Explore Japan's Railways

future-oriented

Explore Japan’s Railways…

Japan’s Railways are a Rail Fan’s Paradise. Japan’s Rail Fans are famous for being interested in various aspects of the railways here. International Rail Enthusiasts will be even more intrigued by the various aspects of Japan’s railways, new and old, and not least by how efficiently they operate.

The world's first and
one of the busiest high speed railway network -
“The Bullet Train”…

remember the past

Since 1964

The Tokaido Shinkansen, which opened in 1964 was the world’s first dedicated high speed rail line. Since then Japan has developed the bullet train (known locally as the shinkansen) so it now has 10 lines, with the fastest operational speed of 320km/h (Tohoku Shinkansen). The Tokaido Shinkansen has trains departing Tokyo every 5~10 minutes at peak times making it one of the busiest rail lines in the world

Intensive urban networks carrying
millions of passengers daily…

Moving Millions: Inside Japan’s Urban Rail Systems

With headways of only a few minutes at peak times the urban rail networks in cities like Tokyo and Osaka are also a testament to Japanese technology and organisation ensuring that millions of people everyday get to work, school and leisure destinations on time and safely.
The most famous of these lines is the circular Yamanote Line in Tokyo, but teer are many more.

Just watching the varieties of trains arrive, depart and pass through busy stations is something that many rail fans find fascinating.

Limited Express trains connect cities and towns around Japan…

Tourist Trains for sightseeing
and cultural experiences…

Limited Express & Tourist Trains Across Japan

Rail companies in Japan operate approximately 100 limited express trains that connect towns and cities throughout the country. In addition, there are numerous tourist and themed trains designed specifically to enhance the travel experience. For rail enthusiasts, these services offer a wide variety of train types— both modern and historic—making travel itself an exciting part of the journey.

remember the past

Local lines

The Japan rail network has many local & regional lines, which again are operated by a variety of different types of trains, including both state-of-the-art models and to somewhat older ones.

Many of these lines also have interesting features (for example switchbacks) and interesting stations.

Trams & Steam…

Japan’s Trams and Heritage-Inspired Railways

Japan also has city trams, the most recent one opening in August 2023, but most operating a mixture of modern and older trams. Although there are no heritage lines in the same way as other countries, Japan does have a number of railways that operate steam locomotive hauled trains, usually on weekends and holidays. Some of these railways, like the Oigawa Railway in Shizuoka Prefecture operate a variety of old rolling stock on their normal services.

And there is freight as well…

For fans of locomotives, then it is probably freight services that you want to be looking out for. Japan is may be the only country that publishes and sells the freight timetable…a popular book with Japanese rail fans!

Museums…

Japan’s Top Railway Museums

Japan has many railway museums, including three large and impressive ones that you can spend many hours in (Omiya Railway Museum (JR East) Kyoto Railway Museum (JR West) & SCMAGLEV and Railway Park, Nagoya (JR Tokai).

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Whether you have a full itinerary in mind or just a general idea, we’re here to help bring it to life.

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