9.5 hours in Tokyo

[my retro career]

Hi,

Continental Airlines has a great price from Newark NJ to Bangkok.....BUT......on the return flight there is a 9-1/2 hour stopover at Narita.


I've heard of legendary taxi costs from Narita to downtown Tokyo- approx. how much is that ?
And how long of a travel time is that?

What are my train alternatives to the city to kill off the time?

BTW, there is also a lengthly layover on the "to" flight - a 4-1/2 hour wait....also at Narita.

Advice & thoughts appreciated!

[joanofarc]

hey ray! i had a 1.5 hour layover in narita on my way home from bangkok just recently, and from what i could see from the airport, the outside looked really pretty! okay, here's the juice (i stole this from another site on-line):

Narita Express Train goes to Tokyo station [56 min.], Ikebukuro station [88 min.], Shinjuku station [82 min.],and Yokohama station [95 min.] (2890 yen, 3050 yen, 3050 yen, and 4100 yen, respectively)
Keisei Skyliner train goes to Ueno station (about 1900 yen) [60 min.]

Airport Limousine buses (Tokyo City Air Terminal [1.5 hours, 2700 yen], Yokohama City Air Terminal [1 hr 40 min.], 3300 yen; Haneda airport [1 hr 30 min.], 3000 yen; various hotels in downtown Tokyo [1 hr 40 min.], 2400-3000 yen; Tokyo Disneyland, 2200 yen)

Taxi to Tokyo and Yokohama, 20,000 yen [1 hr 40 min]

These figures came from Japan Handbook, by JD Bisignani and may be slightly dated.

*</span> i'd bring $100usd in yen on top of that to cover misc. costs, a lunch, some cool purchases, etc. AND i heard shinjuku is a super cool area... something to consider!

<span style=\'colorurple\'>btw: i just found a $687.50 r/t from san diego to bangkok for my trip in march!! WOW!

[omisan]

A warning from - of all people - my mom, regarding taking the train into Tokyo from Narita. Once you're on the train and in the stations, she says there's no English signage whatsoever, and very few of the signs are in Romanji (japanese spelled out with roman characters) - so get a GOOD guide before you enjoy those 9.5 hours

[my retro career]

Cool beans....I'm SO into Tokyo recently.....

....all of Japan, really....

So I shall weigh the option of spending more time there...


perhaps even a day or two....

thanks Omi, Joanie !

[my retro career]

BTW...those are great infos you have there Joanie !

Thanks!

[omisan]

Here's a link from my mom:

http://www.keisei.co.jp/keisei/tetudou/kei...sei_us/top.html

And here's her bit in her lovely broken English:

one way between Narita -Tokyo is around 1.000 yen depend which line he takes.
there are few lines to to Tokyo but it is better to use express which takes 55 minutes to one hour. this is also depend time of the day too. He better check the train map before he buys ticket and ask to make it sure to take a right one.

sometimes he must change the train. so to avoid that be very careful to take a right one.
do not ask just anyone, ask a man with uniform with hat.

[my retro career]

I've been looking at Jpn rail/subway maps from NRT to Tokyo, and I must say at first glance it looks intimidating.....


There's so many different lines and companies - it's hard to grasp online....but once there I hope I'll be able to use some past travel experiences to help me manoeuvre my way around with ease and speed....

[my retro career]

The fish market is a MUST visit....what better time to go than the first night there, when I'm still trying to shake off my jet-lag?

It seems the subways stop running at around midnight so it looks like I'll have to fork out for the taxi ride to the fishy market at 4 am.....yay! B)


Or if I can brave the Japanese writings I can also bus it...

[my retro career]

Does anyone know of - or can anyone comment on a service recommended by at least one website - called takkyuubin - or "baggage delivery service"?

It's a baggage delivery service from airports to hotel, and it's supposedly very inexpensive, safe & 100% reliable.

Then again, I'm carrying a small backpack plus a small luggage - that's it. So I'm not even sure if this applies to me.