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Usually you’ll find plenty of empty seats on the Bullet Train, but during commuting or holiday times the carriages can get pretty busy. If you’re looking into reserving seats, here’s what you need to know.
How to reserve seats and board your train
Seats can be reserved free of charge at station Midori no Mado Guchi ticket offices, recognisable by the green sign (see photo). Reservations can't be made by phone or online from outside Japan in English — you'll need to do this in person once you've arrived, though English is generally spoken (or a translation app works fine) at ticket offices in major stations.
- Take your Japan Rail Pass to the Midori no Mado Guchi
- Specify which train you wish to reserve a seat on, stating smoking or non-smoking
- You will receive your reserved seat ticket (carriage 号車, row 番, seat 席, Dept 発, Arr 着)
- Show your Japan Rail Pass at the ticket gate and go to your platform
- Find your carriage number on your ticket
- Stand at the correct carriage point on the platform. Carriage numbers can be found printed on the ground and hanging from signs (non-reserve carriages are usually numbered 1-5)
- Line up behind the white line and wait for your train
- Enter the train and find your seat, seat numbers are indicated above the window (sit in any seat if an unreserved carriage)
Keep hold of your ticket as you may have to present both your Japan Rail Pass and seat reservation to the ticket inspector.
How much does it cost to reserve a seat and ride the bullet train?
If you have a Japan Rail Pass, seat reservations themselves are entirely free — you're only ever paying (if anything) for the Nozomi/Mizuho supplement mentioned above.
If you're buying individual tickets without a pass, the price depends on distance, train type, and whether you reserve. As a guide, reserved, standard/Ordinary Car, and one-way figures are approximate and can shift with the season, so always check current prices before booking.
A non-reserved seat typically saves a few hundred yen over a reserved one on the same train. For any other route — including Osaka–Hiroshima, Kyoto–Hiroshima, or a multi-city itinerary — the most reliable way to get an accurate, current price is our JR Fare Calculator, which will also tell you whether a Japan Rail Pass works out cheaper for your specific trip.
When to book
You can make reservations right up to train departures, although during national holidays such as Golden Week, Obon or New Year, 3-4 days in advance is necessary.
If you are in a large party and want to sit together, I recommend reserving seats for your journeys at the beginning of your stay. Plan your route using an app like Japan Travel by NAVITIME or Jorudan (Hyperdia's detailed timetable service shut down in 2022), and take a written note of your planned trains to the ticket office — it makes it much easier for the staff to book them all for you in one visit.
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