The hardest part is just getting there.
Once you have landed, Japan does the rest. The flight is the only real hurdle between you and the easiest family trip you'll take, so here's how we handled the long haul, the packing, and the first jet-lagged day with two kids.
Dreading the long-haul? It passes.
This was the worry that nearly stopped us booking. Nine-ish hours in a metal tube with two boys sounded like a test of marriage, so we packed for the worst and braced ourselves.
It was fine. Genuinely. A few downloaded shows, a bag of small surprises, a couple of bad-for-you snacks, and the simple fact that they were excited carried us through. We landed expecting chaos and got two wide-eyed kids instead.
Direct if you can, overnight if you can't.
Take the direct flight if it exists for you. One long haul beats two shorter legs with a stressful transfer and a tired kid in an unfamiliar airport. If a stop is unavoidable, an overnight leg the kids sleep through is worth paying a little more for.
On the arrival airport: Tokyo has two. Haneda sits closer to the city and was our pick with kids; Narita is further out but often cheaper. Osaka's Kansai works brilliantly if you're starting in the west. Choose the airport that matches where your trip begins, not just the cheapest fare.
Pack the carry-on like the flight depends on it.
Because it does. Everything that keeps a child happy for nine hours needs to be within arm's reach, not in the hold. This is the kit we wouldn't fly without.
- A charged tablet each, loaded offline
- Download the shows and games before you leave. Plane wifi is a gamble, so never rely on it for the kids.
- A bag of small surprises
- Cheap, wrapped, handed out hourly. A new sticker book at hour six buys you another hour.
- Snacks they actually like
- Plane meals are hit and miss for kids. Bring the reliable stuff and you dodge a hungry meltdown at altitude.
- Headphones that fit small heads
- Proper kid headphones, not the airline freebies that fall straight off. Worth every cent.
- A change of clothes and the essentials
- One spill or one delay and you'll be glad it's in the cabin, not in the hold.
Off the plane, into the easy bit.
Fill in Visit Japan Web before you fly and immigration is a quick QR scan. Grab a travel SIM or pocket wifi (pre-book it for airport pickup), pull out some cash, and sort an IC card right there in the arrivals hall so the trains are ready to go.
Then keep the first day gentle. Get to the hotel, drop the bags, and do something low-key and outdoors to push through to a normal bedtime. Fighting the jet lag with daylight beats giving in to a 3pm nap that wrecks everyone's night. Once you're moving, our Getting Around guide takes it from there.
The five-minute pre-flight check.
- Passports valid 6+ months
- Renew early if anyone's is close to expiry. Don't get caught out at check-in.
- Visit Japan Web done
- Fill in immigration and customs online for a faster airport. Keep screenshots as backup.
- Travel insurance sorted
- Family cover that includes the kids, bought the day you book. Non-negotiable for an overseas trip, and there is more to it in our travel insurance guide.
- Offline maps and translate downloaded
- Save Google Maps' offline area and Google Translate's Japanese pack before you fly.
- First night booked near a station
- Arrive tired, not lost. A bed near the line you land on makes night one painless.
Plan it the way we would.
We planned this trip ourselves, paid for it ourselves, and wrote down what worked and what did not. All of it is on the site, free, with nothing to sign up for.
- Where to go, and how long to give each place
- What to book ahead, and what to skip
- Getting around with kids, without the guesswork
- What it actually cost us
The planning guides
Flights, trains, money, food, insurance and where to stay. Written after the trip, not before it.
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