Getting from Haneda Airport to Central Tokyo (Shinjuku, Shibuya, Ueno, Asakusa etc)

Good news if you’re flying into Haneda — you’ve drawn the short straw on flight time but the long straw on airport location. Unlike Narita, which sits about 60km out in Chiba Prefecture, Haneda is practically on Tokyo’s doorstep. Most of the city is reachable in 30 to 45 minutes, and the options for getting in are simple, affordable, and well sign-posted.
Here’s what you need to know.

The Four Options at a Glance

Option	Time	Cost	Best for
Tokyo Monorail	– 30 min	– ￥500	Yamanote Line connections via Hamamatsucho Station
Keikyu Line	– 35-40 min	– ￥300-600	Shinagawa, Shinjuku, Asakusa
Limousine Bus	– 40-80 min	– ￥1,000-1,500	Heavy luggage, hotel drop-offs
Taxi/private transfer	– 30-60 min	– ￥6,000-10,000	Late arrivals, groups

The monorail runs directly from Haneda’s international terminal to Hamamatsucho Station in about 30 minutes, where you can jump straight onto the JR Yamanote Line and get pretty much anywhere in central Tokyo from there. It’s straightforward, affordable, and a pretty decent way to get your first look at Tokyo Bay as you roll into the city.
∙ Cost: Around ¥500
∙ Best for: Anyone heading to Shinjuku, Shibuya, Akihabara, or anywhere else well-served by the Yamanote Line
∙ Tip: Your Suica card works here — no need to buy a separate ticket

The Keikyu Line is the other main train option from Haneda, and depending on where you’re staying it might actually be the better choice. It runs to Shinagawa in about 15 minutes, where you can transfer to the Yamanote Line or Shinkansen. Some services also run directly through to Asakusa and beyond without needing a transfer at all.
∙ Cost: Around ¥300–¥600 depending on your destination
∙ Best for: Anyone staying in Shinagawa, Ginza, or heading toward Asakusa and northeast Tokyo
∙ Tip: Check Google Maps for your specific destination — it’ll tell you exactly which Keikyu service to take and whether you need to transfer

How to get to the Train Station:

Follow the signs toward the train stations from the arrival lobby – both the Monorail and the Keikyu Line are accessed from the same genera direction before splitting off. Look for either the “Tokyo Monorail” signs or “Keikyu Line” signs and you’ll be there in under 5 minutes. If in doubt, just follow the crowds – you won’t be the only one heading that way.

👉Local Tip: Avoid the Trains During Rush Hour

One thing worth planning around if you’re thinking of taking the train — Tokyo’s rush hour is no joke. We’re talking packed-to-the-rafters carriages where station staff are literally pushing people in to get the doors closed. If you’re landing in the morning (roughly 7:30–9:00am) or early evening (5:00–7:30pm), dragging a full-sized suitcase onto a crowded train is genuinely one of the more stressful ways to kick off a holiday.
If your arrival lines up with peak hour, do yourself a favour and skip the train altogether. Which brings us nicely to the next option — the Airport Limousine Bus.

Direct buses run from Haneda to major hotels and key areas including Shinjuku, Shibuya, Tokyo Station, and Ginza. The fare is higher than the train but still very reasonable, and the convenience of being dropped close to your hotel with all your luggage stored underneath is hard to argue with after a long flight.
∙ Cost: Around ¥1,000–¥1,500
∙ Travel time: 40–80 minutes depending on traffic — worth keeping in mind if you’re arriving during peak hour
∙ Best for: Travellers with a lot of gear, families, or anyone who’d rather skip the train transfer entirely

∙ How to get there: Head out of the arrivals hall at Terminal 3 and look for the “Limousine Bus” signs — the bus stop is right outside on the ground floor, just a short walk from the exit. Tickets can be bought at the dedicated counter inside the terminal before you head out, which is worth doing so you know exactly which way to go to.

Unlike the eye-watering taxi fares from Narita, a cab from Haneda is actually a reasonable option — particularly if you’re travelling as a couple or small group and can split the cost. Fares into central Tokyo typically run between ¥6,000 and ¥10,000 depending on your destination, which is a world away from the ¥20,000–¥30,000 you’d be looking at from Narita.
∙ Best for: Late-night arrivals, groups splitting the fare, or anyone staying very close to the airport
∙ Tip: Use the official taxi rank outside arrivals rather than accepting offers from anyone approaching you inside the terminal

∙ How to get there: Exit the arrivals hall at Terminal 3 and follow the signs for “Taxi.” The official taxi rank is on the ground floor just outside the terminal — look for the marked queuing area.

If you have a choice between the two airports, Haneda wins fairly comfortably for convenience. It’s closer to the city, cheaper and faster to get into town, and the international terminal is modern and easy to navigate. The main reason Narita still gets a lot of international flights is simply capacity — it’s a bigger airport — but if your airline flies into Haneda, it’s generally the easier arrival experience.

Same advice as always — get your Suica sorted at the airport before you do anything else. As covered in the [Train Guide], loading a Suica onto your Apple Wallet takes a few minutes and means you can tap straight onto the monorail or Keikyu Line without fussing with ticket machines. It works on every train, subway, and bus you’ll use during your trip, so there’s no reason not to set it up immediately.

Haneda is one of the easier international airports to arrive into and navigate out of. Pick your transport based on where you’re staying — trains for most of central Tokyo, bus if you’ve got a mountain of luggage — and you’ll be checked into your hotel and ready to explore within an hour of landing. Not a bad start to the trip

Tanoshinde! (Enjoy Tokyo)