Japan Rail Pass NowAustralia's No.1 Choice
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Japan Rail Pass NowAustralia's No.1 Choice
Most visitors pass through Nagoya rather than stop in it, which is fair enough, but it is worth knowing the station because it is the change point for two of the best detours in central Japan.
The station sits under the JR Central Towers, a pair of office and hotel blocks that were among the tallest station buildings in the world when they opened. You cannot miss it.
This is the main reason to care about Nagoya. The limited express Hida runs from here up the Kiso valley to Takayama in about two and a half hours, and it is one of the prettiest train journeys in the country, following the river through the mountains.
It is fully covered by a Japan Rail Pass, including the reserved seat. Sit on the right hand side heading north for the best of the river views.
From Takayama, buses carry on to the thatched farmhouses at Shirakawago. Those buses are not covered by the pass and do need booking ahead in peak season.
The Ise Grand Shrine is the most important shrine in Japan and it is about ninety minutes from Nagoya. The quickest route is the Kintetsu line, which is a private railway and not covered by your pass. There is a JR route via Taki which is covered but slower and less frequent.
The pass covers the Shinkansen, the Hida to Takayama, and the JR lines locally. It does not cover the Kintetsu to Ise, the Meitetsu to the airport or the Nagoya subway.
Nagoya is a big station but a legible one. The Shinkansen platforms are on the western side behind their own gates, the conventional JR lines run through the middle, and the private railways sit at either end. The towers above hold a department store, a hotel and a lot of restaurants.
Allow ten minutes between a Shinkansen arrival and a Hida departure and you will be fine, though the Hida can leave from a platform that takes a few minutes to reach.
Nagoya takes its food seriously and the station reflects it. Kishimen, the flat local udon, is sold from stands on several platforms and is genuinely good, particularly in winter. Hitsumabushi, grilled eel over rice, is the other local speciality and there are restaurants in the towers that do it properly.
Station bento here often feature eel or miso katsu, both worth trying.
If you are booking individual journeys rather than using a pass, these are the routes that start here.
And the longer route guides, with times, seat tips and what to see when you arrive:
For a half day, yes. Nagoya Castle, the Toyota Commemorative Museum and the Atsuta Shrine are all reachable from the station. Most people use it as a change point rather than a destination.
Reserved seats are worth having in autumn and over holidays, when it fills. With a rail pass the reservation costs nothing, so book it at the ticket office when you arrive.
About 100 minutes on a Nozomi, or around two hours on a Hikari, which is the one included in a standard rail pass.
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