Given that we only had a 19 hour layover in Japan we just booked the Hilton Tokyo Narita Airport. It’s definitely not an aspirational property, but one I figured would be useful to review, since it is very convenient for overnights near Narita Airport. We booked a rate of 12,000JPY (~$120USD), which seemed rather low for Japan, though this was my first time staying by Narita Airport.
It’s a good thing we booked an airport hotel, since the weather was horrible for the entire time we were on the ground.
Once we cleared immigration (which was surprisingly quick) we exited terminal one and went to bus stop 16. As luck would have it the shuttle was waiting there. The bus drive to the hotel took about 15 minutes, including a brief stop at terminal two to pick up more passengers.
The exterior of the hotel looks entirely like a hospital. ‘Nuff said.
Hilton Tokyo Narita Airport exterior
The lobby of the hotel is spacious with extremely tall ceilings and plenty of natural light (in theory — the typhoon wasn’t helping with that). The lobby circled around the inner courtyard of the hotel, which had a pretty intricate fountain display. Check-in was located inside the lobby to the left.
Hilton Tokyo Narita Airport lobby
Hilton Tokyo Narita Airport lobby
Check-in was efficient, and my Honors Diamond status was acknowledged. We were informed we’d receive complimentary breakfast in the restaurant and free internet. I was assigned a deluxe plus queen room on the 11th floor.
Hilton Tokyo Narita Airport lobby
Hilton Tokyo Narita Airport hallway
I was assigned room 1135, which was located near the elevator.
Hilton Tokyo Narita Airport room entrance
By Japanese standards the room was pretty big. There was an entryway with a closet to the right and bathroom to the left.
Hilton Tokyo Narita Airport deluxe plus queen room entrance
The room featured a firm queen bed with two nightstands. On the right nightstand were all the controls to the lighting in the room.
Hilton Tokyo Narita Airport deluxe plus queen room bed
Across from the bed was the TV and desk.
Hilton Tokyo Narita Airport deluxe plus queen room desk and TV
Hilton Tokyo Narita Airport deluxe plus queen room desk
On the TV dresser were some minibar snacks, as well as a welcome amenity consisting of a couple of bottles of water and some cookies.
Hilton Tokyo Narita Airport deluxe plus queen room welcome amenity and minibar snacks
Over near the window by the bed was a chair with a mismatched ottoman.
Hilton Tokyo Narita Airport deluxe plus queen room chair and ottoman
The bathroom was fairly large though felt very sterile/hospitalish. It featured a sink, fancy Japanese toilet, and a rather ridiculously complicated shower with a bunch of unmarked knobs.
Hilton Tokyo Narita Airport deluxe plus queen room bathroom
Hilton Tokyo Narita Airport deluxe plus queen room toilet
Hilton Tokyo Narita Airport deluxe plus queen room shower
As usual, the toiletries were Peter Thomas Roth branded.
Hilton Tokyo Narita Airport deluxe plus queen room toiletries
The room didn’t feature much of a view, so was rather quiet. The weather was horrible throughout the stay, so there was very little visibility.
Hilton Tokyo Narita Airport deluxe plus queen room view
On the whole the room was perfectly pleasant. It was by no means luxurious and could have used a renovation, but given how big the room was and that I paid $120 for the stay, I was perfectly happy.
The one thing worth noting about the room is that it didn’t have Wi-Fi, but after calling down they brought an Airport Express to my room. The Wi-Fi speed was decent at that point.
I worked for most of the evening and went to bed at a reasonable hour. The next morning we had breakfast at about 7AM, and I don’t think I’ve ever seen such bad weather.
As I walked down to the restaurant I noticed that the waterfall in the courtyard the water was actually splashing upwards to the point that people were standing there filming it. Scary stuff, and I certainly wasn’t looking forward to flying in that weather!
Hilton Tokyo Narita Airport courtyard
Hilton Tokyo Narita Airport courtyard
Breakfast was served at Terrace Restaurant starting at 7AM, and the restaurant was packed. Virtually everyone at breakfast seemed to be airline crew. In one corner you had your 50-65 year old graying, bearded men discussing the Vietnam War and Obamacare, in the other you had your young attractive girls from somewhere between the UK and Russia, and in the other you had your group of more experienced ladies well into their 70s discussing back pain, etc.
Hilton Tokyo Narita Airport Terrace Restaurant
Hilton Tokyo Narita Airport Terrace Restaurant
Hilton Tokyo Narita Airport Terrace Restaurant
Hilton Tokyo Narita Airport Terrace Restaurant
The buffet spread itself was okay. Generally Japanese breakfast buffets can’t compete with breakfast buffets in most Southeast Asian countries, as they’re not nearly as varied, and this one was no exception. Even the Japanese selection was somewhat limited.
The limited Japanese options were actually quite good, though the meat looked like it came out of a Lunchables box, the eggs were as runny as they usually are in Japan, and the western selection seemed to mostly be limited to 63 varieties of bread. Unfortunately there wasn’t much of a selection of fresh fruit.
Hilton Tokyo Narita Airport Terrace Restaurant breakfast buffet
Hilton Tokyo Narita Airport Terrace Restaurant breakfast buffet
Hilton Tokyo Narita Airport Terrace Restaurant breakfast buffet
Hilton Tokyo Narita Airport Terrace Restaurant breakfast buffet
Hilton Tokyo Narita Airport Terrace Restaurant breakfast buffet
Hilton Tokyo Narita Airport Terrace Restaurant breakfast buffet
Hilton Tokyo Narita Airport Terrace Restaurant breakfast buffet
Hilton Tokyo Narita Airport Terrace Restaurant breakfast buffet
Hilton Tokyo Narita Airport Terrace Restaurant breakfast buffet
Hilton Tokyo Narita Airport Terrace Restaurant breakfast buffet
We checked out of the hotel at roughly 11AM and waited inside the lobby for the shuttle. Though the weather was marginally better at this point, the typhoon was apparently the worst one to hit Japan in 10 years, so the bellman apologized profusely that the shuttle was running “a few minutes late.” Of course this was communicated to us with a horrible sense of shame as if they had personally offended us, but sure enough they had a solution. “Please go outside and our staff drive you to the airport in their car.”
Hilton Narita Airport exterior
Hilton Narita Airport exterior sign
I figured I misunderstood him. I mean, surely they weren’t going to have their employees drive us to the airport in their personal cars.
Nope, that’s exactly what they were going to do.
We headed outside and one of the employees was waiting in his car, which was similar to a Toyota Yaris, and was clearly his personal vehicle. It even had a Hello Kitty umbrella in the trunk and a McDonald’s “holder” in the center of the console.
We were too blown away to take even a single picutre, but during that short drive he apologized no fewer than eight times and said “thank you for waiting” no fewer than five.
Anyway, the Hilton Narita Airport is a nice, no frills hotel. It could use a renovation, but given the price point and convenience it’s tough to beat, especially if you’re a Hilton Diamond or Gold member. Given how expensive stuff is in Japan, getting complimentary internet and breakfast adds a lot of value to staying here, in my opinion.
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