If you've been waiting for a few years for the go-ahead to book a vacation to Japan, now is the time to rejoice and look for cheap flights as the nation has finally loosened its admission criteria for independent visitors.
This weekend, we've got two offers that can jump-start your travel preparations for the upcoming year. One of them involves cheap budget flights from the West Coast and the other involves a way to travel in style from the East Coast while also seeing another country.
During the first few months of 2023, if you live close to Los Angeles or can find a cheap positioning aircraft that lands you at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX), you can travel from there to Tokyo and return for about $550 round-trip.
In the meantime, if you read review of Japan-based ANA's business class product called The Room this week and have been hoping to find a premium seat on board one of those ANA Boeing 777-300ER aircraft, there's good news: You can fly in The Room for much of 2023 at a reasonably low cost, provided you're willing to continue on from Tokyo to Jakarta... which, by the way, puts you in a great position to visit Bali.
These offers could be a terrific way to travel to a country (or two) on the other side of the world, whether you're only looking to get to Tokyo for the cheapest ticket possible or you're planning a longer multi-stop expedition.
Economy flights to Japan
Basics of deals
Airline: American, Delta, and Japan Airlines.
Tokyo to Los Angeles route.
From January through March 2023, there will be travel.
How to book: We advise using Google Flights to choose the most advantageous route, followed by direct airline reservations.
Flight examples
During the first few months of the year, economy flights to Tokyo can be found for roughly $550 departing from Los Angeles.
Pricing from other American locations, including important airline hubs, is twice as expensive as tickets from LAX.
To prepare for the trans-Pacific travel, you might wish to look into award availability or flight discounts to Los Angeles.
One oddity with this bargain is that a lot of the best availability calls for a trip on American Airlines for the outbound leg and a travel on Delta Air Lines for the return, or vice versa.
Here is a sample schedule for February:
You'll board a Delta Air Lines flight at midday from LAX to Tokyo Haneda Airport, which will take you 12 hours and 25 minutes (HND).
Your return flight on American Airlines will stop at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport (DFW), but it will only be for a short period of time—less than two hours—in order to get that $552 fare.
You should have enough time to refuel in one of the airline lounges at DFW before the last leg of your journey back to Southern California if you have Global Entry and can move fast through customs.
Tokyo business class flights
While finding inexpensive economy fares is fantastic, there are also options for flights to Japan that offer much more comfort and luxury, especially for the long-haul leg of the journey.
Currently, arranging a multi-city itinerary to another location with a stopover in Tokyo is one of the most economical ways we've found to go to Tokyo.
In this scenario, you can reserve ANA business class via its The Room accommodations on board its 777-300ER aircraft, then fly on to Jakarta.
If you look for business class possibilities between New York and Tokyo (as well as many other U.S. cities) for early 2023, you'll find prices in the $4,000 to $7,000 range, round way.
However, there are methods to travel longer, add more planes, and visit another nation for less money.
(There could be worse ways to save money, right?)
You may find round-trip prices in this premium cabin for as little as $2,699 if you search multi-city itineraries from New York to Jakarta, Indonesia, with a stop in Tokyo, for travel in the upcoming year.
Depending on how you arrange the journey, this is a chance to stop in Tokyo and maybe spend more time there than in Jakarta.
Basics of Deals
Airlines: ANA.
Route: A multi-city route that runs from New York to Tokyo to Jakarta and then from Jakarta to New York.
January through August 2023, with some availability later in the year.
How to book: Look up your itinerary on Google Flights, then make a reservation with the airline directly.
Flight examples
Here is one of those options that can get you ANA business class availability for between $2,600 and $2,700.
Visit Google Flights to check the availability of business class.
Tokyo is reached after a 14-hour flight, assuming a May 9 departure from John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK).
You can fiddle with the departure dates for the subsequent leg of the journey, from Haneda to Jakarta, but keep in mind that the cost will change depending on each departure date, just like it would for any other journey.
I'll allow myself one week in Jakarta and one week in Tokyo.
You'll have to stop in Tokyo once again on the way back, but if you don't want to spend a lot of time there, you may just enter a flight from Jakarta to New York.
For a premium seat, the two-week trip will cost $2,699 in airfare.
Once you have the itinerary, you can go to the ANA website to make the actual reservation. While there, you can confirm that the long-haul leg of the trip is, in fact, on an ANA aircraft with The Room.
The Room is actually the business class service being offered from this point on for the journey from New York to Tokyo; the same is true for the return leg from Tokyo to New York.
Remember that from Jakarta, you may travel to Bali and its numerous wonderful resorts, beaches, and tourist attractions by short flight or train.
Enhance your purchase
Don't forget to use a credit card that gives you bonus points when you buy airline tickets, like The Platinum Card® from American Express, which gives you 5 points for every dollar you spend on airline tickets booked directly with the airline or through American Express Travel (up to $500,000 in purchases per year).
When booking flights directly with the airline or through Amex Travel, the Citi Premier® Card, Chase Sapphire Reserve, and American Express® Gold Card all earn 3 points for every dollar spent on airfare.
The Chase Sapphire Preferred Card, meanwhile, awards two points for every dollar spent on travel.
In conclusion
As tourists look to visit Japan now that it is open again, we'll undoubtedly be searching for more fantastic offers there.
These are both excellent offers to take into consideration for 2023, whether you're searching for the least expensive choice in economy or want to depart from New York in a little more style and cross another somewhere like Bali off your bucket list.
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