How to get from Narita to Iwakuni

We are having a terrible time figuring this out! We land at Narita on March 13 at 3:30 p.m. from the United States. I plan to buy the JR Pass which would include the bullet train to Hiroshima. If we choose this option, how do we get from Hiroshima to Iwakuni in the middle of the night? My husband is concerned because he believes the train covered by the pass makes many stops, plus we do not know how to find a schedule of trains departing from Tokyo Station. He wants to take the Nozomi because he believes it is a non stop trip. I fear this would be quite expensive, plus we would have to purchase separate passes for travel around Tokyo when we return there on the 19th. I have researched, but am still confused. Can anyone help me?

How to get from Narita to Iwakuni

Train schedules here - www.hyperdia.com/cgi-english/hyperWeb.cgi

If you are using your JR pass, check off the box ';Except Nozomi';

You do not need a train pass for Tokyo. A Suica card would be better - http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2359_002.html

How to get from Narita to Iwakuni

Its not really that complex -

You can take the Narita Express to Tokyo Station, then take the express (Hikari is ok) straight to Hiroshima. Some trains only go as far as Osaka, but its easy to change to an ongoing train if that happens.

Iwakuni is a ';local'; station on the Sanyo Shinkansen line, which means the express trains don%26#39;t stop there.

So get off at Hiroshima, and take the local Shinkansen (called Kodama) to Shin Iwakuni, just one stop.

You can also take a regular line train to Iwakuni from Hiroshima which has the advantage of being more convenient when you arrive at Iwakuni. The station is located in town vs Shin Iwakuni which is a little less convenient. There are more regular line trains as well.

The last Kodama from Hiroshima is at 2320, so you won%26#39;t have time to waste. The last regular line train is at 2410. You should make it ok. Times a little different on Sundays.

There is a huge U.S. Marine base at Iwakuni, so lots of people around there are used to dealing with lost foreigners.

You will arrive in the middle of the night. Its gonna be a long day.

I don%26#39;t think it%26#39;s practical to try to get to Iwakuni on the first night. It%26#39;s going to take a minimum of three stints if you use a JR Pass. I would stay in Tokyo or Osaka the first night and then take an early train out in the morning. Your husband%26#39;s concern is correct. You will make more stops with a Hikari train and you will also be required to make a change which is quite time consuming.

I just made the New Osaka Hotel my home base and was extremely pleased with the price and location (3 minutes from Shin-Osaka (where the Shinkansen stops). It%26#39;s an older business hotel but it%26#39;s the hotel closest to Shin-Osaka Station.

http://www.newosakahotel.com/e/group.html

You can make a reservation online and they have an English website. It%26#39;s not new or luxurious but it%26#39;s very clean and has easy access. The other alternative is to stay in Tokyo near Tokyo or Shinagawa stations or Yokohama near Shin-Yokohama stations but it%26#39;s going to be more expensive than staying in Osaka.

Where are you staying in Iwakuni. As stated, Shin-Iwakuni Station is a bit out of the way from the main metropolitan Iwakuni area.

Your husband is correct in terms of most Nozomi going non stop from Tokyo to Hiroshima.

There is no direct Hikari Shinkansen from Tokyo to Hiroshima. A change is usually required at Shin-Osaka.

Nozomi Shinkansen%26#39;s go direct plus there are also more Nozomi Shinkansen departures per hour.

Also someone mentioned it, while Iwakuni is a local station on the local line, another station, there%26#39;s also Shin-Iwakuni Station which is a Shinkansen station on the Shinkansen line.

However its difficult to tell, are you planning on visiting the US Marine base? Depends on where in Iwakuni you plan to visit.

The trip from Narita Airport to Iwakuni by JR pass will take you roughly 6.5-7 hours, and require 4 transfer of trains.

I%26#39;m not going to debate which you should chose, I%26#39;m just giving you the information to make an option you think is best for you:

Nozomi (no pass):

Pay extra for a little more speed (about 1 hour faster with no transfers right to Hiroshima from Tokyo) and 1 less transfer with more scheduled Nozomi trains per hour from Tokyo.

JR PASS:

Save money, but for that, add in an extra transfer, fewer trains per hour, plus about an hour added to your trip.

If you opted for just the Nozomi Shinkansen and not get the JR pass, you can make the trip with 3 transfers and only take about 5.5 hours. The price costs more of course, it is about 12000 (roundtrip) yen over the price of a 7 day JR pass.

Either case both I can imagine is very tiring after coming off an international flight.

I would say if you could fly into Osaka Kansai to do that, if your airline tickets are flexible. But I understand that might not be the case.

Resting in Tokyo for the first night is another option, but of course that then ads to the total cost of the trip since you have to book a place to stay.

I believe you mean ';direct'; (no change of trains) and not ';non-stop'; in this case.

%26lt;%26lt;%26lt;Your husband is correct in terms of most Nozomi going non stop from Tokyo to Hiroshima.%26gt;%26gt;%26gt;

I looked at the schedule. Unless you have a truly compelling reason to be in Iwakuni on the 13th I would not recommend trying to get there on the same day by Shinkansen. Flying via Fukuoka would be fine but that%26#39;s an expensive option. A 3:30PM arrival has a huge variance in time, depending on your runway and terminal (taxiing to the opposite of the airport can take up to 30 minutes in itself). The absolute best you could dream of to get to Tokyo Station would be about 1.5 hours which puts you there around 5:00PM. If any delays happen in immigration or customs due to long lines then you may need to add up to an hour to this in the extreme case. This does not include a flight delay. I think a realistic time is probably something close to 18:00 or 18:30 to be at the Shinkansen platform in Tokyo Station based on my personal experience.

You would be pulling into Shin-Iwakuni around 23:00-23:30 or so from Hiroshima. That%26#39;s ambitious.

I reiterate to stay in Tokyo or Osaka on the first day and catch the first Shinkansen out in the morning. It will be far less stressful. That%26#39;s just my recommendation.

Arriving at KIX or Central Air at Nagoya is a better option if you can do it.

Don%26#39;t fly to Hiroshima. The airport is too far away from the city and is a pain.

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