I’m planning to visit Tokyo from Osaka for a couple of days during Golden Week and trying to do it as economically as possible, but the return fare for the Shinkansen is nearly 2.8万, on top of the 1万 for the Tokyo Wide Area Pass I need to get for going travelling to Nikko, Izu, Kamakura & Fujiyama.
I considered a highway bus before remembering I can’t sleep at all on Willer Express and 9 hours on one would be tantamount to physchological torture, but then I came across the ‘Platt Kodama’ ticket, and for ¥6000 cheaper than the standard return fare, I’m more than willing to spend an extra hour on a Kodama train watching the world go by.
My only question (and apologies if the answer is stupidly obvious) is: are foreign residents eligible to use it? It’s a fact that virtually all the options for discounted rail travel here are reserved solely for foreign & international tourists (and I hope the JR executive who decided us gaijins can’t use the Kansai Wide Area Pass anymore finds a fingernail in his miso soup every morning), but there’s no information on JR Central’s website that specificially states whether we can use it or not?
Many thanks.
*Edit: I’m incapable of Maths. The Shinkansen costs 2.8万,* ***not*** *28万.*
7 comments
It’s a general ticketing option available to the travelling public regardless of nationality or residence status.
How is the Osaka-Tokyo shinkansen 28man!?!
You do know that 万 = 10,000 right? Shinkansen 28万 = 280,000…
Platt kodama should be available for foreigners
Flying is almost always cheaper than the Shinkansen (although depending on where you live/how you plan to get to/from the airport it might be roughly the same factoring in transport to/from the airport)
Shinkansen is generally more expensive because it’s more convenient to ride, no need to show up 2 hours before your departure and deal with baggage and check in and security and all that
Sorry this isn’t the question you’re asking but might be worth checking if it could save any significant amount of money
The Tokaido-Sanyo shinkansen also has slightly discounted tickets if you confirm your reservation at least 21 days (Hayatoku 21), or 3 days (Hayatoku), in advance. You can read a bit more about it [here](https://smart-ex.jp/en/product/).
But, do also note that golden week is peak travel period, so you might like to try to find out when exactly do the tickets for your travel date(s) will open, and jump on them first thing they become available online… More so if you’re traveling with luggage.
Might even be good to register yourself with [Smart-EX](https://smart-ex.jp/en/index.php), and figure out how the app works before then.
Yes, anyone can use it. I used it last year and found it quite nice even with the added time. I think JR Tokai Tours’ Japanese website has more information than JR Central, but it functions basically the same as a normal shinkansen ticket.
Yes, I’ve used it a few times, although I think the English website no longer works so you have to use the Japanese one.
Also, as far as I know the Kansai Excursion pass is still sold to any foreigner, even residents ([JR West](https://www.westjr.co.jp/global/en/ticket/pass/kansai_wide_excursion/) and [kkday travel agent](https://www.kkday.com/en/product/119079) or others)