Source: Wikimedia Commons · MaedaAkihiko, CC0
The airport question is really a hotel question. Narita is close to nothing; Haneda is 11 minutes from Shinagawa; Kansai is the one airport in Japan where the answer is simply “take the train, it is direct to Kyoto”. Book the airport your hotel can reach, not the one with the nicer terminal.
In one line
Haneda for Tokyo — 11–20 minutes and about ¥330–520 to the city. Narita only if the fare is a
lot cheaper or you are staying near Ueno or Nippori. Kansai for Osaka, Kyoto, Nara and Kobe, where it is not a
compromise but the actual gateway.
1The numbers, not the marketing
| Airport | Distance | Fastest option | Time | Fare (one way) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Haneda → Shinagawa | 14 km | Keikyu Airport Line, direct | 11 min | ¥327 by IC card |
| Haneda → Hamamatsucho | 14 km | Tokyo Monorail | 13–20 min | ¥520 |
| Haneda → Asakusa | 20 km | Keikyu through train onto the Toei Asakusa line | 32 min | ¥599 |
| Narita → Nippori / Ueno | 60 km | Keisei Skyliner | 36–41 min | ¥2,580 |
| Narita → Tokyo Station | 60 km | JR Narita Express (N'EX) | 53 min | ¥3,140 (round-trip ticket ¥5,200) |
| Narita → Tokyo Station | 60 km | TYO-NRT airport bus | 65–90 min | ¥1,500 |
| Narita → Tokyo Station | 60 km | Airport Limousine bus | Traffic dependent | ¥3,100 |
| Kansai → Namba (Osaka) | 50 km | Nankai Rapi:t, all reserved | 34–38 min | ¥1,490 (¥970 fare + ¥520 express) |
| Kansai → Namba (Osaka) | 50 km | Nankai Airport Express | ~45 min | ¥970 |
| Kansai → Osaka / Umeda | 50 km | Airport limousine bus | ~60 min | ¥1,800 |
| Kansai → Kyoto | 75 km | JR Haruka, direct | ~76 min | ¥3,640 reserved — or ¥2,200 with the visitor one-way ticket |
Read that table twice, because the marketing does not. Narita’s “36 minutes” is the Skyliner at its fastest, to Ueno, before you have found your platform. Narita’s 53 minutes is the N’EX to Tokyo Station — add another 20–30 minutes and a transfer if you are sleeping in Shinjuku or Shibuya. From Haneda, the same city is reached in 11 to 30 minutes with no luggage wrestling.
2Match the airport to the bed
This is the part that decides your booking.
- Shinagawa, Shimbashi, Ginza, Tokyo Station: Haneda, no hesitation. Keikyu reaches Shinagawa in 11 minutes for ¥327, and Tokyo Station is 20 minutes away on the same fare table.
- Shinjuku or Shibuya: still Haneda. Keikyu plus one JR hop is around 30 minutes and about ¥535, against 75–80 minutes and ¥3,330 on the N’EX from Narita.
- Ueno, Asakusa or Nippori: Narita is genuinely competitive. The Skyliner is 36–41 minutes to Ueno with no transfer, and from Haneda a Keikyu through train runs straight onto the Asakusa line for 32 minutes and ¥599. Take whichever flight is cheaper — this is the one part of Tokyo where Narita wins on convenience, not just price.
- Kyoto: fly into Kansai and take the Haruka. It is direct, about 76 minutes, and ¥2,200 for a visitor one-way ticket with a reserved seat. The alternative is landing in Tokyo and paying ¥14,720 and 2 hours 21 minutes on a Nozomi Shinkansen just to reach Kyoto.
- Osaka (Namba, Umeda, Tennoji): Kansai, always. Rapi:t to Namba in 34 minutes, the bus to Umeda in about an hour, or the JR rapid to Osaka Station in roughly 70 minutes for ¥1,180.
- Nara or Kobe: Kansai, with a direct discounted ticket for both.
Source: Wikimedia Commons · CC0, no credit required
3The traps
- Landing at one airport and flying out of the other. It is often the cheapest itinerary, and it costs you a half-day: Haneda to Narita is about 92 minutes and ¥1,783 by train. Fine if you have the time, painful on a four-day trip.
- “Osaka” is two airports. Itami (ITM) is domestic-only. An itinerary that says Osaka with a cheap connection may be dropping you at a domestic field with no international check-in, an hour from Kansai.
- Budget buses are traffic-dependent. The ¥1,500 bus to Tokyo Station is the best value at 07:00 and a 100-minute crawl at 18:00. The trains do not sit in traffic.
- Late arrivals. Haneda runs later than most people expect — the last Keikyu train leaves around midnight — but Narita’s trains and the Skyliner stop well before that. Check the last departure for your line before you book a 21:00 landing and assume you will sleep at the airport.
The trap
Never compare airports by their headline train time. Compare the total to your hotel door: walk to the platform,
the ride, the transfer, the walk from the station. On that measure Narita is usually 75–100 minutes, not 36.
Source: Wikimedia Commons · CC0, no credit required
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4What I would book
- Tokyo, four nights, no strong fare difference: Haneda. Losing an hour each way to Narita on a short trip is not worth saving ¥2,000 on the ticket.
- Narita is ¥150+ cheaper return, or you are staying in Ueno/Asakusa: take Narita and the Skyliner.
- Kyoto, Osaka, Nara or Kobe: Kansai, and buy the Haruka one-way ticket for Kyoto or the Rapi:t for Namba before you fly — both are cheaper as visitor tickets than at the counter.
- Travelling between Tokyo and Kansai in one trip: fly into Haneda or Narita and out of Kansai (or the reverse). The Nozomi Shinkansen between them is 2 hours 21 minutes and ¥14,720, so do not plan to bounce back and forth.
Keep reading
- Suica, PASMO or ICOCA: which IC card to actually buy in 2026 — including why your card will not get you onto the Skyliner.
- Japan's tax-free shopping changes on 1 November 2026 — the refund desk is now at the airport you are standing in.
- All guides to Japan — the full index.
Sources
- Keisei Electric Railway — Skyliner fares and travel times to Nippori and Ueno
- JR East — N’EX fares, travel times and the N’EX TOKYO round-trip ticket
- Keikyu / Haneda Airport Access Guide — fares and times to Shinagawa, Tokyo, Asakusa and Shinjuku
- Tokyo Monorail — published fare table
- Nankai Electric Railway — Rapi:t and Airport Express times and fares
- JR West — HARUKA one-way ticket prices to Osaka, Shin-Osaka, Kyoto, Kobe and Nara
- Airport Limousine and TYO-NRT — bus fares on the Narita and Kansai routes