Japan: Day 1 - Chubu Centrair Airport and Nagoya Ekimae Montblanc Hotel

I admit - I love planning trips. I get a little obsessed doing research about what places to visit, which hotels to stay in, and what things to do to ensure that we get the most value for our money. So I became the unofficial planner of my family's Japan trip. 

The whole family in Japan

We decided to celebrate my dad's 60th birthday in Japan. It's a late celebration, since his birthday is in July, but we didn't want to go to Japan during the hot and humid summer. We all agreed that October would be a good time to go on our trip. Since some of my siblings were based abroad, we all decided it would be nice to tour a new place all together. 

Since we were able to book our flights arriving in Chubu Centrair Airport (Nagoya) on October 13 and departing from Kansai International Airport (Osaka) on October 21, I planned that we would be touring three cities in Japan - Nagoya, Kyoto and Osaka. Kyoto was in the middle of the other two cities, so it was the best additional city to add to our trip. 

From Naia Terminal 3, we flew via Cebu Pacific to arrive at our destination:

Chubu Centrair International Airport, Nagoya

The airport has signs to show you where you need to go

We arrived at around 9pm in Centrair Airport, Nagoya. The temperature is colder during the night which is why we all wore our hoodies (we had matching hoodies made). 

After going through customs, we went straight for the train station and bought our prepaid IC cards there - see my travel tip post here: Japan Travel Tips.

Trying to analyze the Japanese train lines

Manaca Ticket Machine

Figuring out how to operate the machine (make sure to press the English button first)

After buying our IC cards and figuring out what train to ride, we were finally on our way to Nagoya Station, which is a short walk to our hotel.

Nagoya Ekimae Montblanc Hotel

At the entrance of our hotel

After doing a lot of research and reading endless reviews online, I decided that this hotel suited us best. When my family agreed, I booked immediately - nice to know that Agoda.com offers a book now pay later option, so we were charged for the booking in late September. This hotel is a few minutes walk from Nagoya Station (the city's central station).


Each twin room cost Php 3,800 per night (including tax), which was pretty affordable. We really didn't want to spend more than Php 5,000/night since we wouldn't be spending a lot of time in the hotel rooms. The twin room fits 2 adults and 2 small kids comfortably. The rooms were on the small side, but many say this is typical of Japan hotel rooms. No meals included, but there are nearby convenience stores and restaurants that offer a variety of food choices. We usually bought our breakfast from the Circle K Convenience Store just a few meters away from the hotel.

Our room in the hotel on the 6th floor, with my sister dropping by

The bathroom in our room

3rd floor room of my parents

Affordable but still yummy food from the nearby convenience store

The room has complete amenities - A/C, TV, refrigerator, toiletries in the bathroom, etc. There are two chairs and a table. I love how most of the bathrooms in Japan come with heated seats and complete bidet controls. Oh, and the room comes with two sleeping robes, too.

It was late when we arrived at the hotel, and the next day, we started our tour in Nagoya, Japan. My next blog post will be Day 2.