Japanese train trips

Airport rapid train bound for Shinagawa. Keikyu trains tend to through run onto Tokyo's subway network but at this time trains only terminate at Keikyu's own Shinagawa terminal.

Keikyu Railway operates an extensive through-run network onto Asakusa Line (pink) and onto Keisei Line to Narita Airport. The longest train starts all the way down from Misakiguchi in Kanagawa Prefecture, running through the cities of Yokosuka and Yokohama. During daytime, the Sky Access line runs from Haneda to Narita Airport, running through tracks of 3 railway companies.

Shinagawa Station and Tokyo Metro's Asakusa Line trains.

Quick change to JR's Yamanote Line, the well-known loop line around Tokyo's centre. JR as the main rail company of Japan has a massive network of commuter and regional rail.

JR East has a train simulator available on Steam. It features a good selection of lines to drive on, converting JR's driver training software to a video game. DLCs on the game are quite expensive to purchase and not everyone thinks it's good value for money.

Now going underground, from JR on street level to Toei Metro below. Looks like Japan also has its fair share of anti-social behaviour on trains.

 "Because there are rules, there is freedom"

and in our chat group the conversation on Japanese freedom continued for hours

Fast forward 8 hours and it's morning time. Starting off from Roppongi, a Hibya Line to Ginza and a Marunochi Line to Tokyo Station, where Shinkansen trains depart. 

Tokyo Station was built with a design heavily influenced by the British. The old building dates back a century ago and somehow looked like Melbourne's Flinders St Station. Several waiting halls and corridors link commuter lines and shinkansen platforms.

Firstly a Tokaido Shinkansen ride down to Odawara, an outer suburb of Tokyo. A shinkansen only takes approx. half an hour compared to 1-1.5hr on a commuter train. Tokaido Shinkansen, operated by JR Central, is on a different section of Tokyo Station and not in the same area as those heading north to Sendai, Nagano or Niigata. The tracks are not connected either between the companies. 

N700A trains on Tokaido Shinkansen to Shin-Osaka. Green cars (first class) on the left and standard class on the right where I belong. It's a standard gauge train on 3+2 seating configuration, which is very spacious given how wide standard gauge trains are.

Passing over the massive railway junction just south of Shinagawa, the train cruises through Tokyo suburbs next to Yokosuka Line. Shinkansen branches out at Musashi-Kosugi and speeds up to Shin-Yokohama, and further down at its full speed onto Odawara. Bullet trains share the same station as conventional train lines as we entered the station next to a Tokaido Line commuter train.

Hopping off Shinkansen's elevated platform to Odakyu's platform. Trains up to Hakone are in multiple sections, starting off with a commuter train to Hakone-Yumoto.

It's also the day when China ends it's zero-covid policy. Shortly the train reaches its terminus on the single track line.

Odakyu's RomanceCar limited express to Tokyo city, and the train we're taking up to Gora.

It's weekends in Tokyo and many Tokyo-siders are also on the train for a weekend getaway. Many rail fans are also around with massive DSLR cameras, running around the platforms and capturing these old narrow trains.

The train reverses up several times on a zig-zag alignment. At each signal station where the train reverses, the driver and conductor get out and swaps position. The railway is also in a sister railway relationship with Switzerland.

-> Gondola -> Ropeway. Engineers utilise different modes of transport shuttling passengers over the steep hills to the resort village of Hakone.

The ropeway runs through an area where volcanic steam blasts into the carriages. One ropeway car hooks onto two ropes for stability under strong winds. Mt Fuji is also visible at Owakudani Station.

Back to the gondola. The gondola reaches the top and runs downhill as express, skipping all intermediate stops. All passengers then change onto the zig-zag railway reaching Odawara. Odakyu runs commuter trains straight to Shinjuku in Tokyo but I've got back to a Shinkansen instead.

Odawara Station is a massive suburban station. The first train was all-stop Kodama train back to Tokyo, calling at Shin-Yokohama and Shingawa.

Thesse old N700A trains still uses LCD displays. The N700 Supreme, as the newest Shinkansen model, has a digital LED display.

The packed digital displays at Shinkansen platforms is always really satisfying to see. 

Time for a Chuo Line ride to Shinjuku. It takes a more direct route through the heart of Tokyo, making limited stops.

Shinjuku is a massive station with multiple rail companies terminating. Chuo Line's limited expresses also start from here. This Chuo Line express train runs limited stops to the western suburbs of Tokyo and terminating at Hachioji.

Shinjuku: The well known cat screen, alleyways with dodgy shops, and the train line blending well to the cityscape.

Then a Chuo-Sobu Line to Akihabara. This line runs parallel to Chuo Line on the local tracks, stopping at all stations.

It's 150 years for Japanese railways. JR is really good at making money through various side businesses, including train merch.

Let's ride the Shinkansen. A vast variety of trains depart from Tokyo, with the furthest going to Hokkaido.

After Ueno the train runs parallel to Saikyo Line to Omiya at Saitama Prefecture. The commuter line was constructed as a compromise to strong opposition towards the construction of a rail line in the suburbs. Trains are also restricted to around 100km/h on this poor alignment, squeezing through neighbourhoods. The train reaches Omiya, the core of the prefecture, after Saitama's new business district.

The E7 sets are designed for a top speed of 280km/h. These trains are configured more for steep tracks and therefore acceleration isn't as strong. Seating is also comfortable with an adjustable headrest. After Omiya the train speeds down Joetsu Shinkansen to Takasaki, another outer suburb of Tokyo. After Takasaki the train climbs the steep Usui Pass and reaches Karuizawa, the winter resort town of Tokyo.

A bus connects the train station with sighseeing sights. Notice the snowy slopes behind the train station (which is a ski resort).

The snowy waterfalls blend very well in a long exposure shot.

Returning on a local low-floor city bus back to the train station. This bus operates within a private toll road, and the road operator paves it with a unique groovy surface for better grip in snow and icy conditions. 

With the opening of Shinkansen it is common practice for Japan to transfer JR-owned local lines to prefecture governments, which run the local trains as a public service. In this case, it's Nagano Prefecture running Shinano Tetsudo.

Takasaki and Karuizawa are just 15mins apart on Shinkansen trains. Japanese suburban streets are very narrow where these small local buses come in handy. Upon disembarking from the bus an old man asks for bus details. Without knowing any Japanese I opened my google maps, which has an updated timetable but all in English, and points him to the bus stop.

Takasaki is well known for these darumas in the Shorinzan Daruma-ji Temple.

Walking to a nearby station on Shin-etsu Line. The line used to run up to Karuizawa through the very steep Usui Pass (requiring an additional locomotive). The steepest section was since bypassed with the opening of Shinkansen, and the rail line was abandoned. The old locomotives are still preserved at Usui Pass Railway Heritage Park and the train line was cut till Yokokawa. A bus seems to link up this missing link from Karuizawa to Yokokawa but I couldn't find a timetable for it.

A diagram of the area: Karuizawa at the top and Yokokawa at the bottom. Orange highlight indicates Usui Pass (碓氷峠) while yellow is the tunnel which Shinkansen bypasses this steep climb.

Here comes the Shin-etsu Line train. The only passengers include several spanish tourists, where we had a chat on Japan's great train infrastructure. One is a student studying Japanese in a language school, and the other is just a friend visiting.

Takasuki: a bustling suburban core with multiple large shopping centres.

Here comes my Asama train to Nagano. The name Asama is taken from the original limited express train on conventional lines, which ceased operation when Shinkansen opened but the name remained as a Shinkansen service. On the other side, Joetsu Shinkansen trains operate to Niigata on Toki services.

Annakaharuna is a shinkansen station built next to nothing and only very limited services serve. It was constructed as Gunma Prefecture was looking for benefits out of the Nagano Shinkansen to justify funding (Takasaki to Tokyo was already constructed as part of Niigata Shinkansen), which turned out to be this station. A suburb is being built nearby but this station still remains fairly empty. (Right pic: Karuizawa at night).

Snowy bus ride on the motorway. Japanese motorways are all tolled with the high toll further promoting public transport use. Lanes are relatively narrow for a 100km/h road.

More snow along the way until the bus reaches the carpark. Snowplough also operated along the way removing snow from the road.

A snowy walk to see the monkeys

Cold monkeys looking for a warm bath

A warm comfy bus ride back to the train station at Yudanaka, a hot springs resort. A limited express runs to Nagano on these interesting railcars, featuring comfortable seats and a front-viewing cabin. Some Australians asked for help as they didn't have enough cash for the train ride, to which I offered to pay for them and receive a bank transfer from them. Japan is still very cash based with few places accepting electronic payments.

Private railways often catch the attention of tourists through these unique rolling stocks. These trains have tables that pop out from the side, and reversible seating that could be flipped by pushing the back of the seat forward.

Snowy scenery along the way

As a way to reduce costs, private 3rd sector railway companies often purchase second hand rolling stock. These are metro trains previously running on Hibiya Line in Tokyo.

Anime characters on local trains. Nagano Terminal is built underground similar to a metro station.

Half of the station concourse is used as a market, selling local produce. The service counter also sells railway merch though the station staff seem to be quite annoyed by tourist enquiries.

Departing Nagano for Kanazawa. The northern coast of Japan's main island tends to be the snowiest part of the nation, requiring more engineering effort to manage it. The Shinkansen train enters the northern region at night, entering Kanazawa via Toyama.

Hokuriku Shinkansen crosses into the area where JR West operates. Shinkansen stations tend to be built between places where stations are given super long names. Shortly the train terminates at Kanazawa, the end of the shinkansen line.

Goodest design by the station manager. 

The train station is an attraction by itself. The Tsuzumi-mon Gate is modelled after a traditional drum, reflecting the city's rich culture.

Shinkansen cake and Shinkansen garbage trolley

A bus from Kanazawa to Shirakawa is quite expensive. Japan's extensive motorway network links villages deep in the mountain to nearby cities on long deep tunnels. The motorway also doubles as a link between Kanazawa and Nagoya.

The initial bit crosses the plains on the northern coast, and as the bus goes inland snow starts to build up near the road.

Tunnel, valley and tunnel, a straight section of motorway is built through extensive tunnelling. Japanese hills are steep and the only feasible way to construct a straight motorway out of the hills is ultra long tunnels with bridges through river valleys.

Many of these tunnels are 1-3km long, and when stacked together forms an impressive ride. The tunnels only have one lane per direction.

The tourist centre serves as the coach station as well. Next to the tourist information centre a shuttle gets tourists to a nearby lookout.

There are also roads in the village but traffic is heavily restricted.

All the snow looks so satisfying on above. Hakusan National Park lies at the back as a backdrop for the village.

The village is known for the Gassho-zukuri building style which makes it a UNESCO World Heritage Site. 

Some of the houses are now converted to museums for tourists, showcasing the village lifestyle. The village does have a fire sprinkler system where a fire will not be spread across the highly-flammable houses.

Afterwards, it's a bus ride to Takayama, which is not far away from the village thanks to the motorway network. Once on the motorway more long tunnels follow. The longest one is likely the Hida Tunnel, with a length of 10.7km. Inside the tunnel are multiple markings indicating how many kilometres the bus has travelled, reducing driver fatigue. The bus follows E14 and then leaves the motorway for Takayama.

Takayama Station has a massive new station building and is owned by JR Central. Multiple limited expresses depart here to Nagoya and some from Nagoya continuing to Toyama. Travelling from Nagoya to Toyama however is faster via Maibara and not via Takayama.

A bit of time to explore Takayama before hopping back on the train.

Hopping onto these old KiHa 85 sets to Toyama on Ltd Exp Hida. KiHa 85 sets were reaching the end of its lifespan at that time and as of now they have been retired. These are diesel multiple units running all the way from Nagoya on the non-electrified route.

Rather simple interior on a 2+2 seating. The seats are reclinable and are decently comfy.

Passing some smaller stations on the Takayama main line. North of Takayama is Hida which is what the mountain range and the area in general is named.

Train line travels along the river with extensive tunnelling in the valley. Japan's hilly landscape means terrain is a lot steeper but hills are also smaller, unlike giant plateaus we see in Australia. The train curves on the side of the river, then hops over to the other side of the river bank at times, and through tunnels, going up the single track line.

Inotani, where the operator crosses from JR Central to JR West. It's a very small settlement and a point where local trains within JR Central meet with those in JR West when limited express trains don't run.

Approaching Toyama's new station with Mt Tate at the back. The station has Shinkansen in the same building but JR no longer operates local trains- it has been transferred to the local prefectural government as part of the financing for Shinkansen.

These trains are so old and without an automatic PA system, the conductor does all the passenger announcements. English announcements are done by playing an audio recording file on the conductor's phone and holding the PA system's microphone towards it.

More local line platforms. Commuter trains run between this city and Kanazawa next door, 20mins away on a Shinkansen.

Historic tram vehicles in Toyama's city tramways. Several heritage trams were preserved but most are modern low floor tram vehicles like those seen in European cities. Mt Tate can be seen in various points of Toyama's cityscape along with its tram vehicles.

Other than the trams the city is a very boring place. Dead streets and restaurants not opening.

Back into Toyama Station for shinkansen back to Kanazawa. The station is another standard Japanese simplistic design.

Waking up at the station's iconic arch again. A quick city tour at the Hokuriku Region's largest city before heading off to Kyoto.

Kanazawa Castle: While the castle building has been rebuilt it is still a great icon of the city and the region.

Kenroku-en: Constantly rated as one of the best japanese gardens. The unique alignment of trees blends the beauty of nature into an artificial landscape. A very well known place in the country.

Chaya District: A shopping area formed out of old tea houses. A popular item sold here is ice cream plated with gold flakes, where the city got its name from.

Back onto the trains: Ltd Exp Thunderbird, operated by JR West, connects Osaka and Kyoto to the Hokuriku region. This train brings it back down to Kansai region via Biwa Lake, the largest lake in Japan.

A 683 series train with a max. speed of 130 km/h. The train runs on conventional narrow gauge tracks via Fukui & Tsuruga on the Hokuriku Main Line. Ekiben (lunch boxes which they sell at stations to be consumed on trains) is still very overrated and don't taste as well.

Fields and Hakusan at the back. The Shinkansen is being extended to Tsuruga and its dedicated elevated tracks are almost complete. Once open high-speed trains will run directly to Tokyo with the conventional limited express truncated to between Osaka and Tsuruga. The Shinkansen will eventually be extended to Kyoto and Osaka but it's still in planning stage.

The train stops at Fukui, a city with a local tramway and railroad. 

After Tsuruga the train climbs up a railway spiral and then a very long railway tunnel (Hukazaka Tunnel). A bit of snow is seen on the spiral along with a great view of the city. After the tunnel the train takes the more direct Kosei Line, running on the west side of Biwa Lake. 

While it's a large lake on a train it still looks just like a lake, nothing special. Some people pay a visit specifically to towns along the lake and get disappointed. This area usually gets heavy snow during winter but not at this time of the year.

After a fairly straight alignment of Kosei Line, the train passes through Otsukyo, located in Otsu, the capital of Shiga Prefecture. A tunnel then leads to Kyoto. The city of Otsu can still be seen with tall apartment blocks by the lake.

Arriving into busy Kyoto Station on time, a hub for Shinkansen and local commuter trains on various rail lines. There's a bit of time and I've decided to visit the railway museum, just one station away on San-in Line.

The railway museum has a strong focus on local railway history, featuring JR along with the main private railway operators of the region.

Also great introduction on railway basics- electrification, history, train mechanics. The museum focuses more on interactive displays where children can learn through moving railway parts- train doors, driving simulators, motors.

Best part is still the roof terrace with views to a nearby railyard. The busy Tokaido Shinkansen line has bullet trains every several minutes. Local Tokaido Line commuter and freight train still pass through the conventional tracks fairly frequently.

Back to Kyoto Station through the same San-in Line. Kyoto Station at the south of the city is used mostly by JR, with Kintetsu sticking next to it on the south side of the station (near Shinkansen platforms). Kintetsu is a private railway company with train services to Osaka as well but mainly serves the Nara and Kinki region.

Down to Osaka via the Special Rapid Service. While named Special it's actually a very frequent service connecting the main cities along the Tokaido Line and beyond, with this train running all the way down to Himeji and Banshu-Ako. Trains to Osaka run on the max speed of 130 km/h and only stops at Takatsuki, offering a competitive service even to Shinkansen. This 12-car service does uncouple at Himeji with the main train continuing onto the local line. It was the evening peak and the train down to Osaka was very crowded, with a bit of relief as many got off at Takatsuki.

A subway ride onto the well known Dotonbori, a touristy area with a lot of shops.

Back onto the train, this time trying the Osaka Loop Line. Unlike the other private operators which use Namba as their main station in Osaka, JR's Namba Station is only a small terminating station for Yamatoji Line trains to Nara. The principal station for JR is still Osaka Station at Umeda, requiring a change to the Osaka Loop Line.

Part of the route map of Yamatoji Line.

A soon retiring series 138 stops at Imamiya on the opposite side. The Osaka Loop Line has some fairly new trains dedicated to the train line.

Osaka Station: a lot of services run on the same loop line tracks with separate queuing areas.

Ending the day at Akashi down the Tokaido Line. These platform gates are designed to accommodate for different door patterns while keeping passengers off the tracks. Opposite the train station is Akashi Castle which is also lit up.

Continuing down to Himeji for its world heritage castle. Instead of travelling on JR I've gone on the competing Sanyo Railway, which runs more towards the coastline but terminating at the same station at Himeji.

Himeji Castle: the largest castle in Japan. It has survived multiple earthquakes and remained intact for the past 700 years, making it a UNESCO world heritage. A quick look inside as well which is open to the public. 

Travelling down to Okayama for another castle as well. Some spare time at the station allows me to walk around the platforms and check out some trains. Some local lines from Himeji still use a refurbished version of series 103. Series 103 trains are old commuter trains that used to be the main workhorse of the main lines but are now mostly replaced by more powerful trains.

Local lines now tend to run conductorless trains to save costs. On the Tokaido Line platforms there's an ekisoba place serving quick soba noodles. A Super Hakuto limited express train runs onto the platform from Totori Prefecture to the north, bound for Osaka.

The standard N700A Shinkansen pulls into the station. Most San-yo Shinkansen use this unified train type for through-run services onto Tokaido Shinkansen all the way to Tokyo. Having a unified train type and unified acceleration maximises efficiency on the busy Tokaido Shinkansen, which trains can operate on intervals of 8-10 minutes.

Using data from the previous Tokaido Shinkansen, the engineers built a track alignment capable of running trains up to 300 km/h. This means very extensive tunnelling is used and a higher curving radius is adopted.

Greeted by a Series 500 Shinkansen train at Okayama. These trains are being phased out and are increasingly rare on the network. It's well known for its bullet-like shape but this also limits the space inside the train. Older trains like this now only run on Kodama services stopping at all stations.

Trains and buses in rainy Okayama. This is a larger city than Himeji with all Nozomi Services stopping here (some Nozomi shinkansen trains skip Himeji).

Okayama Castle, having been rebuilt and is much newer, even has an elevator in it. The castle itself is essentially a museum of the city's history.

Back to Himeji for the night. This time it's a Sakura service from Kyushu, operated using a N700-8000 train. Kyushu trains run on 2+2 seating for its reserved seating cars, making long journeys more comfortable.

Also spotted a Rail Star (700 series) shinkansen. They now run only on Kodama services with Hikari and the faster Nozomi being only N700A or N700S trains.

Breakfast at the Ekisoba place in Himeji before boarding the southbound Shinkansen. The soba is cheap but small in portion, just enough for a quick meal.

On the way to Hiroshima: yellow local trains that operate around Okayama

And the red commuter trains which now replace the yellow ones.

Hiroshima trams: they have been here since before WWII. 

The tram leads to the atomic bomb sites and memorials.

Some tram services continue onto Hiroden to Miyajimaguchi. The main line railway has platforms for trams but just like a train, these trams have conductors on board managing fares and performing safety checks.

The tram is too slow so I got off at a stop and changed onto JR's heavy rail. The San-yo main line still sees heavy use by freight trains after the opening of the parallel San-yo Shinkansen. 

These series 226 Red Wing trains have won the good design award for no apparent reasons. At least they still get to where they need to be.

JR operates a ferry to Itsukushima Island, same as its rivary Hiroden. The ferry is included in the JR Pass used by tourists. 

On the island there's a shrine and that's it. A torii that goes in water.

Then the same commuter train back to Hiroshima