Tokyo airport to city: Narita and Haneda compared

Your ticket decides most of this. Haneda sits on the edge of the city, around 17 km by road from Tokyo Station. Narita is out in Chiba Prefecture, a little over 70 km from the same station. The short answer: at Haneda, take the Keikyu line or the Tokyo Monorail and change once. At Narita, let your hotel choose: the Skyliner for Ueno and Asakusa, the Narita Express for Tokyo Station, Shibuya and Shinjuku. A taxi makes sense from Haneda far more often than from Narita.

Narita and Haneda side by side

All times are the approximate figures from GO TOKYO, the city's official tourism site. The fastest services do better: JR East gives 53 minutes to Tokyo Station on the Narita Express, and Keisei gives 41 to Ueno on the Skyliner.

Base map: Natural Earth

From Haneda: Keikyu or the monorail

Both leave from directly below the terminals and both are quick. The real difference is where they drop you.

The Keikyu line goes to Shinagawa: according to GO TOKYO, 11 minutes from Terminal 3 on the Rapid Express and around 20 on a Limited Express or Express. Pick it if you are staying in Shinagawa or Yokohama or heading towards Asakusa, because some trains continue without a change onto the Toei Asakusa Line. Read the destination on the platform. Haneda Airport gives about 30 minutes to Yokohama and about 40 to Asakusa.

The Tokyo Monorail goes to Hamamatsucho, 13 minutes at best from Terminal 3. There you change to the JR Yamanote Line, and Tokyo Station is another 7 minutes. That suits hotels in Ginza, Shimbashi, around Tokyo Station and in Ueno. Those 13 minutes are from the international Terminal 3, and the change feels longer with two suitcases than it looks on the map.

Haneda Airport lists these overall estimates by rail: Shinagawa 15 minutes, Hamamatsucho 20, Tokyo Station 30, Ueno 40, Shibuya 45, Shinjuku 50. They are higher than the best-case figures because they allow for slower trains and the change. Plan with those.

From Haneda: bus and taxi

The Limousine Bus takes about 55 minutes to Tokyo Station and to Shinjuku according to GO TOKYO, and 45 to Tokyo City Air Terminal. The Keihin Kyuko bus also takes about 55 to Tokyo Station and about 60 to Shibuya. Buses are slower than the train, but you do not change on the way to Shinjuku and your bags go in the hold. Allow more in rush hour.

A taxi is a real option from Haneda because the distance is short: 17 km and about 19 minutes of pure driving to Tokyo Station, 21 km and also about 19 minutes to Shinjuku. Those figures come from OpenStreetMap routing with no traffic, so add at least a third. Trips between 22:00 and 05:00 usually carry a late-night surcharge, tolls are extra, and flat-rate services to certain areas need a reservation. A pre-booked transfer from the airport^* (Welcome Pickups) mainly earns its place after a late landing; our article on when an airport transfer pays off goes through the reasons.

From Narita: the Skyliner

The Keisei Skyliner runs to Nippori and then on to Keisei-Ueno. GO TOKYO says about 45 minutes to Ueno and Keisei says 41 at best. Keisei runs three trains an hour, every seat is reserved, and each car has its own luggage space.

Nippori is the handy stop for changing to JR lines, so use it if you are continuing on the Yamanote Line. If you are staying in Ueno or Asakusa, the Skyliner is the shortest way. For Shinjuku or Shibuya it means a change, and the Narita Express is easier.

From Narita: the Narita Express

JR East's Narita Express (N'EX) runs without a change to Tokyo Station, Shinagawa, Shibuya, Shinjuku and Yokohama. Tokyo Station takes about 60 minutes, 53 at best. GO TOKYO puts Shinjuku at about 90 minutes, and this is where you feel the difference from the Skyliner: the train spends another half hour crossing the city, but you stay in your seat.

You reserve seats online, at a JR ticket office or at the passport-reading ticket machines in the station. JR East says the large-luggage areas need no reservation, but they are limited and work on a first-come basis. On the way back, allow for the walk inside Tokyo Station, where the platforms are deep underground.

From Narita: the trains with no surcharge

Keisei's Access Express runs via Nippori and Ueno, and Keisei also describes through services to Nihombashi, Shimbashi and Shinagawa. The Rapid Limited Express goes via Funabashi. Neither needs a limited-express supplement, but neither has reserved seats and both stop more often. We could not find a firm journey time on the official pages, so they are not in the chart above. The airport's route search shows the current connection.

From Narita: bus and taxi

The TYO-NRT Airport Bus takes about 68 minutes to Tokyo Station and 81 to Ginza according to GO TOKYO. The Limousine Bus takes about 60 minutes to Tokyo City Air Terminal. For Ginza, the TYO-NRT is the simplest answer because you do not change at all.

A taxi from Narita is the opposite of Haneda: 70 km and just over an hour of pure driving, often more. Narita Airport lists fixed-fare taxis by zone, for example Zone C for Chiyoda, Chuo and Taito and Zone D for Shinjuku, Shibuya and Minato. You do not need a reservation, but ask the driver before getting in. Tolls are extra and a surcharge applies between 22:00 and 05:00. For most people this only makes sense as a group of four or after the last train.

One more thing to plan for: Terminal 3 at Narita is about a 10-minute walk from the Terminal 2/3 station according to the airport, while Terminals 1 and 2 are about 5. If you arrive on a low-cost airline at Terminal 3, count that in before you reserve a train.

Which one suits you?

• Hotel in Ueno or Asakusa, landing at Narita: Skyliner.
• Hotel near Tokyo Station or Marunouchi, landing at Narita: Narita Express.
• Hotel in Shinjuku or Shibuya, landing at Narita: Narita Express, even though it takes half an hour longer. You avoid a change.
• Hotel in Ginza, landing at Narita: TYO-NRT bus.
• Hotel in Shinagawa or Yokohama, landing at Haneda: Keikyu.
• Hotel in Ginza or Ueno, landing at Haneda: monorail and Yamanote Line.
• Late arrival or four people, Haneda: taxi.
• Late arrival, Narita: check the last train before you take a taxi, because the ride is long.

If you reach the city early and your room is not ready, a luggage drop in Tokyo^* saves you carrying the suitcases around. Set up mobile data before you fly so route search works from the moment you land; our eSIM comparison for Japan lists the plans. Entry rules are on the UK government's Japan page.

What comes next

How long to stay is covered in how many days in Tokyo, and which month suits your trip in the best time to visit Japan. If you are landing in western Japan, we have a separate guide to Kansai airport to Osaka.

Tokyo trip planDay by day, with map and tips

How YesTrip helps you plan

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