If you want to escape the heat of Tokyo, head to the secluded Kamikochi Imperial Hotel in the Japan Alps, a timber-sided lodge built in 1933. The 74-room hotel, which is currently open for the season through November 8, is located deep in a forested corner of the Chubu Sangaku National Park and surrounded by ...
The trek out to Narita Airport is about to get considerably faster, as Keisei’s long-awaited high-speed rail link commences operation on July 17. The Narita Sky Access Line cuts the journey from Nippori to just 36 minutes and costs ¥2,400, which should give the (slower, more expensive) highway bus services and JR’s Narita Express a ...
If you’re heading to Sweden or Denmark this summer, Scandinavian Airlines has a unique combination airfare package that lets passengers mix and match classes. Choose two of the three classes available—Business, Economy Extra and Economy—in one round-trip ticket, and you can save up to 45 percent. SAS operates a daily flight between Tokyo and Copenhagen. ...
The Shangri-La Hotel, Tokyo is offering a new year-round accommodation package for frazzled city slickers. “Detox + Recharge” includes a deluxe room, detox treatment at CHI, The Spa at Shangri-La, a “Charging Food” breakfast, and special room amenities. Prices start at ¥57,750 per night for one person or ¥69,300 for two (tax and service charge ...
Frequent fliers can earn up to seven air miles for each ¥100 they spend talking on their cellphone, thanks to a new scheme being offered by Japan Airlines. The JAL Mile Phone service was launched on June 1, in collaboration with AU and telecommunications services provider Inphonix Inc. To take advantage, you’ll need to trade ...
Catching a highway bus from Shinjuku used to mean wandering the streets in a state of bewilderment until you found the representative for the relevant company. Willer Express has made things a lot simpler with its new bus terminal, which opened in April at the west exit of Shinjuku station. The slick amenities include touch-screen ...
2009 wasn’t exactly a golden year for Japan Airlines, but the troubled carrier managed to get one thing right. According to a recently released report by the US-based Conducive Technology Corp, JAL topped the on-time arrival lists in 2009, with 90.9 percent of its flights arriving no more than 15 minutes later than scheduled. Local ...
Speaking of Haneda, Delta Air Lines, American and Hawaiian Airlines have been given the green light by the US Department of Transportation to fly there once its fourth runway opens later this year. Delta will operate flights from Los Angeles and Detroit, American from New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport, and Hawaiian from Honolulu—its ...
Asakusa isn’t known for its zoological diversity, but visitors can now take in the sights from the comfort of a giant panda bus. Local tourist information center Asakusa Kanko Emaki has been offering free rides around the area in its curiously shaped vehicle since late last year. The 40-minute loop includes stops at eight ...
Apparently, some people just can’t go without their Seattle coffee, even when they’re flying. All Nippon Airways has started offering free cups of Starbucks on its domestic flights—well, the instant variety, at least. Starbucks VIA Coffee Express, better known to overseas caffeine freaks as VIA Ready Brew, made its debut in Japan last month, and ...
Attracting foreign tourists is a delicate art. For every perfectly pitched campaign like “Malaysia, Truly Asia,” there’s a misfire like Australia’s “Where the bloody hell are you?” So the Japan Tourism Agency is doubtless relieved by the positive reactions to its new slogan: “Japan. Endless Discovery.” The JTA has enlisted the help of ludicrously popular ...
Get ready for more searches at Narita Airport. From July, the transport ministry will start testing full-body scanners that are capable of detecting explosives and chemicals which conventional metal detectors would miss. The devices, described in The Washington Post as “basically a kind of radar for meat,” use electromagnetic radiation to create three-dimensional images of ...
The battle of the sexes is moving into the sky—or, more specifically, to toilet seats at 36,000 feet, thanks to All Nippon Airways’ (ANA) decision to introduce women-only lavatories on its international routes. One toilet in each class will be reserved exclusively for ladies, and men won’t be allowed to use them except in emergencies ...
The race is on among airlines to win coveted spots at Haneda Airport, with US carriers Delta, United, American and Continental applying for slots this month. All four already fly to Narita, but the shorter commute time to Haneda, will make it a plum prize for any airline. That includes European and Middle Eastern carriers, ...
Getting out to Narita airport can be a drag, but not if you go in style. Last September, Mori Building City Air Services Co (MCAS ) launched a new helicopter service that whisks passengers between Akasaka’s Ark Hills and Narita in a luxury chopper for ¥38,000 one-way. As of this month, the service is now ...
Thinking of heading to Shanghai for this year’s Expo 2010? Luxury Concierge China is offering discerning travelers a special eight-day package that showcases the best the city has to offer. Leave the guidebook at home and place yourself in the hands of a team of local experts who know the city inside-out, and can tailor ...
When Japan Airlines filed for bankruptcy protection last month with group liabilities of ¥2.32 trillion, it left a lot of passengers wondering what was going to happen to the airline—and, more importantly, to their reservations and frequent flyer points. According to the state-backed Enterprise Turnaround Initiative Corp (ETIC), which is overseeing JAL’s rehabilitation, the airline ...
If you’re traveling to the US, be prepared for even tighter security measures than before. Following the failed attempt by a man to blow up a flight from Amsterdam to Detroit on Christmas Day, America’s Transportation Security Administration (TSA) has issued new directives for all flights traveling to the United States from a foreign location. ...
Blame it on the recession if you want, but the past few years have seen an explosion in cut-price highway bus companies. Only one, however, is making a concerted effort to court foreign customers. Hats off to Willer Travel for offering English, Korean and Chinese interfaces on its website—and the prices ain’t bad, either. Destinations ...
Since Yukio Hatoyama was elected prime minister last August, his ancestral home in Bunkyo-ku has become a tourist magnet. Once a little-known diversion, Hatoyama Hall now attracts an average of 20,000 visitors a month. Locals have christened the three-story British-style mansion Otowa Palace, after the area in which it is located. Hatoyama’s grandfather Ichiro (1883-1959), ...
The Hachioji Tourism Association has published an English map and guide to Mount Takao. The peak attracts over 2 million visitors per year, many of them foreign tourists. The new brochure includes a scale map, accompanied by sightseeing information and details of the mountain’s plants, animals and seasonal events. It’s available at tourist information centers ...
The Japan Tourism Agency is taking a new approach to attracting foreign visitors in 2010. Its “Live Japan” campaign, which runs through Jan 31, is offering more than 500 prizes, such as air tickets and hotel stays, to encourage expats from English-speaking countries to invite their family and friends to visit. Foreign residents can enter ...
If you only take the shinkansen to Kyoto or Osaka, you might never have ridden the Kodama, the slowest member of the bullet-train family. Now’s your chance—a new promotion by JR Tokai Tours is encouraging passengers to travel at a more leisurely pace. The Puratto Kodama Economy Plan offers discounts of up to ¥3,750—or ¥6,890 ...
While many airlines are still struggling amid the prolonged recession, Middle Eastern carriers are flying high and looking to Japan to increase their business. Abu Dhabi’s Etihad Airways, still a relative newcomer to the industry, last month announced plans to start flights to Tokyo in March 2010. It will be taking advantage of Narita International’s ...
Looking to splurge this Christmas? Do it in style with the Mandarin Oriental Tokyo’s Holy Night Package, available from December 19-26. Guests get a welcome bottle of champagne, an extended check-out, and a personalized gift set of monogrammed towels produced by famed Japanese brand Imabari. The package is available for all room types, with rates ...
The Ritz-Carlton, Tokyo has been voted Japan’s best hotel by the readers of Condé Nast Traveler Magazine. Now in their 22nd year, the annual Readers’ Choice Awards rank the best cities, islands, cruise lines, airlines, hotels, resorts and car rental agencies worldwide. The Park Hyatt, Mandarin Oriental, Grand Hyatt and Four Seasons also featured in ...
Remember how your parents used to remind you to go to the toilet just before leaving home on a trip? Well, now All Nippon Airways is doing the same thing—urging passengers to visit the restroom before flying as part of its new ecological measures. The airline estimates that if half its passengers went to the ...
Narita’s claim to fame as Tokyo’s international airport of choice might be under threat—from the same airport that it originally superseded. Earlier this month, Transport Minister Seiji Maehara revealed that he hopes to transform Haneda Airport into a 24-hour international hub to rival South Korea’s Incheon International. And, with a fourth runway due to open ...
Want to see Tokyo and get some exercise at the same time? The Tokyo City Guide Club is offering walking tours of Asakusa and the Imperial Palace East Gardens, conducted by certified English-speaking guides. The “Asakusa Then and Now” tour will be held on November 4 and 21, followed by a walk around the palace ...
Following similar moves by airlines including British Airways, Virgin Atlantic has announced that it is changing its baggage policy—and no, it isn’t getting any more generous. The airline is introducing a “piece system” across its network from November 25, which will apply for all tickets booked after that date. Under the new rules, Economy Class ...
Tokyo’s Sanya district used to be full of flophouses and day laborers, but it’s had a big makeover recently. Low-cost guesthouses and bars catering to foreign visitors are springing up in the area, which straddles Arakawa and Taito wards, within striking distance of Ueno, Asakusa and Akihabara. The change is being encouraged by the area’s ...
Nikon Corp has developed an English-language video guide to help tourists navigate their way around Tokyo. The Media Port UP300x headset comes with a dinky video screen that’s positioned in front of the user’s right eye, displaying travel information. It also boasts Wi-Fi connectivity, an internet browser and 8GB of storage. The device went on ...
Rumors of an approaching meltdown in Tokyo’s luxury hotel industry may have been overstated. After a disastrous June, the Nikkei reported last month that occupancy rates at 21 major hotels in the capital had risen during July—the first such increase in over two-and-a-half years. Much to the relief of the city’s hoteliers, this also put ...
Let’s face it: getting to Narita International Airport is a real pain in the you-know-what. For ease of access, Tokyo is dismal compared to other Asian travel hubs like Shanghai and Hong Kong, where high-speed trains whisk passengers from the airport to the center of the city at velocities that make the Narita Express look ...
The battle of the double-decker tour buses has begun. After monopolizing the industry in Tokyo for the past 60 years, Hato Bus Co now has a new challenger in the form of Hinomaru Limousine Co. The upstart company is operating three bright red tour buses in central Tokyo—and, unlike Hato’s, they have open tops. The ...
More airlines have announced plans to operate in and out of Haneda from later in the year. Most of the new services will start with the opening of the airport’s fourth runway on October 31. Hawaiian Airlines will fly to and from Honolulu, American Airlines from New York’s JFK, and Delta Air Lines will connect ...