Hotel Review: Narita Hilton, Narita Japan

If you're planning on doing anything else other than sleeping on your way in or out of Japan, don't bother with the Narita Hilton.

While the hotel offers shuttle bus service to and from the Narita airport, train station and local mall, it is located in a fairly isolated location and offers nothing outside of the amenities of the hotel itself.

Since the Hilton caters to business travelers, they spare guests no reprieve from the outlandish charges to use their facilities, such as the pool and gym. The pool is nice, without a doubt, but nothing special enough to warrant an extra fee. The same can be said for the gym, while spacious, is equipped with the bare minimum. To use those facilities, which include a whirlpool and sauna, it'll cost you a daily 3,000 yen charge. Only worth it if you habitually put your money to a cigarette lighter for fun or if you don't plan on getting out into the town.

The food in the hotel is pricey, as expected, but it's not good enough to justify the high price. The food in the city of Narita is exponentially better tasting, more authentic for a fraction of the price.

For that matter, if you're staying in Narita, I recommend staying in somewhere in the city center. An Internet search shows that many local hotels also offer shuttle service to the airport and you'd have the luxury of staying in the town itself and not having to be concerned with waiting for the Hilton bus, which ceases service just when the night life is picking up.

A taxi from the town center to the hotel will run you approximately 2,000 Yen. That includes to/from the Narita station where you can catch a train to Tokyo for just over 1,000 Yen (each way). A little more pricey, but well worth the extra money, is the Narita Express, which makes it to Tokyo and back in half the time with twice the comfort of the regular train. On the express, however, you won't be able to mingle with the locals and get a feel for the pulse of the culture as you will on the local train.

The Narita Hilton hotel staff is very polite, as is customary for Japan I've learned, and although the rooms are nothing special, guests are guaranteed a comfortable stay.

However, if I had it to do over, I'd stay in the Narita town center.