reserving a seat before arriving in Japan

Hi there,

I am afraid that there is no way to reserve tickets between Tokyo - Kyoto before arriving in Japan. However this is not something to worry about, even in golden week you will be fine if you reserve your seats 2 days or so in advance.

The starting and last weekend of Golden week are the busiest, and I would try to avoid travel on those days or get tickets for them ASAP, midweek is generally more relaxed.

Hope this helps,
Daniel

PS: Speaking from personal experience I was able to get seats just before departure in Golden week but was not able to sit together with my travelling group.