Dear like-minded people!
I bring to your attention a story about my air trip to the 50th state of America, its capital Honolulu! And of course, you all guessed that we are talking about Hawaii - an amazing pearl of the vast Pacific Ocean.
This trip was planned spontaneously, which, in general, is not typical for me. Usually I prepare for travel at least 4 months in advance, but here the preparation began 3 weeks in advance with an unexpected purchase of unexpectedly cheap air tickets to Hawaii. I wanted to bask in the tropics while these extended Russian winter holidays lasted. I don’t remember how, but I came across a tempting offer from the S7 airline, which asked for 30,000 rubles for the flight Vladivostok-Tokyo (Narita)-Honolulu and back (together with Japan Airlines). (tariff budget)!!!!! Can you imagine - 30,000 rubles? While the nearest price for this direction from Vladivostok does not fall below 60,000 rubles. (by Koreans). Without thinking twice, I bought tickets. Someone asks about an American visa... to which I answer that it was so easy to buy tickets, because I already had a US visa.
I repeat that the price for this direction was very low. The total time in the air is approximately 21:30 (2:25 + 7:00 + 9:25 + 2:40), and the distance in a straight line (via Tokyo) round trip is more than 14,500 km. A small calculation: 30,000 rubles./21.5 hours=1400 rubles. per flight hour. Not bad for a small short flight to Tokyo with our usual S7 and a long flight to Honolulu with one of the best airlines in the world, Japan Airlines. And given the "fallen ruble", this price is simply fantastic. Surprisingly, 4 days before departure, the price for this route dropped to 25,000 rubles! I believe this is due to the transition of S7 to new tariffs on December 1, 2015. I read in the forums that similar prices were at the beginning of this year. It is also noteworthy, although everyone knows this, that if you take tickets separately, it will be much more expensive: the flight Vladivostok-Tokyo-Vladivostok is 27,000 rubles. with S7, and the flight Tokyo-Honolulu-Tokyo is 45,000 rubles. with the same Japan Airlines.
Map of the entire route: Vladivostok–Tokyo(Narita)–Honolulu, Hawaii.
Hawaii is probably a word familiar to every inhabitant of the earth. Most people associate Hawaii with a tropical paradise with beautiful palm trees, beaches, majestic volcanoes and a strong isolation from the mainland. It really is!
The Hawaiian Islands are the most remote archipelago in the world, and they are also the second most inhabited place on our planet from the mainland (after Easter Island). If you look at the map of the location of Hawaii in the Pacific Ocean (see below), we will see how far Hawaii is from the mainland. From Hawaii to North America (USA, California) 3,700 km; to Eurasia 5,200 km (Russia, Kamchatka) or 6,500 km (Russia, Primorsky Territory); to Australia 7,400 km. These are huge distances!
This review will consist of 2 parts.
1st part: Vladivostok airport; flight Vladivostok-Tokyo (Narita) with S7 airline, aircraft A320; Tokyo airport (Narita) - arrival; Japanese bonus. This part will be short.
2nd part: Tokyo airport (Narita) - departure; flight Tokyo (Narita) - Honolulu with Japan Airlines, aircraft B767; Honolulu airport; Hawaiian bonus.
Part 1. Vladivostok (VVO) - Tokyo (NRT) with S7.
Route.
The distance from Vladivostok to Tokyo in a straight line is more than 1,100 km. Travel time 2:25 (actually 1:45). The route runs over the SE tip of Primorsky Krai, across the Sea of Arrival time in Tokyo (Narita): 14:30.
Flight number: S7 565.
Aircraft: A320, number VQ-BRD, age 3.8.
Vladivostok International Airport ( Knevichi).
Vladivostok International Airport (website: vvo.aero) is located 4.5 km NW of the city of Artyom and 38 km NE of the city of Vladivostok. IATA code: VVO. It has two runways with a length of 3500 m each. Approved to receive all types of aircraft without restrictions. Passenger traffic in 2014 amounted to almost 1,800,000 passengers. At the moment, of the two terminals (old and new), only terminal A is operating - the new one, built for the Asia-Pacific countries summit.
I don't I want to repeat myself, talking about the airport. Although it is not frequent in reviews, it is described and illustrated quite well. I think the following information will be useful.
How to get to/from the airport(s) from/to Vladivostok(a)?
1. Official airport taxi (there is an order desk inside the terminal). Approximately 1500 rubles. per car to any district of Vladivostok.
2. Express train (former Aeroexpress) for 350 rubles. (business class) or 220 rubles. (2nd class carriage or ordinary carriage). Convenient, fast, but not so often (only 5 trains per day to the main flights). Schedule on the airport website. The terminal of the train (aeroexpress) is adjacent to the passenger terminal, so a couple of minutes on foot along the transition and you are in the train. On the way (50 minutes), the train makes several stops. 1st "Artem", city of Artem, next to buses along Artem; 2nd "Coal", a junction railway station to Ussuriysk and Partizansk with Nakhodka; 3rd "Second River", this is already a city, here is the bus station of Vladivostok across the road; 4th "Morgorodok", city, next to the main avenue of the city with buses; 5th "First River", the city, is already near the center; 6th terminal "Vladivostok", this is the railway station of Vladivostok, the city center.
3. Intercity buses connecting Vladivostok with some cities of Primorsky Krai with a stop at the airport. I do not remember exactly, but somewhere around 120 rubles. to Vladivostok (to the bus or railway station). The schedule is on the airport website, but often does not correspond to reality. Once, upon arrival at 4 o'clock in the morning, I accidentally got on such an intercity bus to the city. Departure from the bus stop in front of the terminal building.
4. Regular bus No. 107 "Airport-Vladivostok (railway station)", which runs according to the schedule (see on the website). The price of the trip is 120 rubles. No. 107 departs from the stop in front of the terminal building. There is a large bus and minibus number 107. Departs from the bus stop in front of the terminal building.
5. Alternative cheap option by bus through the city of Artyom. City (Artemovsky) bus number 7 (every 30 minutes) connects the city of Artem with the airport. On it you need to get to the bus stop "Bus station" in the city of Artem, transfer to any intercity (including transit) bus going to Vladivostok (there are always those there). The price, I don’t want to lie (I traveled for a long time), but somewhere around 20 rubles. + 120 rub. No. 7 departs from the stop in front of the terminal building, like all other buses.
The airport has several parking lots for passengers or those who meet: short-term, daily - paid, and general - free.
We got to the airport by car through a low-water bridge built to relieve the main road from the city.
View of the airport at the entrance to it.
View of the terminal from the side of the free parking.
There is a memorial aircraft nearby Yak-40, named after Vladimir Saibel, former director of the now defunct Vladivostok Air.
Inside the terminal is spacious, bright and clean. It's always a pleasure to be there. Somehow we even went to the airport to drink coffee in the evening, so to speak, to take a break.
View from the second floor.
Escalator to the second floor. Leads to the sterile screening and departure area for domestic and international flights.
International check-in area.
My flight to Narita.
Checked in my luggage to Honolulu. Boarding received only on the first segment to Tokyo. I received the second boarding pass at the transit desk already in Narita.
Sterile area for international departures with panoramic windows on the apron and runway.
Airport flag.
Our green A320 by the air bridge is almost ready to receive new passengers.
Apart from Yakutia and Aurora, A320 Urals and B757 Uzbeks were spotted on the platform. The latter operates charter flights Tashkent-Vladivostok.
Landing announced....
View of the aircraft nose from the air bridge .
View of the terminal from the runway from the air bridge.
Airplane. Flight details.
On this route, as on all Far East routes, S uses A320
VQ-BRD. The aircraft is 3.8 years old.
The interior of the plane looks fresh, which is understandable, because the plane is not even 4 years old.
Economy class seats are thin, covered with gray leatherette.
The distance between the rows is comfortable.
Sit on the last row. The back of the seat reclines, which is not the case with Asian low-cost airlines, for example.
S7 logos complement the interior of the cabin.
In the seat pocket there is only a safety instruction and a logbook.
The toilet had a rather strong smell, but looked clean.
Economy was about 70% full.
4 minutes before the scheduled departure time, we undocked from the gate and began taxiing to the runway. On the way we met an Aeroflot board waiting for a flight to Sheremetyevo.
Turning around at the end of the runway....
. .. and after a few seconds we see how the shadow from our plane decreases in size and rushes along the ground at a speed of 300 km/h.
We fly over the road junction to the low-water bridge, ....
....which is gradually ice-bound in the Amur Bay.
We turn to the southeast, capturing the Bogatinskoe reservoir with our eyes.
I flew this route for the first time, so the whole route over the southeastern part of Primorye was interesting for me.
For example, one of the highest mountains of Primorsky Krai - Pedan (Livadiyskaya), Falaza (Litovka) under the clouds.
I also saw our main Vladivostok beach - "Shamoru", to the left of which is the bay "Three Little Pigs" and even to the left - the All-Russian Children's Center "Ocean".
[IMG ID=6656 1]
Soon, the seaside land ended, and the waters of the Sea of
As soon as the "fasten your seat belt" sign went out, a flight attendant handed out immigration cards to those arriving in Japan. I took it because I was boarding my 7 hour layover to leave the sterile area of To do this, I had previously issued a transit visa at the Japanese Consulate in Vladivostok. I was surprised that transit and tourist Japanese visas are issued at the consulate for free.
And now the guest of the program..... the famous branded TORTILLA from S7. Many words have been said about her. I kept wondering - why discuss this in-flight food product like that. But having tried it myself, I realized that a really painful topic was being discussed. I got her vegetable version on the last row - a cold, dry wrap, which I had to drink with two glasses of liquids, otherwise you won’t swallow it.
On on the way back we got its meat (chicken) version, which was a little more edible.
Flying over the Japanese island of Honshu, you realize that it is quite flat, at least along the route of our flight.
But sometimes we meet slides.
Our plane crossed Honshu and flew along the Pacific coast.... ,
....
It was partly cloudy, so the photos are either bright or dark.
One of the many towns along the Pacific coast.
Flying up to the airport, autumn agricultural landscapes were observed.
Airport territory appeared .
Touch and Brake....
The plane proceeds to terminal 2 past golf courses.....
.... underground roads....
... past terminal 3.
And after 10 minutes of taxiing from the runway, we finally arrived at our terminal 2. Behind B777 China Eastern and B747 China Airlines.
We pass the gates of terminal 2. It is noteworthy that this Japan Airlines B767 is the one that was supposed to fly to Honolulu in 7 hours.
A321 Philippines Airlines.
"Parked" at our gate overlooking the tails of the Filipinos, Taiwanese and Japanese.
And here, dear readers, a completely different service begins. Served covered conveyor and covered luggage carts. I think: "What if it rains or snows and the bags get wet?! Not good!". Luggage is unloaded very carefully.
Soon the flight attendants invited passengers to the exit.
The air bridges in Narita, unfortunately, have no windows.
Only at the gate we managed to film the nose of our aircraft.
Tokyo International Airport (Narita).
I'll tell you about the airport itself, its schemes, and location in the next part.
And now what passengers see upon arrival.
The transition zone from the gate to passport control/luggage/transit counters do not shine with anything special .... travelators, hand luggage carts .... everything is like in all normal large airports.
But going to the toilet, I was surprised by the presence of the Japanese "smart" here. Electronic washstands.....
.... what about washstands....computer toilets!!!! Yes, yes, and in the men's toilets too.
I'll tell you how this charm works in the next part of my review. The Japanese have illuminated their smart toilets in the transit area of All these wonders can be experienced personally and free of charge. In short, they built a temple to the toilet (toilet) ....
On the way from the arrival gate to passport control, I liked the corridor the left wall of which is solid glass overlooking the platform.
B787 followed by B767 and B737.
At the transit counter, getting my second boarding pass, a Japan Airlines employee asked for my baggage tag and entered it into the system to transfer my bag to the second flight.
Further, the flow of passengers is divided into two parts: those who need international transit and those who need access to the city, luggage or domestic transit. I joined the second ones.
Passport control passed, going down to baggage claim and customs.
Behind customs arrival hall - level 1. The arrival hall is narrow but long.
One of the bus exits.
Japanese bonus.
Knowing about my long transit in Narita, I read in advance where I could go for a few hours near the airport. The best, in my opinion, was the option with the aviation museum.
There is a tourist information desk in the arrivals hall, where I learned how to get to this museum, having received a printout with detailed information.
I used the 2nd weekend route. This is bus 13 + a bit of walking.
I left the terminal to the bus stops.
I found the bus stop number 13.
Right on schedule at 15:00 the bus came . The fare is 210 yen. On the bus, I put a 1,000-yen bill into the machine (change came out in coins). The exchange rate is approximately 100 yen - 1 dollar.
The bus driver, and to the left of him there is a fare machine.
I drove for about 7 minutes. I got off at my stop and I followed the map to the museum. Believe it or not, what a walk it was.... with planes flying overhead....
B787 All Nippon Airlines
B747 Delta Airlines
B747 Korean Airlines
B777 American Airlines
And these are all planes for this short trip!!!!
After walking along the picturesque path for about 10 minutes, I got to the turn to the museum.
View of the museum from the road. Looking ahead... this tower in the middle is the museum's "control tower".
In front of the museum building there is a platform with various aircraft. The same site is an excellent place for spotting, since the end of one of the runways is located next to it.]B787 All Nippon Airlines in Star Wars livery
B767 Japan Airlines
Unfortunately, it was getting dark quickly, and my camera does not allow me to take good handheld shots in the dark.
As I understand, not only transit passengers come here, but also spotters (of course) and sightseers from the city.
There are mini planes for kids.
You can go inside some of the historical aircraft.
For children... something like an illusion flight....
Now about the indoor museum. Admission 500 yen. At the tourist desk at the airport, they gave me a coupon for 100 eis discount, which I used.
Inside it is divided into zones.
A large exhibition is devoted to the structure of aircraft, such as engines, landing gear, fuselage.
There is a layout showing 3 class chairs. The chairs are original, old.
But that's not all.
There is a door to the backyard of the museum, where I saw the "head" of B747. I was lucky, because I accidentally joined the tour of this ''head'' for free. By the way, the "head" is original.
The tour was in Japanese with "question-answer" elements, but the guide explained some points to me in English and asked, just like the Japanese, different questions about airplanes.
Inside the head, you can see the details of the structure, hidden from the passenger's eyes.
For example, the door and part of the fuselage without inner skin.
Hatches in the floor (under glass) , through which you can get into the lower compartments of the aircraft.
What lies behind the panel of oxygen masks and individual lighting and airflow?
Progress of the tour.....
We go up the spiral staircase to the second deck to the cockpit. I repeat that part of the aircraft is original, not a dummy.
The guide offered to sit in the cockpit. And he began to talk about the main control systems.
I also could not resist and sat at the helm.
The tour ended and I went on to explore the museum - to the control tower. To do this, you need to go up there by elevator. It is a round platform, divided into sections, demonstrating different moments of ground control of aircraft.
Here, at the entrance, in the most convenient place for spotting (in relation to the runway), there are spectator seats, and a commentator with binoculars and a microphone sits behind the partition to the right , and explains the current situation (in Japanese). For example, what plane is coming in to land and so on.
From here you can get good pictures of landing planes and part of the airport.
B777 Japan Airlines.
A380 Singapore Airlines. I apologize for the low quality. Wrong equipment in hand for spotting in the evening and at night.
View of the end of the runway (it is on the left) and the apron.
Other excursion areas of the tower.
Of course, all this equipment is "last century", outdated, but still interesting.
Before I left the tower, the lights of the airfield came on.
And this photo, taken on the way back from Narita to Vladivostok from an A320 S7, shows the museum's "control tower" from the airport side (near the exit to the runway threshold).
It was already completely dark, and I took the last bus at 17-10 straight from the museum to the airport to get material for the next review.
In transit in Narita, subject to availability You can safely spend a couple of hours on boarding and checked baggage to visit the museum, as I did. At 15:00 I left the airport by bus, and at 17:10 I also went back to the airport by bus.
I advise everyone to visit this museum if possible!
In conclusion to this part.
I express my gratitude S7 airlines for both pleasant fares for this flight and good service in the broadest sense of the word! Thanks to S7, that with your partnerships in the One World alliance and beyond, you have made the whole of Southeast Asia and even Hawaii accessible to us, the Far East.
To be continued.....
Vote for review:
