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City in Kantō, Japan
Photo: C. G. P. Grey, CC BY 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons
Narita (成田市) is a city in Chiba prefecture, Japan, some 70 kilometers to the northeast of Tokyo. The vast majority of Narita's visitors come there for one reason only: Narita Airport, Tokyo's international gateway. But there are a few attractions in the vicinity if you have a short layover and don't want to waste 2–3 hours of it on the long hike to Tokyo.
From the travel guide. Select a place for details, a map and what is nearby.
成田山新勝寺
Said to date back to 800 AD, the large temple has a wide assortment of classical Japanese pagodas and halls and a pleasant quasi-European park. Half the fun is getting there: the kilometer-long Omote-sandō from Narita station is a giant shopping arcade filled with restaurants and souvenir shops. Directions are available from the airport's Tourist Information Desk. The largest of its many annual festivals are on January 1 (shogatsu) and February 3 (setsubun). An online event calendar is available in Japanese.
成田市さくらの山, "Cherry Blossom Hill"
Is located near the northern end of the main runway of Narita International Airport. Unfortunately there is no bus service to this location. There is nice little park with beautiful cherry trees and a good view of airplanes landing and taking off from the main runway.
三里塚御料牧場記念館
25 min by bus from JR Narita Station.
航空科学博物館 kōkū kagaku hakubutsukan
Main building has aircraft exhibit including engines, cockpits, Boeing 747 cross-sectional dissect and an observation deck on the fifth floor. It also has an outdoor exhibit with about 15 planes on static display.
成田観光館 narita kankō-kan
Learn about Japanese Tea Ceremony every Thursday from 10:30.
千葉県立房総のむら chiba-kenritsu bōsō no mura
A living museum of traditional Japanese culture. Enjoy the exciting activities on the reproduction Japanese town street. The superb burial mound and the samurai residence are a must-see for anyone interested in Japanese history. Exotic traditional festivals are held every now and then. Film-location for historical dramas. Next to Doramu No Sato (drum village) and Komorebi Restaurant
成田市公設地方卸売市場 narita-shi kōsetsu chihō oroshiuri-shijō
A public wholesale fish, fruit, and vegetable market.
成田空港 空と大地の歴史館 (Narita Airport Sky and Earth History Museum)
Opened in June 2011, this museum explains the history of Narita and complicated relationship between its residents and the airport due to land expropriation.
The Spiral Staircase
It opens at 17:00 with drinks starting at 16:30. It consists of one small upper room with a semi circle of hot plates, on which your food is cooked in front of you and two small tables. The menu consists of one item: an all-you-can-eat meal including a huge drink, Japanese salad, gyoza, oriental chicken, wedges and ice cream, starting around ¥1680 depending on what you're drinking. Stuffy and hot, but extremely welcoming, friendly, quick, and the food is delicious.
Old airline crew hang out. Local mom and pop restaurant with cheap dining selections.
A good ramen restaurant with menu in Japanese and English (and pictures). ¥1000 gets you ramen with beef or chicken, ¥500 a medium draft beer. The gyoza are particularly good. Popular with airline crew, look for the many stickers above the door and the books of crew comments by the door. Friendly staff, nice atmosphere.
Omote-sandō (the road leading to the temple), Great pub serving western-style food, plus local & international beers. Every Saturday there's live music and/or dancing.
About 45 m round the corner from the Barge, there's another watering hole run by a Belgian guy named Vince. The beer's great, and the atmosphere is really friendly. Free popcorn is provided, as well as a delivery service from 'Papas'.
Karaoke bar.
A small, well equipped ryokan with two dorm rooms, shared toilets and kitchen. All brand new and well taken care of. Situated in a small street right behind the Omotesando main street. Run by a very nice couple with sufficient English skills. Please bring cash in Yen to pay on arrival.
Free continental breakfast. Non-smoking room. Stamp card. VOD service.
Singles from ¥5800, twins from ¥6800, doubles from ¥6500. Free continental breakfast. From Narita Airport, take the Keisei Line Tokkyū train (about 3 departures per hour) to Keisei Narita station. Take the east exit, walk across the overpass, and the hotel will be on the left side. Facilities include complimentary broadband Internet.
(Formerly Mercure Narita)
Offers good, reasonably priced accommodation, with friendly staff, happy to speak English. It has a small but good selection of restaurants, and there's also a good bar, with TV, Pool Table, Internet Access etc. However, this hotel is no longer a Mercure, so Accor-related benefits no longer apply at this property.
488 room deluxe-resort hotel, all guest rooms with complimentary high speed internet access, 15 min. from Narita Int'l Airport and Narita Stn. & downtown, complimentary hotel shuttle bus provided. 60-70 min from/to Tokyo Stn. by JR Highway Bus, 16 round trip a day scheduled with upscale bus (¥1420 one way).
From Narita Airport, take the Keisei Line Tokkyū train (about 3 departures per hour) to Keisei Narita station. Take the east exit, walk across the overpass, and the hotel will be on the left side. Free Airport Shuttle. Free Wi-Fi and Wired Internet access. VOD service. Refrigerator and electric kettle in room. Trip Advisor Travels Choice 2012 Winner - Bargain with singles from ¥5500. Restaurant onsite. Non-smoking hotel.
イオンモール成田
A very large shopping mall within spitting distance of Narita Airport. Over 150 stores can be found here, including anchor Aeon Style supermarket and foreign outlets like Starbucks and Sports Authority. Popular with foreigners due to its proximity to the airport.
By train
The easiest way to travel between Tokyo (東京) and Narita (成田) City is naturally via the private Keisei Line (京成).
Once you have arrived in the center of town, local buses are available for use. Some destinations, on the other hand (like the temple) are easily reached by walking.
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Narita · International · NRT
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