Central Japan International Airport, also known as Centrair in English (IATA code: NGO), is a gateway to the central region of Japan. It is one of the most convenient airports for traveling to Shizuoka, Aichi, Mie, Gifu, and even the Hokuriku region (Toyama, Ishikawa), as it is located between the Kanto and Kansai regions. Starting from September 20, 2019, Central Japan International Airport has added a Terminal 2. Currently, only Tigerair Taiwan uses the Terminal 2, while other airlines continue to use the Terminal 1.
Central International Airport Structure
The Central International Airport consists of several facilities, including Terminal 1, Terminal 2, the Transportation Plaza, the Meitetsu-Central International Airport Station, and the Flight of Dreams. Terminal 1 is adjacent to the Transportation Plaza, which is connected to the Meitetsu-Central International Airport Station and the Shin-Terraria Hotel. Therefore, through the connection of the Transportation Plaza, passengers can travel to Meitetsu, airport buses, and high-speed boats. Of course, it also provides access to Terminal 2 and other airport hotels.
However, it is worth mentioning that the Terminal 2 is close to the Flight of Dreams, but it is further away from the Terminal 1. You can either walk there via the sky bridge (approximately 10 minutes) or take a shuttle bus.
You can refer to the image below (taken from the official website) for their locations.
Terminal 1
The Terminal 1 is a four-story building. The arrival halls for domestic and international flights are both located on the second floor, while the departure halls for domestic and international flights are on the third floor.
Here is a side view of the Terminal 1 and Transportation Plaza at Central International Airport.
Below is the architectural diagram of the Central International Airport, which clearly shows the location relationship between the transportation plaza and the Terminal 1. Its height is between the 2nd and 3rd floors of Terminal 1. Due to the presence of passageways, it provides access to both the 2nd and 3rd floors.
(The image above is obtained from the official website of Taichung International Airport)
Arriving at the Terminal 1 (second floor)
When we take a flight and arrive at the Terminal 1 (Tigerair enters through the Terminal 2) after going through immigration and customs checks, we will enter from the location indicated by the red arrow in the picture below.
On both sides of the immigration checkpoint, there will be arrival terminal information.
On the right side, there is a black cat counter where you can store luggage and send items. The restroom is also located here.
Go left at this point, towards the traffic square.
You can see the indicator here, even if you don’t understand the text, you should be able to understand by looking at the picture.
Here are some travel agency counters where you can collect or exchange travel-related items purchased from certain travel agencies.
Keep going forward.
At this moment, you can immediately see on your right hand side a passage that leads to the transportation plaza. Since the arrival hall of Terminal 1 is on the 2nd floor and the transportation plaza is approximately on the 2.5th floor, the passage here goes upwards.
CJTC
Service Hours: 09:00-19:30
A little further ahead, on the right-hand side, there is the Central Japan Travel Center (CJTC), where you can purchase or exchange transportation tickets (they sell Kintetsu Rail Pass 5-day tickets and 5-day tickets plus here, but exchange vouchers for pre-purchased tickets cannot be redeemed).
Further ahead, there is another passage that leads to the transportation plaza. This passage is similar to the previous one, except that it is closer to the domestic lines. It doesn’t matter which one you take.
You can see that the passage here has a slight slope.
Terminal 1 Departure Hall (3rd floor)
When you arrive at the check-in counter for international flights, please take note that the international and domestic flights are on the same floor. The international flights are on the left side, while the domestic flights are on the right side. There are 10 rows of check-in counters for international flights, while there are only 6 rows for domestic flights.
I saw some counters with ninja mannequins, which was quite interesting.
Across from the airline counter, there are several travel agency counters that are currently in the process of resuming operations.
Behind the check-in counter, there are some shops where you can make purchases. However, please note that these are not duty-free shops (tax refund available for purchases exceeding a certain amount with a valid passport).
Terminal 1, 4th floor
Currently, the fourth floor can be divided into three sections: Red Brick Street and Lantern Street, Activity Plaza and Sky Plaza.
Red Brick Street and Lantern Street mainly consist of shops and restaurants.
Activity Plaza is an open space, and when events are held, a stage will be set up.
Sky Plaza is an outdoor platform where you can watch planes take off and land.
Red Brick Street and Lantern Street
Central International Airport is probably the airport with the most famous food. For example, there are renowned restaurants like Maruya for eel rice, Wakashachiya for miso udon noodles, Yaba for miso pork cutlet rice bowl, Sekai no Asama, and Higashiyama Gyutan for beef tongue. You can see them all here in the middle of the picture, on the escalator going up to the fourth floor.
Take a look at the map of the 4th floor. After taking the escalator to the 4th floor, on the left is the Red Brick Street, and on the right is the Lantern Street. There are shops and restaurants on both sides. In the middle is the activity square. From the activity square, you can continue forward to reach the Sky Plaza (a place to watch airplanes).
The blue one in the picture is a regular store, and the orange one is a restaurant.
Below are the shops and restaurants on the 4th floor (only listing some well-known shops or restaurants).
Mount A in the World
The area of the shops and restaurants is quite pleasant to explore, and the aisles are relatively spacious.
Taiwan’s Famous Dry Noodle Shop – Hanabi
Wei Xian Ramen, also known as a famous restaurant.
Activity Square
The activity square is located on the 4th floor, in between Red Brick Street and Lantern Street. As the name suggests, this is the place where events are held. On the day I visited, there happened to be a Hawaiian-themed event.
On the way to Sky Plaza, you will pass by Starbucks.
Sky Plaza
Sky Plaza is an outdoor area. When you come to Sky Plaza, you can clearly see the airplanes. However, due to safety considerations, there is wire mesh fencing, but it does not affect taking photos.
Transportation Plaza (2nd floor)
At this point, let’s take a look at the floor plan of the transportation plaza (Japanese: アクセス プラザ).
When you walk past the transportation plaza, the first thing you’ll notice is the central information counter. Here, you can also find a car rental inquiry counter (please note that only inquiries are available here, no actual car rentals are provided. The rental counter is located downstairs).
Meitetsu – Chubu Centrair Airport Station
Looking to the left, you can see the Meitetsu – Chubu Centrair International Airport Station from left to right, which includes the following: ticket vending machine area, ticket counter, ticket gate, and Meitetsu tourist information center.
MEITETSU Tourist Information Center
Its Japanese name is “名鉄トラベルプラザ”, which can be directly translated as “名鐵旅遊廣場” (Meitetsu Travel Plaza). However, its English name is “MEITETSU Tourist Information Center”. Therefore, in many places, you may find different names used to refer to the same location, which can be a bit confusing. Currently, the Shoryudo Bus Pass can be exchanged here (they also sell the Kintetsu Rail Pass 5-day ticket and the 5-day ticket plus version, but the exchange voucher for pre-purchased tickets cannot be redeemed here).
Business hours: 10:00 AM to 7:00 PM
Centrair Hotel
Look to the right corner and you will see the Centrair Hotel.
Car Rental. Airport Shuttle. Shuttle Bus. Taxi Pick-up Point.
To rent a car, take the airport bus (Limousine Bus), take the free shuttle bus to Terminal 2, or take a taxi, go this way. You can recognize the “赤福” sign because, as far as I know, this sign has not been changed for many years. Keep going forward, go down the escalator next to the Family Mart convenience store, and you can take it to the first floor to rent a car or take the Limousine Bus or the shuttle bus to Terminal 2.
Route to Terminal 2, Flight of Dreams, high-speed boat, Comfort Hotel
Behind the central counter is the sky bridge that leads to the Terminal 2, Flight of Dreams, high-speed boats, and the surrounding Comfort Hotel.
Keep walking and you will see the high-speed boat ahead, while to the right is the direction to the Terminal 2 and Flight of Dreams.
Transportation Plaza (1st floor)
Airport Bus (Limousine Bus). Shuttle bus to Terminal 2.
When scrolling down, you can see the bus stop signs for the airport shuttle. Each sign leads to a different waiting area for boarding. Below is just a brief introduction to commonly used routes.
1. To Shizuoka
2. To Mie (Nagashima Onsen), Kinjo Port
7. Nagoya Station West Exit, Terminal 2
9. Aeon Mall Tokoname Free Shuttle Bus
For more information on other routes, please click here to inquire.
The bus ticket counter is just at the turn after going down the stairs.
Car Rental Company
Continue walking forward and you will see the counters of various car rental companies. Each car rental company’s counter is right here. If you have already made a reservation online, you can also come here to pick up the car.
Flight of Dreams
Flight of Dreams is a theme park built to showcase the first Boeing 787 aircraft. The park consists of two main areas: FLIGHT PARK, the experiential zone, and SEATTLE TERRACE, the dining and shopping area. For more information, you can click here: Flight Of Dreams – Central International Airport facilities, where you can admire the prototype of the Boeing 787 aircraft nearby.
Flight Park
People who are interested in airplanes must come and take a look because they can visit the cockpit up close, which is quite unique.
Seattle Terrace
Restaurants and shops are worth mentioning here. One notable mention is the dedicated Boeing store, which sells a variety of aviation-related products. In addition, there are also Starbucks and Lawson convenience stores in other areas.
There is not much difference between Lawson convenience stores and regular Lawson stores in the city. Don’t miss out on the opportunity to stock up while you can.
Terminal 2
The Terminal 2 is a two-story building. The first floor is the arrival hall, but there are separate halls for domestic and international flights. The second floor is the departure hall. The first floor hall doesn’t have anything, and once you walk out of the hall, you can see the shuttle buses to the transportation plaza.
This is the entrance to the second floor of Terminal 2.
Upon entering, you will see the only store available (if you wish to purchase other items, it is recommended to visit Flight of Dreams).
There are many airlines here, such as: Jinzhou Airlines, Cebu Pacific Air, Jetstar Airways.
On the other side, there is Tigerair Taiwan.
The front is the security check and departure screening for international and domestic flights.
Shuttle bus between terminals (connecting bus)
There is a sky bridge connecting Terminal 1 and Terminal 2, but it takes more than 10 minutes on foot. It can be quite torturous in hot weather. Therefore, we can take the free shuttle bus (connecting bus) back and forth. However, please note that the bus stops are on the first floor of the Transportation Plaza and the first floor of Terminal 2. If you want to go to the Flight of Dreams, just take a short walk.
The following image was taken from Terminal 2 to Terminal 1 and the Transportation Plaza, and it is really far.
Regarding the shuttle bus (official website) from Terminal 2 to Terminal 1, the travel time is approximately 2 minutes. From Terminal 1 (Bus Stop 7) to Terminal 2, the travel time is approximately 5 minutes. The frequency of departures is one bus every 15 minutes. Please note that currently, there are no services on Sundays! Please refer to the actual situation on-site.
Below is the bus stop outside the first floor of Terminal 2 (without a number).
This is the appearance of the shuttle bus, currently operated by “Chita Bus”.
Additional Explanation
Currently, there are flights from Taiwan to Chubu Centrair International Airport as listed in the table below. Cathay Pacific Airways operates flights from Taiwan to Nagoya, with service expected to begin on October 29, 2023.
Reference Materials
Official Website of Central International Airport
『Original Source：https://nicklee.tw/1034/』
