 |
Delta Airlines Flights from Tokyo, Japan (NRT) to San Francisco (SFO)
As part of booking roundtrip flights which depart from US airports,
Orbitz is pleased to offer airline tickets on Delta Airlines, which operates a daily non-stop flight from Tokyo, Japan (NRT) to San Francisco (SFO) regularly scheduled to depart at 3:45pm and arrive at 7:55am. Usually an Airbus A330-200 is flown for this route. The average travel time from Tokyo, Japan to San Francisco, CA is 9 hours and 10 minutes.
During your San Francisco vacation, don't miss these great establishments and attractions:
Cable Cars
Although they may not be San Francisco's most practical means of transportation, cable cars are certainly the best loved and are a must-experience when visiting the city. Designated official historic landmarks by the National Park Service in 1964, they clank up and down the city's steep hills like mobile museum pieces, tirelessly hauling thousands of tourists each day to nowhere in particular.London-born engineer Andrew Hallidie invented San Francisco's cable cars in 1869. He got the idea by serendipity. As the story goes, Hallidie was watching a team of overworked horses haul a heavily laden carriage up a steep San Francisco slope. As he watched, one horse slipped and the car rolled back, dragging the other tired beasts with it. At that moment, Hallidie resolved that he would invent a mechanical contraption to replace such horses, and just 4 years later, in 1873, the first cable car made its maiden run from the top of Clay Street. Promptly ridiculed as "Hallidie's Folly," the cars were slow to gain acceptance. One early onlooker voiced the general opinion by exclaiming, "I don't believe it -- the damned thing works!"Even today, many visitors have difficulty believing that these vehicles, which have no engines, actually work. The cars, each weighing about 6 tons, run along a steel cable, enclosed under the street in a center rail. You can't see the cable unless you peer straight down into the crack, but you'll hear its characteristic clickity-clanking sound whenever you're nearby. The cars move when the gripper (not the driver) pulls back a lever that closes a pincerlike "grip" on the cable. The speed of the car, therefore, is determined by the speed of the cable, which is a constant 9 1/2 mph -- never more, never less.The two types of cable cars in use hold a maximum of 90 and 100 passengers, and the limits are rigidly enforced. The best views are from the outer running boards, where you have to hold on tightly when taking curves.Hallidie's cable cars have been imitated and used throughout the world, but all have been replaced by more efficient means of transportation. San Francisco planned to do so, too, but the proposal met with so much opposition that the cable cars' perpetuation was actually written into the city charter in 1955. The mandate cannot be revoked without the approval of a majority of the city's voters -- a distant and doubtful prospect.San Francisco's three existing cable car lines form the world's only surviving system of cable cars, which you can experience for yourself should you choose to wait in the endless boarding line (up to a 2-hr. wait in summer).
Pier 39
PIER 39 is a multilevel waterfront complex a few blocks east of Fisherman's Wharf. Constructed on an abandoned cargo pier, it is, ostensibly, a re-creation of a turn-of-the-20th-century street scene, but don't expect a slice of old-time maritime life. This is the busiest mall of the lot and allegedly welcomes 11 million visitors per year. It has more than 100 stores, 11 bay-view restaurants, a two-tiered Venetian carousel, a Hard Rock Cafe, and arcade and aquarium entertainment for the kids. And everything's slated toward helping you part with your travel dollars. It's the place that locals love to hate. That said, it does have a few perks: absolutely beautiful natural surroundings of bay views, fresh sea air, and hundreds of sunbathing sea lions lounging along its neighboring dock.
Ferry Building Marketplace (and Farmers' Market)
There's no better way to enjoy a San Francisco morning than strolling this gourmet marketplace in the newly renovated Ferry Building and snacking your way through breakfast or lunch. Tasty tenants, open daily, include many of the best of Northern California's gourmet bounty: Cowgirl Creamery's Artisan Cheese Shop, Recchiuti Confections (amazing!), Scharffen Berger Chocolate, Acme breads, Wine Country's gourmet diner Taylor's Refresher, famed Vietnamese restaurant The Slanted Door, and myriad other restaurants, eateries, and wine bars.An added bonus and San Francisco favorite is the Farmers' Market, which is open alfresco on Saturdays from 8am to 2pm and Tuesday and Thursday from 10am to 2pm. Drop by to peruse stands hawking the finest Northern California fruits, vegetables, breads, dairy, flowers, and readymade snacks by a few local restaurants. You can also pick up locally made vinegars and oils -- they make wonderful gifts. Drop in on Sunday from 8am to 2pm for the gardener's market, which focuses on plants but also has a bit of produce. Even when the market's closed, the glistening Ferry Building is now a worthy stop thanks to its new restaurants and shops.
Make your reservations for discount hotel rooms in the
San Francisco area, including:
Hotel Bijou
Three words sum up this hotel: clean, colorful, and cheap. Although it's on the periphery of the gritty Tenderloin (just 3 blocks off Union Square), once inside this gussied-up 1911 hotel, all's cheery, bright, and perfect for the budget traveler who wants a little style with your savings. Joie de Vivre hotel group disguised the hotel's age with lively decor, a Deco theater theme, and a heck of a lot of vibrant paint. To the left of the small lobby is a "theater" where guests can watch San Francisco-based movies nightly (cute old-fashioned theater seating, though it's just a basic TV showing videos). Upstairs, rooms named after locally made films are small, clean, and colorful (think buttercup, burgundy, and purple), and have all the basics from clock radios, dressers, and small desks to tiny bathrooms (one of which is so small you have to close the door to access the toilet). Alas, a few mattresses could be firmer, and there's only one small and slow elevator. But considering the price, and perks like the continental breakfast and friendly service, you can't go wrong here.
The Cornell Hotel de France
Its quirks make this old hotel more charming than many others in its price range. Resident pooch, Noel, greets you when you enter the small French-style hotel. Pass the office, where a few faces will glance in your direction and smile, and embark on a ride in the old-fashioned elevator (we're talking seriously old-school here) to get to your very basic room. Each floor is dedicated to a French painter and decorated with reproductions. Rooms are all plain and comfortable, with desks and chairs, and are individually and simply decorated. Smoking is not allowed. Breakfast, which is included in the rate, is served in the very cool cavernlike provincial basement restaurant, Jeanne d'Arc. Union Square is just a few blocks away.
Villa Florence
Located 1/2 block south of Union Square, fronting the Powell Street cable car line, the seven-story Villa Florence is in one of the liveliest sections of the city (no need to drive, 'cause you're already here). In 2004, a renovation brightened up the reasonably affordable rooms considerably. In its newest reincarnation, Villa Florence provides guests a taste of contemporary Italian flare with all new cherrywood furniture and luxury perks such as 27-inch flatscreen TVs with DVD players (with DVDs upon request) and CD players. You'll like the large, comfortable beds draped in down comforters with Frette duvets, as well as such frivolities as Aveda bath products, Frette bathrobes, and umbrellas. The hotel's ground-floor restaurant helps make it a worthy contender among Union Square's medium-priced inns -- as if the location alone weren't reason enough to book a room. Adjacent to the hotel is Kuleto's, one of downtown's most bustling and stylish Italian restaurants.
|
|
|
