This article is reprinted from the WeChat public account of one of our reader group members, 懒人 33 的吃喝玩乐. Original article link. Some subheadings were added by editor ymlulu.

Fly the Same Day or Stay Overnight?

This 75,000-mile round-trip business class award also included a domestic connection within Japan. Since there was a free flight included, there was really no need to take the Shinkansen to Kansai instead.

NH117 was changed to arrive at Haneda at 7:30 PM, so I could either fly to Osaka the same day or stay overnight at Haneda and fly to Osaka the next day. In the end, I chose to stay overnight at Haneda for the following reasons:

1. The first stop on our itinerary was originally Nara. If we stayed overnight in Osaka, that would have forced a change to the plan. To me, Osaka is more of a shopping stop, and I didn’t want to make it the first destination.

2. That evening, the only option was to fly into KIX, not ITM. ITM is much closer than KIX both to central Osaka and to Nara, so KIX would have been a hassle.

3. Because we had to clear customs at HND, pick up our bags, and then connect, the latest workable option was the 9 PM flight. That would have gotten us into KIX at 10 PM, making it inconvenient to get into the city. I also didn’t really want to arrange a Chinese-speaking airport pickup. Plus, the child would have been very tired from jet lag, so it seemed better to rest early that night.

Although ANA award tickets don’t let you change the origin and destination cities, you can still switch between different airports within the same city. Swapping between ITM and KIX was no problem.

Transferring from Haneda T3 to T2

Our family always moves slowly, and we once again didn’t get off the plane with the other business class passengers, so the main crowd was already coming out. Fortunately, passport control had a family lane, and there weren’t many people there. Our bags were priority-tagged too, so by the time we got through passport control, they were already waiting on the belt. We later used the QR code customs lane as well. Overall, the process was pretty smooth.
If you are connecting directly from an international flight to a domestic flight, you can complete the procedure on the 2nd floor and take the transfer shuttle. The location is here:

The above is the information provided by the airport. If you’re flying ANA like we were, you can also check the transfer information here:

Currently, the ANA transfer counter closes at 7 PM, so if you’re flying to Osaka that same night, you have to make your own way to T2 with your luggage. If you can complete the process at the transfer counter, your bags should be able to be checked through.

Here are some notes I had saved:

Last year, when we returned to the U.S. from Hokkaido, we used the bus for the connection. This year, we wanted to try the train. At the information desk on the arrivals level in T3, you can ask for a free ticket:

The information desk was a bit crowded that night, and someone even tried to cut in line, but I chased them off, haha. To get this ticket, they need to see your passport and connecting flight ticket. Since our second segment was the next morning, our boarding pass hadn’t been printed in Seattle. Luckily, after dealing with ANA domestic service confusion on our previous Hokkaido connection, I had printed the ANA itinerary in advance, and that was enough for us to successfully get the free train ticket.

We took the monorail, which goes directly to T2. Even though waiting in line and getting the ticket took a while, the train runs frequently and moves quickly, so we got to T2 in under 10 minutes.

Every time I arrive in Japan and get on the train, I immediately feel at ease.

Once we got to T2, I wanted to check out the ANA transfer counter, but it was quite a long walk from the train station. On the way, we ran into a Pokémon vending machine. It was fully stocked with pilot and flight attendant merchandise. At that hour there was no line, so we bought a bunch.

There were Disney machines too, and they were so cute!! But since we had just arrived, I wondered if buying that much right away was a bad idea, so I decided to save it for next time and painfully walked away after taking photos. (Now I regret it.)

T2 was not crowded at night. I asked at the transfer counter, and sure enough, they said our type of itinerary could not be handled there. We had to go to the regular counter the next morning.

The transfer counter and the airport hotel were on opposite sides, and on our way back to the hotel, the shops in the check-in hall were all starting to close.

Haneda Airport T2 Airport Hotel

The airport hotel in T2 is called Haneda Excel Hotel Tokyu, and it is located right inside the airport check-in hall. I booked a triple room about a week before departure, and it was around $300. I’m guessing it would have been cheaper if I had booked earlier.

Check-in went smoothly. The room was genuinely small. Still, for a quick half-night of rest, it was enough. The suitcases could only be opened on the beds. The triple room had three beds, and the child’s bed was clearly added later—it was the one next to the TV.

The room had a small walk-in closet that could hold a few things. The bathroom was tiny but well equipped.

The hotel window looked directly onto the ANA check-in counters. I think this was my first time staying at a hotel like that.

They had already closed for the night.

The bathroom also had a bathtub. There were three sets of toiletries.

The room was small, but it was quite clean and the soundproofing was pretty good. I’m very sensitive to hotel noise, but I didn’t hear much of anything that night.

We got some decent rest. In the middle of the night, the child woke up, and the child and I took melatonin and a sleep aid respectively, then went back to sleep until the alarm went off. Later, the child said several times that he didn’t like this airport hotel because the little red light on the TV stayed on at night and scared him.

The hotel serves breakfast starting at 5:30 AM for 2,900 yen per person. My partner was worried we’d be rushed for the flight and said we should eat after going through security instead.

T2 Domestic Flight Experience

Our flight was at 6:25, and check-in didn’t start until 5:30, but people had already started lining up at 5:00… Once again, the transfer counter next to the domestic area was completely useless, and we still had to wait in the regular line.

Fortunately, there were lots of staff and the line moved quickly. Processing our reservation still took quite a bit of time. Our bag tags for the Osaka segment already existed, but they reprinted them anyway.

There was no one at security that early. When we got there, I realized I had forgotten to empty the water from my insulated bottle, so I asked a security staff member where I could dump it out. The staff member actually said, “Daijoubu!” We went through security a little skeptically, and amazingly, they really did let us bring water through! To confirm it wasn’t a fluke, we tried again on our return flight from Osaka to Tokyo, and yes, you really can bring water through!!! We were so shocked, probably because we’re used to not being allowed to bring liquids over 100ml.

After security, we wanted to get something to eat in the lounge. Even though this domestic segment was in economy, they still let us in. But the lounge didn’t have any actual food, just snacks and drinks…

The restaurants in the T2 departure area do not open until 6:00. Domestic flights in Japan generally start boarding only 15–20 minutes before departure. In the end, right before boarding, we grabbed a few onigiri and sandwiches from COMEL Haneda Gate 63 next to our gate and ate them on the plane. They were all surprisingly good! The signature rice burger, on the other hand, looked pretty average.

Our flight that day, NH985, was on a B789, and we selected the middle three seats. The flight attendant gave the child an origami toy. It looked fun, but it was a little difficult for the child. The flight time was just over an hour. There were drinks, but no snacks or meal service.

We arrived smoothly at ITM airport, and it felt like the trip had officially begun.

About the Author

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