When you take the Shinkansen or the limited express train, you may have to book a seat because some trains require you a seat reservation. Though some limited express trains have some non-reserved cars, you should book a reserved seat if you can.
Especially if you use JR Pass, Hokkaido Rail Pass, JR East Pass, Tokyo Wide Pass, Sanyo San’in Area Pass and Kyushu Rail Pass, these passes cover a reserved seat fee. Use this benefit to ride a train with a peace of mind.
I also strongly recommend you to secure a seat if you travel in the peak seasons, such as late April to the first week of May (a.k.a. Golden Week), August 10 to 20 (It is called “Obon” which is a summer break.) and the year-end/New Years holiday (December 29th to the first week of January.)
I would like to explain you how to book a reserved seat in this post
Before you make a reservation
If you intend to use Japan Rail Pass (a.k.a. JR Pass), JR East Pass, Tokyo Wide Pass, Sanyo Sanin Area Pass, Takayama Hokuriku Area Pass, Hokkaido Rail Pass and Kyushu Rail Pass, you MUST turn in your exchange order to the actual Pass before booking your seat. You have to show your pass when you make a reservation. Exchange order does not work to book a train seat. Once you turned in, you can go ahead to make a reservation at any reservation windows and anytime. But if you use JR Easts’ online reservation, you can book a seat in advance before exchanging an actual pass. I will explain about this online reservation site later in this post.
Explaination by movie
You can watch the movie below which explains you about the booking in the station:
If you buy the JR Pass on the official reservation site, you can book a seat online. I explain how to use this site in the movie below:
I explain how to use JR East online booking step by step in the movie below:
Where you can book
First of all, I would like to tell you how to book a seat at the station. I will explain you about online booking later in this post.
You can book a seat at the ticket reservation office that is called “Midori no Madoguchi (みどりの窓口)”. You can find “Midori no Madoguchi” very easily. You will find a big green sign easily like the images above and below.
“Midori no Madoguchi” is located at most of major JR stations. If you are in major cities, such as Tokyo, Osaka, Kyoto, Yokohama, Fukuoka, Sapporo, you cannot miss “Midori no Madoguchi”. 99% of JR stations in these cities have “Midori no Madoguchi”. Some major stations have a few Midori no Madoguchi.
The signage is different in JR Central area.
If you travel in JR Central (JR東海) area, you cannot find Midori no Madoguchi. Because “Midori no Madoguchi” is JR East’s trademark and JR Central avoids to use it. In JR Central area, such as Nagoya, Mishima, Shizuoka, Gifu, Takayama, it is shown as “Shinkansen and JR Line Tickets (新幹線・JR線きっぷうりば)” like image below.
JR Central operates the Tokaido Shinkansen between Tokyo and Shin-Osaka. JR Central has a ticket office outside JR Central operation area, such as Tokyo, Shin-Yokohama, Kyoto and Shin-Osaka. In these stations, you can find two different kinds of the ticket office, “Midori no Madoguchi” and “Shinkansen and JR Line Tickets”. But you can use either ticket office to book any JR train tickets. This difference does not matter.
What kind of information you need
Please make sure the following information before you make a reservation:
- Date and time
- Train name and number
This is not required. But if you want to take the specific train, please tell the train name and number. It is much easier to make a reservation for the staff and you can save your time. All Shinkansen trains and most limited express trains have the combination of the name and number. e.g. “Hikari 246”. - Departure and Arrival Stations
- Smoking or Non Smoking
Smoking seat is still available on a few trains. If you really want to have a seat in the smoking car, you may ask a staff to look for. If you do not mention, usually you will be assigned a seat on non smoking car. If a seat is available on only smoking car, usually a staff let you know and make sure that you accept it or not. - Passport
If you use JR Pass or other JR passes, you always have to carry your passport. You may be asked to show it by a station officer or a conductor when they want to check it.
When you can start booking
You can make a reservation anytime within one month prior the departure date. The ticket is on sale one month prior to departure date at 10:00am
e.g.
Departure date — August 23 at 10:00 am. the Shinkansen from Tokyo to Shin-Osaka
Ticket is on sale at 10:00 am on July 23.
e.g.
Departure date — August 24 at 00:34 am. Sunrise Seto from Osaka to Tokyo
Ticket is on sale at 10:00 am on July 23, not July 24. Because this train originally depart from Takamatsu at 21:26 on August 23. Overnight trains are very few in Japan currently. But if you book a seat on overnight booking, please check the departure date at the original departure station.
The reserve seat on most trains can be reserved at Midori no Madoguchi only. So you have to be in Japan when you book. Online booking is still very limited.
Online booking
Japan Rail Pass official site
If you buy the JR Pass at the official site, you can make a booking through this website.
Japan Rail Pass official reservation website
You can book a seat on most JR trains. However the price of JR pass is higher than the prices at the authorized dealers. If you buy the JR pass at the authorized dealer, you cannot book a seat on this site.
JR East Train Reservation
This online reservation system is operated by JR East. Unfortunately this JR East Shinkansen Reservation is only English online reservation for the traveler who use JR Pass, Hokkaido Rail pass and JR East Passes. If you intend to use a regular ticket, you can use this site too.
This site offers a seat reservation for the trains which run in JR East and JR Hokkaido areas. So you CANNOT make a reservation for the Tokaido-Sanyo Shinkansen (Tokyo-Kyoto or Osaka) and other limited express trains which does not run in JR East and JR Hokkaido area. And also there are some restrictions. The biggest restriction is the ticket pick up. You must pick up a ticket one day before the travel date. You cannot pick up a ticket on the day of travel. Please read Guide (FAQ) before you make a booking.
Tokaido-Sanyo Shinkansen Reservation App “EX”
This app is available in a few countries only. And also this app is available for a regular ticket user only. You cannot use this app to book a seat for JR Pass or other rail passes. However any rail passes do not meet your trip plan and this app is available in your country, this is very convenient. You can book it in advance from your smartphone.
JR West Online Train Reservation
JR West has launched the online reservation site. However this online booking system does not cover any train pass user. You can use this online reservation as the regular ticket user only.
If you use a regular ticket, this online site may be a good choice. This online booking covers most of JR trains.
Eki-net (えきねっと)
I have received a comment from one of my readers, Tak. He mentioned me that we can use this Japanese online reservation system even for Japan Rail Pass or other travel passes users. This online reservation is in Japanese. So unfortunately this is not available for all of you. However some of my readers asked me that we can use a friend in Japan to make a reservation for Japan Rail Pass user in outside of Japan. You can do it with your friend in Japan and use this site.
This reservation system covers all over Japan. You can book for the Shinkansen between Tokyo and Shin-Osaka which is not available on JR East Train Reservation.
How to reserve a ticket from outside Japan in advance
As you saw, online reservation does not cover all trains. I really wish Japan Railway have full online reservation system.
If you want to secure your seat before departure, the local travel agent may be able to help you. This is only way to reserve a ticket before you depart from your country.
One of my frequent visitors, James in Australia, left a comment. He did this way many years ago. But I would like to share this information:
*JTB actually charge MORE than $55 Australian dollar($56 US dollar March 2011 currency) per ticket, in fact JTB charge $75 Australian dollar(US$76) per ticket.
The $75 came from $55 service fee plus $20 courier fee to deliver your ticket to your hotel in Japan, $55+$20=$75 Funny my ticket for SL-Yamaguchi express is only $60 therefore altogether I need to pay $135 to get SL-Yamaguchi express ticket!
So, all I can say is, if you want to get a JR train ticket before you get to Japan, make sure you are ok with paying at least $75( $76 US dollar), it helps if you really need to get on a particular train that is very hard to book or if you are travelling during peak season. But if you are not in a hurry, travelling in leisure pace across Japan, perhaps think twice.
I hope is worthy many people told me SL-Yamaguchi express is the best steam train experience ever in Japan.
Unfortunately this is only way to do it. You can find Japan Rail Pass authorized agent at JR Pass official site. They may be able to reserve a ticket for you too. But some of the agent do not want to reserve your seat. They want to book whole things, like hotel, air ticket, attraction tickets. Because it is too small profit to make a reservation for only train ticket.
Comments
Hai,
I will travel on 4/2 and use my 7 day JR pass.
Question:
1. Can i reserved the seat to other place on different date ( going to Kyoto, tokyo,disneyland ,gala yuzawa, mount fuji and shin osaka-kansai on the last day ) , all in one time when we first use our JR pass ? so that we don’t need to go to the office everyday just to reserve the seat.
2. When we want to reserve the seat, do we need to make sure the time as well ? example, i want to go tokyo on 5/2 ,but not sure what time,just estimate,7 am.is it ok ?
3. what about if we miss the train ? let say, we already reserved tokyo on 7 am, but we missed the train.we instead have to take 715 train.is it ok ? or we have to go back to the office before taking the train ?
Thanks.
Hi Fad,
1. Yes, you can. I usually complete all bookings when I exchange JR Pass.
2. You have to pick which train you take. That means you have to decide the exact departure time. Otherwise you cannot reserve your seat.
3. You have to rebook it. Reserve seat ticket is valid for the original train. If you miss it, you have to return your ticket and rebook it. You don’t need to pay any penalty.
Cheers,
Takeshi / JPRail.com
Thank you for your reply.
And how about if we don’t reserved the seat. Can we just simply take the JR train after we exchange it at the ticket office ? Just bring the JR Pass and take the train right ? No need to ask ticket everyday ?
p/s : i understood, if we reserved, we can get a seat if it pick hours.
Hi Fad,
If you take local trains, such as taking train in downtown Tokyo, all you have to do is showing your pass when you enter the station and get on the train.
When you take express trains, such as Shinkansen, you can take non reserved seat car without reservation. Most of trains have non reserved seat car. It’s first come first serve. So you may not get a seat because the seat is not reserved. And you may be asked to show your pass by conductor when you are in non reserved seat.
Cheers,
Takeshi / JPRail.com
Hi there,
Quick question: When you go to exchange your voucher and reserve seats, can you make arrangements and reserves seats for the Nozomi and Mizuho lines too? I was trying to figure out routes from Osaka to Niigata, but whether it was googlemaps or hyperdia; they kept telling me to take the Nozomi or Mizuho lines too. Any help would be much obliged.
Hi David,
If you use JR pass, Nozomi and Mizuho are not covered at all. You can find the timetable at hyperdia except Mizuho and Nozomi. Please find the info at the link below:
https://jprail.com/travel-informations/basic-informations/timetable-and-reservation/hyperdia-perfect-guide-train-timetable-and-route-search-engine.html#Check_box
Cheers,
Takeshi / JPRail.com
Hi Takeshi,
My family of 3 will be in Japan, April 25th to May 2nd, during the busy holiday season. We will have the 7 day JR Pass. I am worried that once we arrive in Toyko that it would be impossible to get seats on the train heading to Hakone (Odawara Station) on April 28th morning and then from there on the 29th to Kyoto. Also, we will Leave Kyoto on May 1st back to Toyko. What are the possibility of not getting on a train? And can I book these seats at the Airport where I pick up my JR Pass?
Your advise would be appreciated.
thanks,
Ruth
Hi Ruth,
I think you will be able to get a seat anyway. You can book all train ticket when you exchange your JR pass. Whenever I use JR pass, I complete all train bookings when I pick up JR Pass.
The following links show you Shinkansen timetable. It will be revised in March 26. But it will not be much different.
http://english.jr-central.co.jp/info/timetable/_pdf/westbound.pdf
http://english.jr-central.co.jp/info/timetable/_pdf/eastbound.pdf
I believe these link will show you new timetable in April.
You may decide which train you will take. In worst case, try to get a seat on Kodama. (It’s shown as “K”.) This is much slower than Hikari (“H”) but it’s much easier to get a seat.
Cheers,
Takeshi / JPRail.com
Hi Takeshi,
Thank you for the quick response. We feel less worried about taking the train. Can you tell me if all train stations have coin operated public pay telephones?
Thank you,
Ruth
Hi Ruth,
Yes. But it’s hard to find the phone in these days. As you may know, everybody has mobile. Many public phones have been removed.
Cheers,
Takeshi / JPRail.com
Hi Takeshi,
It is still too early for our trip of 3 couples to see the Autumn Colors in Japan. We arrive Tokyo on Nov 17 and plan to take Shinkensen Ozumi to Kyoto on Sunday Nov 20. In Tokyo, we stay near JR Yamanote Line Shin-Okubo station. Can we wait until we arrive Tokyo and then buy Ozumi ticket? If yes then what JR Station we can buy the tickets? (Shinyuku station?) and what is their operating hours?
Thanks,
James
Hi James,
The ticket is on sale one month prior to departure date. And also online reservation for overseas tourist is not available. So you cannot do anything until you arrive in Japan anyway. But Nozomi runs every 10-15 minutes. It’s easy to book even if you book it after you arrive in Japan.
You can book at any major JR stations. Most of stations on Yamanote line have reservation window that is Midori no Madoguchi. But Shin-Okubo does not have reservation window unfortunately. Shinjuku has the window. They open 5:30 am to 11:00 pm.
Cheers,
Takeshi / JPRail.com
Thanks for your quick response and right to the point.
Very best,
James
No problem, James.
Cheers,
Takeshi / JPRail.com
travelling On 23 of May 2016 Kyoto to Hiroshima. If I buy Japan rail pass in India will there be any problem in getting seat reservartion as the next day I leave for Osaka airport.
Hi Paul,
No. You will be okay.
Cheers,
Takeshi / JPRail.com
Hi Bernard, We are arriving at Narita in February and will be travelling by Shinkansen to Nagano the very same day we arrive. The JR-East Train Reservation says we have to pick up the tickets the day before we plan to take the Shinkansen but this will not be possible. How can we book our seats in advance and pick up our tickets the morning we arrive from HK for our trip to Nagano 3 hours later?
Hi Wayne,
You cannot pick up the ticket on the day of travel by this booking site. You have to pick up the ticket at least 2 days before if you book it through JR East site. So you have to book it upon arrival. But it’s not hard to book for Shinkansen to Nagano after you arrive. There are lots of trains and it will be no problem to book.
*Bernard is one of readers. I think he will not reply to you.
Cheers,
Takeshi / JPRail.com
Hi Takeshi,
Thanks again for a great helpful site.
We used the JR pass on our recent trip to Japan, and it was really easy. The only day we had any difficulty booking at all was December 31, when we couldn’t get 4 reserved seats at the time that suited us, but had to take a train an hour later. We made many of our bookings in advance, but on a couple of occasions, turned up, and booked seats less than 15 minutes before the train was due to depart.
The other problem we encountered was the queue at Narita Terminal 2 to collect our JR pass – we queued for nearly hours from about 6:15pm to 8pm. We wanted to use our pass for the NEX into Tokyo, but, with the benefit of hindsight, we should have just payed for those tickets and saved ourselves a very long queue, and exchanged our passes at Tokyo.
Hi Bernard,
Thank you very much for sharing your experience.
Cheers,
Takeshi / JPRail.com
Thank you Takeshi (and apologies for calling you Bernard). Is it possible to buy tickets for the Shinkansen for travel on the same day? We are arriving Monday 8th Feb very early in the morning and want to get to Nagano in the early afternoon?
Kind regards, Wayne
Hi Wayne,
It is no problem at all. Many business travelers use Shinkansen everyday. Some of them tried to book it in last minutes, like 15-20 minutes prior to departure time.
Cheers,
Takeshi / JPRail.com
You can pick up your ticket right after arrival, and can use it right away, if you choose to take the unreserved seat. It is not a peak season so there will be plenty of seats available. Just know which cars are for free/unreserve seats.
Hello,
I was wondering how to get from bakurocho station to Kyoto station. I understand that I have to book tickets for the shinkansen to Kyoto but where do I do that? I have a JR pass.
Hi Tim,
Bakurocho is two stations away from Tokyo station by Sobu line local train.
You can book Shinkansen ticket at any major JR stations in advance. Unfortunately Bakurocho station does not have reservation window. But you can book it when you exchange JR Pass if you want. Whenever I use JR pass, I complete all bookings at the time of exchange.
Cheers,
Takeshi / JPRail.com
This is a non-JR reservation question Takeshi.
We expect in March to be staying near Sanjo (Keihan) Station in Kyoto.
If we travel for example Sanjo (Kyoto) to Yoshino (Nara), hyperdia offers a train change at Tambabashi to Kintetsu limited express.
For the seat reservation on the Kintetsu Limited Express:
– can we book Kintetsu reserved seat at the Keihan station,
or
– allow time at Tambabashi Kintetsu to get seat reservation,
or
– pay on train,
or
– avoid the problem and take ordinary trains. 🙂
Thanks in advance…. and with very best wishes to you and yours for the holiday season.
Hi Dennis,
You cannot book it at Keihan station. But if you have any time when you are in Kyoto, you can book it at Kintetsu Kyoto station in advance. Kintetsu Kyoto station is exactly same place as JR Kyoto station.
You cannot pay on board. You need to book it in advance.
Cheers,
Takeshi / JPRail.com
Hi Takeshi,
I’m going to be traveling in Japan betwen Dec 30th – January 11th. Prior to booking plane tickets I didn’t realize how busy this time of year is and am concerned about getting on trains.
The three legs I’m most concerned about are below and would really appreciate any advice you have (I’ve read all your articles about overnight trains/reservations with JR pass/through eki-net/looking on hyperdia, etc etc.)
I have to do more research, but I’m thinking we will get either the 7-day or 14-day JR pass since we’ll be going from Tokyo all the way to Kumamoto over the 2 week visit.
1. We get into Narita Dec 30th around 5pm and want to get to Nagoya that night. Do you think we will have trouble getting tickets if we try to book when we land?
2. We are leaving from Kyoto around 9:30a to Kumamoto (likely via Shin-Osaka) on January 4th. Do you think we will be able to get seats if we wait to reserve when we land on December 30th?
3. This leg is probably the most unrealistic 🙂 We were hoping to catch the Sunrise Seto from Okayama to Tokyo, departing Okayama at 22:33 on January 8th. Since this is the busy season, what do you think our chances are of being able to reserve nobi nobi seats when we land in Tokyo on Dec 30th?
Do you think our chances of reserving Sunrise Twin room when we land on the 30th are better than trying to get nobi nobi?
If there is a chance we may not be able to get any reservations at all, I’m thinking it’s better to forgot the overnight train and just bite the bullet (literally) and take shinkansen the next day. Any help would be greatly appreciated!
Thank you in advance!
Hi Amy,
1. I expect Dec 29 is the busiest day. I think the evening on Dec 30 is okay.
2. January 4th is a normal day. Most of residents in Japan have to go back home until the end of Jan 3. Because they will be back to normal on 4th Jan. So you will be okay.
3. It’s so hard to say. Actually Jan 8th is not in the peak season. School winter break is until Jan 7th. But Jan 8th is Friday. It has bigger demand than other days. This train is popular in all season. I’m not surprised if Nobi Nobi is sold out in ordinary week day. In my opinion, you chance is 50:50. If I were you, I go for it. Even if you are okay with any kinds of compartment, I think you can make it.
Cheers,
Takeshi / JPRail.com
Thanks Takeshi. I really appreciate your response. I’m going to call on 12/8 and see how many are still available, then weigh that option versus buying a flight to Tokyo.
Best,
Amy
Hope you will get it, Amy!
Cheers,
Takeshi / JPRail.com
Hi Takeshi, thanks for a great site.
Is the Japanese language only Eki-net site the same as the JR East Shinkansen Reservation website in as much as they refund the amount you pay when you collect your tickets with your JR Pass?
I tried out the site using google chrome to translate for me, but couldn’t see that information.
Thanks
Bernard
Hi Bernard,
There is no information about using JR Pass in Eki-net. This is a kind of secret way among Japanese tourist who live in foreign country. But one of Japanese reader has asked JR East about booking on Eki-net with JR Pass. JR Ease said they accept JR pass booking. You don’t need to pay anything if you show your JR pass when you collect the ticket.
Cheers,
Takeshi / JPRail.com
Thanks for your reply. I’ll be travelling around the peak time (28th December to 7th January, including on 29th, 31st December, 2nd January) so I will try to book in advance for those critical days, and pick up reserved tickets when I arrive on the 24th December.
Hi Bernard,
In this coming season, Dec 29 and Jan 3 are expected to be the busiest days. Jan 2 may be busy but Dec 31 is okay.
Good luck!
Cheers,
Takeshi / JPRail.com