I made a booking on SIN-HND-CTS as Singapore Airlines only fly to CTS direct during winter season. I paid 51,000 miles and $34 for one way First Saver redemption on SQ. After considering the few options (Jetstar, JAL and ANA), I decided to go with ANA as they had a very good promo for tourists (explore Japan fare). A One Way Y ticket from HND to CTS cost $142 (incl. tax). As I bought my ticket during the Free Ninja Wifi promo, I managed to get a 4 day free Mifi rental (valued at $60)! The J ticket cost $600 and I wasn’t keen to burn my miles for a domestic J redemption for a 1.5 hours flight.
Very fast and reliable 4G connection (even in rural area)!
From my previous post, my check in was done in Singapore itself and my luggage was tagged directly to CTS. I still had to retrieve my luggage in HND and re-depositing it after exiting the arrival gate but this is more convenient than carrying my luggage to the domestic terminal and queuing up again for check in.
On exiting the arrival gate, I proceed to drop my baggage with the ANA baggage drop centre (for connecting flights). The whole process took only 2 to 3 minutes. Once done, I moved on to the Ninja Wifi centre to get my Mifi module (which I will review on another post).
As I had plenty of time before my flight at 12pm, I slowly explored both the International terminal and Domestic Terminal 2 (used mainly by ANA while Terminal 1 is used mainly by JAL). Level 4 and Level 5 of International Terminal had many shops and restaurants (which unfortunately most were not open early in the morning). There is the famed Edo Street (which had mainly eateries) – few stalls were open before 8am.
There is a small air museum that showcases different airplane model featuring different airlines. Planespotters will love the outdoor viewing gallery, giving them a very good (almost) unobstructed view of planes taking off and landing (and parked planes).
After exploring the International Terminal, I moved on to the Domestic Terminal 2 via a free shuttle bus (that runs in a loop among the 3 terminals). Terminal 2 is used mainly by ANA and is a very large building itself. As it serves only domestic flights, the terminal consists mainly of eateries and some shops selling snacks (no duty free shops).
I was looking for sashimi to try but I couldn’t quite find one on the landside of the terminal. I decided to get to the airside to try my luck. After passing the security check, I explored the airside of the terminal and found a stall selling sushi. I bought a sushi set comprising few items (salmon, tuna, squid and sea urchin). It cost me about 1600 yen and I would say the quality was pretty good.
All these for 1600 Yen
After my sushi, I settled down at one of the charging station to start typing my flight review. At about 1130am, announcement was made for boarding. The gate was pretty crowded; hence I was anticipating a full flight.
JA-755A
Date : 8 October 2016
Flight : NH63
Plane : Boeing 777-300 (JA-755A)
Photo taken : iPhone 6s
Seats : 22K
Duration : 1 Hour 30 Minutes
NH63 between HND to CTS is served by an ANA 773 (non ER 777-300). The plane comprises domestic J in 2-3-2 configuration while domestic Y is in a tight 3-4-3 setting. Thankfully I managed to squeeze myself into the seat despite my binging from my previous flight. It was raining rather heavily prior to take off but thankfully there were no delays. The plane took off smoothly and once the seatbelt sign was off, drinks were served. It was a no frill flight where everyone in Y was served a choice of either hot or cold tea. No individual IFE was available but there was a common TV showcasing Japan. The TV was switch to belly cam (and later forward cam) prior to landing. Headphone was provided in each seat.
We landed in CTS smoothly without any delay. Even though I was flying in Y, my Star Alliance Priority tag stayed with my luggage (as I interlined my baggage from Singapore) hence it was the first to appear. I duly retrieve my luggage and proceeded to look for my accommodation for the night, Chitose Airport Terminal Hotel.
For $140, I have no complaints for a 1.5 hour flight – as it earned me 540 elite miles and the 4 days free Mifi rental was an excellent deal!
Just a short review, the Ninja Wifi module is a 4G mifi unit. This unit allows up to 10 separate connections. There are 2 rental options available:
- City only unit – cheaper but coverage limited to mainly city area
- Rural unit – slightly more expensive but has very good coverage
I took option 2 and throughout my journey (except for being in tunnel), 4G reception had been excellent. I could even FaceTime back to Singapore with no lag! For those who will be online 24/7, do have extra battery as this unit can last only about 6-8 hours using its own battery supply.
You can choose to pick up the unit at various international airports (Haneda, Narita, Osaka, Chitose etc) and return it at a different airport.
That Time Of The Year! 
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