure how to quantify the level of traffic, but taking the Wangan line in or out of Tokyo is going to be congested. If you take the airport shuttle bus, expect an 85-minute ride considering the time of day. If you take a taxi, you may be able to shave 5-10 minutes. I do not recommend taking the train because of transfers and the longer time it will take.
If you’re going first class, get to the check-in counter about 60 minutes before your flight leaves. This will give you enough time to check your bags and clear security without running to the gate, (although I personally like to check-in 90 minutes before my flight time and have a drink or two in the lounge). If you’re pressed for time (because of the transfer between HND and NRT), you might make it with 45 minutes but you’re going to be sweating it.
Sorry for the sequential post (I missed the edit window) but I forgot you will be a foreign national trying to clear immigration. You should give yourself a little bit longer, maybe 20-30 minutes to clear immigration, again, assuming there isn’t a back log of passengers from earlier flights.
If you’re not familiar with Tokyo then definitely just get the Airport Limo between them and DON’T try and navigate the trains between the two airports. Its not straight forward and even though in theory it might be quicker there is much more chance of you getting on the wrong line or missing your stop and not making it to Narita in time.
100% agree. Taking the train seems like way too high of a risk of me screwing something up.
My mistake, it’s at 6:40. Flight is ANA 850.
Super helpful (as was your entire post, as well as the follow up). My inbound is business class in a 2 class flight (there is no first on 850). But, the ticket is still a 1st class ticket, so hopefully I’ll get whatever help that may be worth.
Again, this was exactly what I was looking for.
Thanks - I’ve been looking at the bus schedules, and basically it works out that I’m trying to catch either the 7:40 or the 8:25.
The 7:40 would means I’d need to clear the airport in 1 hour flat. That seems possible, but pretty iffy.
If I did catch it, and it took 85 minutes to get to NRT, that would put me there at 9:05. With an 11:05 flight, that’s no problem at all.
The 8:25 would mean I’d have to clear the airport in 1:45, which I think should be fine if things go relatively normal.
If I caught the 8:25 and it took 85 minutes, that would put me there at 9:50. That would give me 1:15, which again, looks like it would be OK.
So, basically there were 2 risks that I was interested in.
I miss the 8:25 - that means another 35 minutes to the schedule, which would put me in about 40 minutes before departure, probably not smart.
The bus takes more than an 1:45 or so. Not a problem if I catch the 7:40, but with arriving 75 minutes before departure based on an 85 minute ride on the 8:25, this could get sketchy pretty quickly.
So, my take aways after all of your help is
[ul]
[li]If I catch the 7:40 I’m golden - not entirely impossible depending on how the flight does with schedule[/li][li]If I catch the 8:25, I’ve probably got a 90% chance or better of being OK[/li][li]If I miss the 8:25, I need to grab a cab and I’ll probably be alright if I get in one by 8:40 or so, with some chance to make it even later[/li][li]If the bus or taxi hits crazy traffic, things can get pretty hairy[/li][/ul]
So, I’m thinking that I won’t do anything crazy like try to ship my luggage or try to fit 3 weeks and change into carry ons only. I probably won’t bother on spending 200$+ on a taxi if I can catch the 8:25.
Anyone think if I’ve misjudged or should consider anything else?
If you’re arriving at 06:40, and assuming your flight doesn’t get delayed by more than 15 minutes, I can (virtually) guarantee you will clear customs in time to catch the 07:40 bus to NRT. In fact, if you’re one of the first to get to out of the plane, the biggest hold up may be the wait for your luggage to come out of the carousel. If there is a long line at the immigration counter, show an attendant your plane ticket with the time of your flight out of NRT and they may take you to the line for foreign nationals with re-entry permits, which is invariably shorter.
The only way this is going to happen is if your arrival gets delayed by more than an hour. If so, you will most definitely have to take a taxi, and tell him to step on it. Do not wait for the 09:00 bus.
It is virtually unheard of for the bus to take more than 90 minutes to get to even the furthest terminal(1) at NRT. Unless… there is some extraordinary (not the usual) traffic delay on the Wangan line, in which case the bus driver will inform you before you board the bus because they get real-time traffic information from a central office. And when I say extraordinary, I mean like a presidential motorcade or Godzilla. So even if you catch the 08:25 bus, you will arrive at NRT by 10:00 which will give you enough time to make your 11:05 flight.
