How Early to Arrive: Security and Departure at Haneda and Narita
How early should you get to the airport? For an international departure, plan on about three hours, and more in peak season — but the number that actually governs you is your airline's check-in and security deadline. Start there.
Airline deadlines are what matter
Your airline's cutoff is the hard limit, so confirm your own flight's. Two published examples: ANA requires international passengers to clear security at least 60 minutes before departure; JAL requires domestic passengers to pass security by 20 minutes before, and to be at the gate 10 minutes before. Check your carrier's page for your route: ANA · JAL.
Are there live security wait times?
Narita does: its security screening page shows the current wait at each checkpoint, with the time of the update. Haneda does not — its live congestion panel covers flights, road and rail conditions and car parks, not security screening. We do not link third-party estimate sites — they are not primary sources, and we found clear errors in them.
What slows you down
The usual sequence is check-in, bag drop, security screening, emigration (passport control), then your gate. Peak season and long weekends back this up — ANA flags busier screening at those times. We do not reproduce the detailed liquids and carry-on rules here; use the official security guidance: Narita — security screening. At Haneda, check your airline and the airport site before you travel.
Departing late at night or early morning
Narita operates 06:00–24:00, so the earliest flights leave soon after the terminal reopens for departures. If yours is at dawn, staying nearby the night before beats a pre-dawn train — see our Narita overnight guide for what is open and the first Skyliner.
Keep planning
Overnight at Narita: late arrivals and early departures →
Arriving rather than leaving? Immigration wait times at Haneda and Narita →