Review: Why Budget-friendly Zipair is Our Family’s Preferred Way to Fly to Tokyo

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Our family’s first-ever visit to Japan (Osaka, Nara, and Tokyo; full recap coming soon!) coincided with our first foray into the overseas budget-airline niche market. Zipair, a subsidiary of Japan Airlines, had just introduced a route from San Jose International Airport to Tokyo’s Narita International Airport, with unbeatable promotional fares as low as $420 roundtrip for adults, and $200 for my kid!

The catch?

This base fare—essentially a pared-down basic economy—covers nothing more than your seat. You’re expected to pay for everything else a la carte: checked bags, food, blankets, movies, playback devices, and yes, even water. I was surprised they didn’t charge us to use the bathroom…

While my family hadn’t had much luck with budget airlines in the past, we decided to give this one a try. Japan is widely known to produce quality products with impeccable service, so we trusted that a Japanese airline could make even a budget long-haul a pleasant experience, and we were not disappointed.

As with any budget airline, Zipair nickel-and-dimes you, but if you go in with that expectation, as we did, you won’t be surprised by the extra costs, can prepare accordingly, and save a lot of money (which we could in turn spend on other items during our travels to Tokyo, Nara, Osaka, and Kyoto!).

Read on to learn about our Zipair experience and find out why you might consider flying a budget airline on your family’s next visit to Tokyo.

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About Zipair

Zipair is a subsidiary of Japan Airlines that launched in 2019, but which, due partially to the COVID-19 pandemic, only began shuttling passengers to and from Tokyo’s Narita International Airport in late-2020. So it still feels a bit novel and has a lot of room to grow.

The airline offers budget fares and currently operates U.S. routes through Honolulu, Los Angeles, and San Jose, with a San Francisco route that launched summer 2023.

The World Airline Awards names it 6th among the World’s Best Long Haul Low-Cost Airlines of 2022, but customer reviews here and on TripAdvisor range from horrible to amazing, so you’ll have to be the judge!

COSTS TO CONSIDER

All prices listed in USD

Airfare: $650+/adult, less for children age 0-6
Checked bag fee: $30+/bag

In-Flight Add-Ons

Meals: ~$10
Drinks: ~$2-$6
Snacks: ~$3+
Blankets, slippers, eye masks: ~$20

Factors to Consider When Booking a Flight on Zipair

Ticket Prices Are the Lowest of the Low

As mentioned above, we scored direct flights from San Jose to Narita for under $500 each for the adults and even less for my five-year-old. I was even eyeing business class lie-flat seats, which were offered at the unheard-of rate of $1,000. Unfortunately, we couldn’t follow through with my wish since Zipair doesn’t allow children under 8 years of age to sit in their business class seats.

Traveling during the winter season, and on a new route, also helped drive down the cost of our fares. Even so, when looking at last-minute flights for tourist-heavy cherry blossom season, roundtrip flights on Zipair still cost $400 less than the next-cheapest airlines at the time of this writing.

Kid-Friendly Fares & Perks

One of the biggest pluses I’ll give Zipair is that they offer reduced fares for children ages 0-6 and allow you to choose seats together free of charge! This means it doesn’t cost you extra to ensure you and your child are sitting next to one another. I chose a window and middle seat for my child and myself at the front of our section.

Zipair seems to be ahead of the curve when compared to other airlines who are only just now providing added flexibility to their passengers with young children.

You Get What You Pay For, i.e., Nothing

It took a bit of Googling and researching Zipair’s website to understand what was included in our fare. At the end of the day, go in with no expectations. Nothing is included except your seat. I saw our flight attendants tell more than one passenger that even water has a price onboard, so plan accordingly.

In addition, I’d recommend doing a side-by-side comparison of the non-negotiable amenities you’re expecting on a flight. Depending on how you like to travel, it might make financial sense to go with a more traditional and comprehensive airline ticket.

You Pay Only for What You Use

One of my life’s values is to reduce waste, and Zipair’s model fits in perfectly with that. By not providing the same freebies that other airlines do, Zipair forces me to be intentional about what I use, otherwise I agree to pay for it!

For example, if you or your kid don’t enjoy airplane food, you can bring your own, and you don’t have to feel the guilt of “wasting” your provided inflight hot meal.

That’s not to say I don’t recommend the inflight food, because Zipair does provide some decent food options. You’re paying for the convenience of having a hot meal waiting for you on the plane, which for some is worth the money.

I did miss having a free checked bag and a blanket since it was chilly onboard. Instead, we used the coats we had already planned to bring for our winter trip. But it still felt weird to watch the flight attendants pass out prepaid items to some passengers and skip over our seats because we did not pay for extras. That’s how they get ya—stay strong!

Beware of Strict Baggage Requirements

Based on my research on reddit, Zipair can be pretty stringent about the weight of carry-ons and checked bags. If you can travel really light, then you can save a great deal of money.

Traveling as a group of four, we assumed we’d have to purchase at least a couple checked bags for the trip and factored that into our cost ahead of time. Between three adults and a little one, we were able to consolidate our belongings into two checked bags (23kg each for $120 total), and the combined weight of our carry-on and personal items to 7kg per person.

You might be able to sneak by with a couple extra kilos in your personal items, but they did weigh our carry-ons at check-in when we departed from Narita, so that’s a consideration.

Unlike some other airlines, Zipair allows carseats and strollers to fly free with kids six-and-under.

BYO or Order Food A La Carte
on Your Own Time

Since we boarded our flight knowing we’d be charged for food and drinks, we made preparations to bring snacks, on-the-go-meals, and multiple bottles of water in our carry-ons to last us through the 10-hour flight to and from Narita.

We packed slightly more than we would for a normal flight (check out our flying with young kids guide here!) but were also open to purchasing food and drinks on the flight. We (i.e., my five-year-old) was able to pick things we actually wanted to eat off of the inflight menu, rather than getting a prescribed meal option.

Zipair serves hot meals, instant ramen, snacks, desserts, juice, wine, beer, and coffee, none of which cost me an arm and a leg like I’d expected. And the items were delivered to our seats when we were hungry and awake, instead of during a set mealtime. Such a plus!

Pro tip: bring empty water bottles through security but make sure you fill them before you get on the flight.

Enjoy Free (but spotty) WiFi Onboard

Passengers order food and amenities on the plane using the onboard WiFi. This means that you have to bring a smart phone or device onboard to be able to order. Service was spotty, but great when it did work for texting and sending emails.

To connect, your device will detect the WiFi but you have to follow a couple extra steps to actually get connected. Make sure you follow directions on the placards in your seat pocket.

Sit in Typical Basic Economy Comfort

Zipair’s 787-8 aircrafts provide so-so legroom and seat widths, but are not unlike other economy long hauls we’ve ridden. While our seats at the front of the section provided ample legroom, the arm rests could not be raised and my child couldn’t get into a comfy sleeping position in her little square of seat space. If I had read the fine print at the bottom of this page I would’ve known that. Whoops.

If traveling with an infant, Zipair provides safety seats.

What Others Are Saying

In some online reviews, people have complained that Zipair’s customer service can be lacking, or even non-existent.

Another person complained about Zipair’s seeming lack of humanity not providing a refund when they were forced to cancel their flights due to illness.

We personally don’t have any experience with Zipair’s customer service line or cancellations, but it’s definitely something to consider. We read other mixed reviews on Reddit threads here and here.

I noticed a few other families on our Zipair flights, with a mix of Asian folks and white tourists. Overall, flying on a budget airline is certainly not for every family, but when the circumstances are right it could make for a very rewarding and affordable option.

Zipair, similar to our home favorite airline Southwest, is definitely an exception to the rule when it comes to budget airlines. As long as prices stay competitive, Zipair will certainly be our family’s preferred option when it comes to flying to and from Tokyo.

Although we had a good experience, Zipair didn’t completely convince me to always go with a budget airline; it could mean more of a headache for us in other aspects. As long as you’re okay with that, and make sure to read the fine print, then congrats! You just saved yourself a lot of cash!

Based on our review and your family’s travel style, would you book a flight with Zipair? Let us know in the comments!

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Angelica

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Angelica (she/her) is of Cebuano(Pilipinx)-descent and was born and raised in Huchiun Ohlone territory (the East Bay Area--pay your Shuumi Land Tax!), where she also now resides with her partner and their toddler. She loves to spend her time sipping on boba and dirty chai lattes (sometimes together), and eating pescetarian goodies at BIPOC-owned cafes and restaurants.