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Your first hour in Japan is the one you’re least equipped to improvise. You’ve just flown eleven hours, you’re holding a suitcase, and the signage offers you four different ways into the city at four different prices.
Decide this before you fly. Here’s the whole picture — both airports, real 2026 prices, and the one scenario that catches people out badly.
First: which airport are you landing at?
This matters more than anything else, and travelers routinely underestimate it.
- Haneda (HND) is inside Tokyo. You can be in the city centre in 15–30 minutes for under ¥600.
- Narita (NRT) is 60 km away in a different prefecture. Budget 60–110 minutes and ¥1,300–3,200.
If you’re still choosing flights: paying a little more to land at Haneda is almost always worth it — you save roughly an hour and ¥2,500 in each direction, plus the arrival-day exhaustion.
Haneda to Tokyo: fast and cheap
| Option | Price | Time | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Keikyu Line | ¥310 to Shinagawa | 13 min | Ginza, Asakusa, Yokohama — runs straight through onto the Asakusa Line, so no transfer for many hotels |
| Tokyo Monorail | ¥500 to Hamamatsucho | 13–18 min | Anywhere on the JR Yamanote loop |
| Limousine Bus | ¥1,000–1,400 | 45–70 min | Heavy luggage, families, direct hotel drop-off, Tokyo Disney |
| Taxi | ¥3,500–6,000 | 30–50 min | Groups of 3–4, or after the trains stop |
Trains run roughly 05:00–23:30. Note how cheap this is: two people can reach central Tokyo from Haneda for less than the price of an airport coffee.
Narita to Tokyo: the four real options
| Option | Price | Time | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Keisei Skyliner | from ¥2,310 (discounted online) | 41 min to Ueno | Fastest. Ueno, Asakusa, and anywhere you don’t mind one transfer |
| Narita Express (N’EX) | ¥3,070 | ~60 min to Tokyo Stn, ~80 to Shinjuku | Direct, reserved seats, no transfer — Tokyo Station, Shinjuku, Shibuya, Yokohama |
| Limousine Bus | ~¥3,200 | 75–110 min | Direct hotel drop-off, heavy luggage — but traffic-dependent |
| Keisei Access Express | ~¥1,300 | ~75–90 min | The budget choice. Slower, no reserved seat, but genuinely cheap |
One important note: the Narita Express is covered by the JR Pass, and the others are not. That doesn’t make the pass worth buying on its own — see the full JR Pass math — but if you already hold one, take the N’EX.
→ Check discounted Narita transfer tickets (Skyliner, N’EX, bus)
Pick by where you’re staying
- Ginza / Tokyo Station area → From Haneda: Keikyu, direct to Higashi-Ginza. From Narita: N’EX to Tokyo Station. (Ginza’s direct Haneda link is one reason I recommend it — see my Ginza hotel guide.)
- Shinjuku / Shibuya → From Haneda: Monorail or Limousine Bus. From Narita: N’EX direct, or Skyliner + one transfer if you want to save ¥700.
- Asakusa / Ueno → From Haneda: Keikyu straight through on the Asakusa Line. From Narita: Skyliner. Both are the easy cases.
- Traveling with children or three suitcases → Limousine Bus from either airport. Paying ¥2,000 extra to avoid stairs and transfers is money well spent — my family guide covers more of this.
⚠️ The late-night trap
This is the part that ruins arrival days, and almost no one plans for it.
Trains and buses from Narita stop running around 22:00–23:00. If your flight lands at 21:30 and immigration takes an hour, you can miss the last train — and a taxi from Narita into Tokyo runs ¥20,000–25,000. That is not a typo.
If you’re arriving late:
- Check the last departure times for your route before you fly
- Consider an airport hotel for the first night and travel in fresh the next morning
- Or fly into Haneda, where trains run later and taxis cost a fraction as much
Ayako’s Local Tip
Buy your airport transfer ticket online before you land, not at the counter. The queue at the Narita ticket window after a wide-body arrival can be 30 minutes, and the discounted online Skyliner fare is cheaper than the window price anyway. Have the QR code ready on your phone — which means having working data the moment you land, not after you find Wi-Fi.
Bottom line
From Haneda: take the train. ¥310–500 and you’re in the city in under 20 minutes. There is rarely a reason to pay more.
From Narita: Skyliner if you want speed and value, N’EX if you want a direct seat to Shinjuku or Shibuya, Limousine Bus if you’re outnumbered by your luggage.
Once you’re in the city, everything gets easy — central Tokyo is smaller than it looks.
Prices and journey times checked August 2026. Fares change and traffic varies — confirm current prices and last-train times before you travel.
Thanks for reading! I’m Ayako, a business owner in Ginza writing honest guides from inside Tokyo. More about me here.
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