The Japan Rail Pass offers great value! It’s an economical way to travel throughout Japan’s extensive rail network, considered to be one of the most efficient in the world. This includes travel aboard the world famous Shinkansen ‘bullet trains’, limited expresses and local services.
A Japan Rail Pass can be used on all Japan Railways (JR) lines and the Shinkansen ‘bullet trains’ (except the pass is not valid on “NOZOMI” and “MIZUHO” trains on the Tokaido, Sanyo and Kyushu Shinkansen lines). The Japan Rail Pass is offered by the six companies that make up the Japan Railways Group (JR Group), including JR Kyushu, JR Shikoku, JR West, JR Central, JR East and JR Hokkaido. The Japan Rail Pass can also be used for the Tokyo monorail.
These Shinkansen “bullet trains” can be used:
A Japan Rail Pass can be purchased and used by:
3 months
Caution: Please note that during crowded periods you cannot be guaranteed a seat on a specific train.
The periods when seat reservations are particularly difficult to secure are as follows:
An unused Exchange Order Voucher can be returned for refund less a 20% administration fee within one year from date of issue. Once the Exchange Order Voucher has been exchanged for an actual Japan Rail Pass, it becomes 100% non-refundable.
Once a Japan Rail Pass is purchased, we will ship you an Exchange Order Voucher, which you exchange in Japan for the actual Japan Rail Pass. These Stations have Japan Rail Pass exchange offices. (This must be done WITHIN 3 MONTHS from the date the Exchange Order Voucher was issued. At the time of exchange, you can specify the date that you want to start using the pass. It can be any date within one month from the date the actual Japan Rail Pass is received. Once the Pass has a starting date written on it, the date cannot be changed.)
You cannot buy a Japan Rail Pass in Japan. An Exchange Order Voucher must be purchased outside Japan, prior to your trip.
The Japan Rail Pass is also valid for the following buses: local lines of JR bus companies (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) and some of JR highway bus services (Sapporo-Otaru; Morioka-Hirosaki; Tokyo-Nagoya, Kyoto, Osaka,Tsukuba Center; Nagoya-Kyoto, Osaka; Osaka-Tsuyama, Kasai Flower Center), and ferry: the JR Miyajima ferry.
The Japan Rail Pass is not valid for travel on non-JR lines. If you wish to travel on non-JR lines, you will need to pay the corresponding fare to the private railway company concerned.
4.82out of5Value 5.00 User Friendliness 5.00 Experience 5.00 Comfort 5.00 Service 5.00 | Worth it!Sean ,CanadaJune 27, 2014 We went on a trip to Japan for 2 weeks, and bought the JR PASS.
It was very worth it for traveling between cities as it cuts down the time quite a bit using the shinkasen(bullet train). Shinkasen also is very roomy and quite comfortable. Traveling but normal rail would have probably taken double the amount of time. Otherwise come cities have their own rail systems so the JR pass does not work on those rails and will require extra fare (which is still cheap!)
To activate it, you go to one of the JR pass stations and give all your info and they activate it for you.
To use it, you simply flash the pass at the gate attendants. If there are no gate attendants there usually is a video intercom you can show use and they'll open the gate for you.
Haha, if you look like a foreigner or travel with foreigners they will just see the shape and design of the pass and let you through, if you look like you could be Japanese, they'll ask to read your JR PASS.
Getting the pass was effortless! from ACPRAIL was effortless, I paid with Visa, and the pass arrived via mail within the week.
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Value 5.00 User Friendliness 5.00 Experience 5.00 Comfort 5.00 Service 5.00 | great value, excellent serviceJay ,USA September 11, 2013I was on business in japan and needed good transportation for one week from Tokyo to Osaka to Toyama and back to Tokyo. the bullet trains were great and the rail pass gave me plenty of local travel options in tokyo too. I think i saved over $1000
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Value 5.00 User Friendliness 5.00 Experience 5.00 Comfort 5.00 Service 5.00 | GREAT WAY TO SEE JAPANAlan ,CanadaSeptember 10, 2013 Ordering the Japan rail pass on line was quick and easy, and the vouchers arrived very quickly; I believe within a week. The vouchers were easy to exchange once we got to Japan and started our travel. The signage in the Tokyo station (Shinigawa) was very clear and helpful to steer us to the correct office to get out passes. Once we had the passes travel on the Japanese Rail (JR) system was easy, and the trains were great. Lots of connections, fast, smooth and comfortable.
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Value 5.00 User Friendliness 5.00 Experience 5.00 Comfort 5.00 Service 5.00 | Seamless convenienceRex Eaton ,CanadaJanuary 26, 2013 My Japan Rail Pass made my trip through the country an absolute pleasure, with seamless connections between local and national trains, and the opportunity to experience the rail system itself as a tourist attraction. The incredible speed, smooth travel, absolute timeliness and integration of JR lines is something to behold.
And when at one point the main island of Honshu was hit with a violent wind storm and transportation, including airports and many of the rail lines, had to shut down for several hours, it was fascinating to see how well JR provided information to to its travelling public, and how the people of Japan responded - with calm and patience. Their response I'm sure was due in good part to their faith in the JR system.
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Value  3.00 User Friendliness 5.00 Experience 5.00 Comfort 5.00 Service 5.00 | Convenient pass, very comfortable travel, Craig ,EnglandJanuary 25, 2013 Train travel in Japan is a must. Very fast, regular, comfortable and efficient. Only downside is that if you plan to catch any trains not covered by the pass it can become quite expensive. This also applies to the various subway networks which aren't included.
Still, the pass is very convenient and peace of mind when you walk through the turnstiles.
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Value 5.00 User Friendliness 5.00 Experience 5.00 Comfort 5.00 Service 5.00 | It's a Train Journey. From Another PlanetMark ,EnglandJanuary 21, 2013 I can honestly say that the JR Rail Pass was quite probably the best thing I've spent my money on. Ever. Seriously.
My friends and I spent 3 weeks travelling from Nagasaku to Beppu. From Hiroshima to Osaka. From Tokyo to Kanazawa. From Okinawa to Sapporo.
Every train had a different personality. Every train was clean and comfortable.
It was like travelling on a train. In your dreams.
Don't hesitate. Do it !
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Value  4.00 User Friendliness 5.00 Experience 5.00 Comfort 5.00 Service 5.00 | Where else in the world?Wendy ,USAJanuary 20, 2013 We really enjoyed our time on the Japan trains. The people were very friendly and it was easy to navigate, even without knowing the language. The scenery going through towns was as inspiring as seeing the snow covered mountains and it's a great way to more through the country at a quick pace.
Traveling from USA, be sure to purchase your pass before leaving the country, at a lower cost. My credit card declined the first time tried because it's processed out of the country, but a call to my cc company took care of it quickly.
Japan is truly worth every hour and penny spent getting there. The culture, customs and beauty can't be seen anywhere else in the world. I'm happy to answer questions or help plan. Wendy@cruisetraveloutlet.com
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Value 5.00 User Friendliness 5.00 Experience 5.00 Comfort 5.00 Service 5.00 | Convenience at right priceVincent ,GermanyJanuary 20, 2013 I purchased online the Japan Rail Pass plus insurance last year. It was very convenient, easy, quick and the price is just right. I would purchase again from ACP rail on my next visit to Japan! ^_^
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Value 5.00 User Friendliness 5.00 Experience 5.00 Comfort 5.00 Service 5.00 | Great valueAl ,UkJanuary 18, 2013 Made travelling a breeze. Just jump on virtually any train without the need to book. We travelled all over honshu with the pass and certainly would have spent more on tickets, more time buying them and therefore had less of a stress free holiday if we hadn't had the passes. Really good reasons to invest and save.
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Value 5.00 User Friendliness 5.00 Experience 5.00 Comfort 4.00 Service 5.00 | Outstanding Value!Xavier ,United StatesJanuary 18, 2013 At first I thought the cost of the rail pass was a joke or a part of a bait-and-switch. Most other rail pass offerings were for fewer days and this one seemed to offer too wide a travel range to be real. Still I took a chance and boy was I pleasantly surprised! Getting the passes was quick - a simple voucher exchange when I arrived in country and I had a pass that let me travel almost anywhere. This included NEX and other bullet trains! I would recommend ACPRail to anyone visiting Japan.
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