JAPAN
Before you visit Japan, check out Ito Noriyuki's excellent website at http://www2s.biglobe.ne.jp/~ito-nori/index.html
for details and timetable links of all the main airports in Japan.
FUKUOKA (RJFF/FUK)
Single runway – 2 domestic terminals on one side with international terminal, coast guard and military the other side. All 3 terminals have observation decks. On the domestic side, Terminal 1 has a free deck on floor 3 so has the best views, and is surrounded by mesh, but no holes for photography. There is also an inside area. Above this on floor 4 is an air conditioned room with a slightly better view and an air hockey table. Terminal 2 has a free outside deck surrounded by glass, again with an inside area. The glass is clean and good photos can be had from here. The international terminal is about half way down the runway on the opposite side, but all can be read off. The Coast Guard and military stuff are at the other end of the runway so are difficult to read unless they move. Decks are open 0700-2130. The Comfort Hotel in the centre of Fukuoka takes about ten minutes on the subway which like everything in Japan was cheap at £1 one way and very easy to use.
Updated 4 July 2007
HANEDA (RJTT/HND)
There is an observation deck on floor 5 of Terminal 1 called the Big Bird deck, open 0800-2000 winter and 0630-2200 summer, its the higher of the two decks and is best for spotting - you can see everything. Predominantly looking over the JAL side, plus the JCAB, Coast Guard bits on the far side, from here you can log everything that moves on both runways. It has two entrances at either end of a corridor that also accommodates business meeting rooms. On this floor there is a small cafe/restaurant and some garden furniture and the fencing here is very good for photos of aircraft just off stand or landing/taxiing. Then if you climb up the stairs at either end you can reach a very high open area above the airport. Photography is good for the southern runway here but most importantly you can monitor ALL arrivals and departures on all the runways (they only use 2 at once for scheduled flights with biz and JCAB aircraft using the cross runway occasionally) no matter which direction they land from. If you want numbers base yourself here and you won't miss a thing. The observation deck on Terminal 2 looks over the ANA side and has same opening times. This deck is slightly lower and as such you cannot see any movements on the other runway. Both decks are free and have purpose built holes for photos. The Big Bird deck is best, however they tend to use one runway for landing and one for taking off, so after a while you could base yourself on either deck and it should be fine. Multi-storey car park 2 for spotting prior to deck opening. To get a better view of the JCAB and Coast Guard bits, get on the monorail and head for Tenkubashi at 190Yen. This brings you out right outside the JCAB area. You can then wander down the back of the hangar area (keeping the monorail directly on your left) and this will lead to the Coast Guard area with hangars open - a couple more Pumas and biz should be logged. The monorail would actually go past here if you stayed on, but you would have to be quick in reading off. There is a stop after Tenkubashi which is half way between the JCAB and Coast Guard areas.
The Honkan and Shinkan hotels are side by side (the Shinkan has the western buffet breakfast). No problems at the Toyoko Inn chain, relatively cheap rooms compared to others, but very clean and tidy and all conveniently located. Yes the rooms are a bit small, but that is to be expected at most hotels across Japan. The Haneda Tokyu Excel Hotel is connected to Terminal 2 and is about £100 a night but is by far the most convenient hotel for getting to the viewing deck for its early opening. There is a free shuttle bus that runs from Haneda every 10 minutes or so (5 minute intervals for the bus back from the hotel to the airport) and all details can be found via their website. It is a bit strange where they pick you up at in relation to the other buses. If you come out of the ANA terminal at Haneda, the P1 parking lot is in front of you across the road. To the left of that is a small bus rank, and it is in here that the bus picks you up, not the main road like the others. For transfer to Narita, see below.
Updated 4 July 2007
NAGOYA-CHUBU CENTRAIR (RJGG/NGO)
The new Nagoya airport built on a man-made island. One runway – 18/36.
The terminal building is a 'T' shape with the whole top of it, apart from the extreme corners, being a huge observation deck. The deck is free and is open 0700-2100. Unlike other decks with mesh around them with holes for photographs, this deck hasn't got mesh but just horizontal wires. Also only a very small amount of shade.
The Comfort hotel, a cheaper alternative to the Centrair Hotel, is located next to the new Tokyo-inn. Ask for an airport view, floors 7 and 8 look like they would offer views of the apron and runway, but possibly not the stands. Free internet access and 5 minutes walk from the terminal.
Updated 5 August 2007
NARITA (RJAA/NRT)
2 runways, 16L/34R, 16R/34L, though these runways are offset by some distance. Arrivals usually start around 06:30, with the first departure between 08:30-09:00 being one of the night stoppers that arrived the evening before.
There is a huge observation deck on floor 5 of Terminal 1, open 0700-1900 winter and 0700-2100 summer and two smaller observation decks on level 4 of Terminal 2 (South and North), same opening times, all are free and all have purpose built holes in the mesh for taking photos. From the Terminal 1 deck, you can see most of the biz ramp but you may miss things on the newer runway. If the weather is good then you will also be able to monitor departures from the runway by Terminal 2 if you are quick and have a decent strength telescope or binoculars as this runway is offset by quite some distance from the T1 runway and so the departures are quite high by the time they are in view – the best place is in the far southeast corner of the deck on T1. Also in T1 if you make your way to the departures level there are big glass windows that mean you can read off some of the remote stands that aren't visible from the deck. From Terminal 2 deck (reached by walking to the back of the check in area on level 3 and going up the escalators), at one end of the floor is the north deck and the other the south deck, along with lots and lots of restaurants. From the North deck you can see the cargo stands of UPS and ANA, plus most of T2s stands. From the south deck you can see most of the T2 stands and especially at night this deck allows you to read off everything moving from T1 to the T2 runway for departure and vice versa. You can see arrivals on 34L through the big gap between cargo and T1, so the south deck is the place to be to monitor all movements if 34s are in use. From Terminal 1, although you can see the arrivals on 34R behind you, it is difficult to read them off as they are too high before they go behind the building, so by using the timetable, a trip over to Terminal 2 every couple of hours should make it possible to get most things (most of the Chinese stuff lands on 34R along with plenty of other bits and pieces). If landing on the 16s, you should be ok on Terminal 1 all the time, as anything departing from behind you on 16L should be able to be read off. It is easy to get between the two terminals with a shuttle bus running every 5-10 minutes or so. You can transfer between terminals by bus - T1 bus stop 6, T2 bus stop 8 or 18.
The APO Rest House Hotel, within the airport boundaries, can be booked online through http://www.apo-resthouse.com/english/index.html. All the info you need (location, shuttle buses etc) is on that website, no problems encountered at all and with a bar/restaurant in the basement. Rooms 801, 803, 805 have views of part of cargo and one bay on T1. You can log arrivals if they don’t turn off short on 16R and no problems logging departures if on 34L. It’s within the airport boundary so the passport check is not required and a 5 minute walk to/from the terminal. The Marroad International overlooks the cargo ramps – ask for a high room facing the airport. Only double rooms such as 1195 and 1196 have views of the airport, overlooking cargo and one runway. Request a high floor, airport-facing room at the Excel Hotel Tokyu for views of most of T1 and cargo, for example room 1045. The hotel is half a mile from the 16R threshold. The courtesy bus runs from 0630-2300 and stops at T2, then T1. Keep your passport with you at all times as you need to produce it at the security gate to the airport. If using 34s, departures on 34L are logged as they fly over the hotel, but arrivals on 34R will be missed as the runways are so offset. Room 1250 at the Holiday Inn has views of both runways but SBS is required to log everything. Room 910 at the Nikko Winds Hotel has good views of T2 ramp and is situated across the road from the T2 cargo ramp. The restaurant on the top floor also has great views.
Getting between here and Haneda is easy - the Friendly Airport Limousine Bus takes about 50-70 minutes at a cost of 3,000Yen (£12) one way. Use the ticket desks at Narita or the Ticket Machines at Haneda. Further details can be had at http://www.limousinebus.co.jp/en/
Updated 24 May 2008
OKINAWA-NAHA (ROAK/OKA)
The observation decks cost 100Yen each time you go on the deck. There are two decks here, one overlooking the JAL pier and one the ANA pier, with a large glass area in between in the terminal, which you can also use. The JAL side is the one to go for as it also overlooks the Ryukyu Air Commuter stuff, you can see over to the far side for the light stuff and Coast Guard stuff, and you've also got the sight of masses of JMSDF P-3 Orions to your left. Decks are open 0800-1900 from April to October, and 0800-1730 from November to March. The Hotel Sun Queen, booked via http://www.japanhotel.net, is 8 stops down on the monorail (260Yen) from the airport - details can be found at http://www.urbanrail.net/as/naha/naha.htm. On exit from the monorail, face the direction you've come from, turn right up the main street and the hotel is about 3-5min walk on your right.
Added 16 April 2007
OSAKA-ITAMI (RJOO/ITM)
There is a free observation deck on the top floor stretching pretty much the full length of the terminal building, open from 0730-2200hrs, just follow the signs. No mesh and no glass so perfect for photos if the gates and piers didn't get in the way. On the opposite side of the runways is a large play area and large spotting mound. The Hotel AP is on the other side of the airport car parks, but due to a fence running around the whole compound it takes about 15-20 minutes to walk around there. You can book it through http://www.japanhotel.net. The hotel does have a shuttle bus that runs to the airport every 20 minutes from 0600 to 2200hrs and only takes about 5 minutes. To get between the two Osaka airports, use the Limousine Bus at a cost of 1,700Yen and a journey of around 1 hour to 75 minutes (http://www.okkbus.co.jp/eng/) with buses every 40 minutes or so. For more info visit http://www2u.biglobe.ne.jp/~spot/index_english.htm.
Updated 4 July 2007
OSAKA-KANSAI (RJBB/KIX)
To get to the observation decks built within two five-storey blocks at the threshold to runway 24, get a bus from bus stop 1 or the Aeroplaza at a cost of 100Yen and takes 10 minutes. Once you arrive you get off the bus and walk in between two large buildings and bear around to your right to the back of the right hand building, where you can go in and go up to the fourth and fifth floors for a complete view
down the runway and on one side of the terminal. To your left is the Japan Coast Guard which houses some choppers and Saab 340s. Everything has to go past you on its way in or out at the moment but on 2 August this year the new runway opens - you should still be able to monitor everything from here as well. At 10:00 a bridge from the fourth floor opens to the fourth floor of the other building, so make your way up the stairs, escalator or lift to the fifth floor where there is another observation deck, which gives a slightly better angle for photos of taxiing aircraft. On the fourth floor of the first building there is a very good restaurant with plenty of snacks and drink. The decks are open from 0800-2200hrs. Views are superb and when using runway 24, photo opportunities are fantastic. On the departures level of the terminal you can spot at either end and monitor departures first thing in the morning before the observation hall opens. The ANA Gate Tower Hotel, which is the tall building you can see in the background of landing shots at Kansai is reached by a free shuttle and is about £100 a night, which is cheaper than staying at the airport in the Nikko hotel. There is also the Kansai Washington Hotel
nearby. The hotel doesn't offer any real views as its about 3km from the airport but is very easy to get to and from. To get between the two Osaka airports, use the Limousine Bus at a cost of 1,700Yen and a journey of around 1 hour (http://www.okkbus.co.jp/eng/) with buses every 40 minutes or so. For more info visit http://www2u.biglobe.ne.jp/~spot/index_english.htm.
Updated 4 July 2007
SAPPORO-SHIN-CHITOSE (RJCC/CTS)
Not extremely busy, but provides the chance to catch up on some more domestic machines. The terminal building is a large semi-circle overlooking two runways and you can't miss a thing. The free viewing deck is only open 0900-1700hrs between April and November only, but that is not a problem as the level below is fully glass fronted so you still can't miss anything whilst keeping warm! If you want a change, go to the back of the semi-circle terminal and up a level to the Pronto Coffee Shop and around the back you will see the two runways of the JASDF base and anything moving can be read off with distant views of stuff parked on the ramp. The Mitsui Urban Hotel New Chitose Airport, the hotel inside the terminal complex at the JAL end can be booked through Japan Hotels Online (http://japanhotelsonline.net/jho/sys/) - this was the only website which will allow you to book as all other sites often say no rooms available. An added bonus being that this website can be much cheaper. If you want an airport view, you need to be on the outside of the semi-circle terminal building.
Added 9 April 2007