Shinkansen tickets: where to book and how to board

Where to buy Shinkansen tickets online

An official booking website is a starting point, not a nationwide ticket pickup network. Choose both the train and the way you will receive or use its ticket before paying. On a small screen, swipe the table sideways.

For Tokyo–Kyoto or Tokyo–Shin-Osaka, SmartEX is an official starting point for an ordinary Shinkansen purchase. For Tokyo–Sendai or a Hokuriku journey, check the relevant eastern service instead. For a mixed journey, verify every train and handover rather than assuming one of these websites covers the whole trip.

Already using a pass? Check its own coverage and reservation process before buying an ordinary ticket. A regional pass and the nationwide JAPAN RAIL PASS are different products.

Basic fare, express charge and your seat: check what is included

For ordinary Shinkansen travel, the JR East ticket guide and JR Central ticket types distinguish the basic fare from an additional express charge. Use that distinction to read the booking you are considering or already hold. It is not a requirement to make two separate purchases.

Swipe the table sideways on a small screen.

Two fare components do not always mean two paper tickets

JR East shows both separate basic-fare and express tickets and a combined basic-fare-plus-express ticket. Count the coverage, not just the sheets of paper. If the booking is unclear, ask the seller which required components are included before buying another ticket. Keep the existing reservation details available while resolving the question.

A rail pass or digital product needs its own coverage and seat check. After identifying what the booking includes, use the boarding-format comparison for its actual IC-card, boarding QR or paper-pickup instructions. This table does not decide ticket validity, calculate a fare or establish a gate sequence for your journey.

Ticket-component sources checked October 18, 2026. The booking-service and baggage checks elsewhere on this page retain their own dates.

An IC card, a boarding QR and a pickup code are different

Start from the format in your actual reservation. Do not apply these instructions to a reseller’s voucher merely because it contains a QR code.

Swipe the comparison sideways on a small screen.

Shinkansen luggage: check the suitcase before reserving the seat

For standard seating on the Tokaido, Sanyo and Kyushu Shinkansen, add your suitcase’s three dimensions. Under the JR Central luggage rules, more than 160cm through 250cm requires a seat with an oversized baggage area. Exactly 160cm is outside that size-based requirement. If the measurement is uncertain, check it with the operator before booking.

At 160cm or less, use suitable overhead or foot space, or available deck storage where provided. Size alone does not establish that a bag fits a particular space. Over 250cm cannot be carried under these ordinary baggage rules. Strollers, instruments and sports equipment have separate provisions; reserving the designated area is still necessary if you want to use it.

Already bought a ticket? Check the actual seat type

1. Confirm the train’s route and baggage rules. Do not apply this western-corridor reservation rule to every Shinkansen line.
2. Check whether the confirmation explicitly includes an oversized-baggage-area seat. A normal seat reservation or rail pass alone does not confirm that arrangement.
3. For SmartEX, check the baggage-seat selection itself: general seat availability is different from baggage-seat availability. If you change trains, arrange the required seat for each train. If those seats are full, choose another eligible train or resolve a different baggage plan before travel; do not rely on a non-reserved car.

The current JR Central deck-storage trial notice (Japanese) does not remove the reservation requirement for bags over 160cm. An apparently empty rear-seat area is not a substitute for the designated reservation. The ticket questionnaire above checks boarding preparation; it does not check bag measurements or reserve storage.

Baggage guidance checked October 16, 2026. Check your seller’s own amendment process if a booking needs changing, and the operator’s current rules for your exact train.

Check ticket pickup before choosing a tight departure

SmartEX paper collection uses a pickup code and login password. Bring the payment card because staff may need to check it. Eligible machines, counters and collection periods differ; a pickup QR is not the boarding QR-Ticket.

The JR-WEST receiving guide lists product-specific locations and documents. For regular tickets paid by card, carry the physical card used for payment. Special discounted products may have additional requirements. Do not infer pickup eligibility from a JR logo or from the fact that the website sold the journey.

The JR-EAST collection guide (Japanese) warns about travelers leaving the receiving area without collecting return tickets. Check both directions before setting off; do not assume the return departure station can issue your ticket.

1. Match the exact seller, product and booking status. If a payment failed, check whether a reservation exists before trying another seller.
2. Confirm every train, travel date, passenger and seat assignment. A booking email alone may still require ticket collection or IC linking.
3. Check the collection point and its actual opening hours, plus the documents and device access you need.
4. Count arrival processing, local travel, collection, station navigation and transfers separately. A booking cutoff is not a safe connection buffer.
5. Read your product’s own change, cancellation and missed-train rules. Do not transfer ordinary-ticket flexibility to a discounted fare or agency product.

If your boarding ticket depends on a phone, prepare its cable and charger before departure. Use the Japan plug adapter and voltage guide to check the charger’s INPUT label and the connection you will need at your accommodation.

Plan the day after the train

Once the intercity ticket is prepared, compare the Hiroshima and Miyajima one-day or two-day plan, the Sendai first-time route, or the Nagoya and Gifu route. Keep the local leg separate from the Shinkansen booking.