Features

Route of the month: Paris to Tokyo

29 Oct 2010 by Alex McWhirter
Alex McWhirter looks at how new services can benefit business travellers

Paris Charles de Gaulle to Tokyo

Frankfurt has the A380 into Narita with Lufthansa. London Heathrow will start flights into convenient Haneda next year with BA. But right now, only Paris CDG can offer passengers both Narita and Haneda. Three carriers – Japan Airlines (JAL), Air France and ANA – serve the capitals of France and Japan, but the first two have the most interesting products. JAL provides the convenience of flying into Tokyo’s Haneda airport, which is only 19km from downtown. By contrast, Air France brings its superjumbo into Narita – the main international airport – but the downside is that you find yourself 66km out of town. Unusually for members of rival alliances, we have a situation where Skyteam member Air France works closely with Oneworld member JAL. Both carriers codeshare on these two services. This co-operation allows a wider range of connections at CDG, but it also means both carriers’ flights can be booked through airfrance.com, so passengers can pay in their local currency. This is especially relevant for UK passengers given the poor euro/sterling rate. What JAL offers JAL launched the first direct flight between Europe and Haneda (since the airport reopened for international flights) at the end of last month. Daily flight JL42 departs CDG at 1100 to reach Haneda the next morning at 0655. Return flight JL41 leaves at 0130 to land back into CDG the same morning at 0620. JAL is operating a B777-200 which, unusually for a prime business route, has no first class cabin. Instead there are 44 business class (angled lie-flat) seats, 40 in premium economy and 109 in economy. Timings are optimised for connections with Air France’s UK and mainland European network, so you can link from cities such as Barcelona, Hamburg, Dusseldorf (home to the largest Japanese community in mainland Europe), Lyon, Berlin and Prague. UK passengers can connect from Heathrow as well as regional points including Manchester, Birmingham, Newcastle, Edinburgh and Aberdeen. Haneda has restrictive operating hours and JAL’s timings reflect this fact. But its schedules are more palatable than those of British Airways’ Haneda flight, which starts on February 19. JAL’s second daily flight from Paris operates to Narita – JL773 departs CDG at 1805 and lands in Tokyo at 1405 the next day. What Air France offers The carrier’s A380 started on the route on September 1. It operates daily as flight AF276, departing CDG at 1330 and landing in Narita at 0910 the next day. Return service AF275 leaves Narita at 1255, landing back into CDG at 1715 the same day. The superjumbo accommodates nine fully-flat beds in first class, 80 angled lie-flat seats in business and 449 seats in economy class. Note that besides the normal ten-abreast (3-4-3) layout downstairs, there is a smaller eight-across (2-4-2) economy zone on the upper deck. As with JAL, the A380 services are timed for their connectivity. Air France’s second flight into Narita, AF278, departs CDG at 2320, landing at 1910 the following day. Booking This is a strange one. JAL’s websites are country-specific – in other words, the UK site will not let you book a flight starting from Paris. So it is best to book through Air France. Be aware that Air France’s UK website does not allow you to book premium economy with JAL – but in any case, unless you are based in France, it hardly seems worthwhile booking JAL’s premium economy out of CDG to Haneda as, in addition to the cost of the return fare (e1,788), you must add on the cost of reaching CDG. Fares Business class rates cost less than taking a direct flight from London. For travel in early December, airfrance.com quotes an average return fare for both services of upwards of £2,339 for business class. Prices can fluctuate depending on the day of the week and, now that the news is out, Haneda prices can be higher because of its convenience. Economy class is £1,078, while first class is a hefty £11,619. PROS AND CONS Some travellers find it difficult to navigate Paris Charles de Gaulle when changing planes. This is understandable as there are various zones. But the good news for UK passengers is that their Air France flights arrive at T2E, the same zone of T2 used by Air France and JAL for their Tokyo services. So transfers should be a breeze.
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