Shinkansen and general train/metro questions
Shinkansen and general train/metro questions
I’ll be traveling to Japan next week and have a power wheelchair. I’m still a little confused about certain trains and booking the Shinkansen. For example, if I book a wheelchair spot in advance, do I still need to find an attendant at the station or will somebody be waiting for me by the train platform?
1) I need to book the Romance Car from Shinjuku to Odawara. Should I book through their website? Do I need to go find someone at the station to get a slope or is there no gap on this train?
2) I need to take the Shinkansen from Kanazawa to Kyoto but I can’t find the route on the SmartEx app. Do I need to book this one through a different site?
3) I need to book the Shinkansen from Kyoto to Tokyo. It looks like I can book this through the app but do I still need to find an attendant once I arrive? Or will they have a slope waiting for me at the platform since I will book the wheelchair seat?
4) As for the subway/metro in Tokyo and Kyoto, I don’t think I will need a slope if the gap is very small. Are the Yamanote, Ginza and Hibiya lines accessible without needing to find an attendant and a slope? How about the main lines in Kyoto (Keihan, Arashiyama, Nara)?
4) If going from Fushimi-Inari station to Nara Station via the Nara LIne, do I need to buy a reserved wheelchair seat or does it work just like the metro where you can get through with a charged Suica card? Is a slope needed for this line?
- 14 Replies
Sending a quick reply. I would expect to arrange the slope service (which we didn’t known about until the end of the trip) for all train travel. It is not the gap you need
to worry about as much as the trains are not flat with the platforms, it is often uneven and can be a bit of a step on and off. Also the attendant will guide you to the nearest elevator which will save you tons of time. I don’t know how to arrange this ahead of time. You will need to do it in the station. Build lots of time into your travels as this arrangement will require the attendant to fill out a form every time. They will also ask you to wait for the escort to the platform. Hope this helps.
katie
Find the JR office or other metro or train owner office and tell them where you want to go. They will escort you to the platform using elevators as appropriate. They will put a round out for you to use when the train comes. Then they will advise the office at the station you’re getting off at and someone will meet you at the platform with a ramp. They will then take you to the exit gates using appropriate elevators
use your Suica or other card to enter and leave
Always find the attendant at every station so they can make the necessary arrangements at the arrival station.
When you use the Shinkansen, you don’t need to look for station staff on the platform, and no one is waiting for you. Because you can board the train without the staff. Regarding
2), unfortunately, the Shinkansen has not yet opened from Kanazawa to Kyoto. Currently, it is open only to Tsuruga, which is quite far away. The only way to get from Tsuruga to Kyoto is to use a limited express train or a local train on the conventional line. By the way, it takes about an hour to use the limited express train, and about an hour and 40 minutes to use the local train. Regarding
3), it is as I wrote at the beginning. Regarding 4), I think you can solve it by telling the station staff at the ticket gate. Regarding
5)?, there is no direct train from Fushimi Inari Station to Nara Station, so you either have to make a complicated transfer on the way, or go back to Kyoto Station and take a direct train. Also, depending on your destination in Nara, you have to think about whether to take JR or Kintetsu. And the important tourist spots in Nara are far from both of those Nara stations. If you change trains on the way to Nara, you will use all local trains, so you don’t need to make a reservation. If you are heading from Kyoto Station, it depends on the railway company you use. Advance reservations are required for Kintetsu express trains. Reservations are not required for local trains and JR trains. Suica cards can be used. As mentioned in 4), there are ramps at stations. But unfortunately… for example, the road to Todaiji Temple is very far from JR Nara Station…
We came back from Japan 2 weeks ago with a power wheelchair and we experienced a lot trains and Shinkansen, here are some simple tips :
– if you plan several journeys with Shinkansen, prepare a document with all the departures and arrival locations and times, and just go to a Shinkansen office (we went in Tokyo Station) and give the document, asking for a wheelchair seat and help for these journeys. It took 15 minutes, and all was booked and done in one time, we had all the tickets at once.
– arrive 30 minutes before departure at the Shinkansen office (near the gates) , and give the tickets. Normally someone will come with you and help you embark and disembark the bullet train.
– metro and trains works the same, just go to the metro / train office near the gate of the line you have to take, and tell where you go. Someone will go with you and help get in and out of the coach.
– for Fushimi-Inari and Nara, be careful. There is 2 differents stations in Inari : The Keihan line (we took it from Kyoto Sanjo Station to Fushimi-Inari station), and a JR train station just the other side of the stree (The JR Inari station). From there, you can take the Nara line and go to Nara. Same procedure as usual, we did this journey on Sunday Oct 27 in the morning.
– be careful if you want to visit Fushimi Inari to come early in the morning, because there is a LOT of tourists from 9 AM. We arrived at 8:15 AM and there were a few people. One hour later, it is fully crowded. There is a lot of people in Nara too, but there is a lot more space, so it is less impressive.
– if you like Google Maps, don’t hesitate to plan every trip with the stations name, be careful of the lines and directions names.
– Also, if needed, you can also use the city bus lines, all are wheelchair usable, just stand at the bus stop and tell the driver where you want to go. They will put a slope to get in and out, and set you in a reserved wheelchair space.For people coming from Europe and experiencing wheelchair, all of this seems impossible to believe. Once you experienced the Japanese public transports in wheelchair, you can only think we are all barbarians 🙂
I hope all of this will help, don’t hesitate to DM if needed.
Regards and have fun !
Thank you everyone for the thoughtful responses! I am worried about finding an attendant at each station. Are they usually around the ticket gate area?
I am also worried about finding an elevator in some of the bigger stations. Is the signage for the elevator access good or is it difficult to find?
So I booked a wheelchair space on the Shinkansen from Kyoto to Tokyo. According to Tak, I will not need to find an attendant to help with a slope? Did I understand correctly that there is no gap for car 11?
thank you all!
Do most of the train station attendants at the ticket office speak English (specifically in Tokyo, Kyoto, Kanazawa) or is it difficult to communicate if you don’t know any Japanese?
I think most can to a degree, but you may want to prepare a translator app on your phone. Most let you download the language pairs onto your phone so you don’t need to worry about data when out and about
Hello,
Yes at most stations in cities the staff are at the entrance (in some rare occasions you can reach them via an intercom).
You WILL need a staff to help you with the ramp to get on the Shinkansen. There are definitely staff at all Shinkansen entrances. They usually take you to the platform 10min before the train, so you want to likely be there at least 20min before the train as it can take some time for the staff to come to you (they are different staff than the ones in the booth).
I once had to go back home with my electric wheelchair, and I was able to get on the Shinkansen train by myself. But Josh’s method may be the best way to eliminate the worry.
We are in Japan right now!
1. The bullet train almost wouldn’t let my daughter get on the train. The scooter folds up so they were ok with that. -TIP- bring the paperwork on battery specs, and pamphlet info. That helped us. Once they saw it folds up, they made her get in a wheelchair and took her to her seat. My husband had to pick her up and put her in the seat. Other than that it went smooth on the train.
2. When you get in a station, go to the info office and tell them where you want to go. They will tell you to wait usually by the elevator. They are arranging each stop so this will take a few minutes. They will come and escort all of you to the train and help you get on with a ramp (it’s also called a slope). When your stop is coming up, look for the next attendant. He will lay a ramp down and escort you to the next train.
This is great for two reasons:
1. Google maps are not always correct and they will put you on a better route.
2. You don’t get lost in the stations.
3. Side note- they do have great handicap bathrooms
4. Side note- reserve a seat on the bullet trains.
5. Side note if traveling with others on the bullet train, get them together. The seats swivel around! On the isle end, under the seat is a lever you can use to turn the seat around if you need more room for assistance.
Downside:
1. The stations can be very busy and people will walk in your way. You just have to keep going.
2. Some trains are too packed for you to get on and try to maneuver. Time your activities.
Excellent points!
And thank you for the point about the batteries – I guess they are still getting used to scooters… (never been asked in my power wheelchair). I’m glad you made it!
She’s not in a powerchair yet. She’s using a Solax Transformer 2
Glad to know you made it !
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