Sunrise Seto to Takamatsu, reservations from USA?

Hi Bob,

I'm afraid to say that it would be really hard to do so. Basically, you'd need to know somebody in Japan that could make the seat reservations for you and give you the tickets once you arrive in Japan.

As it likely won't be possible, I'd look at traveling to Takamatsu by train during the day. It is actually quite a nice trip to make. You can take the Shinkansen from Tokyo to Okayama (and zoom past Fuji on the way), then take a train to Takamatsu over the Seto-Ohashi bridge for some amazing views.

Hope this helps,
Daniel

Daniel-san -

Thanks for the reply.

Just to clarify - are you saying that if we arrive on the afternoon of March 23 and get our JR pass, it will be difficult if not impossible to make reservations upon our arrival for four nobinobi zaseki seats together on the Sunrise Seto the next evening (March 24)?

Are you also saying that if we have friends in Japan (we do) who can make a reservation for us, that those reservations can be made locally and then picked up when we get to Japan, and they will be covered by the JR pass?

Thanks -

Bob

Hi Bob,

Just to clarify - are you saying that if we arrive on the afternoon of March 23 and get our JR pass, it will be difficult if not impossible to make reservations upon our arrival for four nobinobi zaseki seats together on the Sunrise Seto the next evening (March 24)? Yes, the changes are against you. As there's only one train per day, seats are very limited and often sell out way in advance. You can always try but expect a "No seat availability" reply.

Are you also saying that if we have friends in Japan (we do) who can make a reservation for us, that those reservations can be made locally and then picked up when we get to Japan, and they will be covered by the JR pass?

Yes, this would be possible. Basically, he/she would need to call the JR Reservation line. Then get seat reservation tickets for the Sunrise Express but explain to them that the other parts of the fare are already paid (covered by the JR Pass) and then pay the reservation fee by phone (that would only be a couple dollars per seat), then collect the tickets in Japan and give them to you before boarding. As you can see, it is quite complicated and it has been a while since I heard somebody pulling this off.

Kind regards,
Daniel

Daniel-san -

Thank you for this. I will give it a shot with my friend in Japan, and will let you know if we are able to do it. As you say, worst-case scenario is a day train ride to Shikoku, which is not so bad. Our ultimate destination is Matsuyama; we'll get there one way or another.

Kind regards,

Bob

Hi Bob,

It's worth trying. To give you some more information that may be helpful.

Seat reservations open at 10.00 am. 1-month before departure. It would be best if your friend called around this time to get the seats reserved. It may also be helpful to do one call before that, just to inquire about the procedure beforehand.

Kind regards,
Daniel

Daniel-san:

Two other questions:
1) Our JR Pass purchase will be 2 adults, and 2 children. Does this make a difference for our friend who is making the reservation for our nobinobi zaseki seats on the Sunrise Seto? In other words, can you make a reservation for a child ticket the same way you would for an adult?

2) If we go with the JR Green pass instead of the ordinary, will this make any difference for how we use the Sunrise Seto?

Thank you -

Bob

Hi Bob,

1.) It will basically be the same process, the only difference is that child fares are half price.

2.) There are no green seats on the Sunrise express, it won't make a difference.

Kind regards,
Daniel

Daniel-San -

It appears that the JR agents selling the reservations are not aware that they can sell reservations for people coming in with a JR pass. Below is the update from my friend in Japan who tried to make the reservation for us; she got pushback from the ticket agent, and by the time he agreed to look for availability, the seats were sold out (11:30 AM on the first day possible to make reservations).

Bob

Hi Bob

Ok, the short of it is I could not get your tickets ... the man at the counter said it was not possible to get the seat tickets without having the rail passes in hand.

We went round a few times with me explaining JR English information had said differently etc etc and I gave him all the details and he went on the computer to try but then discovered they were sold out. Before that I was thinking to go to a bigger station and try again, thinking he was just clueless, but since they were sold out the facts became moot. So sorry I couldn’t do that for you. Hopefully the kids aren’t too disappointed. It sounded like a fun adventure for them.
... Anyway, sorry I couldn’t be of more help. One thought is you could try again when you get here on the off chance there are cancellations but four spaces seems a bit too much to hope for.

Talk to you later

Hi Bob,

Thank you for sharing your experience. It is quite an unusual request and it may have been that the ticket agent was not aware of this. I've had to wait long sometimes just to make 1 reservation with the JR Pass in hand for the Sunrise, as the agent was unaware of the booking conditions.

I'm sorry to hear that it did not work out, seats usually go sale at 10.00 but it is sold out at 11:30 is just crazy.

Nevertheless I do hope you'll have a great trip around Japan and let me know if I can help finding alternatives.

Kind regards,
Daniel