Is there anywhere we can get one before leaving for Japan? Immediately after arriving in Japan? Will they give us a schedule (like Amtrak has) when we go to an exchange office to pick up our rail passes??

No, at least not in English that I know of. You can pick them up in Japanese at book stores and kiosks in the stations. The link at the bottom of this page may help you

http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2323.html

Aloha!

try this link.

i used it when i was planning my train travel in japan.

http://www.hyperdia.com/

I got a schedule when I purchased my RailPass, but that is only for the shinkansen I think. But on Hyperdia.com you can print out the schedule for a particular train by clicking on one of those (don't remember which) icons next to the train time.....

this is the link at the bottom of the page. you can print your own schedules before you go. make sure its after march 25th as i think they change on that day

http://www.japanrail.com/JR_timetableandfare.html


Aloha!

Awesome - thanks! I think they change on march 15 but I'll have to check.

Yes the new timetables effective Mar 15th are now up on http://www.hyperdia.com/

Ask for a timetable. JR used to produce an all-Japan timetable booklet that you could fold and fit in a pocket. Basically it had all of the timetables that are shown in the top part of each of the numbered timetable links at the link that ht gave.

Oh, I see, the bottom part of each page, the color part, shows how to compute the fares.

Great link, thanks ht. Never saw an overnight train map before.