Japan Free Domestic Flights For Europe Arrivals

Published on Nov 25, 2025, 3:34 pm CSTUpdated on Nov 25, 2025, 8:02 pm CST

9 min read

All Nippon Airways and the Japan National Tourism Organization are rolling out a winter promotion that lets eligible travelers add free ANA operated domestic flights across Japan when they book economy tickets from Europe to Tokyo. The Japan free domestic flights campaign runs from November 24, 2025, to January 31, 2026, and allows up to two domestic sectors in Japan at zero base fare for UK and European passengers, with taxes and fees still payable. The offer is squarely aimed at visitors who want to go beyond Tokyo to places like Hokkaido, Kyushu, and Okinawa, and it also creates a niche opportunity for determined United States based travelers who are willing to route their trips via Europe. To benefit, travelers need to plan multi city itineraries, accept some extra planning complexity, and pay close attention to separate ticket risks.

The core change is that an ANA economy ticket from Europe to Japan can now bundle up to two domestic flights at no additional base fare, provided everything is booked on one ANA reservation during the campaign window, which is what defines the Japan free domestic flights offer in practice. That means a traveler flying from London, Paris, Frankfurt, or other eligible European gateways can fly into Tokyo International Airport (HND) or Narita International Airport (NRT), spend time in the capital, then continue onward to another region without paying extra for the domestic flight itself. In many cases, the new Stopover and Add on Free Fare structure also allows a stop of 24 hours or more in Tokyo at no extra base fare in economy, layered on top of ANA's existing policy that already covered domestic add ons within 24 hours.

How ANA's Free Domestic Flights Work

ANA's own Europe region promotion site explains that travelers must book both their international and Japan domestic flights together using the "Search Multiple Cities" option, then enter each leg in sequence, finishing with the flight home. When built correctly, the fare prices as if the domestic segments are included at no additional charge for the base airfare, although the traveler still pays any applicable airport taxes, surcharges, and fees on those legs. ANA stresses that the offer is valid only for economy class bookings, that fares vary with seat availability, and that the international fare itself might differ depending on domestic flight inventory, so the free sectors are not a blanket guarantee of the lowest possible ticket price.

The promotion allows up to two free domestic flights per eligible ticket, which is enough to build a triangular or open jaw itinerary such as London to Tokyo to Fukuoka, rail across to Hiroshima, then Hiroshima back to Tokyo for the return to Europe. Importantly, ANA confirms that the free domestic flights do not have to arrive and depart from the same airport, so travelers can arrive at one regional gateway and depart from another, provided everything lives on the same ANA reservation. Transportation costs on the ground, such as Shinkansen tickets between two regional cities, remain entirely separate.

Who Qualifies And Why The Focus Is Europe

Although ANA markets itself as a global carrier, this specific campaign is tightly targeted at passengers starting their long haul journey in the UK and wider Europe. Trade and tourism outlets list the UK, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, the Netherlands, Belgium, Austria, Sweden, Switzerland, and other European countries as key origin markets, with bookings open from November 24, 2025, through January 31, 2026, and travel on the free domestic sectors valid for dates beyond that window. ANA and JNTO are explicit that the point is to shift visitor flows away from a handful of "hero gateways" such as Tokyo and Kyoto, and toward under visited prefectures that still have capacity and want tourism income.

The timing lines up with Japan's broader inbound boom. The country welcomed a record 36.87 million visitors in 2024, surpassing its pre pandemic peak, and 2025 is on track to set another annual record, with roughly 21.5 million visitors in the first half alone and close to 3.4 to 3.9 million arrivals in individual recent months. Analyses from tour operators and tourism media estimate that more than 28.5 million travelers visited in the first half of 2025 when broader metrics are included, underscoring how quickly demand has rebounded. With most of those visitors still clustering in a few cities, the free flight offer is one lever to steer at least some toward Hokkaido ski towns, Kyushu onsen regions, and island chains in Okinawa.

How United States Travelers Can Use The Europe Origin Offer

For travelers based in the United States, the ANA Europe promotion is not plug and play, because the fare rules require the long haul ticket to originate in Europe under the UK and European market structure. However, some travelers who like complex routings or want a Europe stop anyway can still make it work by treating Europe as a deliberate positioning point.

In practical terms, that means buying a separate ticket from a U.S. gateway to a European city where ANA operates nonstops to Tokyo, such as London, Paris, Vienna, or Frankfurt, then booking the ANA Europe to Japan ticket with the free domestic segments as an entirely separate reservation. To reduce misconnect risk, it is safer to schedule at least one night in the European gateway on the way out, and ideally on the way back, so that a late arriving transatlantic flight does not cause a missed ANA departure that the airline is not obliged to fix. Travelers should also check whether their overall itinerary still prices competitively once the cost of positioning flights, extra hotel nights, and potential Schengen visa requirements are included.

Because the ANA promotion only covers economy cabins, U.S. based travelers who primarily value lie flat business class seats may find that separate positioning plus ANA economy does not beat a one ticket itinerary on another carrier. On the other hand, value focused travelers who already prefer to stop in Europe or who are combining a Eurotrip with Japan might see real savings, particularly if they want to string together two long domestic legs like Tokyo to Naha and Sapporo back to Tokyo that would otherwise be expensive out of pocket.

Background: Japan Airlines' Parallel Free Domestic Offer

ANA is not alone in using free domestic flights to disperse visitors. Japan Airlines launched its own offer in 2024, which remains ongoing and currently has no published end date, giving international travelers who book JAL operated long haul flights the option to add free domestic sectors to any of the roughly 60 plus Japanese airports it serves. AFAR's reporting notes that eligible origin countries for JAL's version include the United States, Canada, Mexico, Thailand, Singapore, Australia, New Zealand, Vietnam, the Philippines, Indonesia, India, China, and Taiwan, although stopover fees may still apply for some markets if travelers stay more than 24 hours in their first Japanese city.

The mechanics are similar to ANA's, in that travelers must book the international and domestic segments together on JAL's website, and JAL counts the free domestic connections as standard checked luggage eligible flights, including two free bags in economy and premium economy and three in business and first. For many readers, especially those flying from North America or Asia Pacific, the JAL offer may actually be the more straightforward way to stitch together a multi city Japan itinerary without needing a Europe origin ticket at all.

How It Fits Into Japan's Overtourism Strategy

Both ANA's Europe focused promotion and JAL's broader free domestic program sit inside a larger effort by Japanese authorities to push visitors outside the overburdened cores of Tokyo, Kyoto, and a few marquee sites. Tourism reports and white papers from JNTO and industry analysts emphasize that more than 90 percent of inbound visitors say they intend to visit regional Japan, but fewer than 10 percent actually do so, and some neighborhoods in Kyoto and other hotspots have resorted to signage, caps, and fines to manage crowds.

By tying free domestic flights to long haul bookings, airlines are taking some of the friction out of visiting lesser known areas such as Aomori, Kanazawa, Shikoku, and smaller islands in Okinawa Prefecture. The real test will be whether travelers actually use those free sectors to reach new regions, rather than simply flying straight back out of Tokyo. For now, the campaign at least gives price sensitive visitors a clear incentive to expand their itineraries, and it offers travel advisors a concrete tool to propose more balanced routes that still respect client budgets.

Practical Booking Tips

Travelers who qualify on the ANA Europe promotion should start by pricing their ideal Japan itinerary on ANA's European site using the multi city search, making sure to add desired domestic legs up front. They should then compare that total against competing fares without free domestic flights, including separate low cost domestic tickets or rail options, to see whether the bundled offer is actually cheaper once taxes and fees are included. If the savings are real, booking by January 31, 2026, locks in the free sectors even for travel later in the year, which can be particularly useful for ski season in Hokkaido or summer trips to Okinawa.

Those coming from the United States need to be more conservative. Separate tickets mean no through check in or protection in case of delay, unless specific interline or codeshare arrangements apply, so treating the Europe stop as a mini break rather than a tight connection is safer. Comprehensive travel insurance that covers missed connections on separate tickets, and flexible hotel bookings in the European gateway, can mitigate some of the downside if flights run late. Travelers should also verify visa and entry requirements for both the Schengen Area and Japan before committing to complex routings, especially if they are stacking multiple countries in one trip.