JR West’s Sakai Line decorated with characters from the “GeGeGe no Kitarō” manga
The creator of the famous GeGeGe no Kitaro (more commonly known in English as “Kitaro”) manga (comic), Shigeru Mizuki, spent his childhood in the city of Sakaiminato and is regarded as a hero of the City. In fact several years ago, one of the famous NHK morning dramas featured Sakaiminato because of its association with Shigeru Mizuki.
Even the train seats feature characters from the GeGeGe no Kitaro Manga
JR West’s 18km Sakai Line, which links Yonago and Sakaiminato cities in Tottori Prefecture, is very much a local line although it does provide access to Yonago Airport and the port at Sakaiminato, but most of the trains used on this line feature characters from the manga.
Platform 0 at Yonago station which is used for Sakai Line trains is also decorated with GeGeGe no Kitaro pictures
Travel information
There are several ways you can reach Yonago and the Sakai Line, however it is quite a long journey and we would recommend it only as part of a wider trip to explore the Sanin region or the Sanin Line. You can get Limited Express Trains from Okayama (Limited Express Yakumo); Shin Yamaguchi & Tottori (Limited Express Super Oki).
The only remaining sleeper train in Japan, has one leg that travels to Yonago on its way to Izumo (Sunrise Express Izumo)
Nearby cities that are must visit places for tourists are Matsue and Izumoshi both in Shimane Prefecture and Tottori in Tottori Prefecture. The Sanin Main Line runs along the Sea of Japan Coast and also around Lake Shinji, one of the largest lakes in Japan.
Although we would recommend exploring the Sanin Region, it has a lot hidden attractions, it is a mostly a rural area and train services are not so frequent, so planning is required.
JR Rail Passes are valid (all lines in the area are operated by JR, with the exception of the Ichibata Dentetsu (“Bataden”) lines.
Sakaiminato apart from being the childhood home of Shigeru Mizuki it is also famous for its sea food and also for bird watching Find out more (link to JNTO site)
For Rail Fans
The Sakai Line is mostly non electrified line & mostly single track with station passing points. Rolling stock used is Yonago depot based KiHa 40s / 47s with the occasional KiHa126 diesel cars. The line was fully opened in 1902.
JR West’s Goto Train Maintenance Works is situated along the Sakai Line and because of this the line is electrified as far as Goto, but all services are operated by diesel cars.
Freight services were operated on the line up to 1986.
All the trains on the line were upgraded between 2017 & 2019, including allowing the use of transportation.
more to come…
There are other lines in Japan that feature manga & anime characters, which we will cover in future articles. We will also soon be publishing an article on a TS Japan Rail trip around Chugoku, including the Sakai Line.
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