RTW TP Run in Jan 2026: Day 14 – Tokyo Narita (NRT) to Jakarta (CGK) 

By Nige on January 31, 2026 at 11:00 pm
Type: Post
Story: Round the World Tier Point Run in Jan 2026 Category: Travel
Tags: CGK | Hilton | Jakarta | Japan Airlines | NRT | Tokyo Narita

I arrived at Gate 93 while things were still calm and orderly. I spoke to the gate staff and had my document checks completed early, including showing my D1 visa. That at least saved some hassle when it came time to board.

From there, the situation gradually deteriorated.

What had been a relaxed gate area slowly turned into a chaotic mass of passengers, with no clear indication of who was supposed to stand where — or why.

To be fair, the gate itself wasn’t well designed. It was relatively narrow, with a busy walkway and travelator running directly behind it.

But that didn’t excuse the lack of control when a group of around thirty young lads decided to form their own queue directly across the front of all three priority boarding lanes, rendering them completely unusable.

Group 1 passengers were forced to gather awkwardly on either side of the blocked lanes, while the gate staff seemed unsure how to deal with the situation.

As more passengers arrived, access became even more restricted, and frustration began to build.

Eventually, the gate staff had no option but to reorganise the lanes entirely in response to the chaos.

Had they clearly defined the lanes earlier and prevented them from being blocked in the first place, the situation would never have escalated.

Boarding was significantly delayed, and when things finally got moving, a VIP was ushered straight to the front of the boarding queue and onto the aircraft. Clearly, Japan Airlines hadn’t received the memo advising that I would be on the flight.

Eventually, I boarded into seat 02A. I received two separate welcomes from the cabin crew and was handed a hot towel.

The captain offered a series of explanations for the delay, but by this point I was past caring.

As soon as we were airborne, I got myself into sleeping mode and tried to get comfortable.

Unfortunately, the Sky Suite simply wasn’t long enough for me. My feet were pressed firmly against the seat in front, which was inexplicably cold — something I’d also noticed on the earlier flight up to Tokyo.

After a few hours, I woke to find my feet virtually numb from the cold.

To mitigate the problem, I tried lying on my side with my knees bent, but the width of the suite didn’t really accommodate someone of my size.

Overall, it was a pretty uncomfortable experience.

As we approached Jakarta, the captain advised that there were storms in the area and that we were waiting for permission to land.

According to FlightAware, we completed a couple of holding loops before being cleared for our final approach.

That added yet more delay — and postponed my long-awaited bed.

We eventually arrived at Gate G24.

I managed to squeeze past slower passengers standing up near the front, only to discover that for the first time on this Asia leg, everyone was being told to deplane from door 2L rather than 1L.

Once off the aircraft, I moved quickly through the terminal. Returning to a familiar airport makes an enormous difference — I knew exactly where to go, which queue to join, and what to show to whom.

At immigration there was no visible queue. I showed my D1 visa to the Border Control Agent, which caused only a minor pause, and then I was through.

Customs waved me straight on. Perhaps they recognised me!

At the Grab pick-up point, GrabNow wasn’t working — likely due to high demand, with most passengers using pre-booked rides instead.

Fortunately, a very helpful young woman was on hand to assist stranded passengers like me.

She effectively took over my phone, coordinated with several drivers, and cancelled multiple rides when drivers failed to answer her calls.

Eventually, she secured me a car. Good lass. The whole process took about thirty minutes.

Once in the taxi and heading towards the hotel, the heavens opened. We drove through a torrential downpour, with traffic crawling along to minimise the risk of aquaplaning.

It took around twenty minutes to reach the hotel, and I arrived just after 2am.

There was one other guest checking in with his partner, seemingly unable to decide which room he wanted.

Judging by the large quantities of crisps, drinks, and snacks he’d purchased from the hotel shop, it looked like a party was being planned.

I waited another ten minutes while they were processed.

Eventually, I received my key to room 1202 and was hugely relieved to settle in.

It was a nicely renovated corner room, complete with a lovely welcome gift for me and the Vickster.

After a shower, I noticed that Liverpool were about to kick off in their Premier League match against Newcastle on TNT Sports. I wasn’t especially sleepy, so I stayed up to watch it.

After a thumping 4–1 win, I finally turned the light out at around 5am.

Next up: A gallery of photos from Day 14 of my Round The World trip of a lifetime.

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Round the World Tier Point Run in Jan 2026