During a trip to Manila, I had a layover in each direction at Tokyo Narita. The first layover was too short to leave the airport (six hours) but the second was perfect for a Day Rate stay at the Hilton Narita Airport. But what does a Day Rate entail?
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Location
The Hilton Narita Airport is just three miles (6.4km) from Terminal 3 at Tokyo Narita International Airport. Despite the close proximity, the drive from door-to-door takes about 25 minutes each way.
Address: 456, Kosuge, Narita, Chiba Prefecture 286-0127, Japan
Phone: +81 476-33-1121
Why Leave the Airport At All?
My inbound flight had a six-hour layover in Narita. That was not quite enough time to leave but a really long time, even in lounges, to occupy me. Try as I might, I couldn’t fill the long wait very well despite visiting the ANA lounge, and the United lounge, taking a shower, getting a coffee, eating a meal. I still ended up sleeping at the gate for 45 minutes before boarding like a common vagrant.
On the way back, however, my layover was longer, originally nine hours but then due to a delay, 11 hours and to reset my body clock I needed to rest. Sleeping during the day allowed me to re-adjust to US east coast time.
Day Rate vs. Normal Booking
Day rates are available at most airport hotels (though presumably, they should be available everywhere.) They are discounted rates for a short period of time during daytime hours as opposed to night. My day rate, for example, was about $50 USD at the Hilton vs. a normal nightly booking rate of about $114. I checked in after 9 am and departed around 5 pm.
Day rates are ideal for both the traveler and the property. Many airport hotels are unoccupied during the day with travelers choosing to stay near the airport due to early arrival and late arriving flights. The rooms then sit idle in between, perfect for my situation.
A note about Day Rates as opposed to normal bookings (and these are things that could easily be improved by all brands, not just Hilton), they have some odd characteristics. You cannot book using points even if you were happy to pay the full nightly rate. Most chains do not allow guests to book them online. Hilton allows guests to earn stay credit though not all chains do, but guests will earn points for the cost of the night and any incidentals.
Shuttle
The Hilton Narita Airport has easy access to the airport shuttle they share with three other nearby properties. When exiting Terminal 1, the stop is 16, and of course, the Shuttle was prompt. It runs a 30-minute circuit. From Terminal 1, the Hilton is the first stop, upon return from the hotel, Terminal 2 is the first stop then Terminal 1.
Room
This is an airport property, and they can’t all be the Hyatt Regency Presidential Suite at Pittsburgh International. It reminded me a little of a dorm with built-in controls for lights, volumes, air conditioning.
The desk was a decent size, enough for two laptops. The room was certainly adequate for my purposes, though for a longer stay, I would probably look for something with more modern updates.
The bed was very, very comfortable. It was described as a Queen but it felt like certainly a King. I slept the exact amount of time I intended to sleep and by all accounts, it served its purpose.
Bathroom
The bathroom was an odd mix of great and not-so-great. For example, the toilet has a built-in bidet seat (not as awesome as the one I have at home) and I will put this in the “great” category. The shower featured both a rain showerhead, a sprayer, and a tub function – also great.
In the not-so-great category, the tub itself was really outdated, I don’t care for the shower over tubs, especially those with overly friendly shower curtains (this one had aims of being in a relationship with me). The vanity is also really dated, but the toiletries (Crabtree & Evelyn) were excellent.
Crew Bus
Be careful which bus you get on exiting the hotel! There were several that pulled up but only one with people loading bags into the bus and boarding, and look who it is, a United crew. “Are you headed to Newark?” I asked one in front of me. “No,” she said as she turned back to the front. Fine, that’s good, if you’re this friendly at the start of the trip I am glad you’re not working my flight.
The driver confirms with me, “United? Terminal One?” Yes, I answer and he collects my case and backpack. I board, take a seat near the front and play on my phone while the crew chatters behind me about how open the flight is and whether or not they will have rows to sleep in.
“Who are you?” Asks the last FA boarding.
“I’m Kyle.” I answered a little indignant and alarmed and went back to playing on my phone.
“With…?” She asks, glaring at me and not moving to an open seat.
“Can I help you with something?” I finally ask. What does this lady want from me?
“This is a crew bus, are you crew?” She asks, already knowing the answer.
“This is a crew bus?” I race past her to get off before the driver closes the cargo door.
It’s at this point I realize that as I sat idly by on the crew bus, my shuttle had departed and I would have to wait another 30 minutes for the next one – not an ideal situation.
The queen bee FA popped her head back out as the confused driver began removing them from the hold, “United?” she asked.
“Yes, I am flying United, should I get back on?” I thought, that was nice, she didn’t want me to miss my flight.
“No. This is a crew bus.” She ducked back inside.
Fine, I get it, that bus was for them and not for me. The bus was not marked as such and was parked adjacent to the Shuttle pick up and drop off point. There were no indicators that this shuttle was expressly for the crew, and frankly, I have been both in situations where crews have their own transport and also those in which they ride with commoners like myself on the shuttle.
Regardless, a little finesse would have gone a long way. I was glad they were not my crew (for the avoidance of doubt, she fit into this friendly category), but be careful which bus/shuttle you board when leaving the Hilton.
Would I Stay Again?
I would stay at the Hilton Narita Airport again, but I would also look around at the competition a little harder. I anticipated the shuttle ride would have been shorter than it was and when you factor in time spent clearing Customs & Immigration in both directions, the visit can be significantly shortened. For me, the minimum time in which I could derive value worth the effort of leaving the airport and paying for the stay would be about seven hours.
Have you stayed at this property before? Is there a closer/quicker hotel you’ve stayed at when laying over at NRT?
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I’ve stayed at this Hilton multiple times, and the Crowne Plaza once. I’d choose the Crowne Plaza over the Hilton, if the $ price is about the same. Using points, the Hilton is 20K/night, and I am Hilton Honors point rich, so end up at the Hilton as a result. Breakfast for Gold/Diamond is free at the Hilton. I paid for the breakfast for my stay at the Crowne Plaza, and felt it was well worth the money. The dinner at the casual restaurant at the Hilton is overpriced and mediocre bordering on bad. The bar on the top floor of the Crowne Plaza has much better food, and great ambiance.
I think the HIlton at Narita serves its purpose: to provide a place for you to sleep. It’s not a destination hotel by any stretch of imagination. But next time you fly home from Narita, you definitely should try to fly either ANA or JAL..definitely not United.
I have flown all three, ANA and United recently. Frankly, the UA Polaris product is better than ANA’s despite my preference for an Asian bidet toilet seat which they have ON THE PLANE! JAL was behind the times the last time I flew them to NRT with 2-2-2 side-by-side seating but perhaps updates have taken place since.
Maybe I’m just a fussy flier, but after flying busines and first class on both ANA and JAL in the past few years, I can’t even imagine spending 11+ hours on American/Delta/United flights in ANY CLASS across the Pacific Ocean. I agree that the hard product on most ANA/JAL planes are not that new (and I especially am puzzled why JAL has the “plank-style” business seats on LAX-KIX flights), the service and food on both ANA and JAL are far superior to what I expect from American/Delta/United. It is really interesting to note that, in my experience, flights attendants on JAL/ANA showed us genuine interest in speaking with me, even in coach, during our long flights from US to Japan and back. I did not experience anything like that when I flew on American/Delta/United flights.
You seriously would have expected “friendliness” or empathy for your simple mistake from a legacy UA sr. mama FA who works Narita flights?? LOL. You could’ve been apologizing for being on the wrong bus 17 million times and she would’ve still admonished you. This seemingly everyday attitude with sUA Int’l. FAs is why this 1k’r only flies ANA to/from Narita. Safe travels!
The flight and the airport bus experience are separate, I will be sure to not board their bus ever again, but wow does it leave an impression.
At NRT, there are single and twin day rooms located in each terminal (I truly do love Japan). You can ask for details at any information desk or at one of the lounges but the one I prefer is a short 3 minute walk from the United Lounge. The rooms are small, of course, yet quite clean and the single bed is comfortable even for my 6’2″ frame. The room also includes a private bathroom and shower. I paid $60 for 5 hours of rest and depending on availability you can spend more if needed. This is just another option to consider as the airport hotel shuttles may leave every 30 minutes from the terminals, yet not during certain times of the day when the wait is closer to an hour. Besides I prefer to avoid customs and immigration if at all possible when seeking a short stay environment to sleep.
That’s a good solution for shorter layovers. For longer ones, I would rather pay the same but have a full hotel room and get a stay credit + points from Hilton, though the shuttle experience makes me re-think everything.
Why are Americans always so aggressive? I am an American and I just don’t get it — you always feel like you’re walking on egg shells when interacting with people in or from this country.
In a customer service role, no less.