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Activating, booking seats, ordinary vs business (green) end apr-may

sgksf
sgksf
about 9 years ago
2 responses

Hi,

My husband and I will be traveling Apr 27-May 3
Tokyo-Nagoya-Matsumoto-Kyoto-Osaka (airport)

Will the Pass work on all trains going to these areas? I see that some bullets (Nazomi, Mizuhu don't cover the pass) - so we should just not use those trains and look for others?

How difficult is it to get a seat during this season?
If we purchase the Green Pass (business) will this guarantee us a seat, or do we also have to reserve seats?

Finally, when can we start to reserve a seat? Can we do it from the US or does it have to be in Japan? Can I book the seats in Japan when my husband is at a conference, or does he have to be with me? Can I just bring his passport?

Thanks.

avatar
Daniel-san
18835 posts
about 9 years ago
Expert

Hi there,

The JR Pass will cover travel between all these places, although you may still require local transport at times.

The period you plan to travel is very busy because of national holidays (Golden Week April 29th - May 6th). It's recommended to make seat reservations for these days 2-3 days ahead of time. This should be no problem if you do so on your day of arrival on the 27th.

Green Class itself does not guarantee a seat, reserving ahead of time is a better way to be secure of seating. Green Class however is a nice was to travel more quietly and skip some of the traveling crowds.

You may reserve seats once you are in Japan. See our blog post for all the details. Your husband will have to be present in order to exchange the JR Pass.

Hope this helps,
Daniel

sgksf
sgksf
2 posts
about 9 years ago

Thank you Daniel-san,

Your information is very helpful!

One more question please.
Does the Green Class have non-smoking cars?

Regards,
sgksf

avatar
Daniel-san
18835 posts
about 9 years ago
Expert

Hi sgksf,

These days all train cars are non-smoking. Shinkansen do have a small designated smoking area.

Hope this helps,
Daniel


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