Narita airport 8.5 hour day time layover recommendations?

Narita airport 8.5 hour day time layover recommendations?

That's a fair bit of time for a layover, you can take the Sky Access rail line to the city - one of the stops is Shibuya, plenty to do around there.

Could always go to Narita Town which is much closer.

Google Wikitravel Narita for a few suggestions there.

Hop on the train and walk around Ginza (shopping district) near Tokyo station. Grab something to eat, get some fresh air and enjoy Tokyo!

I rented a car, drove to a lovely lake and enjoyed getting lost!

8.5 hr not that much – an hour to exit and arrival 2 hours before make it just above 5 hr. IMHO there are plenty to do for 5 hr in Narita itself. This is what I would do anyway.

You could try visiting Sawara/Katori. It has some nice old buildings and canals, along with an interesting museum to the person who mapped Japan. Not sure that I would bother with the botanic gardens as it is somewhat isolated and the busses don't run that frequently.

http://www.japantimes.co.jp/life/2007/07/20/life/a-quick-exit-from-tokyo/

Thanks for all your answers - some good advice (except getting lost :0)) 

Sounds like you could get a nice little break outside the airport. The train from Narita is long, but you can definitely make it work. I'd work in a timeline, and obviously leave a sufficient buffer to get back:

• Arrive Narita (8.5hrs to go)
• Clear baggage and immigration (8hrs to go)
• Train to Tokyo (6.5hrs to go)
• THREE HOURS IN TOKYO
  Enough time to stretch your legs, get some fresh air, do a little sightseeing, have a nice meal and drink (or two!), do a spot of shopping.
• Depart Tokyo city (3.5hrs to go)
• Arrive Narita airport & check-in (2hrs to go)

There are any number of places you could stop in Tokyo, but I would recommend Shibuya. There's no shortage of great things to do, eat, buy, and see!

Happy travels! :-)