I have received many inquiries about Tokyo to Kyoto or Osaka one way trip. I always recommend to use a regular ticket for this one way long distance train ride, such as from Tokyo to Kyoto, from Osaka to Tokyo. Because this one way trip is not enough to get the worth of JR Pass 7-day. I have written the post about the fare calculation before.
But I think this post was not enough to explain the fare rule. JR single ticket rule is very complicated for the tourists from oversea. But you do not need to know everything. If you understand some basic rules, single ticket is more useful and it gives you a trip at more affordable rate.
In this post, I will show you some basic rules of the regular ticket for the long distance train ride and how to use and purchase it.
How to purchase it
Simply you can purchase it at the station. If you make a short distance trip in the city or city to just outside city, you can purchase a ticket at the vending machine.
e.g.
Ueno to Tokyo (inside city)
Tokyo to Yokohama (city to just outside place)
Osaka to Universal City (inside city)
Osaka to Kyoto (city to outside place)
If you make a long distance trip, you still can buy a ticket at the vending machine. But the ticket window may be easier to purchase a long distance ticket for the foreign travelers. Especially if you intend to make a stopover on the way, you have to buy a ticket at the ticket window. Because you have to explain your trip plan.
If you want to take a limited express train, you have to purchase a limited express surcharge ticket too. Even if you want to take a non reserved seat on a limited express train, you have to purchase it. You can purchase both a reserved and a non reserved ticket for a limited express (the Shinkansen as well) at “Midori no Madoguchi”. Midori no Madoguchi is the name of JR reservation ticket window. You can purchase a base fare ticket at Midori no Madoguchi too. Please get the detail about reservation at the post below.
In the case of purchasing both base fare ticket and limited express surcharge ticket, you can purchase it in advance. An express surcharge ticket is on sale one month prior to a departure date.
e.g.
Tokyo to Kyoto travel on Dec 1
You can purchase the tickets after Nov 1.
You also can purchase the tickets at any JR stations if you buy both base fare and limited express surcharge at same time. For example, if you start to travel from Tokyo station, you can purchase it at Narita airport station on the day of arrival.
Base fare ticket can be purchased at any JR stations where station staff is on duty. There are many station without station staffs in remote area. In major cities and major stations, there are station staff. Even if you take a train at the station without station staff, you can purchase it from the conductor in the train.
How to get a fare
You can use Hyperdia to get the fare quite easily.
As you see above capture image of Hyperdia, you can get base fare and seat fare (includes surcharge). In this image, total fare is the following:
Base fare – 9560 yen
Shinkansen Nozomi (Tokyo – Shin-Osaka) – 5740 yen (reserved seat)
Ltd Exp Haruka (Shin-Osaka – Kansai airport) – 820 yen (reserved seat)
Total – 16120 yen
*The above image was captured in 2013. The fare was raised in April l, 2014 because of consumer tax was increased to 8% from 5%. The actual fare is different from the fare in the image above.
The price of Japan Rail Pass 7 days ordinary is 28300 yen. (New price is 29110 yen.) Total single fare is more than 10000 yen cheaper than 7 days pass price. This is the reason why I recommend to use single fare for Tokyo – Osaka one way transfer.
Validity
Please see the above capture image of Hyperdia again. You also can find a distance at Hyperdia. This is a key to use single ticket. Actually long distance ticket can be used in multiple days.
| Distance | Valid days |
|---|---|
| 101 – 200 km | 2 days |
| 201 – 400 km | 3 days |
| 401 – 600 km | 4 days |
| 601 – 800 km | 5 days |
| 801 – 1000 km | 6 days |
- From 1001 km and up, add 1 day every 200 km.
- If you travel more than 101 km but it is in Tokyo or Osaka zone only, ticket valid in one day only.
So in above capture image, distance is 613.4km. This ticket valid in 5 days.
Stopover
You can stopover as many as you want. Of course you cannot go back. Once you start to travel, you have to go forward. You have to care only one thing. When you depart/arrive to travel at the following areas, you cannot stopover in same areas.
- Sapporo
- Sendai
- Tokyo 23 wards
- Tokyo Yamanote line
- Yokohana
- Nagoya
- Kyoto
- Osaka
- Kobe
- Hiroshima
- Kitakyushu
- Fukuoka
These areas are same as city limit. I show you some examples.
1. Above ticket (Tokyo – Kansai Airport)
You can NOT – Stopover at anywhere in Tokyo 23 wards. For example, after you start to travel from Tokyo, you cannot stopover at Shinagawa.
You can – Stopover at Kyoto, Osaka and anywhere outside of Tokyo 23 wards.
By the way, you can start to travel from anywhere in Tokyo 23 wards.
2. Ticket from Narita airport to Osaka
You can NOT – Stopover at anywhere in Osaka city. For example, you cannot stopover at Shin-Osaka. Once you exit at any stations in Osaka city, your ticket will be expired right away.
You can – Stopover at Tokyo, Kyoto, Nagoya and anywhere outside of Osaka city.
By the way, when you travel through Tokyo downtown core, ticket will be calculated by the shortest route. For example, most typical route from Narita to Osaka via Tokyo, via Tokyo station and Shinagawa station. But if you want to go to Osaka via Akihabara and Shinjuku, you can take this route and stopover.
But in case of using limited express, you have to purchase limited express surcharge ticket for each segments.
ex) Tokyo – Osaka trip, stopover at Nagoya.
You have to purchase two Shinkansen tickets, Tokyo – Nagoya Shinkansen surcharge ticket and Ngoya – Shin-Osaka surcharge ticket.
Sample ideas
Please see above capture image of Hyperdia again. If you use this ticket, you can do the following itinerary.
Day 1 Tokyo – Kyoto (Stopover at Kyoto)
Day 2 Kyoto (no use single ticket)
Day 3 Kyoto – Osaka (Stopover at Osaka)
Day 4 One day trip to Kobe (purchase another single ticket.)
Day 5 Osaka – Kansai airport
When you arrive in Tokyo, you can use other deals, such as Suica & N’ex. And you have 5 days after you finish to see Tokyo. If you add Suica & N’ex one way ticket, total amount is 19620 yen. It is about 9000 yen cheaper than JR Pass 7 days.
I believe this is the perfect solution for Tokyo – Osaka one way travellers.
Comments
Dear Takeshi San
Thank you for your excellent website!! It has helped me a lot in planning my trip!
Below is my itinerary:
Day 1: From Kansai airport to Kyoto – I know I should use the Icoca & Haruka package
Day 2-5: Kyoto with a day trip to Nara
Day 6: Take train in the morning from Kyoto to Nagoya, visit Nagashima Spaland, then overnight at Nagoya
Day 7: Take train in the morning from Nagoya to get to Lake Kawaguchiko – I have not decided whether to
1) stop at Mishima to take the bus, or
2) to take the train all the way to Shinagawa then change to a local train to Shinjuku before taking the highway bus as you suggested in your 7-day itinerary.
Total journey time for both are about the same (4 and a half hrs) but option 2 has more frequent trains and buses. I am a bit stuck in comparing the cost for the above 2 options.
Day 8: Enjoy Lake Kawaguchiko
Day 9: Take the direct 2 hr bus from Kawaguchiko station to Shinjuku station, stay in Tokyo
Day 10: Enjoy Tokyo
Day 11: Fly home from Haneda airport
As we will not be taking a lot of the train, I understand a single ticket from Kyoto to Mishima (if I take option 1) or Kyoto to Shinjuku (if I take option 2), with a stopover at Nagoya, will work well for us. I understand that I should buy 1 base fare ticket from Kyoto to Mishima/Shinjuku, then 2 Shinkansen surcharges for the 2 parts of the trip a) Kyoto – Nagoya, b) Nagoya – Mishima/Shinjuku. But there are still some things I am not clear about. My questions are below:
1) Why buy 1 base fare ticket? Cheaper than buying 2 separate base fare tickets?
2) If we buy base fare ticket from Kyoto to Mishima/Shinjuku and we stop over at Nagoya, do we need to specify that we are stopping over or changing train in Nagoya when we buy the tickets?
3) How exactly do we buy 1 base ticket and 2 Shinkansen surcharges for the 2 parts of the trip? We buy these all at the same time? We just tell the staff at the “Midori no Madoguchi” that we need Shinkansen surcharges for part 1 of travel from Kyoto to Nagoya to travel on Day 6? And we need Shinkansen surcharges for part 2 of travel from Nagoya to Mishima/Shinjuku to travel on Day 7? (I cannot speak Japanese, so a bit worried if they will be able to understand me.)
4) In your 7 day itinerary, you suggested to complete all JR train bookings at Kansai Airport station or JR Kyoto station on Day 1. That means we try to buy all base tickets and all Shinkansen surcharges for the whole trip on Day 1? Are the staff at Kansai Airport JR station able to understand and speak English?
Many thanks!!
Hi Ms. Chen,
First of all, I recommend you to transfer at Mishima. If you travel both Hakone and Lake Kawaguchi, you can use Fuji Hakone Pass that includes return transfer to/from Shinjuku. But in your itinerary, you will visit Lake Kawaguchi only. So Mishima transfer is cheaper. As probably you know, Shikansen train that stop at Mishima do not run very frequently. There are one train every two hours.
http://english.jr-central.co.jp/info/timetable/_pdf/eastbound.pdf
My answers for your other questions are following:
1) Yes. It’s cheaper.
2) You don’t need to. Because the ticket for more than 100 km allows the passengers stopover as many as they want in valid days.
3,4) You can purchase all tickets at same time. You can purchase it at Kansai Airport when you purchase ICOCA and Haruka. You can ask one base fare ticket for Kyoto to Mishima for the day when you start to use, two Shinkansen ticket for Kyoto-Nagoya and Nagoya-Mishima. The staff at KIX are very familiar with overseas travellers. They take care of a huge number of tourist from all over the world everyday. There are staffs who speak English and Chinese. If you want to make sure, you can write what you want on the paper and pass it. It makes both you and JR staff be easier.
Cheers,
Takeshi / JP Rail
Dear Takeshi San
Thank you so much. You are very kind. I understand now!
It looks like before we buy all our tickets, we better write in exact detail the dates, time of the base fares and Shinkansen surcharges we need. Must we tell them the train numbers too? Cos I do not see any train numbers on the HyperDia website.
What happens should we miss a train we already paid reserved tickets for? Are we able to change the time of the Shinkansen surcharges after we paid for them? For example, we already paid Shinkansen surcharges for a train tomorrow (more than 24 hrs later). But due to unforeseen circumstances, we cannot make the trip on that train. Can we call to change the date or time?
The Kansai airport JR station only sells JR tickets right? Other private train operators eg Kintetsu train tickets to Nara, we cannot buy at JR stations?
I think I finally understand that complicated train time table. Am I right to say that the Hikari train from Nagoya leaves at 8.34am, arrives at Mishima at 9.56am? Then the next Hikari train leaves Nagoya at 10.34am, arrives at Mishima at 11.56am? There are Kodama trains in between but these take much longer to get to Mishima. Do you have any idea what is the timetable of the buses that leaves from Mishima to Kawaguchiko Station?
Once again, thanks a lot!
Ms Chan
Hi Ms Chen,
If you purchase a reserved ticket and miss a train, you can get only non reserved car of later train. Your reserved fee will be expired. In this case, you may get a seat in non reserved car. Otherwise you have to stand up in the isle or passenger’s deck or wait for later train. You can’t change and can’t get any refund either.
If you are sure that you can’t get a train that you booked before departure time, you can change the train only once. But you have to show up at the station that has reserved ticket window (a.k.a. Midori-no-Madoguchi). As long as you travel in Osaka, Kyoto, and major cities, you can find Midori no Madoguchi at almost any stations.
You can’t purchase a ticket for Kintetsu at JR station. But Kintetsu train to Nara is like a commute train. You can purchase it at the vending machine just before you take a train.
Now you can find Shinkansen timetable. Your understanding is correct. As you guess, Kodama is too slow. Try to take Hikari.
At last, there is no English timetable to get Kawaguchiko from Mishima. I put Japanese site link:
http://bus.fujikyu.co.jp/line/jikokuhyo/01.html
In the first timetable, you will find “三島駅南口” and “河口湖駅”. Those mean Mishima station south exit and Kawaguchiko station.
If you click 12時～15時 or 15時～20時, you will find later timetable. Those mean 12:00 to 15:00 and 15:00 to 20:00. You may find direct service bus from Mishima to Kawaguchiko. You have to make a reservation to take those express bus. I don’t know which number can take care of this in English. But you may be able to get at the number, 0555-73-8181. This is Fuji Kyuko express bus booking. This number is shown in English site. So I’m sure they can handle it in English. But I’m not sure they book the bus for Mishima to Lake Kawaguchi. Just try to do it.
Cheers,
Takeshi / JP Rail
Dear Takeshi san
Thank you once again! Just to let you know I went through the bus website you showed me & my internet browser translated the Japanese 😉 It looks like it is a new express bus service that just started. I emailed them to ask & they very kindly replied through translation software. I was told the bus works on a reservation system but if there are unreserved seats available, we can take the bus. We can reserve online 2 months ahead of the date, then pay for the tickets on that day. The bus leaves 15 mins after the train arrives & I was told the bus terminal is about 10 mins walk away from the train drop off. So we better walk quickly that day!
I hope this information will help you and your readers 😉
Cheers!
Thanks for sharing info, Ms. Chen. 🙂
Hope you will enjoy your trip.
Cheers,
Takeshi / JP Rail
Dear Takeshi San
It is me again 😉
May I know is it necessary to buy reserved tickets for the Nozomi train from Kyoto to Nagoya on a Sunday morning in November? There is one Nozomi train every 10 minutes. A reserved seat will cost 3210Y, unreserved seat will 2480Y. I am not sure what time will we wake up in the morning & I am worried we may miss the train if we get there late. Our timing for this trip is quite flexible, so I was thinking it may be better to just buy the seat tickets at Kyoto station when we reach Kyoto station that morning. Buying a unreserved seat means we will still get to sit down, but may not be sitting together?
I will be buying the base fare for the whole journey from Kyoto to Mishima at Kansai airport. At Kansai airport, can we buy the base fare (Kyoto to Mishima), & buy only the seat fares from Nagoya to Mishima, without buying the seat fares from Kyoto to Nagoya?
Hi Ms Chen,
You can purchase all tickets at KIX. Regarding Nozomi ticket, you don’t need to purchase it at KIX. As you think, Nozomi runs very frequent and you may be able to sit down together. But there are a big demand for business travellers on Nozomi. Most of them take Nozomi at Shin-Osaka.
However you can purchase reserved ticket on the spot at Kyoto station if you want to secure your seats. You can purchase reserved ticket 10 minutes prior to departure time. Even if you don’t need to secure your seat, you can purchase unreserved seat ticket on the spot too. Your trip is very flexible. So you can decide it there and you don’t decide it at KIX. How about that?
Cheers,
Takeshi / JP Rail
Dear Takeshi san
It is me again 😉
1) Ok I understand about the reserved & non reserved seats. On a Sunday morning, are there still many business travelers travelling from Shin Osaka to Tokyo? Would it be easy to get a unreserved seat on the Nozomi from Kyoto to Nagoya?
2) I have children aged 12 years old, 14 years old & 16 years old. Will they be able to enjoy any child / student fare discounts for single trips?
3) I just heard about the single trip discount train fares given by Tokai. Are they easy to buy? Any tips on these?
4) This last point, I really need advice. I was looking at the train fares from Nagoya to Mishima on the 10th Nov morning on HyperDia. I can no longer see the Hikari trains that leave Nagoya at 8.33am & 10.33am. (I saw these trains previously) I can only see the Hikari train that leaves Nagoya at 12.33pm. Are the 8.33am & 10.33am Hikari trains all fully booked already????
Thank you!
Ms Chan
Hi Ms Chen,
1) Maybe… But it’s very hard to say.
2) Unfortunately there is no discount for students. If 12 years old kid is still elementary school student, child fare (50% off) can be applied.
3) Sorry. I have never heard it.
4) If you travel in November, you cannot find any timetable at this point. Because JR will make an annual timetable revise in October. It will be found sometime in September. In Hyperdia, booking status is not effected. Even if train is full, it’s shown.
Cheers,
Takeshi / JP Rail
Hi Takeshi,
is this itinerary possible on a one way ticket Tokyo-Hiroshima on Nozomi 103?
dep. 8:50 am; 18,040 yen unreserved; 895 km; 6 days
day 1 Tokyo-Kyoto 3 nights
day 4 Kyoto- Osaka, 2 nights
day 6 Osaka-Kobe(day trip)-Hiroshima
1. Every time I continue my journey, does it have to be on the same train that I originally bought the ticket for? For example, leaving Osaka on day 4, can I take any train or does it
have to on the same train, Nozomi 103?
2. Could you recommend another ticket/route Tokyo-Hiroshima where I could visit places around Kyoto and Osaka like Nara and Koyasan? Or what other places could I visit?
3. When buying an unreserved ticket on a Shinkansen, what are the odds of missing the train because it’s full?
Thank you,
Angel
Hi Angel,
Actually you can use one base fare ticket for this trip. But you have to purchase Shinkansen ticket one by one. So you will need…
Base fare ticket for Tokyo to Hiroshima
Shinkansen ticket for Tokyo to Kyoto
Shinkansen ticket for Shin-Osaka to Hiroshima
Another base fare ticket for Shin-Osaka to Osaka x 2
So forget about taking same Shinkansen. As long as you purchase Shinkansen ticket one by one, you can take any train. When you go to Hiroshima, try to take Sakura or Mizuho. These trains depart from Shin-Osaka. It’s much easier to get a seat than other trains from Tokyo.
And you have to purchase a ticket for Shin-Osaka to Osaka. Once you get Osaka by Tokyo-Hiroshima ticket, you can’t go back to Shin-Osaka. Shin-Osaka is located between Kyoto and Osaka.
If you make a trip to Nara and some more places, JR Pass 7 days will be almost same amount. If you purchase Shinkansen ticket one by one, total fares will be 21000 yen. It’s still cheaper than JR Pass. But it’s not much more different that what you thought.
If you have JR Pass, you can’t get Nozomi but you can get reserved seat.
Cheers,
Takeshi / JP Rail
Hi Takeshi San,
Thanks to you as my trip to Japan in last 2 weeks ago was totally smooth . I follow your advice to buy Kansai thru pass and it was really useful for us . Thanks a lot and keep it up .
With regards,
Traveller
Hi Traveller,
I’m happy to hear that 🙂
Thank you for sharing your experience.
Cheers,
Takeshi / JP Rail
Hi Takeshi,
Great Website!
I want to purchase multiple single tickets (ie. Osaka to Tokyo). Am I able to book these before arriving in Japan or can I only buy these when I arrive in Japan?
If only available to buy in Japan, would there be a risk of availability if I was to book 2 days before travel?
Kind regards,
Masoom.
Hi Masoom,
You can’t book and purchase from outside of Japan. However train (Shinkansen) run very frequently between Tokyo and Shin-Osaka. Train comes every 5 to 10 minutes and easy to book.
http://english.jr-central.co.jp/info/timetable/_pdf/westbound.pdf
http://english.jr-central.co.jp/info/timetable/_pdf/eastbound.pdf
And as long as you don’t travel in the peak season, booking is not a big issue.
Cheers,
Takeshi / JP Rail
Hi Takeshu San,
I am travelling from Tokyo to Osaka via Matsumoto, and Kanazawa.
Can I use the base ticket from Tokyo to Osaka to travel to these city?
Is the single tiket from Tokyo to Osaka valid on tses route?
Cheers,
Chay
Hi Chay,
You can’t use Tokyo-Osaka direct ticket for your route. Base fare is completely different. When you purchase a ticket, you have to mention Tokyo-Osaka via Matsumoto and Kanazawa. Otherwise your ticket will be expired.
Cheers,
Takeshi / JP Rail
Hello,
we are planning to visit osaka on june 1-8. this will be our ist trip to japan. kindly help us on how to go about in our travel.
this is our itinerary:
june 1 arrive at kansai airport – tennoji miyako hotel
june 2 from tennoji miyako hotel want to experience city tour on our own
june 3 from hotel to kyoto
june 4 from hotle to kobe
june 5 from hotel to kyoto
june 6 from hotel to mt fuji
june 7 from hotel to nara
so do we need to buy jr pass? kindly help us decide. thank you. please help us on what transportation do we need to take
Hi Maria,
First of all, I would like to make sure you are okay to go to Fuji as day trip from Osaka. Please see the link below:
https://jprail.com/destinations/chubu-area/how-to-use-japan-rail-pass-to-go-to-mt-fuji.html
There are many places to see Mt. Fuji. I think Hakone is the easiest and nearest point from Osaka. But if you go there, you will spend at least 4 hours for one way. So total trip time is at least 10 hours.
If you are okay with it, JR Pass 7 days gives you a good deal. Otherwise you have to compare several deals in Kansai area. Before you will pick up, you have to make sure where you will go. For example, when you go to Kyoto, which area/spot/temple you will go. After that you will see how many trips by train you will have. And then you can compare single fare and deal.
I have wrote about some deals in Kansai area at the following links:
https://jprail.com/destinations/kansai-area/guide-to-take-trains-in-kyoto-how-to-choose-the-best-route-by-train-to-get-the-major-spots.html
https://jprail.com/destinations/kansai-area/guide-to-take-trains-in-osaka-how-to-choose-the-best-route-by-train-to-get-the-major-spots.html
https://jprail.com/travel-informations/other-rail-passes/rail-pass-for-visitors/how-to-choose-discount-railway-ticket-and-pass-in-kansai-area.html
Cheers,
Takeshi / JP Rail
First I want to thank you for this useful website…
I must come to Japan in june, and my itinerary would be like this, please correct me if I don’t choose the best option…
I’ll be coming from South Korea by ferry boat on june 7, with an arrival in Fukuoka around 1pm..
June 8 Train Hakata-Hiroshima – (Hiroshima visit)
June 9 (Miyajima visit)
June 10 Train Hiroshima-Kurashiki – (Kurashiki visit)
So, for these 2 trains on 8 and 10 of june, I can take one single ticket Hakata-Kurashiki, as I can use it on 4 days (more than 400 km), for the price of 10810 yens per adult (based on the price of a Hakata-Fukuyama-Kurashiki departure at 10am09, without reserved seat…).
June 11 Train Kurashiki-Okayama (I have to buy the ticket, not having yet my 4 days Kansai WIDE Area Pass) – (Okayama visit) – Train Okayama-Osaka
June 12 (Osaka visit)
June 13 Train Osaka-Nara – (Nara visit) – Train Nara-Kyoto
June 14 Train Kyoto-Hikone – (Hikone visit) – Train Hikone-Kyoto
So, for these 5 train trips from june 11 to 14, from Okayama to Kyoto… I can take a 4 days Kansai WIDE Area Pass, of 7000 yens per adult. I can purchase it directly at JR-WEST Ticket Office in Okayama on june 11, with a passport and a printed out e-ticket with my next flight from Tokyo to Bali-Indonesia… A “departure card” is also mentionned for purchasing the pass: what is it exactly?
June 15
June 16
June 17
June 18 4 days in Kyoto and Kyoto area… Is there a pass to travel in the area ?
June 19 Train Kyoto-Odawara – (Hakone visit) – Train Odawara-Tokyo
So, for these 2 trains, I can take one single ticket Kyoto-Tokyo, for the price of 12710 yens per adult (based on the price of a Kyoto-Tokyo train without reserved seat…).
June 20
June 21
June 22
June 23
June 24 5 days in Tokyo and Tokyo area… Is there a pass to travel in the area ?
And last questions:
Is it possible to leave heavy luggages in Okayama train station for one day ? And in Nara train station ? And in Odawara train station ? And what price is it ? Per luggage ? Per weight ?
Thank you in advance for your answers.
Hervé Dépagne from France.
Hi Hervé,
Your plan is very organized. That is perfect. I just want to make sure that you will take Shinkasen for long transfer, such as Hakata-Hiroshima, Kyot0-Odawara. Is it correct? I think you understand that limited express surcharge is different. You have to pay for each train separately.
About luggage, both Nara and Okayama have coin locker and baggage service. I don’t know exact price. But it usually costs around 500 to 1000 yenb per luggage.
Cheers,
Takeshi / JP Rail
Thank you for your answer !
“I think you understand that limited express surcharge is different. You have to pay for each train separately.”
No, in fact, I’m not sure I understand what you mean…
So what price would it be to make the Hakata-Kurashiki route:
Hakata-Hiroshima (lot of morning shinkansen trains…) and Hiroshima-Kurashiki (morning train 8.18-9.40: Hiroshima-Fukuyama with SHINKANSEN SAKURA 540 and Fukuyama-Kurashiki with JR Sanyo Line) ?
For these trains, I can take one single ticket Hakata-Kurashiki ?
And what price would it be to make the Kyoto-Tokyo route:
Kyoto-Odawara (morning train 8.29-10.35 am with SHINKANSEN HIKARI 512) and Odawara-Tokyo (lot of evening shinkansen trains…) ?
For these 2 trains, I can take one single ticket Kyoto-Tokyo ?
Cheers,
Herve.
Hi Hervé,
You are right about Hakata-Kurashiki.
About Kyoto-Odawara-Tokyo, you may purchase one base fare ticket and two Shinkansen surcharge for Kyoto-Odawara and Odawara-Tokyo.
Cheers,
Takeshi / JP Rail
Hi again,
I don’t understand why it’s different between Hakata-(Hiroshima)-Kurashiki and Kyoto-(Odawara)-Tokyo…
Is it because I make Kyoto-(Odawara)-Tokyo on one same day, that I have to purchase one base fare ticket and two Shinkansen surcharge for Kyoto-Odawara and Odawara-Tokyo ?
I wouldn’t have to also purchase one base fare ticket and two Shinkansen surcharge for Hakata-Hiroshima and Hiroshima-Fukuyama ? Because I’m making Hakata-Fukuyama (and Kurashiki) on two different days ? I’m sorru, but it’s not very clear for me…
Cheers,
Herve.
Hi Hervé,
Please let me tell you what you need to purchase.
Base fare ticket
Hakata-Kurashiki
Kyoto-Tokyo
Shinkanse surcharge ticket
Hakata-Hiroshima
Hiroshima-Fukuyama
Kyoto-Odawara
Odawara-Tokyo
*You will take local train from Fukuyama to Kurashiki.
Is there still something wrong?
Cheers,
Takeshi / JP Rail
Hello Takeshi-san,
Sorry to bother you, can you give your opinion for my itinerary? I’m planning go to Japan around Nov.
1.Centrair-Tsumago-Matsumoto
2.Matsumoto-Kamikochi-Takayama
3.Takayama
4.Takayama-Shirakawa-go-Kanazawa
5.Kanazawa
6.Kanazawa-Hikone-Omihachiman
7.Omihachiman-Kyoto (Kiyomizu-Gion)
8.Osaka (Sakai-Tennoji-Minami)
9.Osaka-Kurashiki-Himeji
10.Takeda-Kinosaki
11.Kinosaki-Arashiyama-Fushimi inari-Nagoya
12.Centrair
For Nagoya to Matsumoto I will use local line, so I must buy Nagoya-Matsumoto or Nagoya-Nagiso and Nagiso-Matsumoto?
For Kanazawa to Hikone, I also will use local line (I’m cheap) and based on Hyperdia, less than 5mins to transfer train. With little time, can I catch up for the next train? and also I must buy ticket when transfer trains or can buy directly from Kanazawa?
I will use JR Wide Pass from Kyoto on day8-day11, more cheaper right? Flight around 9am so I must stay at Nagoya the day before.
At day 11, I still can use JR wide pass so I can use that until Maibara. Then from Maibara to Nagoya, I need to get out from station and back again to buy ticket to Nagoya or any other way?
Beside JR Wide Pass, what another Pass I must buy? Since I also explore Osaka for a day, Osaka Unlimited Pass,Enjoy Eco Card,or ICOCA?
Thank you.
Hi Lau,
Regarding single ticket, you will be able to use one ticket. Please see the following post to get the details:
https://jprail.com/travel-informations/other-rail-passes/for-non-jr-pass-travellers-guide-to-use-jr-single-ticket-basic-rules-validity-and-stopover.html
For example, Nagoya-Matsumoto is more than 100km. So you can use just one ticket and you can stopover at Tsugamo.
You can use same thing to go to Kyoto from Kanazawa via Oumi-Hachiman.
You can purchase ticket in advance. So you don’t need to exit the station at Maibara. You can purchase it Fushimi-Inari.
If you start Wide Area Pass on day 8, I don’t think you need to purchase other deals. Most of trips will be covered by Wide Area Pass.
https://jprail.com/destinations/kansai-area/guide-to-take-trains-in-osaka-how-to-choose-the-best-route-by-train-to-get-the-major-spots.html
Cheers,
Takeshi / JP Rail
So, I can buy Kanazawa-Kyoto ticket with stop at Hikone and Omihachiman for a night because the distance around 200km?
I still confuse about can not stop at the same area. Also when I put Kanazawa-Hikone and Kanazawa-Kyoto (before read your post), the fare have different result, like 3260 and 3890 with the same local train.
Hi Lau,
It is very complicated to tell you about “Area”. But as long as you don’t make a stopover in same city, it’s okay.
In this case, actually you can use one single ticket from Kanazawa to Osaka with stopover at Hikone, Omihachiman and Kyoto. Because the ticket’s validity is 3 days.
If you purchase ticket separately, like Kanazawa to Hkone, Hikone to Omihachiman, Omi-Hachiman to Kyoto and Kyoto to Osaka, it will be more expensive than one single ticket.
Cheers,
Takeshi / JP Rail
oh, okay. I confused about that part and understand know. Hope you don’t mind if I ask again someday.
Thanks to answer my question. 🙂
No problem, Lau.
Cheers,
Takeshi / JP Rail
Hello Takeshisan,
just want to drop by that I had been in Japan and back again without worried to much about train transportation. This site really helpful.
Hope someday I can go bak to Japan again. 🙂
I know there is a discount for children on single fare tickets. Do you know the discount amount and the age limit? Also, is discount available on Green Car or only on Ordinary. Thank you for your very useful website. I suggest it to our clients all the time.
HI Elaine,
Please read the following link:
http://www.jreast.co.jp/e/ticket/types.html
This is JR East but all JR companies use same policy.
Cheers,
Takeshi / JP Rail
Takeshi san,
I note on the JRP website that the pass is not valid for “NOZOMI” and “MIZUHO” trains on the Tokaido, Sanyo and Kyushu Shinkansen lines. I checked for trains on the Hyperdia website and all it shows me are Nozomi trains between Narita and Kyoto. So buying a 14-day JRP is no good for me. Am I wrong? (Please see my previous email to you.)
Thank you.
Marina
Hi Marina,
Even though you can’t take Nozomi to Kyoto from Tokyo, JR Pass still work for your trip. Please see the link below:
http://english.jr-central.co.jp/info/timetable/_pdf/westbound.pdf
http://english.jr-central.co.jp/info/timetable/_pdf/eastbound.pdf
Nozomi is the fastest and most frequent. However Hikari is okay. It runs mostly twice an hour and a bit slower than Nozomi. I think it’s not a big issue for your trip. If you purchase single fare, you can take Nozomi. But Nozomi does not stop at Odawara where is the nearest station to Hakone. So you need to take Hikari or Kodama.
When you search train schedule at Hyperdia, don’t check it at “NOZOMI / MIZUHO / HAYABUSA (SHINKANSEN)”. You will find a perfect schedule for JR Pass user. If you need more info about how to use Hyperdia, please see the following link:
https://jprail.com/travel-informations/basic-informations/timetable-and-reservation/hyperdia-perfect-guide-train-timetable-and-route-search-engine.html
Cheers,
Takeshi / JP Rail