Narita Airport to Tokyo Hotel

Hey,

What does the web site for your hotel say?

It depends on where your hotel is. There's no one best way for all hotels. As rizzuto said, check your hotel's website.

Fastest and easiest is hotel limo. You will be met and cared for right outside the secure area. Price is hefty.

There is the Tokyo Airporter transportation service which is similar but a bit less expensive.

The airport limo bus service is also easy and goes right to your hotel (Park Hyatt or Peninsula?). Much cheaper than cars.

Narita express goes to Tokyo station and from there a short taxi to the Peninsula.

If you are worried about train from the airport to the hotel, I'm curious how you think you will manage from Tokyo to Kyoto and Kyoto to Nagasaki. Especially to Nagasaki, as you will need to change trains. There is no baggage service for trains, and there are no porters in the stations.

Takuhaibin: http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2278.html

Baggage delivery may not work for a cruise ship. I don't know about this case, but other cruises from Osaka don't accept baggage delivery at the port office. Also, The stays in each place are only 3 nights. Bags take at least an overnight to be delivered, which may not be covenant or feasible for them.

Packing light would be a priority I'd think.

We returned last night. We used the Narita Express train from the airport to hotel. It was easy, fast and cheap. There is space for luggage in the back of each car with a shelf midway. You can even lock your bag in for free if you want. You can transfer to other trains with your bags, but bag accomodations vary on other trains. You can find a cab easily at Tokyo station or walk.

Also, we used the shinkansen (bullet) trains to go between Tokyo and Kyoto. We had no problems with our bags. They have a rack above the seats that is large enough for carry-on bags and there is space behind the back row for luggage. This space might hold four large bags total. Most people travel light and this was not a problem. Also, there is lots of legroom, with room for a bag, though it might not be as comfortable.

That said, we packed relatively light. We had 2 carry-ons and one larger bag (std size). Bags with four wheels are more manageable. Also, when we go again, all will be in carry-ons. Two carry-ons are easier than one big bag as they fit above and are easier to manage in the aisles. (Though again, zero problem on the Narita Exrpess)

We did take one cab from our hotel to Tokyo Central RR to catch the Narita Express yesterday. We could have used the train but our hotel was 2 blocks from the station and DH did not want to shlep and get too sweaty. It was very hot. It would have involved a local train that did not have storage and been tight.

The trains are super - truly great. Just pack light and don't worry. It was far easier than we had expected.

I should add, we got out train tickets at the JR Info station in Narita. There was a very kind gentleman there, who spoke English (JR employee) who helped us. We wound up getting round-trip Narita to Osaka. I believe this was a summer special and the cost was 168,820 yen (about $185). You can stop off anywhere along the line with this ticket. We stopped first in Tokyo for the night.

We supplemented the pass with the upgrade to the Nozomi bullet (shinkansen) from Tokyo to Kyoto for 5,740 Yen (Yikes, I didn't write if this was for one or two tickets! It's about $65 for 2, then. You can do that at the JR office in the train station where they sell tickets. I just read that you can use the rail pass, and hence, I am sure the ticket we bought in the first place (without a supplement), for a different bullet, the Hikari, which is almost as fast.

We stayed in Kyoto for several days, then used our ticket again to go to Osaska for the Bunraku theater. Then back to Kyoto.

We got the Nozomi upgrade again to get to Tokyo, stayed the night and used the ticket again to get to Narita, on the Narita express (just under an hour to Narita from Tokyo Station).

We did not get the JR pass, which is available outside of Japan only. I think we did better with our special rt ticket between Tokyo and Osaka. I do not think this is always available. We did use the JR for other trips, like to Uji. We used the subways a lot and I don't think the JR pass would have been useful on them, though I am not sure.

PS, to clarify, the Narita to Osaka ticket was for 2 wks and allowed stopoffs enroute. It was 168,820 yen apiece. I think this was a summer special. I understand you can take the Hikari bullet on this ticket, but the Nozomi bullet requires a supplementary cost. You can go to the JR info station at major train stations to do this. The trains are quite frequent and very comfortable.

Not a lot of people speak English. You have to ask for directions. My husband kept saying it was a miracle we figured our way around. I tried to tell him, no, I actually asked for directions. This is hard for men! Just give the name of your stop (in writing or spoken) to anyone and they will direct you. You may have to ask a few as you can only follow so many hand signals at once, but you just follow the path as you ask people, turning as need be. People are very eager to help. I'd try to target rr personnel or high school age boys for info as I figured the former got asked a lot, so practiced basic English and the latter had just had it in school and weren't too shy to help. When we'd open a map, people would often stop to help. It is very perplexing to see all the signs in Japanese characters, but at the major train stations, English lettering is used, and also on the major trains they announce stops in English.

I keep adding! There are also colors for different rail lines which help in following routes through train stations. Plus the maps are helpful. They are on walls in the stations (though you have to find the ones with English characters), and we carried maps in hand everywhere, and, as I said, you can ask for directions. In Kyoto, we even learned how to use the automatic subway ticket machines, even though they are totally in characters (and attendant got tired of having us ask him at his booth and showed us how to do it. It was quite easy, once you knew what to press).

With bags, the "Airport Limousine Bus" is the easiest.
Airport Limousine Bus operates direct bus service between Narita airport and major downtown hotels. So if you stay at one of this hotels, you can get between airport and your hotel by this bus. Fares are 3,000 yen/pp and the ride takes 70 – 120 minutes, depending on the location of your hotel.

Go to "Airport Limousine Bus" website at http://www.limousinebus.co.jp/en/
The left hand side box is for taking you from airport to downtown.
1) Make sure the radio button is on "Narita airport".
2) Select the area name where your hotel is located.
3) Select a hotel in the area that is on the bus' route. If your hotel is not on the list, then select a hotel name on the list that is closest to your hotel.
4) Click on the "Search" button. You'll see a list of bus schedule displayed.

Best of luck.

If you should find yourself having to wait for more than 30 minutes at Narita for a "Airport Limousine Bus" to your hotel, then take a "Airport Limousine Bus" to T-CAT (Tokyo City Air Terminal) stop instead, and then take a taxi from T-CAT to your hotel.
The "Airport Limousine Bus" from Narita to T-CAT is very frequent, about every 10 - 15 minutes. If you select the "T-CAT (Tokyo City Air Terminal)" destination from the first drop down list, then select "Tokyo City Air Terminal" from the second drop down list, click on the 'Search' button, you'll see bus schedules from Narita to T-CAT stop, it is about every 10 to 15 minutes. And the fare from Narita to T-CAT stop is 2900Yen/pp.