Osaka overnight by train · Overnight by train in Osaka
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Overnight by train in Osaka
Overnight by train in Osaka
Direct daily overnight train service between Tokyo and Osaka consists of a single Tokyo-bound departure only ? the Sunrise Izumo/Sunrise Seto, leaving Osaka station at 12:34AM and arriving in Tokyo just after 7AM.
An overnight train journey by rail is still possible by taking a route via northern Japan. This requires a change of trains and a large sum of money. As a result, this may be of interest to Japan Rail Pass holders. From Tokyo Station, take the final Joetsu Shinkansen towards Niigata and change at Nagaoka Station (長岡駅) for the Kitaguni (きたぐに) express train to Osaka. The rail pass fully covers the nine hour trip, provided you use unreserved seating on the Kitaguni (couchettes are available at extra cost). As of November 2009, Max Toki (とき) #353 departs Tokyo Station at 9:40PM and arrives in Nagaoka at 11:26PM. This connects to the Kitaguni, leaving Nagaoka at 11:53PM and arriving in Osaka at 6:49AM. The return Kitaguni leaves Osaka at 11:27PM and arrives in Nagaoka at 7:14AM. The bullet train connection is on Toki #304, which leaves Nagaoka at 7:23AM and arrives in Tokyo at 9:12AM.
During high-peak travel periods, one can take the Noto Express (能登) from Ueno Station to Kanazawa, changing there to a morning Thunderbird (サンダーバード) train to Osaka. Check the timetables to see when the Noto runs.
While the northern Japan train route can prove to be a good value, depending on how you use your rail pass, remember that the rail pass is also valid for JR buses operating between Tokyo and Osaka (see 'By Bus').
Two overnight trains make runs to and from Osaka Station and northern Japan: the Twilight Express (トワイライトエクスプレス) which runs to Hokkaido, terminating at Sapporo, and the Nihonkai (日本海) train which runs to Aomori in northern Tohoku. These are sleeper trains, for which JR Pass holders must pay an extra fee.
The services listed above also pick up/drop off passengers at Shin-Osaka Station.
During University holidays there are some additional overnight services to Matsuyama, Kochi and Fukuoka. As these are considered rapid services they can be very economical if you use a Seishun 18 Ticket.
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Osaka Travel Guide from Wikitravel. Many thanks to all Wikitravel contributors. Text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0, images are available under various licenses, see each image for details.