#traveling in japan

[redsamuraiii]

9 Things About Trains in Japan by The Smart Local Japan

Pic by hss.ogura.hiro

1. Seats Can Be Rotated

Pic by shika_crash/

If you have motion sickness from facing the opposite direction of the train movement, you can rotate. 

Or if you commute in a group of four, you can rotate to face each other. Just remember to talk softly.

2. Some Trains Have Open Doors Button

Pic by Free Materials

Some trains have buttons at the side of the door, both outside and inside the train to open the doors manually.

I remember standing like an idiot waiting for the door to open until a salaryman helped to push the button. 😂

3. Stack your tickets when transferring from local train to Shinkansen

Pic by Kodomo Okage Tetsudō

When alighting from local train to the Shinkansen gantry, stack both your local train and Shinkansen tickets on top of each other and insert into the gantry.

Retrieve them once you passed the gantry. If you use prepaid cards like Suica or Pasmo, put in the Shinkansen ticket first and tap your card on the panel.

4. Eating in Trains

Pic by Hantani Sadahiko 

You can eat in Shinkansen and Express trains but not in local and rapid trains. There’s a reason why Japanese trains are super clean.

From personal experience in taking local trains, drinking is fine but eating is not, especially if the food has a strong smell.    

5. 5 Types of Trains

Pic by Japan Guide

Bullet Train (Shinkansen) - goes straight to destination. 

Limited Express (Tokkyu) - stops at 1-2 stations along the way.

Express (Kyuko) - stops at 2-3 stations along the way. 

Rapid (Kaisoku) - stops at every few stations (3-5 stations) along the way.

Local (Futsu) - stops at every station like the typical metro.

They are rough estimates as to how many stops they make along the way, depending on which line and how far is it traveling.

I took limited express from Kansai Airport to Shiga Prefecture where my hotel is, it stops at Osaka and Kyoto, the busy stations.

6. Types of Seats

Pic by robin inizan

On the shinkansen and limited express trains, seats are sorted into 4 categories:

Reserved (Shitei Seki) - guarantee you a seat

Unreserved (Jiyu Seki) - sit anywhere in the unreserved cars

Green Car (Gurin Sha) - more space and leg room

Gran Class - with gourmet meals

Pricing are different for each. You may read the article here to know more.

7. Sightseeing Trains

Pic by Hagi Tourism Association Official Site

While the 5 trains mentioned above is to get you from point A to B, there is a luxury train for you to admire the scenery and is not as crowded.

Because the train takes longer travel time than the 5 trains above and it does not go to the cities where crowds of officer workers usually go.

This the train where you can eat and drink to your heart content. Different prefecture has different luxury trains which you need to find out.

8. One Cabin Train

Pic by hss.ogura.hiro

The One Man Train (Wanman Ressha) that you often see in Studio Ghibli type of anime taking place at the countryside.

They can be found on less traveled path or train line leading elsewhere from the usual tourist attractions and big cities.

There is no train conductor to collect your ticket so you have to deposit the ticket into the collection box near the exit.

9. Tickets are collected after the ride

Pic by y.y_official

To prevent passengers from reusing their tickets, used tickets are collected after your ride at the alighting station.

You can keep the stub as a souvenir but you have to inform the station staff so they will stamp or punch a hole to prevent reusing the ticket.

[fly-the-pattern]

The dino benches are super cute. The angle is a little weird, though. And there's other seating if you're scared of dinosaurs. Looks like there's non-dino flat benches in the back on the right and a raised stone bench / retaining wall area on the left with grass and trees. I'm a little worried that there's no arm rests on any of the seating areas, though. It might be difficult for people with mobility issues to stand back up. Super cute for in front of a dino museum, though! And I totally want one.

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[fujifingerz]

Her name was Nao and she was feeling sea sick but also really sad because she was headed back to college which was far away from her home...My japanese isn't very good...

I sat with her for a while and ended up asking a staff member for help. It was really bad weather that day, the sea was choppy so that was making her sea sickness worse...It was raining heavily with strong winds, and the staff member suggested she went out on the deck of the boat for some fresh air but it was TERRIBLE weather out there so I went with her. she ended up feeling better! and we waved goodbye once we got to our destination! Nao, I hope you're doing alright out there!

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Takachiko Gorge | lifewithelliott

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Mount Fuji, Japan by maruone

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