Tokyo Haneda airport

[silkismom]

Maybe I'm stressing too much, but, was wondering if anyone has gone from Terminal 3, where International flts come in--to terminal 1 for domestic flts to Osaka. We are supposed to land at HND on Japan airlines at 5:25 pm, have to go thru all the customs & immigration (do have the Visit Japan QR codes downloaded) then somehow get to Terminal 1 for a JAL flt to Osaka, Itami at 7:10 pm. Hope we don't have to go thru security, get/transfer bags also. All this after a 12 hr flt.

[floridatravelersforlife]

fI the both flights are on the same carrier and the flights are mid week, maybe.

 

With the way things are here in the States I would keep the stopover time with a buffer of over 2.5 hours

[silkismom]

Unfortunately the flts were booked by SilverseaAir and it was a real pain to get what we did. 

[cruiseaholic78]

This might help for the transfer for Haneda

https://tokyo-haneda.com/en/access/travel_between_terminals/index.html

Have you filled out both Quarantine procedures (fast track) and Disembarkation Card for Foreigner on the visit Japan web, we did and had Q codes for both and we were able to pass through immigration/customs very quickly. It took a while but was worth it, there were people every 5 meters or so telling us where to go.

Happy travels

Rosalyn

Edited March 16, 2023 by cruiseaholic78

[silkismom]

We have QR codes for immigration and customs, did we miss one?

[USN59-79]

1 hour ago, silkismom said:

We have QR codes for immigration and customs, did we miss one?

No.  The QR code for quarantine is no longer required.

[silkismom]

Thanks USN, DH was 30 yr AF.   Also big thanks to Rosalyn, I'll print out that info--can't trust my tablet will find it at the right time. MAYBE I'll be able to sleep for the next 3 1/2 weeks.😉

[charlie murphy]

On 3/16/2023 at 7:28 AM, silkismom said:

Maybe I'm stressing too much, but, was wondering if anyone has gone from Terminal 3, where International flts come in--to terminal 1 for domestic flts to Osaka. We are supposed to land at HND on Japan airlines at 5:25 pm, have to go thru all the customs & immigration (do have the Visit Japan QR codes downloaded) then somehow get to Terminal 1 for a JAL flt to Osaka, Itami at 7:10 pm. Hope we don't have to go thru security, get/transfer bags also. All this after a 12 hr flt.

yes you are stressing too much. but isn't the way it always seems. I am right there with you. feeling stressed about the trip and preparation. I sounds like you have a handle on it and it will make the first step onto the gangway that much sweeter. All the:  what to do before depart , what is needed in transit, now i see postings about there being requirements for when you return to japan after visiting SK. You helped me with the Japan QR code thing I had no idea! We will all get there.  to you and all those going through this before me thank you for posting your concerns, conflict and resolutions. 

[silkismom]

After working and screaming most of the day on the K-eta website, I FINALLY figured out how to resize the photos so they are "acceptable"--I got "timed out" several times. One less thing to do. Haven't heard anything about returning to Japan after SK. If this darn trip hadn't been paid for in Mar 2020 and rebooked 3X, I'd say--stay home, too much hassle.  I'm afraid I use this forum to Vent too many times.

 

Apologies

[Hlitner]

Some folks may need to take a deep breath and work through the various issues, one at a time.  I say this as a frequent world traveler/cruiser who is now in Tokyo (we landed at Haneda on Thursday morning).  The K-ETA stuff is pretty easy to do as long as you do it on a phone!  If you do not have a photo, simply take the photos with your phone (before going on the K-ETA site) and than you can simply upload right from the K-ETA app.  You do need a Korean address and we got ours from the Roll Call site where somebody had posted the address suggested by HAL.

 

As to the Visit Japan web site, it is worthwhile in that it will save you some time (and hassle) at Haneda or Narita.  We took multiple screen shots (all phones can do this and if you don't know how, look it up online) which we saved to a photo folder.  When they asked to see the stuff we just opened that up on our phone and handed the phone to the officials (who quickly scroll through.

 

When we entered Japan, the Customs folks were happy we had the Visit Japan stuff done and did not ask further questions or search our bags.  We had completed the Yakan Shemei stuff (becaus oe we carry about a 2 month supply of multiple drugs) but nobody ever ask to see that stuff (perhaps we were just lucky).

 

As to being in Japan, folks just need to understand that they have their own culture and do some things differently (some for the better and some not).  Spend some pre-trip time reading about their culture and feel free to ask questions here on CC.  The big change I have noticed (in Japan) is the very frequent  practice of having customers scan a QR code (at restaurants) and do their ordering via an app.  Checks are normally paid at the cashier (not at the table) and you either take a card (on the table) with your table number (which tells the cashier were to find your tab) or a normal check (dropped at your table).  Beware that you may not be able to read the check, other than the numbers :).

 

Regarding masking, there is no longer any government imposed mask mandate.  But (a big but) the overwhelming percentage of the population continues to mask (indoors and out).  That is simply their preference, part of the culture, and you can choose to unmask (in most places) without scorn.  We always mask on the Tokyo metro/trains because of the tight crowds.

 

Hank

[Donald]

14 hours ago, silkismom said:

After working and screaming most of the day on the K-eta website, I FINALLY figured out how to resize the photos so they are "acceptable"--I got "timed out" several times. One less thing to do. Haven't heard anything about returning to Japan after SK. If this darn trip hadn't been paid for in Mar 2020 and rebooked 3X, I'd say--stay home, too much hassle.  I'm afraid I use this forum to Vent too many times.

 

Apologies

Now you have a good idea what it is like for a non-US citizen to try to visit the USA.

[Halehuaka_i]

Have you confirmed your flights on the JAL website? This is a good backup to agency bookings. You may get some advice on your connection and best way to get between terminals.

I say this because on my recent travel in Australia, a lady had problems at check in because her booking was done through Booking.com (don't EVER do this!) and was not showing up at the airline kiosk. But I do use Booking.com for most of my hotel bookings.

[alc13]

On 3/16/2023 at 5:22 PM, silkismom said:

We have QR codes for immigration and customs, did we miss one?

 

On 3/16/2023 at 6:38 PM, USN59-79 said:

No.  The QR code for quarantine is no longer required.

We uploaded vaccination records, though, per instructions on the quarantine page.  Was that unnecessary?

 

I am also preparing for the many-times rebooked 2020 cruise.  Mr ALC calls it my white whale.

[agape01]

This would most likely be a side topic in regards to Haneda airport.

I am flying in on the same day before 8am as my cruise embarks at Yokohama later in the day in November. I have paid for cruise pick up from airport to cruise center. So I am wondering what is there for me to do in the arrival hall from 8am to the possibly pick up time at 11amish.

[BruceMuzz]

In the Haneda Arrivals Hall, you could change money, access an ATM, have a coffee or breakfast.

You could also take the elevator or escalator to the upper floors, where there is great duty free shopping, lots of restaurants, outdoor observation Deck, Massage Rooms, Sleeping Rooms, free internet,  etc.

[agape01]

2 hours ago, BruceMuzz said:

In the Haneda Arrivals Hall, you could change money, access an ATM, have a coffee or breakfast.

You could also take the elevator or escalator to the upper floors, where there is great duty free shopping, lots of restaurants, outdoor observation Deck, Massage Rooms, Sleeping Rooms, free internet,  etc.

Thanks so much.

[Gail52]

On 3/20/2023 at 11:02 AM, Hlitner said:

Some folks may need to take a deep breath and work through the various issues, one at a time.  I say this as a frequent world traveler/cruiser who is now in Tokyo (we landed at Haneda on Thursday morning).  The K-ETA stuff is pretty easy to do as long as you do it on a phone!  If you do not have a photo, simply take the photos with your phone (before going on the K-ETA site) and than you can simply upload right from the K-ETA app.  You do need a Korean address and we got ours from the Roll Call site where somebody had posted the address suggested by HAL.

 

As to the Visit Japan web site, it is worthwhile in that it will save you some time (and hassle) at Haneda or Narita.  We took multiple screen shots (all phones can do this and if you don't know how, look it up online) which we saved to a photo folder.  When they asked to see the stuff we just opened that up on our phone and handed the phone to the officials (who quickly scroll through.

 

When we entered Japan, the Customs folks were happy we had the Visit Japan stuff done and did not ask further questions or search our bags.  We had completed the Yakan Shemei stuff (becaus oe we carry about a 2 month supply of multiple drugs) but nobody ever ask to see that stuff (perhaps we were just lucky).

 

As to being in Japan, folks just need to understand that they have their own culture and do some things differently (some for the better and some not).  Spend some pre-trip time reading about their culture and feel free to ask questions here on CC.  The big change I have noticed (in Japan) is the very frequent  practice of having customers scan a QR code (at restaurants) and do their ordering via an app.  Checks are normally paid at the cashier (not at the table) and you either take a card (on the table) with your table number (which tells the cashier were to find your tab) or a normal check (dropped at your table).  Beware that you may not be able to read the check, other than the numbers :).

 

Regarding masking, there is no longer any government imposed mask mandate.  But (a big but) the overwhelming percentage of the population continues to mask (indoors and out).  That is simply their preference, part of the culture, and you can choose to unmask (in most places) without scorn.  We always mask on the Tokyo metro/trains because of the tight crowds.

 

Hank

Hi Hank have seen a few of your posts regarding Japan as recommended by a Princess cruise roll call that we are on. As you are quite an officienado could you recommend about 6 days prior to our repositioning cruise 27 April 2024  should we just hotel in Tokyo and do train trips to Hiroshima(5.5 hour train) Osaka Yokohama Hubby does not want to travel with the luggage on public transport - likes to unpack once or maybe leaving them in lockers  We fly into Haneda. TIA or email speechkg@bigpond.com if easier 

[Hlitner]

4 hours ago, Gail52 said:

Hi Hank have seen a few of your posts regarding Japan as recommended by a Princess cruise roll call that we are on. As you are quite an officienado could you recommend about 6 days prior to our repositioning cruise 27 April 2024  should we just hotel in Tokyo and do train trips to Hiroshima(5.5 hour train) Osaka Yokohama Hubby does not want to travel with the luggage on public transport - likes to unpack once or maybe leaving them in lockers  We fly into Haneda. TIA or email speechkg@bigpond.com if easier 

Let me toss out an alternative that really helped us.  "Luggage logistics" is always a major issue for we senior DIY travelers and can take on a life of its' own.  But Japan gives us a wonderful solution.  They have this amazing system that allows you to ship luggage, from place to place, at very little cost and amazing efficiency.  The luggage is handled by private shipping companies and moved (usually overnight) by truck.  So, for example, when we moved from our Tokyo hotel to our Kyoto hotel, we simply packed our large luggage and took it down to our hotel front desk, the day before we were going to leave Tokyo (your front desk will advise by what time).  When we arrived in our Kyoto hotel, our luggage was waiting for us.  The cost was about $32 per large piece.  This knowledge can help planning.  In fact, there are some folks who ship their luggage from Haneda or Narita to their Tokyo hotel!  We did not do that since we simply grabbed a taxi from Haneda.

 

Tokyo is certainly worth a multi-day stay for folks who have never been to that city.  We decided to use both Tokyo and Kyoto as pre-cruise bases (4n nights in Tokyo and 6 nights in Kyoto and our last night in Yokohama).  Since our cruise was going to give us 2 days (an overnight) in Osaka, we did not go to that city pre-cruise.  

 

The one tough issue (for us) was how to get our luggage from Kyoto to Yokohama and our ship.  We "chickened out" with the shipping and took our luggage with us on the bullet train (and subsequent local train to Yokohama).  This can be done by booking (in advance) a couple of the Green Car (first class) seats that have room for extra large luggage (no extra cost to do this).  In retrospect, we should have trusted the shipping system and simply sent it ahead (perhaps 2 days early) to our Yokohama hotel.

 

Since we had a 7 day JR Rail Pass (which we activated the day we trained to Kyoto) we did use it to take a day trip to Hiroshima (from Kyoto).  DW and I were somewhat disappointed in Hiroshima (we went to the park and ground zero museum).  But we can now be content that we have visited both Nagasaki (on a prior trip) and HIroshima.  

 

I also suggest that travelers take a good look at Kamakura (an easy day trip from Yokohama).  DW really liked Yokohama and would have been happier if we had spent fewer nights in Tokyo and more in Yokohama.  Tokyo is a difficult city for some folks because it is so vast.  Even though we stayed in a good area (Shinjuku), DW was not overly impressed.  We both have a NYC background, so being in big cities is not that big of a deal.  We spent the bulk of our 11 pre-cruise days visiting Shrines and Temples :).  One should also try to make time to have lunch or dinner in Yokohama's Chinatown where the number of eating venues is almost overwhelming.

 

Hank

[Gail52]

Thanks for your insight 

[Haljo1935]

Appreciate your detailed info @Hlitner I know it will help us considerably when we also board board in Yokohama for the Apr 27 2024 TP. @Gail52 seems we're going to AK and Seattle together!!

We are still working on our pre cruise details trying to pin down exactly how many days prior we will be able to spend. It will be 2-3 days only, so we're looking to maximize our time. The flights we were looking at have tripled in price and we don't want to book hotel til we secure flights, so things are a bit in flux. 

After reading about shipping luggage, would it be wise to have the 2 big suitcases shipped from Haneda to Yokohama so we only have carry-on w/2-3 days clothes to worry about? We are anxious about schlepping luggage on public transport as it will be just my sister & I to deal with it. I will have more luggage than her as my husband is joining me in Seattle for the next leg to AK, making this a 23 day B2B for me.

Also, we understood we didn't need anything beyond our passports, including no visa. What is the QR code process you're referring to? I've clearly missed something. 

@Gail52 if you don't have excursions finalized for the couple days before 27th, we'd be open to a small group tour.

Thanks!

[Gail52]

1 hour ago, Haljo1935 said:

Appreciate your detailed info @Hlitner I know it will help us considerably when we also board board in Yokohama for the Apr 27 2024 TP. @Gail52 seems we're going to AK and Seattle together!!

We are still working on our pre cruise details trying to pin down exactly how many days prior we will be able to spend. It will be 2-3 days only, so we're looking to maximize our time. The flights we were looking at have tripled in price and we don't want to book hotel til we secure flights, so things are a bit in flux. 

After reading about shipping luggage, would it be wise to have the 2 big suitcases shipped from Haneda to Yokohama so we only have carry-on w/2-3 days clothes to worry about? We are anxious about schlepping luggage on public transport as it will be just my sister & I to deal with it. I will have more luggage than her as my husband is joining me in Seattle for the next leg to AK, making this a 23 day B2B for me.

Also, we understood we didn't need anything beyond our passports, including no visa. What is the QR code process you're referring to? I've clearly missed something. 

@Gail52 if you don't have excursions finalized for the couple days before 27th, we'd be open to a small group tour.

Thanks!

Our flights are currently booked for a few days prior to the cruise but may change. still a fair way off so will decide later in year 

[agape01]

Now that I am closer to my cruise date from Yokohama (and would be arriving into Haneda at around 7am from Bangkok, I am wondering where I would be able to find the cruise reps at the airport? Would they be standing outside the arrival hall gates to indicate who they are?

Thanks @BruceMuzz for the earlier information about what is there for me to do during my 2-3hr wait till the cruise pickup starts.