Riding the Rail
My mother says I rode a train at a really young age. Obviously I was too young to remember because I don’t recall a train ride until my brother’s wedding about 3 years ago. I’m not doubting her but she also says I’ve been on the subway and I don’t remember that, either. My first recollection of a subway/metro infrastructure is when I lived in the northern part of Virginia about 3 years ago… although there is that one time on the metro in Canada with fellow members of the Crossmen Drum and Bugle Corps. That particular memory, however, is probably better left unexpressed (smile).
So why do I wax on (and on, and on) about rail systems? Because it’s probably one of the first things an experienced Japan traveler will tell you about. For a country boasting a population of 127,288,416 and spread out over approximately 140,000 square miles, transportation in Japan is “key”! Check out this excerpt I borrowed from Wikipedia:
Japan comprises over 3,000 islands[5] making it an archipelago. The four largest islands are Honshū, Hokkaidō, Kyūshū and Shikoku, together accounting for 97% of Japan’s land area. Most of the islands are mountainous, many volcanic; for example, Japan’s highest peak, Mount Fuji, is a volcano. Japan has the world’s tenth largest population, with about 128 million people. The Greater Tokyo Area, which includes the de facto capital city of Tokyo and several surrounding prefectures, is the largest metropolitan area in the world, with over 30 million residents.
Japan is huge and it does an awesome job with it’s multitudes of transportation systems. While they have many buses, subways, metro trains and metro rails, the focus we want to take today is the Japan Rail System, more specifically the JAPAN RAIL PASS.
As a visitor to Japan, many of us will automatically gravitate towards Tokyo. It is the largest city in Japan and the most “touristy” by far. Most of us won’t be satisfied, however, with just Tokyo and will want to venture out to other parts of the country. The best way to accomplish this feat is by the Japanese Rail, commonly referred to as JR.
JR is owned by the Japan Railwways Group and operates a comprehensive network of trains called Shinkansen, or “Bullet trains”.
Traveling by bullet train/shinkansen can be somewhat expensive, so on the advice of more than a few friends (and by researching a host of websites devoted to Japan travel), I opted to purchase a Japan Rail Pass before I even left the good old U.S. of A.
Based on my own experience, I knew I wanted to go from Tokyo to Nara during my visit so we’ll use that as an example. A friend sent me this link to Hyperdia, which is a website devoted both to the JR timetable as well as the private rail timetable. Bookmark this link because trust me, it will definitely come in handy! If you happen to land on the site’s Japanese homepage, fear not. Just click on the “English” button that I’ve circled in red in the picture below:
Once you’re on the search page, based on our example we type “Asakusa” into the Start Point field and “Nara” into the Destination field, clicking the search button once we’re done. A more advanced search engine now pops up and we use drop-down menus to make sure we’ve chosen the correct start point and destination, as well as choosing what types of transport we want to use and how many routes we want the site to return.
My search of Asakusa to Nara returned 5 routes using a combination of private rail and JR, an average trip time of 4 hours and an average price of ¥14390 = approximately $152.00. Don’t forget friends, that’s $152.00 one way, making the total roundtrip around $304.00! Now suppose I’d wanted to visit Kyoto, Osaka and Hiroshima all at similar prices??? To cut down on the cost, you purchase a Japan Rail Pass, instead.
The Japan Rail Pass is a passbook to travel on just about all buses, trains, metros and shinkansesn operated by the Japan Rail Group at a reduced price and is only available to those who are not citizens of Japan. The Pass must be purchased before you leave your homestate as it can not be purchased within Japan. I purchased my pass in a 7-day increment for $235.00 from STA Travel. It cost about $20 extra for shipping and insurance on the pass but when all was said and done, $250.00 for 7 days of unlimited rail access versus $300 for just one trip, takes the cake any day in my book. A current check of STA Travel and JALpak (respectively) shows these prices for the railpass:
Again, the JR Pass can be purchased in 7-day, 14-day or 21-day increments and are divided into two categories: First class and second class. I chose second class strictly for the price factor and let me tell you, I was as comfortable on the train as a bug in a rug (sorry, throwback to a children’s story from the “old” days). First class must have been exceptional because 2nd was more than decent by anyone’s standards. Also, as I understand it, child fares only apply to children ages 6-11. I will be purchasing an adult fare pass for my 15-year old son.
If you aren’t currently a student, you can purchase the railpass through JalPak , by calling your local travel agent who should be able to handle your request or send you in the right direction, or by doing your own online search for railpass retailers. Either way you do it, a railpass is like American Express … “don’t leave home without it”.
And those are just a few notes on the Japan RailPass. We’ll talk some more in detail a bit later on.
