Transportation in Japan! Japan Rail Pass, Shinkansen, Airports etc.

How to use the Japan Rail Pass

Japan Rail Pass can be used by foreigners who stay for a short period in Japan for sightseeing purposes and some overseas resident Japanese. It can be used in the following procedure.

Purchase a voucher before departure

First of all, please buy a voucher for Japan Rail Pass in your country. It can be purchased by travel agents such as JTB, JAL, ANA etc. Recently, the Japan Rail Pass has been sold even in Japan, but it is a little expensive in Japan.

As shown in the above table, the Japan Rail Pass has some types.

Express type

Green car (first class), ordinary car (economy)

Validity period

7-day, 14-day, 21-day

Area

Japan Rail Pass can be used throughout Japan.

Receive Japan Rail Pass in Japan

Always bring a voucher when you go to Japan. And please exchange the voucher and Japan Rail Pass at the counter of JR ‘s main station. At that time, you are asked to present your passport.

>> Please refer here for the exchange points of Japan Rail Pass

Book Shinkansen etc.

When you receive the Japan Rail Pass, you can receive designated tickets such as Shinkansen at the JR station. If you present Japan Rail Pass with a counter called “Midori no Madoguchi”, you can receive it without any additional fee. If you use the free seat, you just show the Japan Rail Pass at the ticket gate. In addition, you can use JR ‘s various trains and buses. When you ride the train, please show your Japan rail pass to the station staff at the ticket gate.

Points to note when using the Japan Rail Pass

When you purchase the Japan Rail Pass, please note the following.

There are Shinkansen lines that can not ride

When you use the Japan Rail Pass, you can not use “Nozomi” (Tokyo Station – Hakata Station) and “Mizuho” (Shin Osaka Station – Kagoshima Chuo Station).

“Nozomi” and “Mizuho” are the fastest Shinkansen, so the charge is a bit high. Still crowded all the time. So I understand to some extent excluding them in the Japan Rail Pass. However, I would like guests from abroad to get on “Nozomi”!

Meanwhile, you can get on the fastest Tohoku / Hokkaido Shinkansen “Hayabusa” (Tokyo Station – New Hakodate Hokuto Station) by Japan Rail Pass.

Subways and private railways are excluded

Even if you have a Japan Rail Pass, you can not ride on subways or private railways. If you ride them, you need to pay another fee each time.

If you ride a JR sleeper train, in that case as well, you will need an additional fee.

Advance reservation is difficult

You can not receive the Japan Rail Pass until you come to Japan. You can only receive vouchers. For this reason, before you leave for Japan, basically you can not pre-book Shinkansen etc.

Shinkansen is very crowded in the next period. Shinkansen tickets are released one month before riding. For the next period, it may be sold out simultaneously with release. Then, you have to use the very crowded free seat.

When Shinkansen is especially crowded

April 27th through May 6th
August 11 th through 20 th
December 28th through January 6th

If you travel Japan in the above period, you should reserve Shinkansen tickets in advance. If you use the Japan Rail Pass, it seems better to collect information on how to pre-book.

How to reserve in advance when using Japan Rail Pass

JR ‘s Shinkansen and Regular Express’ s limited express tickets are released one month before getting on board. Recently, several overseas services have started to allow you to book these tickets.

If you use the Japan Rail Pass, you can not basically book in advance. You have to make a reservation after you arrive in Japan. However, for some Shinkansen and Regular Express, even if you use the Japan Rail Pass, you can book in advance by using JR East’s reservation site below.

>> Click here for official website of JT East Japan Train reservation

>> Please also look at this page when using Japan Rail Pass

I will introduce this site at the explanation of the Shinkansen below.

Rail pass that can be used in limited areas

JR is divided into several companies for each area. Each company also offers a rail path that can be used only in its own area. If you travel around only some areas, these rail passes may be more suitable. Child fee is half price as same as Japan Rail Pass (In some cases more discounted). The contents of each company’s pass may be changed. Please check the official website from the links below for the latest information.

Hokkaido Rail Pass

Type	Ordinary	Green Car
3 days	16,500 yen	21,500 yen
5 days	22,000 yen	27,000 yen
7 days	24,000 yen	30,000 yen
Flexible 4 days	22,000 yen	27,000 yen

“Flexible 4 days” is a type that can be used for 4 days out of the 10-day validity period.

>> The official website of Hokkaido Rail Pass is here

JR East Pass

Tohoku Area	19,000 yen
Nagano, Nigata Area	17,000 yen

you can use this pass on any 5 days within a 14-day period starting with the date of purchase or exchange in Japan. This pass is for ordinary car only. It can also be used with some private railways, such as the limited express of Tobu Railway. It is a little expensive if you buy it in Japan.

>> The official website of JR East Pass is here

Tokyo-Osaka Hokuriku Arch Pass

7 days

24,000 yen

JR East and JR West jointly provide Tokyo – Osaka Hokuriku Arch Pass. Tokyo-Osaka Hokuriku Arch Pass is for people who travel around Tokyo and Osaka using the Hokuriku Shinkansen running on the Japan Sea side. By using this pass, you can ride, for example, on the Narita express regular seat designated seat connecting Narita Airport and Tokyo, the regular car designated seat of the Hokuriku Express “Thunderbird” . You can also ride on the free seats of “Haruka” ordinary car connecting Kansai Airport and Osaka. The fee for this pass is also slightly higher if you buy it in Japan.

>> Tokyo-Osaka Hokuriku The official website of Arch Pass is here

Torist Pass

Takayama-Hokuriku Area	14,000 yen
Alpine-Takayama-Matsumoto Area	17,500 yen
Ise-Kumano-Wakayama Area	11,000 yen
Mt.Fuji-Shizuoka Area	4,500 yen

JR Central provides the above four types of paths. The validity period is 5 days (only Mt. Fuji-Shizuoka Area is 3 days). In any case, you can get on express train ordinary free seats and regular trains. In “Takayama / Hokuriku area”, “Ise · Kumano · Wakayama area” you can use the designated seat up to 4 times, and in the “Takayama / Hokuriku area” you can get on the Hokuriku Shinkansen (Toyama – Kanazawa). In each case, a separate charge is required to get on the Tokaido Shinkansen.  The fee for this pass is also slightly higher if you buy it in Japan.

>> The official website of Tourist Pass is here

JR West Rail Pass

Kansai area	2,200-6,300 yen	1 Day, 2 Days, 3 Days, 4 Days
Kansai Wide Area	9,000 yen	5-Days
Kansai-Hiroshima Area	13,500 yen	5-Days
Sanyo-San’in Area	19,000 yen	7-Days
Kansai-Hokuriku Area	15,000 yen	7-Days
Hokuriku Area	5,000 yen	4-Days
San’in-Okayama Area	4,500 yen	4-Days
Hiroshima-Yamaguchi Area	11,000 yen	5-Days
Okayama-Hiroshima-Yamaguchi Area	13,500 yen	5-Days

JR West offers nine different passes. These passes are for ordinary car only. For details, please see the official website below. With some passes including Shinkansen, you can also ride “Nozomi” “Mizuho” which  you can not ride with Japan Rail Pass.  The fee for this pass is also slightly higher if you buy it in Japan.

>> The official website of JR West Rail Pass is here

ALL SHIKOKU Rail Pass

3 Days	9,000 yen
4 Days	10,000 yen
5 Days	11,000 yen
7 Days	12,000 yen

JR Shikoku offers ALL SHIKOKU Rail Pass. This pass is also for ordinary car only. With this pass you can ride on the regular seats and designated seats of express or ordinary trains on JR Shikoku (including Kojima station) and Tosa Kuroshio railway all lines. You can also get on the Asa Coast Railway, Takamatsu Kotohira Electric Railway, Iyo Railway, Tosaden.  The fee for this pass is also slightly higher if you buy it in Japan.

>> The official website of ALL SHIKOKU Rail Pass is here

JR Kyushu Rail Pass

All Kyushu Area Pass	15,000-18,000 yen	3 Days, 5 Days
Northern Kyushu Area Pass	8,500-10,000 yen	3 Days, 5 Days
Shouthern Kyushu Area Pass	7,000 yen	3 Days
Fukuoka Wide	3,000 yen	2 Days

JR Kyushu offers JR ALL SHIKOKU Rail Pass. This pass is also for ordinary car only. This pass has four types, Kyushu as a whole, northern Kyushu, southern Kyushu, Fukuoka. There are restrictions on the number of times you can use the designated ticket.

>> The official website of JR ALL SHIKOKU Rail Pass is here
>> The commentary page is here
>> The commentary page of Fukuoka Wide Pass is here

The official website of “Japan Rail Pass” is below. There is a button to select the language on the upper right of the page.

>> Please see the official website for details of “Japan Rail Pass”

Shinkansen (Bullet train)

About

The Shinkansen is a super express that runs at over 200 km / h. In some sections such as the Tohoku Shinkansen, the maximum speed has reached 320 kilometers.

In Japan, Shinkansen's railway network is expanding. The total extended distance is about 3000 km. There are about 110 stations in all of the stations where the bullet train stops. And Shinkansen is operating very accurately according to the schedule organized in seconds.

Of course, if you travel long distances such as moving from Tokyo to Sapporo, you'd better use the airplane. However, the Shinkansen runs the stations in the center of the major cities very quickly and accurately. So, as you move from Tokyo to Kyoto, Osaka, Sendai etc, you will be able to move comfortably faster by Shinkansen than using an airplane.

How to reserve Shinkansen in advance

As I already mentioned, for Shinkansen, a designated ticket will be released one month before the ride day. If you want to book Shinkansen in English by using the internet in your country before you go to Japan, please try the following two online reservations. However, there are various constraints on both of them.

JR East train reservation

>> The site of JR East train reservation is here

>> Please read these notes

>> Please also read this page when using Japan Rail Pass

By using this website, you can make advance reservation of Shinkansen. However, on this website you can not book the Tokaido Sanyo Shinkansen, and the Kyushu Shinkansen.

Once you book in advance, you must receive the ticket by 21 o'clock (Japan Standard Time) the day before the boarding day. Where you can receive tickets are major JR East stations, JR Hokkaido stations, and Kanazawa and Toyama stations on the JR West area.

Tokaido Sanyo Shinkansen Reservation App "EX"

>> The commentary page of this application "EX" is here

JR Central and JR West offer "Tokaido Sanyo Shinkansen Reservation App EX" which you can pre-book Tokaido Sanyo Shinkansen. Unfortunately, the area where this application can be used is limited. This app is currently available in the US, Canada, Australia, Singapore, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Thailand and Taiwan. For details, refer to the explanation page above.

How to book and purchase Shnkansen tickets in Japan

If you book and purchase Shinkansen tickets after arriving in Japan, you should use counters such as stations and travel agencies. The main stations of JR have ticket sales offices named "Midori no Madoguchi" (meaning green window in Japanese). You may buy there.

If you use Japan Rail Pass, please see here on this page.

There are also ticket vending machines in addition to the counters at the JR stations. With these ticket vending machines, you can buy tickets in English if you press the button to select English first. Both credit cards and cash can be used with these ticket vending machines. I think that the above YouTube video will be helpful.

About

JAL is the leading airline company in Japan. In the past, there were many international flights, but now, JAL also operates a large number of domestic flights as described below.

Reservation / purchase place of JAL

JAL tickets can be booked and purchased at the airport’s JAL counter and travel agencies. At the same time, you can also book and purchase at JAL’s official website.

JAL also sells relatively reasonable tickets for foreign tourists.

>> The special site of JAL for foreign tourists is here

>> JAL’s ticket reservation / purchase site is here

Domestic airports with scheduled JAL flights

Hokkaido

New Chitose Airport
Okadama Airport
Rishiri Airport
Memanbetsu Airport
Asahikawa Airport
Kushiro Airport
Obihiro Airport
Hakodate Airport
Okushiri Airport

Tohoku Region

Aomori Airport (Aomori Prefecture)
Misawa airport (Aomori Prefecture)
Akita Airport (Akita Prefecture)
Hanamaki Airport (Iwate Prefecture)
Yamagata Airport (Yamagata Prefecture)
Sendai Airport (Miyagi Prefecture)

Kanto region

Haneda Airport (Tokyo)
Narita International Airport (Chiba Prefecture)

Chubu Region

Matsumoto airport (Nagano Prefecture)
Niigata Airport (Niigata Prefecture)
Komatsu Airport (Ishikawa Prefecture)
Shizuoka Airport (Shizuoka Prefecture)
Chubu International Airport (Nagoya)
Komaki Airport (Nagoya)

Kansai region

Itami Airport (Osaka)
Kansai International Airport (Osaka)
Tajima Airport (Toyooka City, Hyogo Prefecture)
Nanki Shirahama Airport (Wakayama Prefecture)

Chugoku Region

Okayama Airport (Okayama Prefecture)
Hiroshima Airport (Hiroshima Prefecture)
Yamaguchi Ube Airport (Yamaguchi Prefecture)
Izumo Airport (Shimane Prefecture)
Oki airport (Shimane prefecture)

Shikoku Region

Tokushima Airport (Tokushima Prefecture)
Takamatsu Airport (Kagawa Prefecture)
Kochi Airport (Kochi Prefecture)
Matsuyama Airport (Ehime Prefecture)

Kyushu region

Fukuoka Airport (Fukuoka Prefecture)
Kitakyushu Airport (Fukuoka Prefecture)
Oita Airport (Oita Prefecture)
Nagasaki Airport (Nagasaki Prefecture)
Kumamoto Airport (Kumamoto Prefecture)
Amakusa Airport (Nagasaki Prefecture)
Miyazaki Airport (Miyazaki Prefecture)
Kagoshima Airport (Kagoshima Prefecture)
Tanegashima Airport (Kagoshima Prefecture)
Yakushima Airport (Kagoshima Prefecture)
Kikai Airport (Kagoshima Prefecture)
Amami Airport (Kagoshima Prefecture)
Tokunoshima Airport (Kagoshima Prefecture)
Okinoerabu Airport (Kagoshima Prefecture)
Yoron Airport (Kagoshima Prefecture)

Okinawa

Naha Airport
Miyako Airport
Ishigaki Airport
Kumejima Airport
Yonaguni airport
Tarama Airport
Kita Daito Airport
South Daito Airport

ANA (All Nippon Airways)

About

JAL is the leading airline company in Japan. In the past, there were many international flights, but now, JAL also operates a large number of domestic flights as described below.

Reservation / purchase place of ANA

Tickets for ANA can be reserved and purchased at travel agencies and ANA's ticket counters at domestic airports. At the same time, you can also book and purchase at the official ANA site.

ANA also sells relatively reasonable tickets for foreign tourists.

>> The special site of ANA for foreign tourists is here

>> ANA's ticket reservation / purchase site is here

Domestic airport with scheduled ANA flights

(Including seasonal flights)

Hokkaido

New Chitose Airport
Wakkanai Airport
Rishiri Airport
Asahikawa Airport
Monbetsu Airport
Memanbetsu Airport
Nakashibetsu Airport
Kushiro Airport
Obihiro Airport
Hakodate Airport

Tohoku Region

Aomori Airport (Aomori Prefecture)
Akita North Airport (Akita Prefecture)
Akita Airport (Akita Prefecture)
Shonai Airport (Yamagata Prefecture)
Sendai Airport (Miyagi Prefecture)
Fukushima Airport (Fukushima Prefecture)

Kanto region

Haneda Airport (Tokyo)
Narita International Airport (Chiba Prefecture)
Hachijojima Airport (remote island in Tokyo Prefecture)

Chubu Region

Niigata Airport (Niigata Prefecture)
Toyama Airport (Toyama Prefecture)
Komatsu Airport (Ishikawa Prefecture)
Noto Airport (Ishikawa Prefecture)
Shizuoka Airport (Shizuoka Prefecture)
Chubu International Airport (Nagoya)

Kansai region

Itami Airport (Osaka Prefecture)
Kansai International Airport (Osaka Prefecture)
Kobe Airport (Hyogo Prefecture)

Chugoku region

Okayama Airport (Okayama Prefecture)
Tottori Airport (Tottori Prefecture)
Hiroshima Airport (Hiroshima Prefecture)
Yonago Airport (Tottori Prefecture)
Iwami Airport (Shimane Prefecture)
Yamaguchi Ube Airport (Yamaguchi Prefecture)
Iwakuni Airport (Yamaguchi Prefecture)

Shikoku Region

Takamatsu Airport (Kagawa Prefecture)
Tokushima Airport (Tokushima)
Matsuyama Airport (Ehime Prefecture)
Kochi Airport (Kochi Prefecture)

Kyushu region

Fukuoka Airport (Fukuoka Prefecture)
Kitakyushu Airport (Fukuoka Prefecture)
Saga Airport (Saga Prefecture)
Tsushima Airport (Nagasaki Prefecture)
Goto airport (Nagasaki prefecture)
Iki Airport (Nagasaki Prefecture)
Nagasaki Airport (Nagasaki Prefecture)
kumamoto Airport (Kumamoto Prefecture)
Oita Airport (Oita Prefecture)
Miyazaki Airport (Miyazaki Prefecture)
Kagoshima Airport (Kagoshima Prefecture)

Okinawa

Naha Airport
Miyako Airport
Ishigaki Airport

About

Jetstar Japan operates the largest number of LCC scheduled flights in Japan. Jetstar Japan has capital participation by JAL.

Jetstar Japan uses three airports as hub airports: Narita Airport (Tokyo), Kansai Airport (Osaka), Chubu International Airport (Nagoya).

Reservation / purchase place of Jetstar Japan

Jetstar Japan tickets can be reserved and purchased on the official website below. Please be careful as LCC tickets are difficult to cancel.

>> The official website of Jetstar Japan is here

Domestic airport with scheduled Jetstar flights

Based on three airports, Jetstar is making scheduled flights to the following airports.

From Tokyo / Narita

Hokkaido

New Chitose Airport

Kansai region

Kansai Airport (Osaka)

Shikoku Region

Takamatsu Airport (Kagawa Prefecture)
Matsuyama Airport (Ehime Prefecture)
Kochi Airport (Kochi Prefecture)

Kyushu region

Fukuoka Airport (Fukuoka Prefecture)
Oita Airport (Oita Prefecture)
Nagasaki Airport (Nagasaki Prefecture)
Kumamoto Airport (Kumamoto Prefecture)
Miyazaki Airport (Miyazaki Prefecture)
Kagoshima Airport (Kagoshima Prefecture)

Okinawa

Naha
Shimojijima Airport (from 30th March, 2019)

From Nagoya / Chubu

New Chitose Airport (Hokkaido · Sapporo)
Fukuoka Airport (Fukuoka Prefecture)
Kagoshima Airport (Kagoshima Prefecture)
Naha Airport (Okinawa)

From Osaka / Kansai

New Chitose Airport (Hokkaido Sapporo)
Kochi Airport (Kochi Prefecture)
Fukuoka Airport (Fukuoka Prefecture)
Kumamoto Airport (Kumamoto Prefecture)
Naha Airport (Okinawa)

About

Peach Aviation is an ANA Group’s LCC company. This company operates LCC under the brand name “Peach”.

Peach is based in Kansai Airport (Osaka).

Reservation / purchase place of Peach

Peach tickets can be reserved and purchased on the official website below. Please be careful as LCC tickets are difficult to cancel.

>> The official website of Peach is here

Domestic airport with scheduled Peach flights

Peach uses Kansai Airport, Sendai Airport and Fukuoka Airport as hub airports. Peach operates regular flights from these airports to the following airports. Peach is increasing the number of regular flights rapidly, so please check the latest information on Peach’s official website.

From Osaka / Kansai

New Chitose Airport (Sapporo)
Kushiro Airport (Kushiro city, Hokkaido)
Sendai Airport (Miyagi Prefecture)
Niigata Airport (Niigata)
Narita International Airport (Chiba)
Matsuyama Airport (Ehime Prefecture)
Fukuoka Airport (Fukuoka Prefecture)
Nagasaki Airport (Nagasaki Prefecture)
Miyazaki Airport (Miyazaki Prefecture)
Kagoshima Airport (Kagoshima Prefecture)
Naha Airport (Okinawa)
Ishigaki Airport (Okinawa)

From Sendai Airport

New Chitose Airport (Sapporo)

From Fukuoka Airport

New Chitose (Sapporo)
Narita International Airport (Chiba)
Naha Airport (Okinawa)

JR is a railway company established by splitting the former Japanese state-owned railroad. Regarding the passenger railroads, the following companies operate trains in their respective areas. If you plan to ride a JR train in some area, please refer to the official website of the applicable JR company.

Hokkaido Railway Company (JR Hokkaido)

Region (s) of operation

Hokkaido

Shinkansen

Hokkaidō Shinkansen in Hokkaido

>> Official site of JR Hokkaido

East Japan Railway Company (JR East)

Region (s) of operation

Tohoku, Kanto, parts of Chubu (Yamanashi, Nagano, Niigata, Toyama, Ishikawa, Fukui)

Shinkansen

Tohoku Shinkansen, Yamagata Shinkansen, Akita Shinkansen, Joetsu Shinkansen
With JR West = Hokuriku Shinkansen

>> Official website of JR East

Central Japan Railway Company (JR Central)

Region (s) of operation

Part of Chubu (Shizuoka, Aichi, Gifu, Mie)

Shinkansen

Tokaido Shinkansen in Kanto and Kansai

>> Official site of JR Central

West Japan Railway Company (JR West)

Region (s) of operation

Some Chubu (toyama, Ishikawa, Fukui), Kansai, Chugoku, some Kyushu

Shinkansen

Sanyo Shinkansen in Kansai, Chugoku and Kyushu
With JR East = Hokuriku Shinkansen

>> Official website of JR West

Shikoku Railway Company (JR Shikoku)

Region (s) of operation

Shikoku

Shinkansen

None

>> Official site of JR Shikoku

Kyushu Railway Company (JR Kyushu)

Region (s) of operation

Kyushu

Shinkansen

Kyushu Shinkansen in Kyushu

>> Official website of JR Kyushu

The private railway in Japan is divided into 15 major private railroads operated mainly in Tokyo and Osaka, and other small private railways. When traveling leisurely, it may be fun to use a small railroad. However, here, I will introduce you to the major private railway which you are likely to use.

15 Major Private Railways

Kanto Region

I will introduce the eight major private railways in Tokyo in order from the east side. Click on each train name, the official website of that railroad will be displayed on a separate page.

Keisei Railway

The train of Keisei Railway is operated mainly in Chiba Prefecture. You can also use this train between Narita Airport and the city center of Tokyo.

Tobu Railway

Tobu railway is the largest private railway in Kanto region. You can also use this train when going from the city center of Tokyo to Nikko.

Seibu Railway

Seibu railway is operated in western Tokyo. You can use this train when you go to Chichibu of Saitama Prefecture.

Keio Railway

Keio Railway operates trains from Shinjuku in Tokyo to Hachioji and Mt. Takao in the west. It is convenient to use this train when you go to Mt. Takao.

Tokyu Railway

Tokyu Railway operates trains in the southwestern part of Tokyo. You can use this train when you go to Yokohama from Shibuya in Tokyo.

Odakyu Railway

Odakyu Railway operates trains from Shinjuku in Tokyo to Enoshima, Odawara and Hakone. You can use this train when you go to these sights. Odakyu railway limited express “Romance car” is a beautiful train representing Japan’s private railway, as seen in the photos and videos above.

Sotetsu (Sagami Railway)

Sotetsu operates trains in Kanagawa prefecture based on Yokohama.

Keikyu (Keihin KyukoRailway) 

Keikyu operates trains from Tokyo to the coastal area of Kanagawa Prefecture. When you go to Haneda Airport, you will use this train or Tokyo Monorail.

Tokai Region (Around Nagoya)

Meitetsu (Nagoya Railway)

Meitetsu operates trains in Aichi Prefecture and Gifu Prefecture. It is convenient to use this train when you go to Inuyama Castle or Gifu city.

Kintetsu (Kinki Nippon Railway)

Kintetsu operates trains mainly in Osaka, but at the same time it also runs trains from Nagoya Station to Mie prefecture such as Ise Shima. About Kintetsu, I will also introduce it in the Kansai region below.

Kansai Region

Kintetsu (Kinki Nippon Railway)

Kintetsu is the largest private railway in Japan. It operates trains in Osaka prefecture, Nara prefecture, Kyoto prefecture, Mie prefecture, Aichi prefecture. Kintetsu connects wonderful tourist destinations such as Osaka, Kyoto, Nara, Ise Shima, Nagoya. If you want to ride a private railway in Japan, I recommend Kintetsu first.

Nankai Railway

Nankai is a major private railway in the southern part of Kansai region. It connects Osaka City with Kansai Airport. You will also use the Nankai when going from Osaka city to Koyasan.

Keihan Railway

Keihan is a private railroad connecting Osaka city and Kyoto. Even when you are going to sightsee in Kyoto, it would be convenient to use Keihan in addition to the subway.

Hankyu Railways

Hankyu Railway is a big private railway representing Kansai region together with Kintetsu. It also merged the following Hanshin railway. Hankyu connects Kyoto, Takarazuka and Kobe based on Umeda in Osaka. It also runs a branch line that goes to Arashiyama in Kyoto city.

Hanshin Railway

Hanshin is a private railway linking Osaka ‘s Umeda and Kobe. It recently opened the Hanshin namba line which goes from Amagasaki in Hyogo prefecture to Namba in southern Osaka. You can go from Namba to Kobe by train.

Kyushu Region

Nishitetsu (Nishi-Nippon Railroad)

Nishitetsu is a private railway based in Fukuoka city. You can use this train when you go to Dazaifu from Fukuoka city.

Buses

Recommended search sites

In Japan, buses are operated in various places. If you take a bus in Japan, you may use the following two sites.

>> WILLER
On this site, you can search for various highway buses and tour buses.

>> highwaybus.com
You can also search various highway buses on this site.

Airport transfer buses (limousine buses)

You can use a airport transfer bus when you go downtown etc from the airport. At airports such as Tokyo and Osaka, airport transfer buses with very diverse routes are operated. In many cases, there are ticket offices or ticket vending machines for the bus at the airport. Let's get on the bus after buying a ticket first!

Scheduled bus

If you get downtown from the airport, you will be using the scheduled bus. There are two types of scheduled buses: paying when you ride and paying when you get off. Let's prepare money at first in any case. It is desirable if you have a coin, but you can get a fishing with a thousand yen bill. In major cities such as Tokyo and Osaka, you can also pay by prepaid cards to be used when riding a train.

However, if you can take the train on behalf of the bus, I recommend using the train. Because bus routes in Japan are generally complicated. In addition, there is a risk of traffic congestion in the case of buses. When you get on the bus in Kyoto during the high season, the traffic jam is terrible.

Highway buses

In Japan, a lot of highway buses (long distance buses) are going to go from major cities such as Tokyo to sightseeing spots. If you use these buses, you can go to the destination without changing. However, unlike trains, buses are at risk of traffic jam. Especially, from the end of April to the beginning of May, the middle of August, the year-end and New Year holidays, the road may get very crowded, so be careful.

Tour buses

There are many tour buses in Japan. Please find the tour bus suitable for you at the above two sites etc.

Urban area

In urban areas such as Tokyo and Kyoto, you can ride a taxi if you raise your hand towards a running taxi. Taxis are lined up in front of stations and big hotels. You can also ride it.

Taxi doors automatically open and close. Japanese taxi drivers have a heart of hospitality. Many taxi drivers are not good at English. But they will try to understand your destination sincerely. If you write your destination address on paper, the driver will understand it even in English. Most taxis are equipped with a navigation system so drivers take you to your destination without problems.

In the case of a taxi where a credit card illustration is set up in the window of the back seat, you can also use a credit card. In Japan, we do not need chips for taxi drivers.

Taxi fares in Japan are generally high. If you are congested in the middle of your route the taxi fare will be even higher. In order to know rough taxi charges in advance, the following site is useful. Only the fee in Tokyo can be searched on this site. But, you can understand the rough price of Japanese taxi fare by this site. Regional taxi fares are often cheaper than Tokyo.

>> The website that can search the taxi fare in Tokyo is here

Country area

If you use a taxi on the country side of Japan, you may want to check in advance that you can use a taxi in that area.

In the rural areas, you can take a taxi at the airport or the main station, but in other places you may not be able to find a taxi. There are also taxi companies in the country site in many cases. Those taxi companies will pick you up if you call. However, as the number of taxis is small, you may be kept waiting.

On the country side of Japan, taxi companies often operate a taxi when the elderly in that area goes to a hospital or the like. So, you should study the taxis in that area in advance.

Taxi fares on the country side are cheaper than in urban areas. If your destination is far away, you can also tell the driver your destination and negotiate the fee.

There are many rent-a-car companies in Japan. If you have your driver’s license and international driver’s license, you can rent a car in Japan. Here, I will introduce an overview of them.

How to use car rental

There are major car rental companies and cheap car rental companies in Japan. Major rent-a-car companies are offering car rental services at major cities across Japan. Cheap car rental companies are handling services at sightseeing spots where there is a lot of demand for car rental. Besides this, there are also luxury car rental companies in Tokyo. Any company can make reservations in advance by internet or phone.

You can use the rent-a-car service in the following procedure.

Reserve in advance

I recommend that you pre-book at the official website of the rent-a-car company or travel agency site. Please specify the date and time you want to use, the branch, the type of car you want to borrow. To make a reservation, in many cases it is necessary to register as a member on the Internet.

Go to the branch of the rental car company

Let’s go to the branch of the rental car company you reserved at the date and time you specified. If possible, I recommend that you go about 10 minutes earlier than the time you specified. Please write your name, address etc in writing at the branch counter. For rent-a-car it is preferable to use credit cards rather than cash if possible. Next, go to the car you borrow and check the car for scratches. Let’s sign if you check the car. Finally, you will receive a simple lecture from the staff about how to drive that car. Let’s start if there is no problem.

If you rent a car at a big airport, there are often car rental counter on the floor in the airport. Please go to the counter first. Then the staff will guide you to the shuttle bus. You will take a shuttle bus to the nearest branch.

Return the car

You return the car to the rental car company’s branch by the date and time you specified in advance. If you specify in advance, you can also return the car to another branch. When you arrive at the branch, the staff will first check the state of the car. Without problems in particular, you can leave the branch.

Recommended major car rental companies

I feel that major Japanese car rental companies generally offer high quality services. Among them, I recommend the following companies. The reason I recommend these car rental companies is because, first of all, they have many branches. Secondly, at these companies, you can choose your favorite car from among many different kinds of cars.

Nippon Rent-A-Car

The car rental company I would like to recommend first is Nippon Rent – A – Car. The advantage of this company is, first of all, that there are many branches across Japan. Secondly, at Nippon Rent-A-Car you can choose your favorite car from among the various car manufacturer’s cars. Thirdly, it is increasing the number of branches open 24 hours a day in urban areas. I always find the car I like on the company’s website. At Nippon Rent-A-Car, you can also rent luxury cars such as Mercedes and Audi.

>> The official website of Nippon Rent-A-Car is here

TOYOTA Rent a Car

TOYOTA Rent a Car is a car rental service handled by a Toyota group company. TOYOTA Rent a Car has many branches throughout Japan.

The cars you can borrow with TOYOTA Rent a Car are Toyota’s cars. That’s the weak point of this company. You can hardly choose cars other than Toyota. However, Toyota vehicles are famous for being very high quality. You can say that you can borrow only high quality cars.

>> The official website of TOYOTA Rent a Car is here

Times Car Rental

Times car rental is managed by a major rental car company with headquarters in Hiroshima City. Times car rental was previously operated by Mazda. So, Times Car Rentals still have many Mazda cars. At the same time, there are also cars other than Mazda for Times Car rental.

I often use this rental car. Advantage of Times Car Rental is that, first of all, you can choose different cars from the above two companies. Especially Mazda’s car is very stylish and popular recently. It is fun trying to ride a Mazda car. Second, the rental fee for Times Car rental is relatively reasonable. I think that it is not a bad idea to use Times Car Rentals.

>> The official website of Times Car Rentals is here