As my next flight is departing from Narita's Terminal 3, it was a 10min walk along the designated footpath from Terminal 2 to the LCC terminal. The LCCs must have been doing a roaring business at Narita as T3 seemed much more busier than T2. Looks like expansion of the current makeshift LCC terminal is needed sooner than later.
Vanilla Air's very basic self-check-in machines and baggage drop counters. The international counters are much busier than the domestic ones.
Receipt-styled boarding pass.
FIDS showing the domestic departures. Vanilla Air and Jetstar Japan flights form the bulk of the traffic.
Security was painless for domestic flights and we were shortly at the departure gate.
Territory of Vanilla Air and Jetstar A320s.
Boarding was called right on schedule and we were bussed to the aircraft.
22 June 2017 Vanilla Air JW 953 Tokyo Narita (NRT) - Hakodate (HKD) A320 JA06VA Economy Class Flight Time: 1H20M
Vanilla Air, a wholely owned subsidiary of ANA, was formed when the AirAsia group pulled out of the joint investment with ANA on AirAsia Japan. This LCC is currently based at Narita, ans operated 12 A320s to a number of domestic and regional internation destinations.
Boarding JW's A320.
Aircraft is fitted in the standard LCC configuration of 180 seats.
Boarding in progress. Flight attendants were professional and polite, but not as well-groomed as compared to the legacy Japanese carriers.
Seatback advertisements.
Seat cushioning was thin, but for some reason, the legroom was very tight as compared to similar A320 configuration.
Korea's Jeju Air just arrived beside.
Inflight magazines and Buy-on-board menu. Prices are rather reasonable.
After passengers boarded and doors closed, safety demo was shown manually. An interesting way to grab the attention of passengers for the demo!
Pushed back.
Starting the very long taxi to the other end of the airport for departure from Rwy16R. Passed Terminal 2, Terminal 1 and the cargo terminal. It felt almost like we were taxiing to Hakodate!
Holding for an Etihad B789 to land.
Finally departed from Rwy16R after almost 20min of taxi.
Climb and turning back over Narita.
BOB service started, with few takers that I observed.
With fatigue setting in, the rest of the flight was spent catching short winks and viewing the scenery out there.
We soon started the descend.
Some nice scenery during the final approach to touchdown on Rwy30.
Video of the approach and smooth landing.
A very short taxi to the terminal, so short that the crew did not have time to make the arrival announcement in English.
Disembarkation
A look at our A320.
JAL B763 also at Hakodate.
Scenes of Hakodate along the walkway to baggage claim.
Bags were out fast. No Vanilla Air logo on the signage yet, even though this daily flight was launched four months back.
Bonus : Click here displayhide
From Hakodate Airport, it was only a 20min and 410yen airport limousine bus ride to the Hakodate JR station, which is also the main transport hub in the city center. Our hotel, Four Points by Sheration, is just across the road from the JR station. The hotel was officially opened under the Four Points brand just a month ago after a major facelift.
Rooms were decently sized and comfortable.
View from the room towards the hills.
After a short rest, we walked to a nearby recommended eatery, Uni Murakami, for an early dinner. As the name suggests, the eatery is famous for its Uni (sea urchin) dishes. Everything we had were really fresh and tasty!
Took a leisurely stroll to the wharf and Kanemori Red Brick Warehouse after dinner.
Had some wonderfully light Petite Merveille cheesecakes and milk pudding.
It was rise and shine early the next morning to visit the famous Morning Market, which was just across the streets from our hotel.
It was seafood and melons galore at the market!
Seafood don for breakfast at one of the many eateries at the market. Due to the many eateries, the prices were very competitive.
Hakodate has a very convenient tram and bus network within the city which connects to all major sights. A day-pass for unlimited rides on the trams and buses can be bought for 1000yen.
Visit to Goryokaku historic site.
Former magistrate's office
Simple lunch at Muji cafe.
Up the slopes of Motomachi. Reminds me of San Francisco.
The Old Public Hall.
The Second Most Delicious Ice Cream Melon Bread in the World. Yep, that is the name of the shop.
Motomachi Roman Catholic Church. There is pretty much of European influences around the Motomachi district.
Right across from the church is a Japanese Buddhist temple.
Walked back forn to the red brick warehouses for a light tea of Snaffle's cheesecakes. Just realised that Snaffle's actually originated from Hakodate!
As dusk falls, we took the Mountain Climbing bus up to Mt Hakodate, a must do when in Hakodate. The bus ride is included in the tram/bus day-pass. The view from Mt Hakodate is voted one of the best in the world, especially during the evenings. Thus, this explains the throngs of tourists at the peak during sunset, and this is not even the peak tourist season!
It got rather chilly at the peak at dusk. Hence, when we got down from the mountain, we went to Ajisai to try their recommended Hakodate styled ramen. Different from other japanese ramen, Hakodate-style ramen uses a salty clear soup base, and this ramen eatery produces one of the best examples in Hakodate.
We also had to try Lucky Pierrot, a famous burger chain found exclusively in Hakodate. We tried their top-seller burger and sundae, and both were great!
On the last morning, it was again a trip to the Morning Market for a dose of healthy breakfast before doing some last souvenir shopping and heading to the airport.
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Verdict
Vanilla Air
6.1/10
Cabin6.0
Cabin crew7.0
Entertainment/wifi5.5
Meal/catering6.0
Tokyo - NRT
8.6/10
Efficiency9.0
Access7.5
Services9.0
Cleanliness9.0
Hakodate - HKD
8.5/10
Efficiency9.0
Access8.0
Services8.0
Cleanliness9.0
Conclusion
It was a standard LCC experience on Vanilla Air, just getting you from Point A to B punctually and nothing more. Service is nothing more than the necessary but seat comfort was lacking with the tight legroom. However, still an acceptable experience on short hops.
4 LIKESLIKE TO THANK THE AUTHORTHANKS ! FLIGHT-REPORT LIKED
Nice reports, thanks ! I went to Hakodate last summer (by train ;) !), and we went to similar places. Did you taste the infamous Lucky Pierrot soft drink ???
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6 reviews
2 Comments
Loved the bonus, it helps me reprioritize my travel list to include Hokkaïdo back towards the top...
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