Tokyo From the Sky: Our Tokyo Helicopter Tour Experience

On our recent visit to Japan we had the pleasure of going on a Tokyo helicopter tour from Urayasu Heliport, which is located in the Tokyo Disney Resort area.  Below is our detailed overview of this awesome experience you can also have when you visit Tokyo, and how to book your Tokyo helicopter tour experience.

We really enjoyed flying a large loop around Tokyo, it was amazing to see the famous landmarks of the city at night!  And gave us a whole different perspective of this mega city.

Check out our video above to see what to expect from this experience.

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How to Book Your Helicopter Tour Tokyo

Viator provides a very easy option to book a range of helicopter tour options for Tokyo of various time periods and locations. Note that this activity is dependent on weather conditions, so we recommend you book your flight early during your visit to Tokyo so if your flight is rescheduled you have other date options.

Click here to check out and book your Tokyo Helicopter Flight options through Viator 

How Can Weather Affect your Helicopter Ride Tokyo?

In our case our first flight was cancelled due to weather.  We promptly received a message when this occurred, and the operator contacted us to re-book on another day.  We booked our new flight time for two days following our original date, and quickly received a new confirmation email.

How to Get to Urayasu Heliport near Tokyo Disney Resort

Many of you will be asking where is Urayasu Heliport and Maihama Station in relation to the rest of Tokyo.  In the below map you can see that Maihama Station is located on the eastern side of Tokyo and is a 20 minute train ride from Tokyo Station.  If you are travelling from either Shinjuku Station or Shibuya Station your travel time is around 45-50 minutes.

After you arrive at Maihama look for the signs for the Northern exit from the station.  After you exit, you will see on your right hand side a decorative clock tower which you can see in our photos below.  Descend the steps and wait in front of the clock tower for your shuttle bus collection.  Do not be late as they arrive promptly!

Tokyo Helicopter Flight Meeting Point at Maihama Station
Tokyo Helicopter Flight Meeting Point at Maihama Station
Tokyo Helicopter Flight Meeting Point at Maihama Station
Tokyo Helicopter Flight Meeting Point at Maihama Station

You will then be driven the short distance to the Excel Air Facility.

Tokyo Helicopter Flight Shuttle Bus Pickup from Maihama Station
Tokyo Helicopter Flight Shuttle Bus Pickup from Maihama Station
Tokyo Helicopter Flight Shuttle Bus
Tokyo Helicopter Flight Shuttle Bus

Tokyo Helicopter Tour Check In

When you arrive at the Excel Air Facility you walk up the stairs to their departure lounge.  The first thing you will see is the reception counter where you check in for your flight. 

Arrival at Excel Air at Urayasu Heliport
Arrival at Excel Air at Urayasu Heliport
Entry to Excel Air Reception at Urayasu Heliport in Tokyo
Entry to Excel Air Reception at Urayasu Heliport in Tokyo
Excel Air Reception Counter at Urayasu Heliport in Tokyo
Excel Air Reception Counter at Urayasu Heliport in Tokyo
Checking In at Excel Air Reception Counter at Urayasu Heliport in Tokyo
Checking In at Excel Air Reception Counter at Urayasu Heliport in Tokyo

Of note is that you are only allowed to take your phone and cameras with you in flight mode, they also have special stickers which you must apply to your phone and cameras to prevent the flash from being used as this is a safety risk for the pilot.  You are also not permitted to carry selfie sticks, gimbals or tripods onto the helicopter.

Once you have checked in you then move into the luxurious waiting lounge, where you will be offered a complimentary drink.  We enjoyed viewing the sunset over Disneysea resort while we waited for our flight.

Excel Air Waiting Lounge at Urayasu Heliport in Tokyo
Excel Air Waiting Lounge at Urayasu Heliport in Tokyo
Excel Air Cafe in the Waiting Lounge at Urayasu Heliport in Tokyo
Excel Air Cafe in the Waiting Lounge at Urayasu Heliport in Tokyo
Sunset Views over Tokyo Disneysea Resort from Excel Air Waiting Lounge
Sunset Views over Tokyo Disneysea Resort from Excel Air Waiting Lounge
Weather Vane at Excel Air Lounge at Urayasu Heliport in Tokyo
Weather Vane at Excel Air Lounge at Urayasu Heliport in Tokyo

When they are ready they will invite you to move onto the next stage, which is a safety briefing and locker room to store your valuable items during your flight.  The lockers are of medium size so are able to hold normal backpacks and carry bags, but not big enough for suitcases.

Walking from the Excel Air Waiting Lounge to the Safety Briefing and Locker Room
Walking from the Excel Air Waiting Lounge to the Safety Briefing and Locker Room

After we were ready we were led through a hangar full of helicopters onto the helipad to board our flight!

Our Helicopter Ride Tokyo at Urayasu Heliport
Our Helicopter Ride Tokyo at Urayasu Heliport

Our Helicopter Ride Tokyo Experience

After we had been strapped in we were ready to go!  And very excited as we do not get to travel in a helicopter very often ? . 

Kids Strapped into the Helicopter and very excited to be ready to go!
Kids Strapped into the Helicopter and very excited to be ready to go!

We took off smoothly and travelled over the water parallel to the Disney Resort area as we ascended.  We quickly travelled over the Odaiba area, and had lovely views of the Rainbow Bridge.

Tokyo Helicopter Cruise over Disney Resort Area
Tokyo Helicopter Cruise over Disney Resort Area
Tokyo Helicopter Sightseeing over Rainbow Bridge near Odaiba
Tokyo Helicopter Sightseeing over Rainbow Bridge near Odaiba

We then travelled on to Shibuya to see the crossing from a much higher height!  Then circled on to see Shinjuku.

Helicopter Ride Tokyo over Shibuya
Helicopter Ride Tokyo over Shibuya
Helicopter Ride over Tokyo looking at Shinjuku
Helicopter Ride over Tokyo looking at Shinjuku
More Helicopter Views over Shinjuku
More Helicopter Views over Shinjuku
More Helicopter Views over Tokyo
More Helicopter Views over Tokyo
More Views over Tokyo
More Views over Tokyo
More Helicopter Ride Views over Tokyo
More Helicopter Ride Views over Tokyo

We then travelled to view the Tokyo Skytree in all of its splendour.

Helicopter Views over the Tokyo Skytree
Helicopter Views over the Tokyo Skytree
Helicopter Views over the Tokyo Skytree
Helicopter Views over the Tokyo Skytree
Helicopter Tokyo Tour Views
Helicopter Tokyo Tour Views

Finally we headed back to Urayasu Heliport past the Disney Resort area again and finally landed after our 15 minute flight.  It was a short but lovely flight to gain some perspective of how large Tokyo is as a city. 

Helicopter Views over Tokyo Disney Resort Area
Helicopter Views over Tokyo Disney Resort Area

After a family photo we returned to the locker area to collect our personal items and were then promptly taken by the complimentary shuttle bus back to Maihama Station.  We were able to easily then catch the train back to our accommodation in Tokyo.

Tokyo Helicopter Tour Family Photo
Tokyo Helicopter Tour Family Photo

Wrapup

We all really enjoyed our Tokyo helicopter ride and our children were particularly excited as they mostly do not recall their previous helicopter flight which was 9 years prior in New Zealand! 

We definitely recommend this activity to our readers as a great option to have a special experience in Tokyo. 

Click here to check out and book your Tokyo Helicopter Flight options through Viator 

Tokyo From the Sky - Our Tokyo Helicopter Tour Experience
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Disclaimer:  This article contains affiliate links.  If you book after clicking on one of these links then we may receive a small commission at no extra cost to you.