This article was written by the NIPPON VISA & LIFE editorial team based on information from public organizations such as the national government and local governments. Rules and fees may differ depending on the city, ward, town or village where you live.
To ride the shinkansen (bullet train) or a limited express train in Japan, you need 2 tickets: a “basic fare ticket” (乗車券, joshaken) and a “limited express ticket” (特急券, tokkyuken). For the limited express ticket, you choose between a “reserved seat,” where your seat is decided in advance, and a “non-reserved seat,” where you sit in any empty seat. Reserved seats go on sale at 10:00, 1 month before the day you travel.
This article explains how to ride JR (Japan Railways) shinkansen and limited express trains. For how to ride ordinary trains and how to use IC transit cards, see How to Ride Trains in Japan and Use IC Transit Cards: Buying Tickets, Going Through Ticket Gates, Topping Up, and When You Lose Your Card.
The Short Answer: The Steps Before You Ride
- Decide which train and which section (from which station to which station) you will ride
- Choose a reserved seat or a non-reserved seat (some trains have no non-reserved seats)
- Buy your tickets (at a station ticket office, a reserved-seat ticket machine, or JR’s online reservation services)
- At the ticket gate, insert the basic fare ticket and the limited express ticket together, 2 tickets at once
- For a reserved seat, sit in the car number and seat written on your ticket. For a non-reserved seat, sit in any empty seat in a non-reserved car
(Sources: JR East “Even Your First Time Is Easy! How to Go Through Shinkansen Transfer Gates”, JR Central “Limited Express Tickets (Ticket Combinations When Using Limited Express Trains)”, JR Central “Ticket Sale Dates”)
You Need 2 Tickets: The Basic Fare Ticket and the Limited Express Ticket
| Ticket | What it is for |
|---|---|
| Basic fare ticket | The fare for the section you ride (from which station to which station) |
| Limited express ticket | The charge for riding the shinkansen or a limited express train. There are reserved-seat limited express tickets and non-reserved-seat limited express tickets |
| Green ticket | Needed together with the limited express ticket when you ride a Green Car (a car of a higher class than ordinary cars) |
With JR’s online reservation services, some services let you ride with a registered IC transit card or a QR code on your smartphone, without picking up paper tickets.
(Sources: JR East “Even Your First Time Is Easy! How to Go Through Shinkansen Transfer Gates”, JR Central “Limited Express Tickets (Ticket Combinations When Using Limited Express Trains)”)
The Differences Between Reserved Seats, Non-reserved Seats and Green Cars
| Type of seat | Seat | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Reserved seat (指定席, shiteiseki) | Your seat is decided when you buy the ticket. You can sit in that seat | Differs by season (see the table below) |
| Non-reserved seat (自由席, jiyuseki) | No seat is decided. Sit in any empty seat in a non-reserved car. When it is crowded, you may not be able to sit | 530 yen cheaper than a reserved-seat limited express ticket in the regular season. The same all year |
| Green Car (グリーン車, guriinsha) | A reserved seat in a higher-class car | A Green ticket is needed in addition to the basic fare ticket and the limited express ticket |
The price of a reserved-seat limited express ticket may change depending on when you travel. The JR Central example is as follows.
| Season (JR Central example) | Price of a reserved-seat limited express ticket |
|---|---|
| Peak season (the most crowded period) | 400 yen more than the regular season |
| Busy season (crowded period) | 200 yen more than the regular season |
| Regular season | The basic price |
| Off-peak season (less crowded period) | 200 yen less than the regular season |
Depending on the company and the train, the seasons may be divided differently, or the price may be the same all year. When you buy, check JR’s website or ask at the station.
(Sources: JR Central “Limited Express Tickets (Ticket Combinations When Using Limited Express Trains)”, JR East “Which Shinkansen Trains Have Non-reserved Seats? The Differences Between Non-reserved and Reserved Seats, Including Prices”)
Some Trains Have No Non-reserved Seats
- Some shinkansen, such as the Tohoku Shinkansen “Hayabusa” (はやぶさ), have no non-reserved seats
- During Golden Week, Obon, the year-end and New Year holidays and other busy periods, the number of non-reserved cars may be reduced, or all seats may become reserved. For example, the Tokaido and Sanyo Shinkansen “Nozomi” (のぞみ) becomes all reserved seats during crowded periods (even during those periods, “Hikari” (ひかり), “Kodama” (こだま) and other trains have non-reserved seats)
- Some limited express trains on conventional lines (lines that are not the shinkansen) also have all reserved seats. Some JR East limited express trains also sell a “seat-unspecified ticket” (座席未指定券, zaseki mishitei ken) that lets you ride without a specific seat
If you ride an all-reserved “Nozomi” with a non-reserved-seat limited express ticket, you cannot sit in a seat and will have to use the deck (the space near the doors of each car) or a similar area. Before you ride, check the timetable or JR’s website.
(Sources: JR East “Which Shinkansen Trains Have Non-reserved Seats? The Differences Between Non-reserved and Reserved Seats, Including Prices”, JR Central “Nozomi All-Reserved Seating During Peak Periods on the Tokaido and Sanyo Shinkansen”, JR East “What Kind of Limited Express Ticket Do I Need to Use an All-Reserved Limited Express Train on a Conventional Line?”)
How to Buy Tickets
When Can I Buy?
Reserved-seat tickets go on sale at 10:00 on the same date 1 month before the day the train leaves its starting station. Example: for a train on April 1, they go on sale at 10:00 on March 1. If the previous month does not have the same date (for example, March 31), the sale date is the 1st of that month (for example, March 1).
During crowded periods, buying early makes it easier to get a seat. Some online services, such as JR Central’s “smart EX” (スマートEX) and “Express Reservation” (エクスプレス予約, Ekusupuresu Yoyaku), let you reserve from 1 year before the day you travel (conditions apply).
(Sources: JR Central “Ticket Sale Dates”, JR East “From When Can I Buy Reserved-Seat Tickets and Other Tickets?”, JR Central “Nozomi All-Reserved Seating During Peak Periods on the Tokaido and Sanyo Shinkansen”)
Where Can I Buy?
- Station ticket offices (such as the “Midori no Madoguchi” (みどりの窓口) ticket office): Tell the staff the day, time, section, number of people and type of seat (reserved or non-reserved)
- Reserved-seat ticket machines: Ticket machines at stations that can also sell reserved seats. You can choose the train and seat on the screen
- JR’s online reservation services: “Eki-net” (えきねっと, JR East), “smart EX” (スマートEX) and “Express Reservation” (エクスプレス予約) (Tokaido, Sanyo and Kyushu Shinkansen), “e5489” (JR West), “JR Kyushu Net Reservation” (JR九州ネット予約) and others. Membership registration is required
(Sources: JR Central “Nozomi All-Reserved Seating During Peak Periods on the Tokaido and Sanyo Shinkansen” Frequently Asked Questions, JR East “Which Shinkansen Trains Have Non-reserved Seats? The Differences Between Non-reserved and Reserved Seats, Including Prices”)
A Service That Lets You Ride Non-reserved Seats with Suica (JR East)
JR East shinkansen have a service called “Touch de Go! Shinkansen” (タッチでGo!新幹線). If you register an IC transit card such as Mobile Suica or Suica in advance, you can ride in the non-reserved seats of the shinkansen just by touching the card on the automatic ticket gate.
How to Go Through the Ticket Gates and Board
- With paper tickets, insert the basic fare ticket and the limited express ticket into the automatic ticket gate together, 2 tickets at once. The tickets come out of the gate, so do not forget to take them
- Stations where you change from a conventional line to the shinkansen have “shinkansen transfer gates.” If you came on the conventional line using an IC transit card, insert your shinkansen tickets (basic fare ticket and limited express ticket) and touch your IC card
- For a reserved seat, look at the “car number” and “seat number” written on your ticket and sit there
- For a non-reserved seat, sit in any empty seat in a non-reserved car
(Sources: JR East “Even Your First Time Is Easy! How to Go Through Shinkansen Transfer Gates”)
Children’s Fares
| Category | Age | Fare |
|---|---|---|
| Adult | 12 and older (a 12-year-old still in elementary school counts as a “child”) | Adult fare |
| Child | 6 to under 12 (a 6-year-old who has not yet started elementary school counts as an “infant”) | Basic fare tickets, limited express tickets and reserved-seat tickets are half the adult price. Green tickets are the same price as for adults |
| Infant | 1 to under 6 | Free (except in the cases below) |
| Baby | Under 1 | Free (except in the cases below) |
Even infants and babies need a “child” fare in the following cases.
- When 1 adult (or child) travels with more than 2 infants (from the 3rd infant)
- When an infant or baby uses a reserved seat or Green Car seat (except non-reserved Green Car seats) or similar on their own
- When an infant travels alone
(Sources: JR Central “Adults and Children”)
When You Ride with Large Luggage (Suitcases and Similar)
On the Tokaido, Sanyo, Kyushu and Nishi-Kyushu Shinkansen, the rules depend on the size of your luggage (the total of its length, width and height).
| Total of the 3 sides of the luggage | Bringing it on board |
|---|---|
| Up to 160cm | You can bring it without a reservation (luggage racks, at your feet, or luggage areas on the deck) |
| Over 160cm and up to 250cm (“oversized baggage”) | You need to reserve a “seat with an oversized baggage area.” There is no extra charge |
| Over 250cm | You cannot bring it on the train |
- A “seat with an oversized baggage area” (特大荷物スペースつき座席, tokudai nimotsu supesu tsuki zaseki) is the last row of seats in some reserved-seat cars. You can put your luggage in the space behind the seat
- You can reserve one online, at a reserved-seat ticket machine (after choosing the train, choose “seat with an oversized baggage area”), or at a station ticket office (tell the staff you will bring oversized baggage)
- If you bring oversized baggage without a reservation, a fee of 1,000 yen is charged
- You cannot bring oversized baggage into non-reserved cars
- Sports equipment, musical instruments, wheelchairs, strollers and similar items do not need a reservation, regardless of size
(Sources: JR Central “Bringing Oversized Baggage onto the Tokaido, Sanyo, Kyushu and Nishi-Kyushu Shinkansen”)
Troubles and Frequently Asked Questions
I missed the train I reserved. What happens?
A reserved-seat limited express ticket can no longer be used once the reserved train has departed, and it cannot be changed to another train or refunded. However, on the same day and for the same section, you can ride in the non-reserved seats of a later train. On trains where all seats are reserved, you usually cannot sit and will have to stand (standing room). However, on some JR East limited express trains such as the “Hitachi” (ひたち), “Azusa” (あずさ) and “Odoriko” (踊り子), you can use an empty seat in an ordinary car of a later limited express train with the same charge. Discount tickets may be handled differently, so check the conditions when you buy.
(Sources: JR East “If I Miss the Train I Reserved, Can I Change or Get a Refund?”, JR Central “Nozomi All-Reserved Seating During Peak Periods on the Tokaido and Sanyo Shinkansen” Frequently Asked Questions)
Can I get off at a station along the way and get back on?
A limited express ticket can no longer be used once you go outside the ticket gates at a station along the way. With a basic fare ticket, you may be able to get off at stations along the way within the set rules (stopover), but some tickets, such as those for short sections, do not allow stopovers. Going to a toilet or shop inside the station without going outside the ticket gates does not count as a stopover.
Can I use the “JAPAN RAIL PASS” for foreign tourists?
The JAPAN RAIL PASS (ジャパン・レール・パス) is a pass for foreign tourists who come to Japan from overseas for sightseeing. It is for people who received a “Temporary Visitor” stamp or sticker in their passport when entering Japan, and people who entered under any other status cannot receive it. If you live in Japan and work or study here, use ordinary tickets or JR’s online reservation services.
(Sources: JAPAN RAIL PASS “Eligibility for use”)
I left something on the train
For how to search for items left on the shinkansen or at a station, see When You Lose or Leave Something Behind in Japan: How to Search for Items Lost at Stations, on Trains, Buses and Taxis, or on the Street, and Filing a Lost Property Report.
For an overview of transportation in Japan, see The Basics of Transportation in Japan: Walking, Trains, Buses, Bicycles, Driving a Car, and When There Is a Traffic Accident.
Primary Sources Used for This Article
- JR Central “Limited Express Tickets (Ticket Combinations When Using Limited Express Trains)”
- JR Central “Ticket Sale Dates”
- JR Central “Adults and Children”
- JR Central “Nozomi All-Reserved Seating During Peak Periods on the Tokaido and Sanyo Shinkansen”
- JR Central “Bringing Oversized Baggage onto the Tokaido, Sanyo, Kyushu and Nishi-Kyushu Shinkansen”
- JR East “Even Your First Time Is Easy! How to Go Through Shinkansen Transfer Gates”
- JR East “Which Shinkansen Trains Have Non-reserved Seats? The Differences Between Non-reserved and Reserved Seats, Including Prices”
- JR East “Can You Make a Stopover on the Shinkansen? Points to Note and Rules for Basic Fare Ticket Refunds”
- JR East “From When Can I Buy Reserved-Seat Tickets and Other Tickets?”
- JR East “If I Miss the Train I Reserved, Can I Change or Get a Refund?”
- JR East “What Kind of Limited Express Ticket Do I Need to Use an All-Reserved Limited Express Train on a Conventional Line?”
- JAPAN RAIL PASS “Eligibility for use”
This article is a translation of the original Japanese version.
