Narita International Airport or Narita Kokusai Kuko, is an international airport serving Tokyo, Japan. It is located in Narita in Chiba Prefecture in the eastern portion of the Greater Tokyo Area, approximately 60 kilometers from downtown Tokyo.
Narita handles the majority of international passenger traffic to and from Japan, and is also a major connecting point for air traffic between Asia and the Americas. With 35,478,146 passengers passing through it in 2007, Narita is the second-busiest passenger airport in Japan after Haneda Airport, which services domestic flights. Narita is also the busiest air freight hub in Japan and eighth-busiest air freight hub in the world.
Narita Airport serves as the main international hub of Japan Airlines and All Nippon Airways. It also serves as a hub for Northwest Airlines. Under Japanese law, it is classified as a first class airport. The airport was known as New Tokyo International Airport until 2004. It was also known as "Tokyo Narita" even before it was officially renamed to differentiate it from the original Tokyo International, which is also known as "Tokyo Haneda", after its original name, Haneda Airfield. On April 1, 2004, New Tokyo International Airport was privatized and officially renamed Narita International Airport, reflecting its popular designation since its opening.
Terminals
Narita Airport has two separate terminals with separate underground train stations. Connection between the terminals is by shuttle bus (buses are available both inside and outside the security area) and trains; there is no pedestrian connection.
Terminal 1
Terminal 1 uses a satellite terminal design. The landside of the terminal is divided into a North Wing, Central Building, and South Wing. Two circular satellites, Satellites 1 (gates 11-18) and 2 (gates 21-24), are connected to the North Wing, Satellite 3 (gates 26-38) is a linear concourse connected to the Central Building, Check-in is processed on the fourth floor, and departures and immigration control are on the third floor. Arriving passengers clear immigration on the second floor, then claim their baggage and clear customs on the first floor. Most shops and restaurants are located on the fourth floor of the Central Building. The South Wing includes a duty free mall called "Narita Nakamise", the largest airport duty-free brand boutique mall in Japan.
North Wing
The North Wing is dominated by SkyTeam carriers (with the exception of China Southern Airlines, which currently uses Terminal 2), as Continental Airlines and Delta Air Lines moved from Terminal 2 in 2007, shortly after a reciprocal move by oneworld carriers American Airlines and Cathay Pacific. British Airways and Virgin Atlantic are the only non SkyTeam carriers operating from the North Wing.
South Wing
The South Wing and Satellite 5 opened in June 2006 as a terminal for Star Alliance carriers. Today, all Star Alliance members use this wing, except for Air New Zealand and EgyptAir, which currently use Terminal 2. The South Wing has seven stories, and the first floor contains facilities for domestic flights by ANA. It is the first airport terminal in Japan to offer curbside check-in service and baggage reconnecting facilities for passengers connecting from international to domestic flights.
Terminal 2
Terminal 2 is divided into a main building (honkan) and satellite, both of which are designed around linear concourses. The two are connected by the Terminal 2 Shuttle System, which was designed by Japan Otis Elevator and was the first cable-driven people mover in Japan.
Check-in and departures and Immigration control for arriving passengers is on the second floor, and baggage claim and customs are on the first floor.
For domestic flights, three gates (65, 66, and 67) in the main building are connected to both the main departures concourse and to a separate domestic check-in facility. Passengers connecting between domestic and international flights must exit the gate area, walk to the other check-in area, and then check in for their connecting flight.
Japan Airlines is currently the main operator in T2; several Oneworld carriers which used to be in T1 (except British Airways) moved their operations to T2 in early 2007 so as to ease connections to and from flights operated by oneworld's partner Japan Airlines. Air New Zealand and EgyptAir (Star Alliance carriers) and China Southern Airlines (which is a SkyTeam carrier) are the only non Oneworld carriers operating from Terminal 2.
Narita International Airport, Terminal 1
Author: Terence Ong (GFDL)
Outside Narita International Airport
Author: Terence Ong (GFDL)
Getting out of Narita Airport
For details on getting out of Narita International Airport, read Arriving in Tokyo.
Tokyo Hotel Price Checker
Before booking a hotel room, make sure you are getting the lowest price for it. Different hotel booking websites offers the same room at different prices. If you stick with one site all the time, you could be paying more for the same room. Now why pay more?
The form below is a Research Engine. It doesn't take bookings. Instead it lets you find the hotel booking website that offers the room you want at the lowest price. You can see and compare what different sites are offering, and then click to choose the one with the best price. Do this, and you're guaranteed to save a whole lot of money on your room reservations!
Tokyo Travel Tips and globe logo are trademark and service mark of Timothy Tye.
Tokyo Travel Tips is researched and written by Timothy Tye, universally known as Tim. The information provided is in goodwill and is believed to be correct and up-to-date at time of writing. We disclaim responsible for its usage, and encourage users to recheck the information before their trip. Some photos are provided by Panoramio. Photos provided by Panoramio are under the copyright of their owners. They may only be used under the terms & conditions specified by Panoramio. Photos by third-party owners are captioned and attributed. Photographs that belong to Tim are copyrighted and may not be reused unless you first obtain permission. All of Tim's photographs are available for commercial use under the following licensing terms. Tim is a Christian. Click here to know more about his beliefs.
