10 Things You Need To Know About Japan's Trains

Planning a trip to Japan?

After spending a week in Osaka, I wish I knew all of these tips before I actually landed.

So here’s my tips that I’ve prepared so you’ll be better prepared when you first step into Japan.

(But I’ll be referring to trains in Osaka, Kyoto and Kobe since it’s the only places I went to in this trip.)

Compiled these extensive tips and hope they’d be helpful to you who is reading this.

I have a bonus tip at the end hehe.

We only made use of the trains and our legs. We didn’t take buses or taxis because we weren’t sure of the bus routes and they don’t look very comfortable.

Using just trains in Japan is pretty convenient (most of the time).

10 Things You Need To Know About Japan’s Trains

1. Refund your ICOCA card for your deposit of 500 yen (~5 USD)

BUT make sure to leave less than 220 yen in your card.

We had 60 yen left in our ICOCA cards (we decided to get the deposit (500 yen) and make use of it with one way tickets on our last few days) and it stated that if you have at least 220 yen in your card, they will deduct it, refund the remaining amount and the 500 yen.

But because we had 60 yen left, they only took 60 yen and gave us the 500 yen deposit back.

Example: If you have 1000 yen inside and want to refund, you’d get back 500 [deposit] + (1000-220) [remaining amount in card – 220 yen mandatory] = 1280

How to request a refund in Japanese to the ticketing officer or any staff in the train station:

ICOCA kado haraimodoshi wa dekimasu ka?

(Can I refund the ICOCA card?) – Kado (card), haraimodoshi (refund), dekimasu ka (is it possible), ICOCA – pronounced ee-ko-ka

From the West Japan Railway (JR) Company,

ICOCA card is a smart card issued by JR-WEST. This card can be used for journeys on the JR-WEST network of trains and also on subways, private railways and buses throughout Japan. (Certain routes and stations are not supported.) You can use ICOCA for shopping inside and outside stations.West JR Company

Therefore, if you can, try to plan your transportation and calculate them so you can somehow end up using as much of the amount before you get your deposit so your money don’t get eaten up.

I talk about the app I used in Osaka to see how much it costs travelling from stations to stations in point 5!

2. Make sure you look at the floor for signs

They can be triangles or circles.

See this for more information: Platform Symbols – www.japan-rail-pass.com

We made a mistake of waiting at the wrong cabin on our last day before we flew off to Korea.

And we had to russsshhhh to the correct cabin when the train arrived. They leave really punctually so be punctual!

Cabins of the trains may not all be going to the same place.

There are cabins that separate at different stations so make sure you get on the right cabin because once the train arrives, and you get on the wrong cabin, you have to get off and search for the correct cabin that’s going towards the place you need to get to.

Look out for the name and colour of the cabin outside usually in Kanji / Chinese and English. Make sure you know both just in case.

3. Buy tickets in advance either at the airport or online

Ask the staff for advice. Make sure to know if it’s for any day or a specific day use. Let them know a bit more of your itinerary if you’d like!

The lady who helped us at the counter was really helpful and suggested different routes so that it’ll be more convenient.

I realised this made things easier for us. We bought one-day passes for Kyoto and Kobe as it’d also be cheaper than just using our ICOCA card.

We bought ours at Kansai airport before we left.

Other than one-day passes, we bought a ticket that brings us straight to Kansai Airport from our nearest train station, which was Tsuruhashi (Osaka’s Koreatown).

No pictures of the ticket counter because I never thought I’ll be writing a post like this haha.

4. Check the different routes for the local, limited express, and other train lines

More information from: Express Trains in Japan – www.japan-rail-pass.com

So that you’d know which line will stop at a specific place you want.

On the same track, there are different kinds of trains passing by and not all trains that come by go to the same place!

This was the most confusing part for us. There are trains that go to the local line or express line, they may not stop at the station that you want.

5. Check which day you’d be in different cities and calculate transportation fees

This way you can know how much you need to set aside for transportation and how much you really need per day to travel.

You can plan and save money for other expenses.

Tip: Walk if you need to. Don’t wear slippers because the roads in Osaka was a little bumpy and steep roads here and there.

It was so hot when we were there but we still walked because transportation in Japan is too expensive (after currency conversion).

I used the app Osaka (iPhone) as it gives you an approximate (usually accurate) value of the destination you’re going and how long it’ll take to go there.

Metro Osaka Subway (by Metroman) – try searching this on the iPhone app store.

Made an example to show you guys how it works:

They are also available in a couple more languages so check it out!

Plus points is that they have the station names in Japanese and English so you can refer them to the station boards to see if it aligns to the direction you’re heading.

6. Use wifi or SIM card because you’d need Google maps to lead you to the place

Make sure to calibrate your phone beforehand so Google maps will work better and direct you to the correct location.

Tip if you’re using Airbnb as an accommodation:

Try to get one that provides a portable WiFi egg because it means you don’t have to get one separately.

But if you do that, make sure to have a map of how to get to your Airbnb since you won’t have internet before you get to the place.

Trains can be confusing but Google maps may be able to tell you which direction you should go to. The app can tell you how long it’d take using a specific line and also how expensive it is through different routes.

7. There are priority seats in each cabin. Don’t sit when it is crowded.

But you can if there are many other seats available. Like maybe 5 people a cabin?

This is something I’ve seen tourists pondering about so why not add this in haha.

Japanese people won’t stare down at you for hogging an elderly/disabled/pregnant women seat unless the train is crowded.

I even give my seat up to someone who needs it more when I’m not on those seats. But that’s just me.

8. You might not be able to eat on all trains

If it’s a long distance train, you probably can. But observe around to see if anyone is having a bento or if the area is really quiet, maybe just an Onigiri will be fine.

The train I sat from Osaka to Kyoto was really silent with people sleeping or typing on their laptops, so eating wasn’t really possible at that moment.

9. Try to find an accommodation near a train station that can easily go to other places

Preferably without transferring too much. Don’t find one that you have to get there with a bus because it’s too inconvenient going back and forth.

Find one that is of walking distance to the nearest station.

Tip: Some places aren’t very well-lit so look out for accommodation reviews that mention about the safety and security of the neighbourhood.

Japan is generally safe but there are people who drink heavily at night, so best to avoid dark lit areas.

10. Avoid rush hour as much as you can

It can be very busy and squeezy especially during 5pm – 7/8pm.

Use the train before 5pm if you can. If you’ll be doing something at that time, take the trains after dinner time – 7/8pm.

If you’ve seen how the Japanese people squeeze themselves in rush hour on some viral video before, and you know what I’m talking about now, I will say that it is exactly what you see. Haha.

They squeeze as much as they can to fit perfectly right before the cabin door can close. They have years of training, so don’t try to squeeze in with them HAHA.

11. A bonus tip for you who stayed till the end!

When you first arrive to the station your accommodation is near to and you have your luggage, try to find the elevator if you can instead of exiting the Exit number that your Google map shows or your Airbnb owner recommends.

I realised Japan do not have many escalators in their train stations, they have a lot of stairs so it’d be troublesome trying to carry your luggage up and down the stairs while getting to your destination.

I really wish I knew this one because we went through so much trouble carrying our luggage while perspiring in the hot summer weather in Osaka.