The Japan Airline JAL flight was great. There was some turbulence due to the aftereffects of a nearby typhoon but otherwise uneventful.
As I’m allergic to dairy and gluten I requested a non-allergy meal and I wasn’t disappointed. I was able to eat breakfast, lunch and dinner without the slightest reaction to anything they gave.
Also, people with allergies, religious needs, disabilities or children get served first. This is a great situation as it means that those people get first access to the toilets afterwards and helps reduce the queues.
Most people are allergic to dairy and gluten to varying degrees. Try removing them from your diet and see how you feel. Also, if you’d prefer your food first on a plane, ask for the allergy free versions and see what you get. Not every commercial flight can accommodate your needs and some will serve these after others rather than before. Check with your chosen airline.
On the drinks side the cheap sake surprised me. Especially the ingredients at the back that said ‘alcohol added’
The red and white wines came in little plastic bottles and were served in plastic cups. They tasted a bit like goon wine (though slightly better) but the plastic definitely took the shine off the taste.
JAL flights give away free toothbrush and toothpaste packs that are put out on the sinks in toilets after the meals are served. This is much better than trying to remember to bring your own every time you fly. The downside, like all commercial flights, is that if everyone is brushing their teeth there is soon a very long queue to use the toilets.
Going through immigration was also quick and efficient. We were through within half an hour.
As we had a bag of things that we weren’t going to need until we got to Niigata, we took advantage of a bag transfer service at Narita airport that delivered it directly to the place we were going to stay in a few day’s time.
Narita airport also had free wifi which was very useful for checking our travel route, as well as mobile charging stations everywhere. You can also download a Narita app called Tabimori and another called Naritra which will make things easier for you.
Thanks to these apps and Google maps, we were quickly able to find and get the skyline train to the main area of Tokyo (about 90 minutes to get there)
All in all, once you know your way around Narita airport, it is probably one of the most easiest and efficient and well-serviced airports in the world.
