Traveling by train in northern Japan (links)

Here are some links for information about how the earthquake and tsunami are impacting trains in northern Japan.

Earthquake Info in English @wiki: Transportation Status

Pictures and Discussion of the Damage

Service south and west of Tokyo has not been distrupted. Unfortunately, this catastrophe occurred in the center of northern Japan, damaging routes between Tokyo and Sendai and points north.

Another link to a good post about a station in Japan

sleepytako writes posts that I consistently like. In particular, he has written a beautiful post about the station at the end of the Nishi-Shigi cable car line at http://sleepytako.blogspot.com/2010/05/above-osaka-shigisan.html.

I hope that all of my readers will click on the link. sleepytako expresses a very Japanese way of feeling in a way that is accessible to people who have never been to Japan.

Fukui

Of Interest: downtown Fukui

Lodging: yes

Int'l ATM: Fukui's central post office is down the main street leading away from the west exit

I was not here very long, so I don't have a lot to write.

From Fukui, JR West trains can take you along the Hokuriku main line to Kanazawa in one direction and Tsuruga (one hour via local trains, half that via express trains) in the other. JR West trains travel along the Etsumi-Hoku line within Fukui and the neighboring city of Ono. A tram line connects Fukui to neighboring cities (Sabae, Echizen) while also providing transportation for short trips. Further transportation within the Fukui area is provided by the Echizen Railway. Their trains connect Sakai and Awara through one line while Katsuyama is accessible through another.

Kanazawa

Of Interest: seafood market, Castle grounds, performing arts center, international center
Tourist Office: yes, inside the station
Lodging: multiple
Internet Access: in the basement of the performing arts center to the right of the station (free from 30 minutes)

Int'l ATM: in the post office in the station building

The tourists office is excellent and has lots of materials in English, including a seasonal tourist magazine. Get a map it is easy to get lost in some of the the small streets in the historic district.

Leaving the station area is easy, just walk straight from the station along the four lane boulevard. There is an international center five minutes walk from the station on the right hand side. It is open regular business hours from Monday to Friday. Another ten minutes walk will get you to a covered market that specializes in fish. This is the point that the small roads appear. You may have look at a map to find the entrance. The market is a good place to have lunch. It is very touristy so it is not cheap.

A five minutes walk through the market will take you to a side entrance of Castle Park. Kanzawa used to be basically an independent country and this was the capital. The park is the largest of its type that I have seen in Japan with remains of lots of buildings as well as lots of areas that have returned to nature. There was a rehearsal for some kind of musical while I was there which was pretty interesting. The area is very hilly; if you stand on top of one of the hills you can see almost everything. (This is another place where I would not bring any luggage.)

There is an arts and craft street across the road from the main entrance (or one of the main entrances). Right now the city is organizing a crafts festival, so this area should be pretty lively. The entrance to Kenrokuen Garden is close by also. This is one the "three most beautiful gardens" in Japan.

At this point, you are pretty far from the station. It is best to take one of the loop buses if you are going back. I think that there are four loop buses in Kanazwa. I think that there are three for locals that cost 100 yen, and one for tourists that is more expensive. Each bus is identified by a color.

Kanazawa was never fire bombed during WWII, so there are historic houses in various places in the city.

The city of Kanzawa has translated their website into English, including the information on transportation. The train section includes information on shinkansen and express trains from Tokyo, Osaka, and Nagoya. Note that from Tokyo, you can take the Tokaido Shinkansen west to Maibara or the Joetsu Shinkansen over the mountains to Echigo-yuzawa. Kanzawa is two hours from Maibara and two and a half hours from Echigo-yuzawa by express train. Other destinations reachable by regular express trains are Kyoto (two hours), Osaka (two and a half hours), and Nagoya (two and a half hours).

Local JR West trains go to Fukui (hour and a half), Toyama (forty-five minutes), and Nanao (ninety minutes). There is also a short line run by the Hokuriku Railroad that has multiple stops within the city of Kanazawa and a terminus in the city of Uchinada. The whole trip only takes seventeen minutes.

Toyama

Of Interest: old Toyama, local history and folk museums, Itachi River

Lodging: multiple

Tourist Office: closed while the train station is renovated?

Int'l ATM: the main post office is just south of the station

Toyama has been an important industrial area for several hundred years. In old Toyama, visitors can see how medicines were made during Edo period. The area also contains Toyama Castle Park which is home to the local history museum and a folk museum which concentrates on the tea ceremony. (The buildings themselves are mostly not original. They are reconstructions dating from the 1950's.)

The Itachi River runs through this area as well. It takes a ten to fifteen minute walk to get to the edge of the interesting stuff which all takes a lot of walking itself. If you are not staying in Toyama overnight, put your bags in a locker at the station. You can also take the tramway to Old Toyama.

Toyama has a lot of commuter rail. Toyama City has several tramway lines, one of which serves the station, and a light rail line which passes the north entrance. The tramway company also operates a local train line that heads north to end in the northern part of Toyama Prefecture in Unazuki Onsen in Kurobe.

JR West runs local trains along the coast to Naoetsu and into to the mountains to Inotani, Toyama. (Inotani is the meeting point of JR West and JR Central lines.) Regular express trains take three and a half hours to get to Nagoya. These trains pass through Kanazawa, which gets the most frequent service from Toyama. Local trains take forty-five minutes, express trains half and hour. There are also occasional express trains to Osaka and Aomori.

Naoetsu

Of Interest: I have no idea

Lodging: yes, two hotels

Tourist Office: yes, outside

Restrooms: clean, both inside and outside the station

Accessibility: almost, but not quite. There are elevators to all tracks within the station, and an escalator leading out of the building

Int'l ATM: There is a post office on the road that lead straight away from the station

Naoetsu is on the edge of of a suburb of Joetsu City. It exists because apparently it is on the dividing line between JR East and JR West. There is not even a quickie Mart near the station. Thank God for vending machines.

The station itself is comfortable, nicely decorated with lots of places to sit.

The ride between Nagaoka and Naoetsu is pretty, most of the time the tracks hug the coast. Naoetsu is on the route to Toyama and Kanazawa. Local trains take two hours to get to Toyama while Express trains only take an hour because they only make one intermediate stop. Those express trains continue on to Kanazawa which is two hours away. Those express trains take a little less than two hours to come from Niigata City. Nagaoka, on the line to Niigata, is about an hour and a half away by local train.

The Joetsu Shinkansen is named after the city here, but it does not even come that close.

Nagaoka

Of Interest: multiple museums, downtown Nagaoka

Lodging: multiple, in all price ranges

Tourist Office: no, but maps of the town are available at the station

Int'l ATM: In the department store across the street

Internet Access: There is a single computer at the Int'l Center. Walk straight down the main street in front of the station to the Civic Center.

Accessibility: elevators at all train platforms

Nagaoka is a medium-sized city in the center of Niigata Prefecture. The city itself is inland, but a port village was incorporated into the municipal area in 2005.

The trains of the Joetsu Line head inland, most ending an hour and a half away at Echigo-Yuzawa station, a spa resort in the mountains, but some continue on into Gunma Prefecture. Both Echigo-Yuzawa and Nagaoka are also stops on the Joetsu Shinkansen. Naoetsu is also an hour and a half away, this time to the south.

There is no English on the signs in Nagaoka Station.

Niigata

Of Interest: shopping, walkable river

Lodging: yes, but cheaper downtown

Internet Access: free in the station from 11 to 7

Tourist Office: outside the station, city information only

There are good restrooms in the malls attached to the station.

The area around the station is a major shopping area. The Shinano River is a 10-15 minute walk away. Downtown Niigata is another 15-20 minutes by foot. Downtown is very nice with lots of covered sidewalks. One of the arcades leads to the oldest park in Japan. An arcade the opposite direction leads to a street of temples.

These kinds of arcades are common in towns along the inland sea that borders Honshu to the north and west. The arcades make walking possible as these are the wettest parts of Japan. In particular, Niigata Prefecture is known for heavy snowfalls.

If you are visiting, I recommend getting a hotel downtown as they are cheaper than the ones near the station.

Niigata is the terminal station for the Joetsu Shinkansen which takes two to two and a half hours to get here. There are also there are also four express trains daily to Kanazawa. Multiple trains travel within Niigata Prefecture. Shibata is 25 minutes north by local train. Most trains head south. Nagaoka, a major transfer point, is 25 minutes by Shinkansen and and hour and fifteen minutes by regular train. The trip to Yoshida is 45 minutes.

To head north out of Niigata, go to Niitsu and change trains.

Note: Some platforms only have signs in kana, the Japanese phonetic script.

Sakamachi

Of Interest: walkable town, solar energy research (not open to the public)

Lodging: no

Tourist Office: no

Int'l ATM: on the road to the right just beyond the curve

Restrooms: not good

The station is handicapped accessible.

The war between strip mall and cozy downtown, between car and train culture is active in Sakamachi. The town has the potential to be a really cool place if the chain stores don't strangle it.

Sakamachi is a major train depot within Niigata Prefecture. Sakamachi is forty minutes from Niigata by limited express. The trip takes an hour by regular train and you have to change at Shibata. Trains to Yonezawa take two to two and a half hours.

Yonezawa

Of Interest: local beef

Lodging: ?

Tourist Office: yes, excellent but most of the pamphlets are in Japanese only

Yonezawa is a car-oriented town, and is not comfortable to walk around. There is historical park about thirty minutes from the station. It contains a history museum, a shinto shrine, and a local products store. There are a couple of restaurants serving local dishes here.

Yonezawa is famous for its local beef which is often served raw. It is good, but expensive. Yonezawa apples are also famous.

The city is two hours and fifteen minutes from Tokyo by Shinkansen. The Shinkansen takes thirty five minutes to get to Fukushima while the local trains take forty five minutes. Both trains use the same tracks; local trains take longer because they make more stops. You can also take a local train to the west coast at Sakamachi in Niigata Prefecture.

Kesennuma

Of Interest: not much

Lodging: one hotel

Tourist Office: yes

Restrooms: Clean with toilet paper and soap

Int'l ATM: There is post office a five to ten minute walk from the station

Kesennuma Station is in a suburban area of Kesunnuma City. As such very little is within walking distance. The city is known for commercial fishing and for seaside tourism. The harbor may be in walking distance for someone who likes long walks.

Two JR lines serve Kesennuma Station. The Kesennuma line, which starts here, follows the coast for most of its journey before heading inland to end at Kogota, Miyagi. Kesennuma is in the middle of the Ofunato Line which runs from Sakari, Ofunato, Iwate to Ichinoseki in Iwate. Both routes are scenic although the Ofunato line from Kesennuma is entirely inland.

Good Post on the Kyushu Shinkansen

I don't know if any of you have read the Sleepy Tako's blog on Japanese culture, but he recently wrote a good post about the Kyushu Shinkansen and its pokemon.

Of course, I prefer the express trains. You can see more.

Kuji - stub

Of Interest: Sanriku Railway

Lodging: yes

This small town in northern Iwate is the hub between the JR East's Hachinohe Line and the Sanriku Railway's tourist line.

If anyone has spent time in Kuji, it would be great if they could write something about this small town.

Sanriku Railway Company

At some stations in Japan, you can see a picture of a train going over a gorge. That train is run by the Sanriku Railway Company The company runs two lines on single track that JR abandoned when it was privatized. The first runs from Kuji to Miyako, and the second from Sakari to Kamaishi, all in Iwate Prefecture. The company is still associated with JR, and JR passes will get you a deep discount on a one day pass. Train schedules are coordinated with the JR trains.

Most of the passengers are commuters, but there are a significant number of tourists and railfans on the north part of the northern line. We stopped three times on the part of the trip so that people could take pictures. Both routes are scenic. In fact, I kind of preferred the parts where we were actually moving.

The northern line trains are a single car with a restroom and a vending machine. The southern line runs multiple cars. A multi-car train runs over Sanriku's northern line on Sundays and holidays from April to October. The special trains are only 200 yen more than a regular train, but rail passes may not work on it.

Each station has a map with local attractions.

(This company may run one or two rush hour express trains from the southern part of their route to Sendai.)

Hachinohe line

The Hachinohe line is set up for those environmentalists out there. Instead of air conditioning, this train has fans and open windows which is good because it was cold in northern Japan this summer. It is a beautiful ride, running through forests away from roads.

This two-hour long line runs from Hachinohe, Aomori Prefecture to Kuji in Iwate Prefecture. It is mainly run by JR East, but the Japan Freight Company runs the line from Hon-Hachinohe to Hachinohe Station. The line runs every two to three hours. The Hachinohe line connects to the Shinkansen at Hachinohe.

(Today is a good day to publish this post. Someone came to my site today from a search for Hachinohe.)

Hon-Hachinohe

Of Interest: cheap (but good) fruit, downtown Hachinohe

Hotels: yes, scattered. Good prices.

Tourist Office: no

Int'l ATM: There is a post office in the station

One of the meanings of "hon" is origin, and Hon-Hachinohe is the original Hachinohe Station. It serves downtown Hachinohe. The city is scattered so there is a lot outside of downtown including the current Hachinohe Station.

The area in front of city hall is used for community events. To get there exit the station to the north, then walk up the street that is slightly to the left of the exit. I attended part of the local summer festival, Sansha Taisai. There were food vendors from many local restaurants in front of the city hall with local performers entertaining us on a stage to one side. A big part of the festival is the floats that go to different shrines during the festival. There was a booth explaining how the floats are made. I got to make my own miniature float.

Next to the station, there was a store selling fresh fruit for really good prices. Cheaper even than in Korea. There is also a local products store in this station and at Hachinohe Station.

Only one JR East line serves Hon-Hachinohe Station, a local line that serves the Hachinohe area.

Hachinohe

Of Interest: changing trains

Lodging: budget hotels

Tourist Office: yes, in the station

Computer Access: no

Int'l ATM: according to Wikipedia, the is a post office in the "Yuri" building. It is not easily visible.

This station was called Shiriuchi Station until 1971 when it was renamed, and the original Hachinohe station, which is actually in downtown Hachinohe, was renamed Hon-Hachinohe. Hachinohe station is in a small suburb on the edge of Hachinohe. There is not much else in the area besides the train station. Bring something to eat or head into Hachinohe itself.

There is a large tourist office in the station. It is a good source of information, and it is the only tourist office in Hachinohe. If you are going to Hachinohe itself, make sure you get all the information you need before you head out. The tourist office also has information about Misawa, the location of a US Air Force Base.

Hachinohe is the last stop on the Tohoku Shinkansen. It is currently the only shinkansen stop in Aomori, although that is scheduled to change in 2012 when the Hokkaido Shinkansen opens. JR East also operates three other lines through Hachinohe.

Aomori

Of Interest: downtown Aomori, ferry port

Lodging: multiple

Tourist Office: yes

Computer Access: in the tourist office

Int'l ATM: In a post office that is in a building to the right of the station. There is a sign, but you have to really look for it.

Aomori Station is on the edge of downtown. It is also right next to the ferry port which is attractively lit for a couple of hours each evening. The Aomori Prefectural Center for Tourism and Industry also has some pretty lights. The later is an interesting building; from the front it looks like a pyramid. (I don't have any pictures because the the lights turned off around the time that I got organized to take some.)

Aomori is famous for its Nebuta festival, and for a 5,000 year old prehistoric site, the Jomon Jiyukan. The Nebuta festival is within walking distance of the station. The festival is often listed as one of the three best in Japan. Many professional artists are commissioned to create floats for this festival. (I told I friend that I though it was very professionally done (which it is) and they said, "Hmm," like that was disappointing.)

In August there is a loop bus that goes to the Jomon prehistoric site as well as other tourist and cultural sites. Museums, historic buildings, and other things of interest to visitors are scattered throughout the city.

Local and intercity buses leave from the station plaza. JR East runs all the trains here. Aomori Station is the terminus for all lines. One line runs north into Hokkaido, one line runs east to Akita, and one line runs west to Hachinohe.

Aomori was the northern most stop on my July/August 2009 trip. After staying here one night during the Nebuta Festival, I started to head south.

Morioka

Of Interest: walkable river, walkable city

Tourist Office: yes

Lodging: yes

The map from the tourist office indicates barrier-free restrooms, but the train station is not barrier-free.

The map from the tourist office is very practical. Not only does it list all of the museums, historic buildings, and picturesque views in town, it also tells you which ones have bathrooms and the location of traditional restaurants by cuisine. All color-coded.

I wish the person who designed this map had designed the station. It is not the most practical building that I have ever been in.

In addition, two different loop buses leave from the station, one specifically for tourists.

For more information on Morioka, go to Japan Food Guru which focuses on Morioka. I guess the food must be really good. Luckily, it is not expensive.

Morioka Station is served by multiple train lines. It is the northern terminus of the JR East's Tohoku Main Line and both the Tohoku and Akita Shinkansens stop there. Three other JR East lines also stop here as does the Iwate Ginga Railway Line.

Ichinoseki

Of Interest: surrounding area

Lodging: multiple

Tourist Office: a small window next to the station master

Int'l ATM: none near station

Computer Access: none

Ichinoseki City Hall is apparently within walking distance of the station, but the area around the station does not feel like a downtown, but more like an entertainment district. Most tourist come to the area to go hiking in the surrounding mountains.

Ichinoseki Station is a stop on the Tohoku Shinkansen and the Tohoku Main Line, both operated by JR East. Ichinoseki is about half an hour from Sendai and two hours from Tokyo by shinkansen. It takes about an hour and a half to get to Sendai by conventional trains.