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Twelve Hours in Tokyo - Suggestions?
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Originally posted by yflyer View PostDurian, enjoy Suites! I guess you will be transiting NRT and not HND. Why such a long transit? For me the transit was necessary because I was travelling during "Golden Week" where flights are chock full and availability was limited...not to mention the fact that JAL's 787 only flies to SFO via HND...
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Originally posted by Durian View PostHi yflyer, that's a redemption ticket, so when I booked it, the only choice that was available at the Saver rate was that one with the looooong connection
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Originally posted by jhm View PostOops! I was getting you confused with Durian!
If you arrive HND at 10am and depart at midnight and you've seen the most of the sights in Tokyo already, you could hop on a plane somewhere else in Japan for the day. It's a fixed price regardless of the distance - JPY 20,000 (about S$250) for the return - and there are some conditions you need to comply with:
http://www.sqtalk.com/forum/showthre...light=domestic
With this, you could go anywhere (even making it in time for lunch) but suggestions include Sapporo in Hokkaido; Fukuoka in Kyushu;
[...SNIP...]
...or Kanazawa (via Komatsu) on Honshu's north coast. If you go to the latter, try going to Komatsu Yasuke where the sushi master is 82-years old:
http://www.smh.com.au/travel/activit...1209-6ul3.html
Unlike Jiro who's has a known dislike for foreigners (e.g. here) and bangs out the sushi so that you have to eat and leave within about 30 minutes (e.g. here), Komatsu Yasuke was great when I visited last year. The sushi chef with his limited English was kind, the sushi was great, it wasn't hard to get a booking and it was a lot cheaper than Jiro.
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I get very nervous doing a short jaunt like that within a day, especially if I have a flight to connect to. I very, very nearly missed a previous flight and only through sheer luck managed to get there 3 minutes before they stopped issuing BPs in the ICN transfer area. The transfer CIQ inspection area was utterly backlogged way down the corridor and even nearly into the escalators. Utter mess that was. All it takes is for one flight to be delayed or retimed and your whole world becomes a shambles. Trains to Yokohama, however, are ultra-frequent, and even if you miss your intended one, there'll be another one along shortly.
Much safer in my book.
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Originally posted by Kyo View PostI get very nervous doing a short jaunt like that within a day, especially if I have a flight to connect to. I very, very nearly missed a previous flight and only through sheer luck managed to get there 3 minutes before they stopped issuing BPs in the ICN transfer area. The transfer CIQ inspection area was utterly backlogged way down the corridor and even nearly into the escalators. Utter mess that was. All it takes is for one flight to be delayed or retimed and your whole world becomes a shambles. Trains to Yokohama, however, are ultra-frequent, and even if you miss your intended one, there'll be another one along shortly.
Much safer in my book.
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Originally posted by Kyo View PostI get very nervous doing a short jaunt like that within a day, especially if I have a flight to connect to.
Originally posted by Kyo View PostTrains to Yokohama
On the other hand, personally, there's plenty in Tokyo itself to keep me amused.
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Originally posted by Kyo View PostBut you see, he has to transit from a domestic flight to SFO, something not so domestic
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For most trips, and particularly business trips, I am very cautious when it comes to scheduling flights, to the extent of planning fairly long transit times (way in excess of MCT) just to build in enough buffer for flight delays, queues etc.
That said, I think if I was on vacation, and if there was really some place I wanted to go (or eat!) I might actually think about throwing caution to the wind and catching a domestic hop somewhere else while on a long layover.
I am finding this thread to be a goldmine for info on what to do while in transit in Japan
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Another suggestion is to do what I did one year whilst in transit for the day - cherry blossom viewing (for me, Ueno Park in Tokyo).
Where to go depends on the time - the cherry blossom bloom in the south of Japan and move north. By the time it gets to May next month and if it's during the first half of the month, you'd have to go up to Sapporo:
http://www.jnto.go.jp/sakura/eng/index.php
and these spots:
http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e5316.html
However, the last JL CTS-HND seems to be around 17:30 so assuming the OP arrives in Sapporo around midday, it gives only about 3-4 hours of sightseeing. Not so leisurely but still enough to see something, buy some souvenirs and grab lunch.
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Originally posted by yflyer View PostI'm flying JAL by the way...
Originally posted by Durian View Post...I read the ANA First lounge is as crappy as the Business one.
Originally posted by CarbonMan View PostObama just had a sushi meal at Jiro's.
Originally posted by yflyer View PostHow is the food onboard the shinkansen? I heard train stations in Japan have quite interesting food too...
Originally posted by yflyer View Post...just like how the Park Hyatt Tokyo is now perpetually full and not available for Hyatt Gold Passport redemptions, after the movie "Lost in Translation" came out...
Originally posted by jhm View PostYMMV of course but - for me at least - I'd go for it. Why ? Domestic so no CIQ. This is Japan which is super efficient, e.g. being able to check-in 10 mins before domestic flight departure. And of course building in time in my schedule to allow for delays etc. The OP arrives 10am and departs at midnight so there's plenty of time to go somewhere for lunch and some afternoon sightseeing and be back in Haneda for dinner.HUGE AL
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Originally posted by HUGE AL View PostI'd switch to another aircraft. JL pulled a Lufthansa and put slanted seats in a 2-2-2 config.
The interesting thing is that I believe the 767's they now use for SIN-HND use the new Sky Suite 6 (SS6) seats in J. I'll try to snap a picture of the SS6 as I walk past on the way to m(y) seat...
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Originally posted by HUGE AL View Post…and insultingly only ate HALF…after yammering the week before that he couldn't wait to eat sushi in Japan!
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