I have looked through all of the posts I could find, and still have a question.

My son and I are going to Japan in May. I am 71 yrs, 6'2" and about 285 lbs, but quite active, and he is 34 and 6'7" and athletic.

I can't figure out whether to get the Green or the Ordinary pass. Some say don't get Green, but some like it for the extra space.

When I lived in Japan for several years 40 years ago, I always rode 3rd class on the vertical-seat "futsu" trains, but am not sure what to do this time.

Any insight or suggestions?

Orion

To be perfectly honest, I don't recommend spending the extra money. The Green Car trains are not all that different from the usual cars...they are just a car with slightly nicer seats. Not all trains havec Green Cars either. The ordinary cars are perfectly nice on long distance express and shinkansens, probably what you'd be doing anyway. Most have airplane style seating, with much more legroom than economy class airplanes.

The only time I would recommend the Green Car pass is for travel during peak times, like Golden Week (April 28 - May 6 this year), Obon (in August). At those times, it will be easier to get reservations in Green Car, though they are often sold out too.

KimJapan,

Thanks very much for the quick reply.

Do you know of a way to get the leg-room comparison of Green to Ordinary car? Only thing I worry about is my son. He is 6'7" with a short trunk, so his legs are very long. If the difference is small, we will just get the ordinary pass.

Using google, I found that the regular seating in the Limited Express Haruke (between Kansai Int'l Airport and Shin Osaka/Kyoto) has pitch of 97 cm and Green car has pitch of 116 cm. That's just one example, though. Other trains may differ as there are many, many seat configurations.

For reference, a rather generous airplane economy class seat has a pitch of 32" or 81 centimeters. 116 cm is 45", bigger than 91 cm/36" but not airline international business/first class size.

You might check your routes to see if Green cars are used on the trains you plan to take...no point paying the extra if it isn't available to you.

From space and comfort point of view, there is little difference.

What I found to be different are something other than your concern.

Availability: Green car seats, at least on Shinkansen, were more available at last minutes. I wanted to travel Kyoto to Tokyo on earlier train, but all ordinary seats were sold out if we wanted to sit together.

Location on platform: Again for Shinkansen, the Green cars were located near the center where escalators drop you off on the platform. Ordinary cars, especially the unreserved seats, were furthest away from the point you enter the platform.

Is there a difference in the amount of luggage you can bring? A friend told me that she thought the green cars had more space for suitcases than the ordinary cars.

Not so much. It is inconvenient to have large bags or many bags when traveling by train no matter which car you take. Stations have stairs, lots of stairs. There are elevators, but you need to call an attendant to use them. There are escalators, but they mostly go up only and you have to use the stairs to go down. Storage for lugage in the cars isn't impossible as most passengers won't have any at all. The overhead parts can hold a small bag/carry on size. Bigger ones can go behind the last row of seats.

Thanks!

If our flight arrives in Narita on Saturday at 1:00 PM, we will probably be ready to catch a 4:00 -5:00 PM train from Tokyo to Kyoto. We will have to store luggage, validate our JR Passes, eat lunch (kids) and take the train to Tokyo.

Is 4-5 PM on a Saturday a crowded time on the Tokyo - Kyoto train? It sure would be nice for us all to sit together.

Similarly, when we leave Kyoto, it will be on a Wednesday, about 4 PM. Is this a crowded time? Should we leave earlier? How much earlier?

Thanks!

The trains between Tokyo and Kyoto are always crowded. You are much more likely to have seats together if you reserve in advance. Since you are arriving in Japan the same day, I don't think that's possible unless an agent makes the seat reservations for you. The reservations are also time/train specific. You may be able to get seats together on the non-reserved car if you get in line in advance by about an hour or so AND if the train is originating where you get on. Sometimes people offer to change seats so you can sit together, but not always. On your way back to Tokyo you should have reservations. You can make them when you validate your pass...might not be seats all together but maybe you can get pairs.

we just got back from Japan yesterday. Had a ball of time taking different trains from Hakata and journey upwards to Tokyo. Our experience with Limited Express & Shinkansen was great!

The seats are spaced generously even for ordinary cars, our 5 year old can actually jump and play in between seats. even if you recline to the max, you will not affect the passengers behind you. Unless you are going for a lengthy journey, ordinary cars (reserve / non reserve) will be comfortable & relaxing enough.

I'm 6'3" with long legs and there is plenty of leg room on the Tokaido shinkansen (i.e. Tokyo to Kyoto to Hakata).

orionw, what is your itinerary? Some of the limited express trains lack leg room.

I think the green car is totally unnecessary. There might be more room for bags because there are fewer people. But there is enough room in the regular cars.

withkids, you won't really have much choice to go earlier, unless you skip lunch or have it on the train (or buy an eki-ben box lunch at the station and eat it on the train).

When you get your JR Pass you will get your reserved seat tickets for the Narita Express to Tokyo/Shinagawa and for the shinkansen to Kyoto. If you get your seats together then you are all set.

Or you could go in an unreserved car. The shinkansen to Kyoto originates in Tokyo, so if you board there then the car will be empty.

For your return from Kyoto you can get your reserved seats at any time. You can get them on your arrival day after you get your Pass. Early afternoon is the least crowded time, but pick the time that you want and if you don't get seats together then try earlier. You might also consider shipping bags from Narita Airport to Kyoto.

We have had trouble getting 3 seats together weeks in advance on many trains. Getting single seats is usually quite easy though.

On the Kyoto-Kanazawa train are the seats 3x3 or 2x2? I suppose that you end up with 2 together plus 1, but in the same car?

Seats are 2 together on the Kanazawa - Kyoto trains. Often we end up with singles for all of us. On shinkansen we have often had to forego seat reservations because there were no seats period for reservation, even weeks before. Taking non-reserved cars isn't bad, just inconvenient to have to get to the station early to join the line, and there is always a line for non-reserved cars.

These are excellent suggestions. Thanks so much.

A stupid question - even though we will buy the pass in San Francisco at a JR licensed agency, I am assuming they cannot reserve seats for us until we activate the pass in Japan. Is that correct?

I am also assuming we should go right to the JR office in Narita, as soon as we deplane and book our trains. Then, we will repack and store luggage, have lunch..etc. We will allow ourselves sufficient time to catch the train in Tokyo and to get lost finding it.

Will there be cabs at the train station in Kyoto on a Saturday night at 8-9:00 PM?

Thanks!

Not a stupid question. You won't be able to get free reserved seats until you get your passes activated in Japan. It is possible that a travel agency with agents in Japan could buy reserved seats but I've never heard of anyone offering this service.

I would do the luggage thing first. Soon as you come into the arrival hall turn left and there are the baggage shipping company counters. Get that out of the way then go to the JR office to do the exchange.

Yes there will be taxis at JR Kyoto station when you arrive. The cabbies know how late the shinkansen runs.

"we will buy the pass in San Francisco."

I do not think you are buying the pass itself in the US. What you buy in the US is the voucher. Take the voucher to a JR office in Japan and they will give you the pass in return. It was a diptych with size slightly larger than a passport. It took about 15 minutes to convert four vouchers to JR passes. Theycustomer rep was busy looking at his computer screen, filled out forms, put stamps, and examined our passports. I had to fill out application forms at the JR office in Japan.

Very helpful information. Thanks so much!