It was on this date, 20th May, when Tokyo Narita International Airport first opened its doors and today, it celebrates its 30th anniversary.

In those thirty years, Tokyo Narita airport has had 680 million passengers and handled 41 million tonnes of cargo.  Tokyo Narita competes with other major airports in Japan, including Tokyo Haneda, Osaka, Nagoya and Fukuoka.

Tokya Narita Airport’s first runway is over 4,000 metres in length and yet the full length has still to be used.  Development is still under way and should be completed in 2010.   By then, the airport will be able to handled approximately 220,000 flights per annum.

To celebrate the anniversary, Singapore Airlines operated the first flight to to Nakira on the Airbus 380.  Next year, Air France will also be running a service to Nakira using the Airbus 380.

Prices of flights to Japan are competitive, with flights offered by European airlines such as British Airways, Virgin Atlantic, KLM and Lufthansa.

Tokyo makes a great city break as a stopover or as a holiday destination on its own, with plenty to attract the tourists.