INTRODUCTION

REVIEW: HILTON NARITA

After a very very long day of traveling from Boston to Tokyo, via SFO and Seoul I finally arrived at Narita Airport. After a quick walk through customs and a jaunt through the arrivals hall I was finally outside. This was my first breath of non-airport air in over 1 ½ days. Ouch. I had booked one night at the Narita Hilton for two reasons it was close to the airport and was really cheap for some reason on the night I was there. I landed at 9:30 PM and had a 9:20 AM flight the next day and I wanted to be sort of close to the airport. Initially I was more interested in staying in a downtown hotel or one at Tokyo Bay, but after researching the many options to get to these properties, the time it would take and the cost I thought it best to stay closer to the airport. In fact a lot of the bus services seemed to end service for the night between 9-10 PM and the last thing I wanted to have to do was take a cab. I would gladly take a train but with most of the hotels I wanted to say at taking over an hour to get to via train, I was just not interested.

The hotel offers a complimentary shuttle to/from the airport and it runs on the 20 minute mark and has hours from the hotel starting at 4 AM and running till 10:40 PM. So I knew I would be ok, and worst case scenario a cab would be expensive but it would not be that far from the hotel. Like clockwork the shuttle arrived on time and I was whisked away. Here’s a link to the shuttle info if you needed it. The flight arrived in Terminal 1 and we made a quick stop at Terminal 2 and then not the hotel, overall about a 20 minute drive.

 

Upon arriving at the hotel there was a small line for check in maybe 5 people, but they had 4 staff working so it went fast. As a Diamond I was upgraded to a Double Deluxe Room, received free in room Wi-Fi (they charge for this) but it’s free in the lobby, and complimentary breakfast which runs from 6:30-10 AM daily. I’m not sure what a Double Deluxe was, but for Japan standards it was a bit bigger then normal. Most hotel rooms are miniscule here and this was maybe the size of a standard room at a Hampton or Hilton Garden Inn. I’d be afraid to find out what a standard room looks like. But hey I paid $87 all in so I really couldn’t complain. It was the best rate I found at any Hilton or Starwood Property buy $100 easy.

The room itself was basic but had some nice touches. Between the double bed was a console that controlled the various lighting (four different sections), the fan speed, it had a radio and also the telephone. Besides that the room had a dehumidifier, hot water pot with tea set, Japanese robes (too small for my tiny frame), a TV, standard linen robes, slippers and a few bottles of water with some sweet wafer cookies complimentary. The bathroom was tiny even for New York standards, but did had a tub/shower combo and an Asian bidet style toilet. These are my favorite by far.

For a one night’s stay this place was perfect. It was convenient to the airport and had really excellent transportation to it, plus at this reasonable price I was very very happy. The bed was comfortable, but would be impossible to share with someone unless you maybe slept head to toe, but since it had a second bed ad I was traveling alone, it really didn’t matter. For me being on a short layover location in so much as close to the airport was what mattered. If you’re looking for stuff to do, it seemed like it was far away from Narita Town, and at least an hour from downtown Tokyo. I’m not 100% sure, but even getting a meal outside the hotel would be hard because there was nothing around it either.

As for the facilities, they seemed clean and well maintained. This was a large hotel and they have 2 restaurants, one open for breakfast and the buffet looked nice. Although in the AM I skipped it. I was just not hungry at 6:30 when I made it down for breakfast. Besides that at 6:30 there was a lineup of about 20 people ready to get in, and I was in no mood to wait.

 

 

 

 

 

FINAL THOUGHTS

As an airport hotel this was perfect. I got Diamond recognition and amenities, the room and hotel were clean and it was close to the airport. Yes there are closer hotels, but this was close enough. Would I stay here for 2-3 days? No. I’d stay in Tokyo proper at the Conrad or Westin, not out here too far from the city. But overall a nice hotel and one I’ll keep on file for my next Japan trip when I need to stay by the airport.