Yikes! Our trip has arrived! I did so much reading for months and then just stopped. My hubby had surgery and we were not sure we would go through this trip. Long story, my daughter is swapping places with him.

other than hotels, I did not reserve anything. So my question is 1- can we just get train tickets on arrival? The bullet makes no sense for where we are going (golden route essentially) 2- what should I reserve now?

yikes! This is exciting yet I’m a bit nervous having never traveled without my hubby.

Sorry to hear your husband couldn't go on the trip with you; wishing him a speedy recovery.

As for the train, where are you traveling to/from? For the most part, there is no need to reserve in advance. The Shinkansen between the major cities run 8-10x / hr. You can wait until you get there to buy them. Alternatively, download the Smart EX app and buy it on the app. We just returned from our trip a few days ago. I bought all our Shinkansen tickets on the app the day before travel. The only reason I did that instead of buying them day-of at the airport is to avoid needing to stand in line to buy tickets. If you decide to use the Smart EX app, you should register on the website beforehand, then when you download the app you can log in to your account.

Thank you!

>> bullet makes no sense
what does that mean?

i recommend buying the shinkansen tickets online in advance given that you will be traveling during Golden Week.

Yes, you can buy train tickets upon arrival. Depending on the route you should also explore the option on traveling on a bus. Buses are fast, modern and quite affordable.

lol I am going to say my brain was fried when I typed that lol. I meant the Japan rail pass 🤦🏻‍♀️

You have a Japan rail pass?

Ok, that is what I thought. I agree that the JR Pass makes no sense for your itinerary

I would book the shinkansen reserved seats in advance, at least before going to the station. I read that during peak travel times (like now through the end of Golden Week on May 6) they don't have any unreserved cars on the Tokaido shinkansen. They had so many people who were unable to get seat reservations piling up to get into unreserved cars that they made the trains have all-reserved seats. I believe they did it to smooth out congestion on the platform. Not everyone waiting would be able to board (the last several would have had to stand) and more people would arrive. Like that, I think.