You will be able to travel economically and practically with the Japan Rail Pass so that you have access to the most important Japanese attractions. There are some restrictions so please follow these to keep your pass valid.
Japan Rail Pass Validity:
You will be able to use all JR railway network trains with the Japan Rail Pass. These include the JR Shikoku, JR Central, JR Hokkaido, JR East, JR West and JR Kyushu networks.
You will also have access to the express and local trains, but the Shinkansen trains (bullet trains) are the fastest and have connections to the main Japanese cities.
The Rail Pass is also valid on:
- The JR Bus and the JR Miyajima Ferry
- The monorails connecting Hamamatsucho Station and Haneda Airport can also be used with your pass.
- You can take the “Kodama” and “Hikari” lines, which travel the same routes but stop at more stations. There is not that much of a time differences between the lines – about 20 minutes between the “Nozomi” and “Hikari” Shinkansens.
- You can take night trains but only using the regular standard (i.e not sleeper, private or special wagons)
Japan Rail Pass Restrictions
- You do not have access to the private rail lines with the Japan Rail Pass
- The fastest Shinkansen trains, Nozomi and Mizuho, are not covered by the pass on their own. Since 1 October 2023 you can still ride them by buying an [ONLY WITH JAPAN RAIL PASS] NOZOMI MIZUHO Ticket before you board, which is sold at JR ticket offices, reserved seat machines and Travel Service Centers in Japan. It has to be bought for each trip and used together with a valid pass.
- The JR Hakata-Pusan ferry to get to Korea is not valid with this pass.
- You will need to buy tickets to travel on the Odakyu trains, which are in the Kanto region, and the Kintetsu trains within the Kansai region.
- You cannot use the sleeper, private or special compartment wagons. You will need to pay extra for these.
If the JR train uses another company during your journey, your pass becomes invalid and you will need to pay for that section. This can be done onboard or before getting the train. This happens when travelling from Shinjuku/Ikebukuro to Nikko, where there are JR stations in Nikko and Tokyo. From Kurihashi, the train uses the Tobu tracks. You only pay for the non-JR section, so the trip still works out cheaper than buying the whole journey outright. Check the current fare at the station, as these change.
