Japan Rail Pass

We%26#39;re traveling to Japan in October for 3 weeks visiting Tokyo, Nikko, Kyoto, Hiroshima, Kurashiki, Hakone and back to Narita Airport. It looks as if our only option is a 21 day pass but we wondered if the green pass is important. Since it is several hundred dollars more than the ordinary pass, is the difference in the train cars or accommodations more significant?

Japan Rail Pass

The seats you get with a regular pass are very comfortable and have lots of leg room, so I see no need to pay for a Green Car Pass.

You could check train fares on www.hyperdia.com to see if you could save by using a 14-day pass. For example if you will be in Tokyo for a long time at the start of your trip, you could begin using your pass the day you leave Tokyo. You won%26#39;t use the pass much in Kyoto.

Japan Rail Pass

If you will be staying in Tokyo, Kyoto or other cities for an extended period of time, you can plan your long distance travels within the 14-day window and save money.

As noted, the regular class of Shinkansen has lots of legroom and it%26#39;s very comfortable. I don%26#39;t think the Green Car is necessary unless you want to splurge.

I agree with others. Green Pass is not necessary, and you can probably arrange your itinerary to fit a 14 day pass. It may, for example - especially if you are only planning it as a day trip - make sense to join a separate day trip to Nikko from Tokyo. Don%26#39;t forget you can also use your JR Pass on the JR ferry to Miyajima Island (a must do whilst in Hiroshima).

Not significant, but to be honest I have used the green pass last 2 times. First trip was JR East pass for 10 days, and I thought I would treat myself. I can%26#39;t afford plane travel in first or business class, but I could splurge for the green pass. Just to say though, I spend a lot of time on the trains when I buy a pass.

2nd trip was around NYear so used green pass then to avoid overcrowding in the regular cars.

Just so you know, there is no green class on shinkasen between Hakata-Shinosaka part of your trip (There is non Nozomi, but not on Railstar). You can only go as far south as Okayama on the green pass if you stick to the Tokyo-Okayman part of the Shinkansen.

I always get a green pass. I don%26#39;t consider it a splurge. On the Tokaido Shinkansen between Tokyo and Okayama I consider it a necessity. On the Sanyo Shinkansen Hikari Railstar between Shin-Osaka and Hakata there are no green seats but be sure to get a reserved seat which is pretty close to a green seat on other lines that have them. The non-reserved seats are like Tokaido Line standard seats.

If you do the math it becomes very clear that it pays for itself in spite of no green seats on the Railstar.

Perhaps you may shave off a week not using JR Pass round Tokyo and to Nikko, Hakone, etc. and activating from Odawara after Hakone going south.

Use the rail tour discount package tickets. Going around Tokyo is cheap and each trip leg is usually less than $2. The use of NEX+SUICA there will make it convenient for all JR %26amp; subways.

If you want to isolate yourself, take the green cars.

For the routes you are traveling on, the significant differences are going to be between Tokyo and Okayama/Hiroshima(Early from Shin-Yokohama) if you%26#39;re on a through train or between Tokyo and Shin-Osaka if you%26#39;re not. The Hikari Railstar trains between Shin-Osaka and Hakata have two distinct class of seats, reserved and non-reserved. The reserved seats are almost on par with green seats on other lines. The non-reserved seats are equivalent to non-green seats on the Tokaido Shinkansen (between Tokyo and Okayama for the most part). Since you will be traveling on the pass in mostly non-700 series train sets from Tokyo green car upgrades are quite significant in terms of space and comfort in my opinion. If you are diminutive or petite then this might not be a problem. If you like to stretch out and recline then the green pass is worth the extra money if that%26#39;s important to you. This is a non-issue in the reserved cars of the Railstar service.

%26lt;%26lt;%26lt;Since it is several hundred dollars more than the ordinary pass, is the difference in the train cars or accommodations more significant?%26gt;%26gt;%26gt;

As mentioned by many you need to evaluate your plan as you might not need a full 21 day JR Pass, especially if say your first half of your trip is spent in one region, eg kanto or kansai. A 7 day or 14 day pass might do.

As for the level of comfort, I can say that regular cars in the Shinkansen already offer good leg room, much better then many first class domestic airplanes!

In the sense of comfort, no I don%26#39;t think its worth it to get a green pass. Some might differ on opinion, but October is hardly peak travel season (unlike New Year, or Golden week) so reservations are not too difficult to get then if you were to travel during peak periods.

If you start your trip off in Tokyo area, then not getting a full 21 day pass, but a 7 or 14 day pass and saving it for after you leave Tokyo might work. As Tokyo, Hakone, Nikko can be reached easily and cheaply by non JR trains if you wanted to really save money.

Route246-You intrigued me with your thoughts on the green pass, particularly the necessity of it in your eyes between Tokyo and Okayama.

I have used the green pass for my trips, but was thinking of scaling back this time due to Canadian $$ taking a beating vs the yen.

Not sure I like the 5 abreast on the Shinkasen Tokyo-Okyama and on the JR East lines to the north in particular the Green cars were very nice, roomy and quiet.

Only downside I had was on last trip at Nyears it was a bit difficult to get green car seating on some of the lesser travelled lines (eg Sonic Beppu-Kokura), and some other lines that had very small areas for green car, like 1/2 or 1/4 of 1 carriage.

If one is traveling during peak time, timing on reservations is what matters.

Green Cars sell out too, especially during New Year and Golden Week. During the peak times trains are 100% fully reserved. Having a Green Pass doesn%26#39;t put one in a priority list to get reservations over others, if its sold out its sold out.

It is all about timing when making reservations during peak travel times.

Now of course, green cars might be the last to sell out on a train so you%26#39;ll likely get a reservation that way.

But you won%26#39;t have a seat if you make reservations too late during peak travel holidays, green pass or no green pass doesn%26#39;t matter in that case.

I too have traveled with the JR pass in ordinary cars during non peak travel seasons on the Tokaido Shinkansen, and never had a problem getting a reservations or even just sitting in the unreserved cars. My last trip the ordinary car was pretty much empty.

Then again, the reason I use the rail pass ( I can%26#39;t anymore since I%26#39;m no tourist in Japan) was to save money, so I couldn%26#39;t justify the purchase of a Green Pass for myself. And if that is what the original poster might be asking?

In my opinion it is not worth the extra bucks in terms of comfort.