Saturday, November 20, 2010

Haneda Airport

I had the chance to take a flight out of Haneda Airport about two weeks ago.  What a difference!  Haneda opened their new international terminal in October 2010 and getting to the airport from central Tokyo is fast.  Getting there from Hamamatsuchō Station on the Tokyo Monorail Haneda Airport Line takes less than 19-minutes!  For me, home to the airport counter for me was less than hour.

There's a great article about the new airport terminal in the Japan Times.


The Haneda Airport barely fits on the stop display on the monorail.



The departure hall is modern and attractive.  The white ceiling looks like the bottom of boat, and gives a cathedral like feeling to the space.


Many of the restaurants are located on the  4th-floor in a Edo themed area called "Edo Koji".  This is the side that's supposed to look like a Kabuki theater.


This other side has a more subdued look.  I imagine that this is what a shopping from the Meiji era would look like.


Finally, on the fifth floor is Tokyo Pop Town.  This floor is a little more on the Kawaii and Kakkoii (cute and cool) side.  In addition to a Hello Kitty Japan store from Sanrio, there's a Gundam guarding the Hakuhinkan TOY PARK.  It's a toy and electronics shop that features this robot and a giant slot car track.