This article is written for first time visitors to Japan, helping them to understand more about Japan train networks, the bullet trains (shinkansen), Japan Rail Pass and Integrated Circuit (IC) cards such as Suica, Pasmo, Icoca and many more. These cards are commonly used as the most popular payment method for train rides. Most visitors would need basic understanding of these topics to better enjoy their time in Japan.

The most popular method of transport in Japan is by trains/subways. There are multiple companies operating different lines in Japan. The term “train” is commonly used for on-the-ground lines, and the term “subways” are commonly used for underground lines. For most people, it does not matter which company operates a certain train lines because they all accept IC card payment (such as Suica, Pasmo, Icoca, etc).

There are 3 types of trains from ticketing perspective:

  • Normal train, often referred as local train or short-distance train. These trains helps to get around from places within the same city, or sometimes to a nearby cities. Normal train stops at every station it passes. There are 2 ways to pay tickets for normal train: you can buy paper tickets from ticket machines (using cash, English menu available), or you can just tap Suica card (or any other IC card) at the entry gate and then tap out at the exit gate at destination station. The card will detect the last 2 consecutive taps to identify your journey and deduct the trip cost from card balance. In theory, you can take long distance trips using a series of normal trains, but it will take way too much time, and time is precious in a holiday.
  • Limited Express train is for travel between cities. These trains only stops at certain stations (not all) and some routes offer special themed decorations inside the train. For first timers, this is often the most confusing ticketing system because you need to buy base fare and limited express fare (or add-on fare). Base fare is the same as the fare if you take the trip from starting station to destination using normal trains. Limited express fare is the additional costs you need to pay for the “express” (faster journey because the train does not need to stop at every station) and for whatever speciality in the train (special decoration, comfier seats, these are different for each limited express train). You can buy the limited express fare ticket, and pay for the base fare using IC card (Suica, Pasmo, Icoca, etc), or you can also buy a ticket that includes both the base fare and limited express fare.
  • Bullet train (shinkansen) is for fast travel between cities. Shinkansen tickets can be purchased from ticket office just before departure, or can be purchased online. To purchase shinkansen tickets for the most popular route (Tokyo-Kyoto-Osaka), go to the official website or app (Smart EX). Unlike Limited Express tickets, there is no need to worry about base fare for shinkansen. The cost of the ticket is all you need to pay.

Integrated Circuit (IC) Card

IC card is the most popular method of payment for most normal (local) trains in Japan. As the name suggests, this is basically a prepaid card with a balance, and every time we use the card to ride on trains or subways, the fare is deducted from the card.

Why do we need IC card? Can we just use credit/debit card to pay?
Majority of train stations in Japan do not accept Visa/Master credit/debit card as payment. Our choice is to use cash to buy paper tickets before each ride, or use IC card.

Since most people start their Japan holiday from Tokyo, the most popular IC card is Suica. However, Suica is not the only IC card. A simple list of available IC cards:

  • Suica is sold by JR East (Tokyo)
  • Pasmo is sold by non-JR companies in greater Tokyo area
  • Icoca is sold by JR West (Osaka, Kyoto)
  • PiTaPa is sold by non-JR companies in greater Osaka area
  • Toica is sold by JR Central (Nagoya)
  • Manaca is sold by non-JR companies in greater Nagoya area
  • Sugoca is sold by JR Kyushu (Fukuoka)
  • Hayakaken is sold by Fukuoka city
  • Nimoca is sold by Nishitetsu
  • Kitaca is sold by JR Hokkaido (Sapporo)

Some of these IC cards issued limited edition designs on top of their standard designs. The card normally costs 500 yen (around 5 AUD or 3.50 USD at the time of this article is written) and you top up balance as needed. When you finish your Japan holiday, you have the option to keep the card (for memory or for collection), or return the card for a refund of the balance minus administration fee. If you choose to keep the card, it can be used for your next trip to Japan. A card and its balance remains valid for 10 years since the last transaction of the card. So if you revisit Japan every few years, you can keep using the same card.

These cards generally work the same nationwide. The only difference is where you can process the refund. Icoca card purchased in JR station in Osaka can only be refunded in a JR station within JR West area (Osaka or Kyoto), refund cannot be processed in Tokyo. Same with Suica, you cannot process its refund in Osaka.

Suica (and other IC cards) is primarily used to pay for our (local) train rides. Train stations have gates with sensor to interact with these cards through simple tap-and-go mechanism. So we tap the card at the starting station before we enter the platform, and then we tap the card again at the exit gate in the destination platform. Outside train stations, IC cards are also accepted to pay for bus fare, and it is also accepted as payment in convenience stores (also known as konbini in Japan), some chain restaurants (such as McDonalds), some shops (which display the IC logo) and some vending machines.

There is a special edition of Suica called Welcome Suica. This is a special edition for tourists. Different from normal (green) Suica, Welcome Suica card is free (no cost of 500 yen), but the card will expire 28 days after its purchase date, and no refund is possible. If you do get this card, make sure to use up its balance before flying out of Japan. It should not be difficult to do because there are konbinis and vending machines at the airport.

Three IC card brands are also available as digital card for iPhone users: Suica, Pasmo and Icoca. Digital Suica (or Pasmo or Icoca) is added to an iPhone from Apple Wallet app using the following steps:

  • Open Wallet app
  • Press the + button at the top
  • Choose Transit Card
  • Scroll down and you will find Suica, Pasmo and Icoca
  • Choose one brand and add the digital card
  • You can then do balance top up using Apple Pay

Do not get confused with the Suica app available from the App Store. That app is for Japanese people to manage their physical Suica cards. We do not need this app at all to get digital Suica.

What about Android phones? Unfortunately, Android phones purchased from outside Japan cannot have digital Suica (or Pasmo or Icoca). If you are an Android user, your choice is only the physical card.

Will digital Suica be added to Android in the future? Unfortunately it is not about an app or software update. Android phones sold outside Japan do not have the necessary hardware component to process digital IC card because of patent restriction. Japan IC cards uses special type of NFC called Felica (NFC-F) patented by Sony.

  • Felica (NFC-F) is the defacto NFC standard for all IC cards in Japan. Money transactions under Felica require special hardware, and upgrading the transaction method means upgrading all the existing infrastructure, for which the Japanese had little incentive. This is different from normal NFC standards (NFC-A/B) to make transactions using Visa/Master.
  • Apple is the only company willing to make a deal with Sony to make iPhones Felica-compatible no matter where they’re sold. Some Android phone manufacturers obtain Felica licenses/hardware for their phones sold in the Japanese market but never globally. In fact, some do not even obtain Felica licenses/hardware for the Japanese market.
  • There is exception: some newer Pixel phones (since Pixel 4) actually have Felica hardware component in the phones. However, since Google does not make a patent deal with Sony, they are required to put firmware lock so that the hardware is not usable for Pixel phones sold outside Japan. If you see some online guides on how to enable digital Suica in Android phone, it is basically on the principle of removing this firmware lock. For me, it is not worth the effort when physical card is easily available and the cost is quite low.

What about Suica for children? Children ages 0-5 rides Japanese trains for free. Children ages 6-11 are eligible for child fare (around half of adult fare), and it is only available in physical card. We can get this from ticket office at major train stations, we show the child’s passport to the staff and they will print the child’s name and validity month on the card. 12 year-old above must pay adult fare.

Can we use one card for multiple people? No. Each person needs a separate card. This is due the system of how fare is calculated. Fare is deducted by a pair of consecutive taps, at starting station and at destination station, tapping multiple times at starting station messes up this mechanism.

How to top up Suica balance? Every train station in Japan has machines to top up IC card. Regardless or which city, those machines can top up any IC card (you can top up Icoca in Tokyo, even though the machine might only show Suica logo). It is very easy to use these machines. English menu is easily selectable. Most machines only accept cash for topping up IC card balance.

Does the balance of digital Suica expire? As far as I know, the balance does not expire. Mine was automatically transferred to my new iPhone when I upgraded. However, it is also worth to note that the balance of digital Suica (or Pasmo or Icoca) cannot be refunded for tourists. The refund mechanism requires Japanese bank account.

If I have Suica, do I still need credit card in Japan? Suica (or other IC card) is not meant to be your main digital payment in Japan. There are many shops and restaurants that don’t accept Suica as payment. In fact, there are more shops that do not accept it compared to those that accept it. For most other places, you still need to use either normal credit card from your home country, or one of those prepaid travel card such as Wise, and of course there are still shops that are cash-only, so cash is still needed.

Shinkansen

Bullet train (shinkansen) is a very convenient method of fast travel between cities in Japan. It is famous for being punctual, and the experience of riding one counts as an attraction in its own right when visiting Japan. Shinkansen requires separate tickets, which can be purchased from ticket office, or online. The most popular shinkansen route is Tokaido Shinkansen, connecting Tokyo, Kyoto and Osaka. The online tickets can be purchased from its official website/app called SmartEX.

Shinkansen has reserved and unreserved carriages. To get on reserved carriages, people needs to purchase shinkansen ticket with reserved seats. Unreserved carriages are for people with unreserved tickets. Unreserved tickets are slightly cheaper, but if since there is no seat reservation, there is a risk of having to stand up throughout the trip. This risk can be particularly high during busy seasons.

Inside shinkansen, passengers can enjoy comfortable seats, heated in winter and air-conditioned in summer. Many shinkansen carriages have USB ports for charging. We are allowed to eat and drink inside shinkansen, even though one should still mind about not eating anything with strong smell. Most people eat something that they purchased at the station. Pre-made bento box (known as ekiben, eki=station) is a popular choice. Toilets are also available.

Shinkansen is booked from station to station, not city to city. This is a common confusion for first timers when they book shinkansen from Tokyo, they ask from which station should they get on. If your shinkansen ticket states “Tokyo” as the starting point, it means you are supposed to get on from Tokyo Station. The from and to places you see in the booking are the train stations where you start and finish your trip. There is another station that you can choose for departure point from Tokyo (for Tokaido Shinkansen), which is Shinagawa Station. If your ticket states destination as Kyoto, it means your ticket is valid until Kyoto Station, which is a train station that happens to have the same name as the city. Shinkansen does not stop at Osaka Station. Instead, it stops at Shin-Osaka Station.

If money is no issue, you can choose to book green car tickets, which is basically higher class tickets with more legroom and the carriage is generally more quiet. Some people use this as backup plan for flexible itinerary because often when the normal tickets with reserved seats are sold out, green class tickets have higher chance to be available.

Shinkansen tickets purchased from SmartEX can be used in 3 different ways:

  • Exchange with paper tickets at the starting station. Each person in the booking requires one paper ticket.
  • Use SmartEX app to generate QR code, this is used to enter the gate. Each person in the booking requires one QR code.
  • SmartEX booking can be linked to a Suica (or other IC) card. Each person in the booking can be linked to one Suica card. We cannot link multiple person’s booking to the same Suica, each needs different card. But we can combine the method in such way that one person in the booking uses QA code for gate entry and the other uses Suica. When a shinkansen ticket is linked to a Suica card, no balance will be deducted because basically a passenger would use the Suica as an access card, not as payment method.

Bringing luggage in shinkansen is easy. First we need to measure our luggage, adding the height, width and depth (wheels included). If total measurement is under 160 cm, then you can put the luggage at the overhead compartment rack and you can essentially reserve any normal seat. Note that sometimes a small luggage can be heavy and you will need to lift it up yourself. There is no staff to help you with lifting up luggages.

If luggage size is between 160 to 250 cm, you need to book reserved seats with oversized baggage area, or seats with oversized baggage compartment:

  • Seat with oversized baggage area is essentially the last row of every carriage. At the back row, there is some space to put it larger luggages, and this space is reserved specially for people sitting on that back row.
  • Seat with oversized baggage compartment gives passenger access to deck area (usually near the connection between carriages) where we can store our luggage securely. These compartments have locks, you can open/lock it using Suica (or other IC) card.

Luggages with total measurement bigger than 250 cm cannot be carried inside shinkansen. For these larger luggages, you will need to arrange luggage transfer service.

Can I pay for shinkansen ticket using Suica balance? The general answer is no. However, there is one new exception. The new Welcome Suica app (iPhone only) seems to allow people to get on shinkansen using Suica balance, but only for unreserved carriages. Note that unlike the digital Suica added directly to Apple Wallet, the balance in Welcome Suica app has expiry. For most other scenarios and circumstances, we cannot use IC card balance to pay for shinkansen.

Is it safe to buy shinkansen tickets from third party resellers? It depends on which reseller. Well known resellers such as Klook should be reasonably safe. However, if your reservation is for special type of seat (e.g., seats in special carriage for families with children, seats with oversized baggage area), I have read that several passengers experienced issues. If booking through SmartEX (the official site) is possible for you, it is strongly recommended to book from it directly.

Why is shinkansen tickets from Tokyo to Osaka so expensive? First, shinkansen is about comfortable travel, not about cheap. The train stations of shinkansen route are located at strategic locations so that when you arrive, you can start exploring new city straight away. Tokyo and Osaka are two cities quite far from each other. Distance from Tokyo to Osaka is farther than New York to Washington DC, and about the same distance from Paris to Amsterdam, I am not sure how much money some people expect to pay for such distance. Taking a series of normal trains is cheaper, but would cost us significantly more hours. I feel that during holiday, time is precious. Another option is night bus, will take you 8-9 hours and costs around 6000-8000 yen per person. Or you could fly, will probably cost around the same as shinkansen, or more, unless you get lucky to score some sale price. Some people mistakenly claim that local flight would take less time. Well yes, just the flight duration. After we add up the time from hotel to airport, check-in time, boarding time, luggage collection, and the time from airport to the next hotel, they usually end up the same or longer than shinkansen trip.

Why is my attempt to purchase tickets from SmartEX kept failing? Try this checklist: 1. make sure you do the booking during Japan business hours, it will not work if you do the booking outside their business hours; 2. if your first name has 2 words, remove the space when writing it; 3. the time from when you start the booking process until the time you try payment actually matters (they should have made this clearer), so try starting again from the beginning but this time do it quick; 4. if all do not work, maybe that is because your card is somehow not accepted, it is known that several US cards (and some from other countries) simply do not work with their payment systems. If you have tried everything and run out of option, then perhaps you need to consider third party sites, or just physically go to ticket office.

How can I register an account in SmartEX without Japanese phone number? Make sure to use the English version. The registration form is slightly different and there is no requirement to put in phone number for English version.

Limited Express Train

Limited Express train is also for long distance travel, but it is not as fast as shinkansen. Many Limited Express trains offer special themed decorations trying to attract passengers taking the ride just for the onboard experience. Ticketing system for Limited Express train can be confusing for first time visitors to Japan. Basically we need to pay the train cost from station A to station B (basic fare, can be paid by Suica, or buying paper tickets, or using one of those passes available for tourists). There’s no need to “book” for this basic fare, and it will not run out because it does not involve specific train and specific seat, just fare from A to B. Then the add-on fare is for the convenience of going from A to B on a faster train (only stop at a few stations) and you get booked seat. This confusion of basic fare and add-on ticket only applies to limited express train. Limited Express is not shinkansen. If you purchase shinkan tickets, the price you pay is all you need.

Japan Rail Pass

Many tourists are getting transport passes hoping to save money in their transport costs while in Japan. Japan Rail Pass (JR Pass) is the most popular pass because it offers unlimited rides on all JR lines nationwide. JR (Japan Railway) is just one of train operators in Japan and this pass will not get you unlimited rides with other operators. There is an easy way to tell if a train line is covered with this pass or not: look at the sign name of the train station. If it starts with JR, you are likely covered. Otherwise you still need to pay.

JR Pass is available for 7, 14 and 21 days. The cost of this pass used to be a lot more affordable many years ago. With the recent price, most visitors with less busy itinerary or staying only at the three main cities (Tokyo, Kyoto, Osaka) would likely spend less without the pass.

Do not let the word “unlimited” misled you to assuming massive cost saving. The reality is that the largest proportion of your transport costs are likely shinkansen tickets (local train fares are generally cheap). You probably will not save any money unless you plan to take shinkansen to more than 3 cities far from each other within 7 days. Just google “JR Pass calculator” and use one of the calculators available to find out if you will save money or actually end up paying more.

Since October 2023, Japan Rail Pass must be purchased online. We can no longer just walk in to a counter at the airport to buy it. If you purchase from a travel agent in your home country, what you would receive is a voucher to be exchanged to Japan Rail Pass once arrive in Japan. That voucher is not the JR Pass itself. When collecting JR Pass (from online purchase or from exchanging voucher), we can choose when the validity period starts. Using the pass, we get 7, 14 or 21 days of unlimited rides on JR network, depending on which JR Pass we purchased. Worth to note that we do not get to pick and choose the 7 days. Once the validity of 7 day pass starts, it is valid for 7 consecutive days.

For shinkansen, JR Pass allow you to book reserved seats for free. Booking can be done online if we purchased the pass online. If we bought the pass from any other source, the only way to book shinkansen is by visiting physical ticket office at train station. There are some exceptions, though. Booking green car seat or booking Nozomi train will cost some additional fees.

JR Pass holders do not need to tap anything at train station gates. Instead of going through automated gates at train stations, you choose one lane with human staff and show him/her your pass, that will get you access to any local train.

If Japan Rail Pass is too costly for your itinerary, there are also local passes that might suit your needs better. Some of the popular local passes include:

  • Osaka-Tokyo Hokuriku Arch Pass
  • JR East Pass
  • JR West Pass
  • Hakone Free Pass
  • and many more

People staying just in Tokyo has the options to get the popular 3-day Tokyo Subway Pass or 1-day Tokyo Metro Ticket. People staying just in Kyoto has the option of 1 day subway pass or 1 day subway & bus pass. If all these seem too complicated and overwhelming, the simpler solution is to just use regular IC card (Suica, Pasmo, Icoca, etc). For most people, the total costs are not going to be too far different.

Others

Google Maps in Japan provides excellent level of information. It shows shinkansen routes as well as local train lines, it gives us the cost of trip and which platform to take.

This post is one of five parts of Planning Japan Holiday series:

Lastly, the information in this post are based on my knowledge at the time of writing. Things can change. This article is written to help first time visitors with a starting point to plan their trips. Always check with official sources for latest information when doing the actual planning.