How to find cheap(er) air fare to Japan from the US?

[Kingmeow]

I know there are a ton of information out there about how to score low air fares; from deleting cookies to using a private browser to buying it at 12:01am on a Sunday.  Some I'm sure are old wives tales and I'm not willing to try a million things to save $100.  Why I do want to know is how to get the best flights for the money given that air fare is one of the biggest part of a trip to Japan (from the US).

 

I went to Japan for the first time back in September.  My wife has been there 2x before that.  I don't have to tell you all that it was an incredible experience.  We visited the major cities; Tokyo, Kyoto, Hiroshima, Osaka.  With a little experience under my belt I want to go again!!!!!

 

I'm thinking the latter half of October so it won't be as hot or as cold or as crowded.  This time I'm aiming for the second(?) tier cities like Kobe, Nagoya, Yokohama, etc.

 

Any tips on how to get cheap(er) air fares?  Any carriers better than others?  Maybe fly to a smaller city than Tokyo for better prices?  Business class is an option if the price is right.  I'm in the NYC metro area with EWR being my local airport.  We went with United last time because EWR is their hub.

[Tony Galiani]

I am hoping to go to Japan in October as well.  Haven't sorted out fares yet - just starting to look.

 

However, I received e-mail alerts from both Delta and United for upcoming sales.  No details but I plan to start checking as soon as they send me the notification that the sales are live.  Both were supposed to happen - Delta this past weekend and United today.  I expect this past weekend's IT issues have stalled the announcements as I have not gotten anything since the original messages.

 

You may know this but, just in case ...

United has generally had competitive fares out of EWR and IAD.  Since they are part of Star Alliance, you can sometimes get good deals with one of their partners - Air Canada is often a cheaper option, especially for business class, as they do not have the same volume of business travelers as United or Delta.  If you look for your flights on the United site, page down as they usually list their own flights first then flights with their partners.  AC out of Terminal A is not too bad though they tend to have longer connections in Toronto - plenty of time for multiple visits to Tim Hortons though.

 

It is a bit easier to search for flexible dates on Delta's site so worth checking there though they tend to be more expensive.  But you can get lucky so worth looking.

 

I have looked at ANA and JAL - they tend to be a bit pricier though the experience will be very good.  Lately, I have been on United more often as they seem to have the most options to choose from.  And the most options if something goes wrong with flight delays.

And, Google Flights is also a good option for comparison shopping.

 

Hope this is helpful.  I will post if/when I get any alerts on low fares.

Ciao,

Tony

[cteno4]

1 hour ago, Tony Galiani said:

plenty of time for multiple visits to Tim Hortons though.

A man after my own and Homer Simpson’s heart…

 

jeff

[kuro68000]

Look at some comparison sites like Kayak and Skyscanner. Google Flights as well. Experiment with dates, and use the "flexible dates" option if available. Try to be prepared to fly at odd times to get the best deals.

 

Also look at flights with layovers, as they tend to be cheaper than direct ones.

 

But whatever you do, don't book on those comparison sites. Find a cheap fare and go directly to the airline to book it. Reason being that if you involve a middle man and you have any issues, you now have to deal with them instead of the airline. Same with your credit card, any chargeback or dispute will be with the comparison site, not the airline.

 

Book in advance too, the closer to the departure time the more expensive it gets.

[Kingmeow]

Thanks @Tony Galiani for the excellent tips!  Please post if you receive the e-mail deals from United/Delta.  I think Delta flies more out of JFK than EWR so I rather go out of EWR if possible.  But if it means cheaper and better times, I'll schlep over to JFK.

 

As we are both retired and now our son has started working after graduating college (thus we have a "permanent" house sitter 🤣) we are extremely flexible on our dates.  We're even flexible on how long we stay!

 

@mojo great advice on the flight comparison sites.  We always book direct with the whatever airlines we will go with.  Like you said, easier to deal with if something goes wrong.  Maybe even better perks too.

 

After posting I did a QUICK check for late October on Google Fares and found JAL direct economy from JFK for $780!  😲  That seems awfully good, compared to what we paid last September, but I did not read the fine print so there may be stipulations.  Had we clicked the button we would have gone with Premium Economy for under $1400 which includes JAL lounge access (might be a shared lounge at JFK).  I didn't even check Business class so that's an option too if the price is right.

 

Thanks for all those tips.  I'll post what I find as I go down this journey.

[Kingmeow]

Oh BTW, now that we are in or near the end of July, that's 3 months from end of October.  Is it still true that you need to book "at least 3 months out"?  I know the earlier the better but if we book in August for end of October, will that be too late?  I rather not travel too much into November as it may get too cold(?).  (Not planning to go too much north of Tokyo.)

 

Thanks to all again.

[kuro68000]

I'd book ASAP. I'm looking at flights in January and they are already filling up.

 

I wouldn't worry about the temperature in November. I'm always too hot anyway, but often I'm walking around in a t-shirt in December and early January. On paper it's around 12-16C that time of year, but with the sun on you... I'm actually looking for a lighter jacket that has plenty of pockets but which is cooler than my Uniqlo down one. 

[Tony Galiani]

@mojo - not trying to be too contrary but I tend to look about 60 days out which seems to work for me.  Those seat maps are not completely reliable since a lot of the seats that appear to be booked may not really be - they are often held for higher status fliers.  I often see different seats when I look before and after logging into an airline web site.  And some are held for sale by OTAs and become available at other times.  The airlines' revenue management systems are constantly changing prices and info.  A lot of very serious frequent fliers - and I am not one - subscribe to Expert Flyer.  You can get a free subscription but that only provides limited information.

 

@Kingmeow - Solo Travel Japan has several videos on JAL, including both economy and business.  He raves about both and JAL economy (as well as ANA economy) both have greater seat pitch than the US airlines.

 

Both Delta and United have delayed their sale announcements.  Delta sent me an e-mail indicating they would send out the sale announcement "soon".  They completely melted down this past weekend - more than 4000 flights cancelled due to issues beyond the CrowdStrike problem and are not back up to normal.  United advised they postponed the announcement until next week.

 

And I am jealous of your house sitter!  We had someone who can no longer take care of our pets so have to resort to other options.  Between that and my music schedule, I lack some flexibility but such is life.  Anyway, Fall is a great time to go.  Just watched another NHK video about Morioka and it had lovely views of the city in the Fall.

 

Cheers,

Tony

Edited July 23 by Tony Galiani
grammar error

[kuro68000]

Having flown both JAL and ANA I would say definitely go with them if you can afford it. They aren't the cheapest but the service is much better, and so are the seats.

 

Personally I think JAL used to have better food, but now it looks like they share a menu with ANA. Still, it's good stuff. I just wish you could get the "quick and light meal", basically a sandwich, in economy class.

 

About incognito mode, try a VPN if you have one too. Or just use your phone when out and about. Otherwise they may notice the same IP address keeps checking.

[chadbag]

I tend to start monitoring prices about 6 months out but have found that 4 months and 2 months seem to be the points where you find the deals to Japan (at least in my past experiences).    

 

We were originally planning on going this summer (leaving last week) but due to some issues we have to postpone to next year or whenever.  But I put in a Google Flights search request for the dates (and thereabouts -- slightly flexible) we had hoped to go and it sent me very regular updates on the prices for those dates through its system.  I would also do my own individual searches, periodically, since early spring,  when I was needing a distraction.  The general results confirmed my previous thoughts that 4 and 2 months, approximately, are when airlines tend to run fare "sales" to Japan.  To shore up their bookings and start to fill the flight.  The last 2 weeks it always shoots way up.

 

Start monitoring and when the price gets to where it is acceptable for you, make the booking.  Don't try for the very cheapest and least expensive you can find, as you will inevitably miss it and miss what would have been a decent deal while holding out for the bottom of the market.  It's like timing the stock market -- its very hard to do and you usually miss it.  Just pull the trigger when the price gets to where you find it acceptable.

 

Also, remember that ANA is partners with United and JAL with AA and you can find United and AA issued (and listed) tickets that are actually served by the ANA and JAL planes and people so you get the great ANA and JAL service at a cheaper price (but you're also stuck with United and AA baggage allowances and policies).

[chadbag]

Also, check the planes that service the routes you are looking at for the various airlines.  You can find things like economy class seat pitch etc.   I've found that a lot of the foreign airlines have a greater seat pitch than the US based airlines do in economy class.  A couple extra inches makes a big deal in comfort for the long flight.  We flew Singapore once from LAX to NRT and their seats in economy were significantly more comfortable than any of the United flights we've had (all our AA flights we've had were actually code share on JAL but unfortunately not our United).  I've not flown Delta to Japan since 2000 (and that was business class on a system wide upgrade that Delta used to have) but the wife did a few years ago to visit her mom when she was sick with a cancer diagnosis.  She said it was OK and in looking at Delta planes that serve various flights to Japan their seat pitch seems to be very slightly better than United or AA, at least when I last checked.  It still was not as good as Singapore or otehr foreign airlines I checked.

 

Anyway, my main point is to check the planes flying the routes and go look up on one of the sites that shows each airlines configurations and specs for the seating etc.   It may be worth paying  a little more for a better quality seating arrangement (even if all are labeled economy and not any sort of Plus).

[Tony Galiani]

Here is some extra info to follow up on @chadbag.  Check out aerolopa.com for seat info as it seems to be the most up to date nowadays.  Seatguru.com used to be good but has not been updated for a long time.

 

It is helpful to know the specific model - and that info will be available when you go to look at flight options.  For example, ANA's B777-200s are used in domestic service and have 31" seat pitch in economy but they use B777-300ERs for international service and their seat pitch in economy is 34".  To compare with United and Delta, they use 31" in economy and 34" in their Economy Plus and Comfort Plus sections.

 

I am getting older by the day - I can remember when you just bought a ticket and seat pitch in economy was not so bad - 34" used to be the minimum but 31" is more common now and some airlines are even worse.  It can really be a drag to try to sort through options and fees.  But then, you can be in Japan from EWR in about 13 hours so there's that!

 

Ciao,

Tony

[cteno4]

Thanks for aerolopa.com tony. When I traveled a lot I lived by seat guru, especially when they really started shrinking the leg room. I’m 6’4” and every mm counts!

 

jeff

[kuro68000]

That's a good point about ANA and JAL code sharing with other airlines. I have a choice of JAL operated flights or British Airways operated flights, and always choose JAL. BA are pretty terrible overall.

 

Just be sure to check when booking, it's often not made very clear.

[Gunzel]

I use https://matrix.itasoftware.com it’s great at doing comparisons and looking at calendars of the best days. You can’t book through it, and sometimes it surfaces trips that you can’t book through the airlines site but I have a travel agent who can book them for me.

[Kingmeow]

Just did a quick "what-if" check yesterday on the United app on my phone.  EWR-HND non-stop in the latter half of October (leaving on a Wednesday).  Without much effort I get $1,000 for Economy (not Basic Economy) or $2,000 for Premium Economy.  That's not bad.  We do have a $500 credit each with United (good until March) so we're semi-tied to them.  Not that we won't be going anywhere after this trip if it happens.

 

When we went last September, Economy (United) was $1600 which we upgraded to Business with points and cash.

 

I'll have to see what JAL and ANA have.

[Tony Galiani]

Sounds pretty good.  I am holding off until I see if there are any decent sale offers next week but will likely make a purchase soon after that.  Not completely tied to United but will likely look there first since I can get some perqs from them but that only makes sense if their pricing and schedule is competitive.

I also tend to look at mid-week travel as that is often better price wise.

Delta might have some good sales after their recent meltdown in order to bring back customers.  Just not sure how long I want to wait to find out.

I do wish I lived near an airport with more direct flights.  The only ones here are to Europe and only a few of those.  

 

Ciao,

Tony

[Kingmeow]

DONE!  $2131 Premium Economy EWR - NRT, non-stop both ways.

 

This was the best price my wife saw for the past few days and even last night.  But today it went to $2600, then $2700.  Disappointed we tried again 30 minutes later and the $2100 price came back (maybe due to a cancellation?).  We immediately booked it. Seat map shows about 1/2 of Premium Economy already booked.

 

Looking at other airlines we didn't see anything cheaper.  If it was JFK it would have to be more than $100 cheaper as that's how much it costs for us to get there.  And we couldn't find anything like that.

 

EXCITED beyond belief as last September was my first trip (not my wife's), for two weeks, to the "Big Four" - Tokyo, Kyoto, Hiroshima and Osaka.  This time it's THREE (😎) weeks and we will be hitting the smaller places.  Tokyo is still on as that's where we fly in/out of so model train shops are still available.  😁  Certainly Kato Hobby Center again as I need parts, parts that are literally not available in the US or even mail order via Japan.

 

EDIT:

@Gunzel we checked the website you recommended for comparison AFTER booking (🤣🤣🤣) (well, because I forgot) and we did good as there was none cheaper and 99% were more expensive.

Edited July 30 by Kingmeow

[chadbag]

Congrats!

 

I'd like to start figuring out our next trip (since originally we were supposed to be there right now) but our calendar is hazy right now.  It doesn't stop me from doing what-if scenarios...

 

Every Sunday evening we talk to my son, who is in the Sapporo region, and that always gets the desire going to go on a trip there.  Then all the notifications on the credit card (he is joint on my wife's) when he spends money at Yodobashi, Aeon, etc... make me jealous...

 

Enjoy the trip!!  It will be upon you before you know it.

 

[Tony Galiani]

Great news.  And I am quite jealous at the direct flight.  Still haven't booked my trip so need to get with the program.  Actually meeting in a little while with someone who books me for gigs - hoping to finalize my October calendar so I can get my flights.

Ciao,

Tony

[Kingmeow]

My wife was on a mission this afternoon trying to book as many of the hotels as possible in the smaller towns as they have less choices than the bigger cities.  Seems that many of the smaller towns the weekend rates sky rockets.  It is the fall foliage after all at the second half of October.  Here is our itinerary in order.  Please chime in with any tips or notes.  Other than Tokyo, we have not been to theses places.  Last time was two weeks but this time we allocated three weeks for these that we wanted to go but were just impossible last time.

 

Narita Airport - staying 1 night to get out bearing and beat our jet lag.  I have a TON (over a million at one point) of Hilton points.

Kawaguchiko - 2 nights

Matsumoto - 2 nights, only to break up the journey to Takayama from Kawaguchiko

Takayama - 4 nights

Nagoya - 3 nights

Kobe - 2 nights, finally, only to find that hospital (or location thereof) https://jnsforum.com/community/topic/19891-help-in-finding-a-hospital-in-kobe/

 

Shin-Fuji -  2 nights, south side Mt. Fuji

Tokyo - 4 nights, yeah! train shopping!

 

It will be a mix of buses and local trains.  I'm not sure if we will do a Shinkansen this time but I do want to ride as many local/specialized trains as possible.  Will definitely hit the SCMAGLEV museum in Nagoya.

 

Most of the lodging is with the Tokoyo Inn chain.  Last trip was Intergate but we were hitting the big cities.  We have not booked Nagoya, Kobe and Tokyo yet since there are plenty to chose from.

 

Just heard that my brother and his family might be there at the same time and we're trying to meet at Kobe so we both can find that hospital or location what was once where our father was born in 1925.

Edited July 30 by Kingmeow

[Kingmeow]

4 hours ago, chadbag said:

Then all the notifications on the credit card (he is joint on my wife's) when he spends money at Yodobashi, Aeon, etc... make me jealous...

 

Enjoy the trip!!  It will be upon you before you know it.

 

 

🤣  That would give me fits of jealousy!!!!  Talk about "Hey Dad, watch this!"

[SL-san]

3 hours ago, Kingmeow said:

Most of the lodging is with the Tokoyo Inn chain.

We have always found Toyoko-Inn (Note NOT Tokoyo) to be a good choice...most within a few 100 meters of major railway stations.  The double rooms are small (as are most Japanese Business Hotels) but have everything you need, including the most compact en-suites, and Japanese breakfast is included!  Most of the hotels have coin operated washing machines and dryers, complimentary bed jacket and slippers and cold canned beer vending machines!!  I joined the Toyoko Inn Club at our first Toyoko-Inn Hotel (only one needs to join) and they issued a photo card straight away (it makes check-in easier).  I don't know if it still is the case but not only do you get a reduced rate but every 10th (I think) night is free for the cardholder (you have to pay a small supplement for your spouse).  Rates are very reasonable and Sundays are usually the cheapest night of the week.  I think you are also able to book on line much longer in advance if you are a Club member.

 

Enjoy your trip,

Graeme

[kuro68000]

I hope you find that hospital or its location, that would really be something.

 

Good tip on the hotels SL-san. Some can have rather hard beds for Western tastes, including some of the cheaper business hotels. It's probably worth spending a few extra yen, especially with the good exchange rate, to get a better night's sleep.

[Kingmeow]

6 hours ago, SL-san said:

We have always found Toyoko-Inn (Note NOT Tokoyo) to be a good choice...most within a few 100 meters of major railway stations.  The double rooms are small (as are most Japanese Business Hotels) but have everything you need, including the most compact en-suites, and Japanese breakfast is included!  Most of the hotels have coin operated washing machines and dryers, complimentary bed jacket and slippers and cold canned beer vending machines!!  I joined the Toyoko Inn Club at our first Toyoko-Inn Hotel (only one needs to join) and they issued a photo card straight away (it makes check-in easier).  I don't know if it still is the case but not only do you get a reduced rate but every 10th (I think) night is free for the cardholder (you have to pay a small supplement for your spouse).  Rates are very reasonable and Sundays are usually the cheapest night of the week.  I think you are also able to book on line much longer in advance if you are a Club member.

 

Enjoy your trip,

Graeme

 

Oops!  My bad!  Yes, it's Toyoko.  Fast reading and old eyes, a dangerous combination!  😄

 

I was aware of their Club card when I went to their website initially but in the end we booked via Expedia since Toyoko's website was a little difficult to navigate with Google's translation, etc.  It's good to know that perhaps I can join right away on my first visit to one of their locations.  (I just verified on their website that you can register on your first visit.)  We are staying at least 3 of their locations, if not more, so right there with 5% off, you get back your 1500Y in no time.  We're still looking at lodging for other places so there could be more.

 

Interesting that your Club card also becomes your room key (for those locations that have card readers on the doors).  This was stated on their webstie.