Getting Around
Tokyo to Kyoto: Shinkansen, Night Bus or Plane?
The Shinkansen is the right answer for almost everyone: 2 hours 15 minutes, about 14,000 JPY, no check-in. Here is what the…
Travel style: Rail travel
Destination Guides
Hiroshima and Miyajima in One Day
A morning that will stay with you and an afternoon on one of Japan's most beautiful islands. How to fit both into…
Plan Your Trip
14 Days in Japan: Getting Past Tokyo, Kyoto and Osaka
Two weeks is enough to leave the golden route and still see it. A rail-based loop through Kanazawa, Takayama and Hiroshima that…
Getting Around
Domestic Flights: When Flying Beats the Shinkansen
The train wins as far as Hiroshima. Past that, flying is faster and often cheaper — especially with the foreign-visitor fares that…
Getting Around
Kansai Transport: Which Pass for Which Trip
Kyoto is a bus city, Osaka is a subway city, and the fastest train between them is not the one you would…
Getting Around
Tokyo Trains Explained: JR, Metro, Toei and the Private Lines
Four operators, thirty-odd lines and the world's busiest station. You only need six lines to see Tokyo — here they are, plus…
Getting Around
How to Read a Japanese Train Timetable, Sign and Platform
Station codes, colour bars, the four kinds of train that stop at different stations, and the one column of a timetable that…
Getting Around
Regional Rail Passes: The 12 That Actually Save Money
Since the national pass got expensive, the regional ones are where the value moved. Twelve passes, what each covers, and the trip…
Getting Around
Is the Japan Rail Pass Worth It? Run the Numbers First
The Japan Rail Pass rose about 70 per cent in late 2023, and the old advice stopped being true. Three real itineraries,…
Getting Around
How to Ride the Shinkansen Without Speaking Japanese
Buying the ticket is the easy part. This is what happens between the ticket machine and your seat, including the two gates…