Since it was not the school holidays yet, we brought the boy instead of the girl for this trip since she had to go to school.
This is the first time that the boy is going overseas with just the hubby and I so he was super exhilarated! He must be so happy to finally get all our attention and have no one to irritate and disturb him! *laughs*
We decided to fly with ANA because as usual, it was cheaper than Singapore Airlines and was a Star Alliance member so we could still earn KrisFlyer points. We paid approximately S$696 per adult and S$540 per child.
Our plane departed from Singapore Changi Airport, Terminal 2 at 6.25am (super duper early!).
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| My boy enjoyed the window seat and the entertainment, even though it was so disappointing as compared to Singapore Airlines and Emirates. There was only ONE kids movie available and that was Toy Story! |
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| The boy enjoying his adult meal because I forgot to order the kids meal for him. I didn't know I had to indicate as it was always automatically assigned on our Singapore Airlines and Emirates flights! We are seriously too spoilt by our two favourite airlines! |
Although the service was good on our flight, it just can't match up to Singapore Airlines! Hopefully we'll get to fly SQ on our next trip to Japan!
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| We saw Mt Fuji on the plane! So beautiful! |
After a relatively long 7-hour flight, we arrived at Tokyo Narita International Airport, Terminal 1, at 2.25pm (Tokyo is 1 hour ahead of Singapore).
There are many options for Airport Transfers but here're my TOP 3 from Narita Airport to Tokyo Station (price quoted per adult):
- JR Narita Express train = ¥3000
- Great if you bought the JR Pass
- Limousine Bus = ¥2800
- Travels to more destinations
- Higher frequency so that you do not need to wait very long for the bus
- Read more about our experience travelling via the Limousine Bus when we last visited Tokyo in 2015 and see their official website for more details.
- Tokyo Shuttle Bus = ¥1000
- Only goes to Tokyo Station and Osaki Station
- Lower frequency, hence you may have to wait a longer time for the bus depending on your arrival time.
Since we will be staying at Tokyo Station and the timing was just right for us, it was a no-brainer for us to go with the Tokyo Shuttle Bus!
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| Clockwise from left: Look out for the Keisei Bus counter to purchase your tickets; Adult ticket at ¥1000; Child ticket at ¥500. |
As the next Shuttle Bus was only arriving at 3.10pm, we had a light lunch at Caffe Bene.
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| Caffè Bene at Narita Airport Terminal 1 |
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| We tried their signature curry rice, which was so yummy! |
We nearly missed our bus because we had not realised that Bus Stop 31 was so far away from the bus counter where we bought our tickets.
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| Boarding the Tokyo Shuttle Bus at Bus Stop 31 |
The journey was very smooth to Tokyo Station. We Googled our hotel and decided to walk because it looked doable. The walk took about 20 minutes, which seems long but felt ok because of the cool weather. It was a good exercise before all the feasting! *laughs*
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| Dragging our luggage and stroller along the streets to our hotel |
We had a good experience staying at Dormy Inn in Osaka the last time so we decided to stay at Dormy Inn again for this trip.
There are a few Dormy Inn hotels in Tokyo. We chose Dormy Inn Premium Tokyo Kodenmacho because it looked better than the others in the pictures. There was also a metro station, Kodenmacho Station, located right next to the hotel so it's a lot more convenient than our previous accommodation at Shinjuku.
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| Dormy Inn Premium Tokyo Kodenmacho, Ginza (Address: 2-3, Kodenma-cho, Nihonbashi, Chuo-ku, Tokyo Station, Tokyo, Japan 103-0001) |
We booked the Double Non-smoking room at ¥14,749 per room per night, via Agoda. Our room came with breakfast for two (more details in the next post, link at the end of this post).
We had to pay additional for my boy, approximately ¥1400 per night I think (it's not very expensive).
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| Left: Squeezing through the narrow corridor to our room; Right: View from our room window. |
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| Our double bed |
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| Left: The multipurpose wire for charging devices next to the bed was very useful!; Right: The only space next to the bed for putting luggage. |
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| The study table and TV area |
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| Wardrobe, sink and fridge area |
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| Toilet and shower area |
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| The usual toiletries provided |
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| The boy got his own set of yukata, slippers and toothbrush! |
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| Left: Complimentary bottle water; Right: Ice machine and vending machines are located at Level 11 for convenience. |
After settling in, we had an early dinner at Nakau, a restaurant located just opposite of our hotel.
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| Nakau (Address: 〒103-0001 Tōkyō-to, Chūō-ku, Nihonbashikodenmachō, 4−1, 井門小伝馬町ビル) |
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| Plain udon for the boy, beef don for the hubby, asari (clam) udon for me and pork katsu to share |
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| Their signature is the asari udon, which is SOOOO good! The broth was sweet and the clams were succulent and chewy! Highly recommended if you like clams like us! 😋 |
After dinner, we bought some groceries before heading back to bathe at the public baths.
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| Wearing our yukata to the onsen! |
The onsen/spa is located at Level 11. As this is my boy's first time in an onsen, the daddy thought he had better go with me so that I can ease him in.
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| Excited for his first onsen experience! |
The boy had no problems bathing at the common bath area but was extremely apprehensive of the onsen for some reason. I actually had to drag him in to show him that there was nothing to be afraid of. When he realised how warm and nice the onsen was, he relaxed and began to have fun.
Although he really enjoyed the onsen with me, he never wanted to join me in the female common bath after that. Whenever I asked him if he preferred to go with me or Daddy, he would always say "Daddy!" I think he was really uncomfortable seeing so many ladies naked and looking so physically different from him. Maybe he's beginning to realise that he belong with the guys! *laughs*
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| You can see the Tokyo Sky Tree from this window on Level 11 while waiting for the lift |
After bathing in the onsen, we proceeded to the restaurant, Hatago, for our complimentary ramen.
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| Hatago |
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| Complimentary ramen and drinks between 9.30pm - 11pm for all guests |
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| Enjoying our ramen and ice chocolate. The boy likes it so much that he can eat almost a whole bowl by himself! |
Such an awesome start to our trip! 😁
Continue to >> Tokyo-Izu Day 2: Tsukiji Fish Market, Ginza & Asakusa
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