Information on ZIPAIR Flights

Zipair, or Zipair Tokyo, is one of a new breed of long-haul, low-cost carriers. A subsidiary of Japan Airlines, it’s a reliable no-frills airline, with no entertainment screens and only buy-on-board economy-style meals wherever you sit in the plane.

Apart from the lack of screens, economy seats on Zipair are otherwise normal. A Zip Full-Flat offering is basically business class seats with no business class frills. Both can be a great deal for budget long-haul travel, so here’s what you need to know when considering Zipair.

Zipair destinations

Zipair flies to select cities in North America, including Honolulu, Los Angeles, San Francisco, San Jose and Vancouver. It also flies to Bangkok, Manila, Seoul and Singapore in Asia, via the Zipair hub at Narita in Tokyo.

Zipair classes of travel and fares

On board Zipair you’ll find 2 main classes: Zip Full-Flat at the front of the plane and Standard behind. If you’re interested in the Zip Full-Flat seats, which I usually am, make sure you book well in advance – these sell out pretty fast.

Zipair offers 3 bundle packages: Flex Biz, Value and Premium. The Flex Biz package is the only way you can add a refund or exchange option to your trip, and it also includes seat selection and raises your carry-on limit to 15 kilograms (33.1 pounds).

Value lets you select seats in advance, order an inflight meal and check in a single piece of luggage up to 30 kilograms (66.1 pounds). Premium also adds an amenity set and upgrades your total carry-on limit to 15 kilograms (33.1 pounds). I’ve found that these don’t save a huge amount of money, to be honest, but they do make the booking process a bit simpler.

You can also add a variety of additional options when booking, including an amenity set, the Zipair Express Service (which includes priority check-in and priority baggage) and various pre-order items. I don’t personally think the Express Service is worth it, but if I really wanted to max out my souvenir shopping I might consider ordering the Shiroi Koibito cookies, a Hokkaido favorite.

Baggage allowances

Zipair baggage limits are quite strict – even for Zip Full-Flat fares – so make sure you’re care about how many pieces you’re bringing and how much each weighs.

The standard carry-on allowance is a total of 7 kilograms (15.4 pounds) split between 2 small pieces with dimension limits substantially smaller than the usual North American guidelines. You can purchase extra carry-on weight, but you need to do that at least 25 hours before departure.

The checked bag weight limit is fairly generous at 30 kilograms (66.1 pounds), but note that checked luggage is sold by bag and not by weight. If you have 2 light bags, you’ll still need to pay for both. Special equipment like bicycles, surfboards, skis, snowboards and golf bags are priced separately.

Standard economy seats on Zipair

Zipair breaks its standard seats down into 5 categories, all at different costs. They are, from most expensive to least expensive: extra legroom seats, window or aisle seats near the front of the plane, window or aisle seats near the back of the plane, middle seats and seats that don’t recline.

I don’t find that the front versus back of a small plane like the Boeing 787-8 really matters, so you’ll find me picking a window or an aisle near the back. If I choose the aisle (which I usually will for a night flight) I’ll always pick one of the middle section seats to reduce chances of someone trying to climb over me to use the restroom.

I really like the private pair of seats at the side sections of row 56 if traveling with someone, and I always avoid the middle section of extra legroom seats in row 45 regardless. Passengers often use this wide row as a pass-through between the aisles.

Extra-legroom seats don’t have storage under the seat in front, so you’ll need to put all carry-on in the overhead bins for takeoff and landing. If you’re considering an emergency exit row seat, Zipair requires all passengers in these seats to be over 15, not pregnant, able to communicate in Japanese or English, and able-bodied enough to assist in an emergency.

There are no entertainment screens onboard, but all seats have a full universal AC power outlet and a USB socket, so make sure you bring your device preloaded with content. An external power supply doesn’t hurt, either.

Zip Full-Flat no-frills business seats

Zip Full-Flat seats are very similar to the business class herringbone layout seats on other airlines, where each seat is angles away from the aisle in its own little pod. The seat reclines to a fully flat bed, and the angled layout means that nobody needs to climb over anyone else to get to the aisle.

The main difference to other airlines is that Zipair doesn’t offer any bells and whistles – no free pillow, blanket or inflight entertainment screen – although it does include a meal from the standard list and there are universal AC power outlets and USB sockets at every seat.

If you’re traveling with a partner, you might like the center seat pairs, but there’s still quite the sizeable storage area between you. Note that children under 6 aren’t allowed in the Zip Full-Flat seats.

Online check-in and airport services

Online check-in is available on some routes, but not all. Always check the website for details. Other than that, it’s a pretty normal airport experience. If you’re looking to book Zipair as part of a connecting journey, be aware that the airline only really supports connecting flights that are Zipair-to-Zipair.

If you book 2 separate flights (such as connecting from Zipair to another airline at Tokyo, or from a US airline to Zipair at Los Angeles) you’ll need to collect any checked bags, exit the secure zone (and enter the transit country if you departed from another country), check in again and pass back through security.

You can connect between two Zipair flights in Tokyo and check your bags through, but only when your arrival and departure date at Narita are the same day and your connection time is more than 1 hour.

In-flight food and drinks

Zipair Tokyo’s model is fully unbundled, so there are no food or drinks included unless you book a package.

Drinks onboard are reasonably priced, and I usually go for the chilled green tea to really get me in the mood for Japan. I always fill up my reusable bottle at the airport, though, to avoid paying for water on the plane. Most meals need to be preordered, but you can order drinks and a few snacks from the Wi-Fi portal once you’re onboard.

The food is pretty expensive for what it is, though, so I either pack a sandwich with some snacks from home or buy a couple of bites in the departures area. If you end up with a meal included, I recommend leaning towards the Japanese options rather than the Western choices.

In-flight entertainment and Wi-Fi

This is definitely a flight where you’ll want to bring a tablet and load it up with movies and TV shows, although there is some limited in-flight entertainment that you can stream to your own device. Wi-Fi is free and surprisingly fast, though don’t expect to be able to stream movies, music or video.

Zipair Point Club

Zipair does offer a frequent flyer program – Point Club – but it’s only valid for Zipair flights. Unless you’ll be shuttling back and forth to Tokyo several times a year, it’s not really worth joining. Members of parent company JAL’s Mileage Bank program can exchange points between the two programs, but it’s not a massively lucrative opportunity.

Point Club Plus is a fee-based upgrade that also gives you a 30% discount on checked baggage booked online. This is really only worth it if you’re booking more than 4 pieces of checked luggage, though.