Need advice: the best option.

Hi there!

I looked at available option for your itinerary and it was hard to find the right option. However I think that the best option for you would be to pay tickets as you go. This because travel around Kansai, the area where Kyoto, Osaka, Kobe and Maibara are located is not very expansive.

After that the only real expansive travel is between Osaka - Tokyo (¥ 13,520), however one way is enough to warrant the price of a JR Pass.

You could buy an ICOCA card at Kansai Airport to make your travel somewhat easier, this is a prepaid travel card, which you can use to enter the station by swiping the card over the ticket gate and again when you exit the station, this way the right fare amount is directly charged on your card and you don't have to buy tickets every time you travel.

Hope this helps!
Daniel

Thank You Very Much Daniel-san.
The info is very useful.

Is train to Hakone covered by JR pass?

Hi again!

Yes you can use the Shinkansen to travel to Odawara station, which is the front door of Hakone (so to speak). From there you may have to relay on local travel companies to reach your planned destination.

looking into this result:
http://www.hyperdia.com/en/cgi/en/search.html?dep_node=OSAKA&arv_node=KYOTO&via_node01=&via_node02=&via_node03=&year=2013&month=10&day=20&hour=07&minute=00&search_type=0&search_way=&transtime=undefined&sort=0&max_route=5&ship=off&lmlimit=null&search_target=route&facility=reserved&sum_target=7

what does it mean by 'unreserved seat'? does it mean we need to pay the 'fare' + 'unreserved seat' for the trip.
i.e.: Y540 + Y630 = Y1170

Hi there!

Unreserved seat means that you don't pay for seat reservations.

There's generally 3 fees that make up the total amount for your travel:

1.) Fare, this is the fee that you pay for the distance traveled and is the same on all trains.

2.) Seat Fee, is an additional charge for limited express and Shinkansen trains. These are generally very luxurious trains and make for convenient travel.

3.) Seat reservation fee, which is optional but will guarantee seating on a designated train. This is very handy when you travel during busy times.

All these fees are covered by the JRPass, so you don't have to worry about them.

Lastly when you travel between Osaka and Kyoto, take the JR Special Rapid Service, this is considered a local train and will only cost 540 yen, it departs every 10-15 minutes and gets you from Kyoto station into the heart of Osaka in under 30 minutes.

Hi there, I have the same dilemma. I'm confused as to which passes work best for us. We will be in Kansai Region on April 10-14, 2015. I'm thinking of getting the ICOCA and HARUKA pass and just load the ICOCA card with another 1.5-2K yen. May I know whether the ICOCA card may be used for JR Special Rapid Service? Also, is the HARUKA card good from Kansai Airport until our destination station, which is Shinfukae at Sennichimae Line? or is it just until a certain station? Our tentative itinerary is:

Day 1: Kansai Airport to Shinfukae then go around Osaka attractions
Day 2: Kyoto
Day 3: Nara and other Osaka Attractions
Day 4: USJ
Day 5: Home bound-Shinfukae to Kansai Airport.

Anyone who can help, please reply here :) Thank you@