San Jose to Tokyo: Zipair Nonstop to Narita, Airports and Getting Into the City

The moment comes in the arrivals hall, when the signs split into train lines and terminals and you realize that Tokyo has more than one front door. For travelers leaving the South Bay, the direct answer is Zipair Tokyo, which flies nonstop between San Jose and Narita International Airport. Other airlines reach Tokyo from other American cities, and the choice of airport shapes the first hour on the ground.

Which airlines fly from San Jose to Tokyo?

Zipair Tokyo is the airline that flies nonstop between San Jose (CA) and Tokyo, and it lands at Narita International Airport. Zipair also links Narita with Honolulu, Houston–Intercontinental, Los Angeles and San Francisco, and runs charter flights to Orlando, so its Narita terminal handles a good share of the traffic to the western United States.

Other carriers fly to Tokyo from different American cities rather than from San Jose. Anyone who prefers a different airline can build a trip with a connection and pick up a nonstop Tokyo flight from a hub. Los Angeles is the name that appears on every list below, which makes it the common thread.

Zipair Tokyo, the nonstop from San Jose

Zipair Tokyo is the one name on the list that serves San Jose directly. You fly into Narita, which sits in Chiba Prefecture and handles most major international destinations along with many domestic airports. That means your arrival airport is already decided, and the planning that follows is about the ground: which rail line, which terminal, and whether you continue within Japan.

Because Zipair also serves Honolulu, Los Angeles and San Francisco from Narita, a traveler who ends up routing through one of those cities lands at the same airport. It is a way of keeping the Narita arrival the same even when the departure city changes.

Delta, American, United and ANA from other U.S. cities

Three American airlines fly nonstop to Haneda Airport, the airport of Tokyo city itself. Delta serves Atlanta, Detroit, Honolulu, Los Angeles, Minneapolis/St. Paul and Seattle/Tacoma. American flies from Dallas/Fort Worth, Los Angeles and New York–JFK. United covers Chicago–O’Hare, Guam, Los Angeles, Newark, San Francisco and Washington–Dulles.

All Nippon Airways flies nonstop from Narita to Chicago–O’Hare, Honolulu, Los Angeles and San Francisco, with seasonal service to Vancouver. Between these carriers, Los Angeles and San Francisco show up at both Tokyo airports, which is useful to know if you are comparing a connection against the nonstop.

Where do you land?

From San Jose on the nonstop, you land at Narita, one of the two airports serving the capital, and it handles both international and domestic flights. Haneda is the other, the airport of Tokyo city, where it is now possible to arrive directly in the heart of Tokyo from international destinations.

Narita International Airport

Narita lies in Chiba Prefecture, about an hour by express train from Tokyo. Three rail lines serve it: the Narita Sky Access line, the Keisei line and the JR line. All three are part of the airport’s regular rail connection, so the terminal you arrive at tends to matter more than the company whose train you pick.

There are three terminals. Terminal 1 is a 5-minute walk from Narita Airport Station, and Terminal 2 has the same walk from Narita Airport Terminal 2・3 Station. Terminal 3 is a 10-minute walk from that same Terminal 2・3 Station, so two terminals share one stop and the walk to the third is longer. Read the terminal on your boarding documents before you set out for the trains.

Haneda Airport

At the passenger terminal, travelers can search for routes, departure and arrival times, and fares for trains, monorails and buses to their destination. That search covers the whole set of ground options in one place, so you can compare them before you leave the building.

There are two types of taxi stands at Haneda: general stands and stands for app-dispatched or reserved taxis. Anyone who arranged a taxi through an app or by phone has to use the dedicated stand for reserved taxis. Parking lots P2 through P5 can be reserved in advance, with details on each lot’s own reservation page, which matters if you are being picked up or dropping off by car.

Onward flights within Japan

Many travelers continue to another city by air. From Narita, All Nippon Airways flies nonstop to Nagoya–Centrair, Osaka–Itami and Sapporo–Chitose, and Japan Airlines flies to Nagoya–Centrair and Osaka–Itami. Jetstar Japan adds a long list: Asahikawa, Fukuoka, Kagoshima, Kōchi, Kumamoto, Matsuyama, Miyazaki, Nagasaki, Naha, Ōita, Osaka–Kansai, Sapporo–Chitose, Shimojishima, Shonai and Takamatsu.

Peach flies from Narita to Amami Oshima, Fukuoka, Ishigaki, Kagoshima, Kushiro, Miyazaki, Nagasaki, Naha, Ōita, Osaka–Kansai and Sapporo–Chitose. Spring Japan serves Hakodate, Hiroshima and Sapporo–Chitose. From Haneda, Air Do flies to Asahikawa, Hakodate, Kushiro, Memanbetsu, Obihiro and Sapporo–Chitose, and Skymark flies to Fukuoka, Kagoshima, Kobe, Naha, Sapporo–Chitose and Shimojishima. Solaseed Air serves Kagoshima, Kumamoto, Miyazaki, Nagasaki, Naha and Oita, and StarFlyer flies to Fukuoka, Kitakyushu, Osaka–Kansai and Ube.

Kansai and Nagoya as other doors into Japan

Kansai International Airport makes it possible to visit Japan without going through Tokyo. It is the gateway to western Japan, serving Kyoto, Osaka, Nara and Wakayama, and it is about 50 minutes from Shin-Osaka high-speed train station and 1 hour 15 minutes from Kyoto Station. Nagoya’s Central Japan International Airport, known as Centrair, is the airport hub for flights to and from cities in Asia and Japan.

What do you need for the trip?

For the flight itself, you need to settle three things: which airline carries you from San Jose, which Tokyo airport you land at, and how you reach the city from there. The Zipair nonstop settles the first two and points you to Narita, which leaves the ground leg to plan.

Sorting out the ground leg from Narita

Start with the terminal, since it decides which station you head for. Terminals 1 and 2 each have their own station, and Terminal 3 shares a stop with Terminal 2. Then choose among the Narita Sky Access line, the Keisei line and the JR line, the three lines serving the airport, and the express trains that make the journey to Tokyo in about an hour.

If you land at Haneda instead, the search tool at the passenger terminal is the place to compare trains, monorails and buses by time and fare. Decide before you land whether you will use a regular taxi stand or a reserved one, because the two are kept apart.

Deciding where the trip goes next

Tokyo is not the only destination from these runways. Anyone heading for Kyoto, Osaka or Nara can instead fly into Kansai, and travelers bound for Nagoya have Centrair.

A traveler who lands at Narita and wants to fly on can choose among several domestic airlines without changing airport, which keeps a connection to a single terminal complex. Travelers who arrive at Haneda have a separate set of domestic carriers, from Air Do to StarFlyer. Matching the arrival airport to the onward airline is a good use of an evening at home before leaving.

Good to know before you go

The U.S. State Department rates Japan Level 1: Exercise Normal Precautions.

Narita and Haneda divide the Tokyo traffic between them, and your airline decides which one you meet first. Yen fares for the ground leg appear in the Haneda route search, and the three rail lines at Narita each post their own. If you plan to drive to Haneda for a pickup, the P2 to P5 lots take reservations in advance.