JAPAN RAIL PASS, a joint offering of the six companies comprising the Japan Railways Group (JR Group), is the economical and convenient means of traveling throughout Japan by rail.
There are two types of PASSes: PASS for Green Cars and PASS for Standard Cars. Each type can be purchased for 7 days, 14 days or 21 days.
There are certain conditions for use. For example, "NOZOMI" and "MIZUHO" trains on the Tokaido, Sanyo and Kyushu Shinkansen Lines cannot be used.
Before buying JAPAN RAIL PASS, carefully check the following to make sure you meet the eligibility requirements!
The JAPAN RAIL PASS is a special fare ticket that is available only to travelers visiting Japan from
foreign countries for sightseeing. To be eligible to purchase a JAPAN RAIL PASS, you must meet one
of the following two conditions. Even if you have purchased a PASS online or have an Exchange Order,
if you do not meet the qualifications for using the JAPAN RAIL PASS, you will be unable to pick it
up or exchange it. Please confirm the usage qualifications thoroughly prior to purchasing a PASS or
Exchange Order.
Also, if you do not meet the usage qualifications due to factors such as insufficient documentation
(including due to insufficient or incorrect instructions from the travel agency where you purchased
your Exchange Order) and you are unable to receive a PASS, the JR Group takes no responsibility for
any transportation expenses incurred during your stay in Japan as a result.
Please confirm that you have all of the required confirmation documents prior
to leaving your country.
Eligibility for use①
Temporary Visitor entry status, according to Japanese Immigration Law, allows a stay in Japan of 15 days or 90 days for "sight-seeing, etc. "If you apply for a "stay for sight-seeing" when you enter Japan, entry personnel will stamp your passport as "Temporary Visitor," as shown below.
In order to receive or use JAPAN RAIL PASS, your passport must bear this stamp or sticker.
When you use an automated gate at the airport, no stamp/sticker will be
stamped or put on your passport. Therefore, you need to either use a manned automated gate or ask a
clerk to apply a stamp/sticker in your passport.
However, a customer who has a "registered user card" under the Trusted Traveler Program will be
required to show the card to confirm the "Temporary Visitor" status.
Caution
If you purchased a JAPAN RAIL PASS online or have an Exchange Order, you cannot pick up or exchange the JAPAN RAIL PASS unless you have a “Temporary Visitor” visa; if you enter Japan under any other official status, such as “Trainee”, “Entertainer”, or “Reentry Permit”, you cannot pick up or exchange the JAPAN RAIL PASS. According to strict interpretation of the Japanese Immigration Law, “Temporary Visitor” status differs from "short term stay".
WEB
The purchase methods "Purchase Overseas" and "Purchase in Japan" are also available.
Please see Purchase for details.
Eligibility for use②
Caution ①・②
Customers who do not meet either of the conditions ①, ② above will not be able to purchase an
Exchange Order or exchange one for a PASS. In addition, if the documentation customers prepare
does not meet the conditions for eligibility, they will not be allowed to purchase an Exchange
Order or exchange it for a PASS.
Please confirm that the issued date for both your “Overseas Residential
Registration” and your “Certificate of Overseas Residence” is prior to the purchase date of
your Exchange Order (and within the last 6 months).
(The “Overseas Residential Registration” and “Certificate of Overseas Residence” you
presented at the time you purchased your Exchange Order must also be presented when
exchanged it for a PASS.)
<For individuals who possess passports issued by both Japan and another country>
In accordance with the Japanese Immigration Law, please present your Japanese passport to
immigration when entering the country. In this case, your Japanese passport and “documentation
verifying your stay in another country for 10 or more consecutive years, such as a certificate
issued by a government office overseas” will be required.
As a general rule, Exchange Orders cannot be purchased and JAPAN RAIL
PASSES cannot be exchanged for young children who have spent less than 10 years living in
another country. (There are some exceptions. Please confirm the details above.)
Eligibility to purchase the JAPAN RAIL PASS through this method:
Type | Green | Ordinary | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
Duration | Adult | Child | Adult | Child |
7-day | 44,810 YEN | 22,400 YEN | 33,610 YEN | 16,800 YEN |
14-day | 72,310 YEN | 36,150 YEN | 52,960 YEN | 26,480 YEN |
21-day | 91,670 YEN | 45,830 YEN | 66,200 YEN | 33,100 YEN |
Until September 30, 2023, it has been released in some parts of Japan.
The sales period is subject to change. Thank you for your understanding in advance.
Use is limited to those who have a passport only outside Japan(Not available
for Japanese nationals residing overseas).
Eligibility to purchase the JAPAN RAIL PASS through this method:
Eligibility for use① Eligibility for use②
Type | Green | Ordinary | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
Duration | Adult | Child | Adult | Child |
7-day | 39,600 YEN | 19,800 YEN | 29,650 YEN | 14,820 YEN |
14-day | 64,120 YEN | 32,060 YEN | 47,250 YEN | 23,620 YEN |
21-day | 83,390 YEN | 41,690 YEN | 60,450 YEN | 30,220 YEN |
Notice about the prices
The above are yen (¥) prices for a JAPAN RAIL PASS. When purchasing online or at a ticket office
in Japan, the purchase amount will be settled in Japanese yen. The actual cost in local currency
outside Japan is calculated based on the Banker’s Selling Rate (BSR), etc. at the time the
Exchange Order is issued. Note that the purchase exchange rate may differ from the exchange rate
when you actually visit Japan.
The local currency price, applicable exchange rate, and issue date for an Exchange Order are
specified on the Exchange Order itself.
The child PASS prices are applicable to children who are age 6 through 11 as of the purchase
date in the case of purchasing online, as of the issue date of the Exchange Order, or as of the
date of purchase at a ticket office in Japan.
(Prices are subject to change. The applicable price is the valid price on the date when
purchased online or at a ticket office in Japan, or on the date when an Exchange Order is
issued.)
・The JAPAN RAIL PASS is valid for the railways, buses, and ferry boats shown in the table below.
All JR Group Railways-Shinkansen"bullet trains"(「except any reserved or non-reserved seat on “NOZOMI” and “MIZUHO” trains)limited express trains, express trains, and rapid or local trains, and the BRT. (With some exceptions)
Caution
The JAPAN RAIL PASS is not valid for any seats, reserved or non-reserved, on “NOZOMI” and “MIZUHO” trains on the Tokaido, Sanyo and Kyushu Shinkansen lines.
(The pass holders must take “HIKARI,” “SAKURA,” “KODAMA,” or “TSUBAME” trains.) If you
use a “NOZOMI” or “MIZUHO” train, you must pay the basic fare and the limited express
charge, and for a Green Car, the additional Green Car surcharge.
In addition, if you use the GranClass car of the Tōhoku Shinkansen, Hokkaido Shinkansen,
Jōetsu Shinkansen and Hokuriku Shinkansen, you must pay the limited express charge and
the GranClass car surcharge.
Note also that passengers using JR trains on non-JR lines must pay additional fares and
charges for sections traveled on such lines. Some JR trains use the lines of private
railways for direct services.
Depending on the train car or railway section, if there are restrictions in place on the
maximum number of seats, it may not be possible to secure designed reserved seats even
if there is a vacancy.
・Major JR Trains Running Through Non-JR Lines and the Sections Concerned
Train | Main route | Section requiring separate fares - charges | Private railway company involved |
---|---|---|---|
Shirayuki | Niigata - Joetsumyoukou/Arai | Naoetsu - Joetsumyoko/Arai | Echigo TOKImeki Railway |
Nikko | Shinjuku - Tobu Nikko | Kurihashi - Tobu Nikko | Tobu Railway |
Kinugawa, Spacia Kinugawa | Shinjuku - Kinugawa Onsen | Kurihashi - Kinugawa Onsen | |
Odoriko, Saphir Odoriko | Shinjuku/Tokyo - Izukyu-Shimoda | Ito - Izukyu-Shimoda | Izukyu |
Odoriko | Tokyo - Shuzenji | Mishima - Shuzenji | Izuhakone Railway |
FUJI EXCURSION | Shinjuku - Kawaguchiko | Ōtsuki - Kawaguchiko | Fujikyu Railway |
Mt.Fuji | Gotemba - (Odakyu) Shinjuku | Matsuda - (Odakyu) Shinjuku | Odakyu Electric Railway |
Nanki | Nagoya - Shingu | Kawarada - Tsu | Ise Tetsudo Railway |
Rapid “Mie” | Nagoya - Toba | ||
Hashidate, Tango Relay | Kyoto - Amanohashidate/Toyooka | Fukuchiyama - Toyooka | Kyoto Tango Railway |
Kounotori | Shin-Osaka - Amanohashidate | ||
Super Hakuto | Kyoto - Tottori/Kurayoshi | Kamigori - Chizu | Chizu Express |
Super Inaba | Okayama - Tottori | ||
Shimanto, Ashizuri | Takamatsu/Kochi - Nakamura/Sukumo | Kubokawa - Nakamura/Sukumo | Tosa Kuroshio Railway |
Local lines of JR Bus (excluding some local lines. Pass validity for particular routes is
subject to change.)
(JR Bus : JR Hokkaido Bus, JR Bus Tohoku, JR Bus Kanto, JR Tokai Bus, West Japan JR Bus, Chugoku
JR Bus, JR Shikoku Bus, JR Kyushu Bus)
The PASS is not valid for travel on express bus routes operated by JR Bus.
Only the JR-WEST Miyajima ferry is covered.
Hydrofoil ferry service operated by JR-KYUSHU between Hakata and Pusan (Korea) is not covered.
・Most of JR trains have standard (second class) cars, and many of the long-distance trains have Green
(first class) Cars.
・You may use without paying any additional charges both standard cars and Green Cars with a Green Car
pass and only standard cards with a standard car pass.
Please see the table below for the available trains, cars and facilities.
Trains | Accommodations | Green | Ordinary |
---|---|---|---|
“NOZOMI” and “MIZUHO” trains on the Tokaido, Sanyo and Kyushu Shinkansen |
Green Car | × | × |
Ordinary Car | × | × | |
“HIKARI”, “SAKURA”, “KODAMA” and “TSUBAME” trains on the Tokaido, Sanyo and Kyushu Shinkansen lines and all trains on the Tohoku, Yamagata, Akita, Hokkaido, Joetsu, Hokuriku and Nishi Kyushu Shinkansen lines |
GranClass ※4 |
▲ | ▲ |
Green Car | ○※1 | ▲ | |
Ordinary Car | ○※2 | ○※2 | |
Ordinary private Compartment | ▲ | ▲ | |
Limited express and ordinary express | Green Car | ○※3 | ▲ |
Ordinary Car | ○ | ○ | |
Green private Compartment | ▲ | ▲ | |
Ordinary private Compartment | ▲ | ▲ | |
Sleeping Car | ▲ | ▲ | |
Local and rapid trains | Green Car | ○ | ▲ |
Ordinary Car | ○ | ○ |
Conditions for Use