A How to Guide to the Japan Rail Pass (JR Pass)

As I mentioned in my last post the Japan Rail Pass (JR Pass) is a must have traveling in Japan. In this post I'll discuss how you must go about getting, activating and using the pass. You know the stuff that you'll probably want to know before leaving.

Buying the JR Pass

You must buy the JR pass before arriving in Japan. This is done because the JR Pass is intended to help boost the Japan tourism. In fact, we read somewhere that of the tourism in Japan only 3% is from foreign countries. This means that most of the tourism in Japan is actually Japanese tourists! Crazy huh!

Anyway, you actually can't buy the pass while in Japan. We went to the JR pass website and found an office in Vancouver to order our tickets. We had to fill out a form and fax it to them in order to get JR pass. The tickets arrived 3 days afterwards (we payed extra for xpresspost shipping).

Activating the JR Pass

When arriving in Japan you must search out a station with a JR pass activation booth. Fear not as there's a list of stations which have these booths. You then present your JR tickets. You'll then have a chance to tell them when you want to activate your pass. It's quite an easy process actually. If you're wanting to activate your pass right away there is an office right in the airport. We activated our passes at Tokyo Station and the booth was right beside the main JR ticket office.

Using the JR Pass

To use the JR pass you simply go to the ticket stalls like everyone else. At the far left side (or sometimes right) there will be a main at a booth. You simply show him/her your JR pass as you walk by. The sign will say something like "white backed tickets".

When exiting from the JR station you go to the far right (sometimes left) and show the ticket again. Voila! You've now used your JR pass to 'pay' for a ride on a train.

I was fearful that there wouldn't be a man at the booth or that there would be a big line. However, there was always someone at the booth and we never had to wait more then 2 minutes to show our pass. Japanese efficiency at it's best!

Reserving seats on a Shinkansen (bullet train) with your JR Pass

Reserving a seat on a shinkansen is easy. You simply go to the ticket purchasing counter and tell them where and when you're traveling. They'll provide you with the available traveling options.

Luckily, most ticket sales counters speak some basic english and tell you the time of departure and arrival on a calculator which is unbelievably handy!

The JR pass is a must have when traveling in Japan if you're going to be going to multiple destinations. If you're planning on going to only one city and staying for a while then the rail pass might not be your best option and you'll have to do some simple math. However, if you're planning on traveling around Japan for a two week period the JR pass will save you money and time.

Things I would like to see in Japan