cslewis

Shouldn't be an issue. at least never been an issue with me. Japanese tend to be perfectionists, so desk staff in places like airports or so tend to have a very good english level

codex57

Why don't you like the food at ICN? Can you give examples? You mention the Asiana and ANA lounges, but I'm assuming you also mean the restaurants at the airports. Do you just prefer Japanese food over Korean, mom and pop sit down over fast food, or is the quality just better, etc?

evergrn

It's really just personal preference as I said. It's not a matter of quality. After all, I've barely tried anything in ICN. I'm just not a huge fan of Korean food and their style of cooking certain other ethnic foods. I went to the little upstairs food court in ICN and had some non-Korean Asian dish (may have been Vietnamese). Whatever it was, it wasn't to my taste; it had sort of a Korean twist to it. Think I saw a Chinese food place, but the menu was kind of funky and Korean-influenced and didn't appeal to me. Another time, not finding anything else, I just went for US fast food (may have been Quizno's or something) which made the layover more or less like connecting at ORD. Food-wise, almost everything appeals to me at HKIA and NRT. It's sort of the polar opposite at ICN, but again this is strictly personal taste.

acregal

Based on previous experience, the English ability of employees at ICN blows away the ability of those at NRT.

At NRT honestly people struggle with English (this does depend, so someone working a UA or AA flight will have very good English.

CrazyInteg

FTA, anyone here can tell you what happens at Narita, but you basically get off your plane, and follow the line to the transfer area. (PROTIP: use the restroom in the plane before landing). You then go through security, so you have to throw away any liquids, put your stuff into a tray for x-ray and go through a metal detector. They might pull you aside and wand you. Then you grab your stuff, go around a corner, and go down an escalator. Done.

Then walk around the terminal, find your gate, eat/drink/restroom/shop/sleep, and board your next flight.

There's nothing to be worried about. It's way easier than Beijing (which also doesn't require passengers to know a word of Mandarin (Also Beijing is much easier after your first time.)).

evergrn

Interesting thing about NRT is that, while it's true that there're many workers who barely speak any English, there are also some Japanese staff there (all women, mostly airline gate agents) who speak completely fluent English. More so than in ICN or TPE. There's one NH employee in particular that I remember well... I've heard her make PA announcements in both English and Japanese on at least two different trips going through NRT. Even Utada Hikaru and Sony president have a bit of accent in their English, but this lady has zero accent whatsover in either English or Japanese. Odd thing is she'd announce her name when speaking in English, but not when she speaks in Japanese.

ksandness

Just a note. There are toilets on the left side about halfway through the seemingly endless corridor that arriving passengers follow before splitting into transit and immigration lines.

No need to risk possibly violating the "prepare for landing" instructions.

garykung

FWIW - don't expect a lot.

Japan isn't known for good English. In fact, per a recent EF English skill ranking, Japaneses' English skills are worse than Chinese (not including Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan).

LapLap

CrazyInteg

OP isn't even going to Japan. They're just transiting through an airport with English signage.

acregal

I think that is just a function of in Japan, if you miss the boat on your first job after university you are generally stuck in bad jobs until you retire. Even if you speak 2 languages fluently.

jrmyl

I have worked in Japan for the past 8 years. I speak no Japanese other than the usual greetings, etc and have had no issues working, traveling, or around town. Large international airports are generally a non-issue for English speakers.

FTA

Haven't been through Beijing in a couple years but have been through there several times. Every time the layout was different due to construction... I understand all these airports have English speaking employees but I don't want to go through 3 employees just to find an English speaker. Thanks all for replying and sharing

garykung

Of course. Many tourist-oriented locations hires people with language skills to overcome language barriers. So the EF ranking may not truly reflect how well airport employees can communicate in English.

However - the ranking can still be used as a reference for any advanced preparation.

You logic is absolutely flawed.

Regardless how you claim it - OP is physically in Japan during transiting.

jib71

Yes. The first thing I check when planning to transit at an unfamiliar airport is the EF ranking. That and the Gini coefficient. I carry this data around in a bottle. Sometimes the security people take an interest in the bottle, and that can be problematic. Have you ever tried to get a Gini back into a bottle?