I booked airport transfers with Klook for the first time during my recent visit to Japan. Because the two local travel companies that we know do not offer transfers if you don’t book at least one tour activity with them, I looked for reputable and legitimate online booking sites for this service. Luckily, I was able to find the service that I need with Klook.

What are the benefits of getting an airport transfer? First, it’s very convenient. We just need to ride the van and sit comfortably until we reach Narita Airport. Second, we had an early morning flight, thus local trains aren’t in operation yet by the time we leave the hotel. Third, having an airport transfer was actually more cost-efficient for us, since we’re traveling in a group of 6. And finally, it’s expected that we’ll be carrying HEAVY and additional luggage due to shopping. I can’t imagine dragging two pieces of luggage at a time as we catch the local train and N’EX bound for Narita.

So how was the booking process and the entire journey? Here’s how.

Tokyo used to be a luxury destination for travelers. Though it’s still one of the world’s most expensive cities, flights and accommodation have become more affordable over the years. Initially, my mother wanted to book the hotel where we first stayed at in 2012, but with a price of Php 11,000 per night, we knew it was too much, considering we will be mostly out and about during the day.

That’s when Hotel Grand Fresa Akasaka came into view. A 2014 TripAdvisor Travelers’ Choice, the hotel is part of Sotetsu Fresa Inn’s chain of hotels which are popular for business and leisure travelers. My husband and I already stayed at their Nihombashi-Kayabacho branch in 2015, so I was looking for available rooms at that hotel once more. However, the said branch was fully booked for our travel dates. When I saw their Akasaka branch and the rates were less than half of Php 11,000, I immediately booked three rooms for our stay.

If you’re looking for affordable hotel rooms in Tokyo within the city center, let me give you an overview of our stay at Hotel Grand Fresa Akasaka.

I went back to Japan recently and it was my second time arriving at Narita Airport. The first one was way back in 2012 and we got to Tokyo via airport transfers. The second time I was in Tokyo in 2015, my husband and I landed at Haneda Airport (which I still prefer) as it’s already in the city and the travel time to our hotel at Nihonbashi/Ningyocho was just about 30 minutes.

This year, we arrived again at Narita (Terminal 2) but we had to figure out how to travel to Tokyo on our own. We didn’t book any tours, not even a service that will pick us up at the airport. But that’s the beauty of traveling. You get to discover ways on how to get to your destination by researching, asking questions, and reading maps.

There are many ways on how to get to Tokyo from Narita Airport. In this post, I’ll be teaching you and giving you tips on what to ride, where to buy tickets at the airport, and what to do before leaving Narita.