# Tokyo to Kyoto bullet train: times, prices, seats and luggage > Tokyo to Kyoto bullet train: about 2 h 15 and ¥13,970 ($89) on a Nozomi. Compare Hikari and Kodama, then the Rail Pass rule, seat E for Fuji and big bags. - URL: https://traypass.app/blog/tokyo-to-kyoto-bullet-train - By: Gonzalo Fuentes, Traypass - 2026-11-03 - [es](https://traypass.app/es/blog/tokio-a-kioto-en-tren-bala) · [fr](https://traypass.app/fr/blog/train-tokyo-kyoto-shinkansen) · [de](https://traypass.app/de/blog/tokio-kyoto-shinkansen) · [it](https://traypass.app/it/blog/da-tokyo-a-kyoto-in-treno) · [ja](https://traypass.app/ja/blog/tokyo-kyoto-shinkansen) ## In short - The **Nozomi** is the fastest bullet train: about **2 hours 15 minutes** from Tokyo Station to Kyoto Station, for **¥13,970** (about $89) with a reserved seat bought in the smartEX app. - The **Japan Rail Pass** covers the Hikari and Kodama, not the Nozomi. For the Nozomi, pass holders buy a special ticket: **¥4,960** (about $32) between Tokyo and Kyoto. - For **Mount Fuji**, book **seat E**, on the right going to Kyoto. It shows about 40 to 50 minutes after Tokyo, on a clear day. - A suitcase of **161 to 250 cm** (length + width + height) needs a seat with the oversized baggage area, booked ahead. Without it you pay **¥1,000**. - On **peak days** (Nov 21–23, Dec 25 to Jan 5) every Nozomi seat is reserved, so book first. The Tokyo to Kyoto bullet train, the Tokaido Shinkansen, takes about 2 hours 15 minutes on a Nozomi and costs about ¥14,000 (about $89) one way. It runs from city center to city center, with no airport and no check-in, and trains leave every few minutes through the day. The only choices are which train, where to sit and what to do with your bags. - Nozomi, Tokyo to Kyoto: 2 h 15Hikari 2 h 40, Kodama 3 h 40 - Reserved seat, one way: ¥13,970About $89, in the smartEX app - The seat for Mount Fuji: ERight side going to Kyoto ## Nozomi, Hikari or Kodama? Take the Nozomi: it is the fastest and costs only a few hundred yen more than the Hikari. The three are the same trains inside; what changes is how often they stop. A night bus or a flight to Osaka’s Itami airport saves little: the bus takes most of a night, and Kyoto has no airport of its own. Tokyo → Kyoto smartEX app Ticket machine Rail Pass **Nozomi** 2 h 15 ¥13,970 · $89 ¥14,170 · $90 Extra ticket **Hikari** 2 h 40 ¥13,650 · $87 ¥13,850 · $88 Included **Kodama** 3 h 40 ¥13,650 · $87 ¥13,850 · $88 Included Non-reserved seat Same trains ¥13,320 · $85 ¥13,320 · $85 Included ![The front of a white Shinkansen with a blue stripe passing tall buildings and rail gantries in Tokyo](/_astro/photo-tokaido.B33Gt70O_Z1V8KKY.webp)[Tsuyoshi Kozu · Unsplash](https://unsplash.com/photos/AOtX6eMQqQg?utm_source=traypass&utm_medium=referral) Prices are for one adult in a standard (ordinary) car in regular weeks, in yen at ¥157 to the dollar, the European Central Bank rate on October 30, 2026. In quiet weeks the smartEX price is ¥200 lower, in busy weeks ¥200 higher, and on the busiest days ¥400 higher. The smartEX app is cheaper than the machine and the counter by ¥200 on a reserved seat. A Green Car seat on a Nozomi is ¥18,840 (about $120) in the app. In peak weeks every Nozomi seat is reserved, and a non-reserved ticket only lets you stand: **November 21 to 23, December 25 to January 5**, January 9 to 11 and March 20 to 22, 2027. Book ahead for those dates. One rise is announced: for tickets bought from **July 1, 2027**, the Nozomi reserved-seat price goes up by ¥700 between Tokyo and Kyoto (to about ¥14,870 at the counter). Non-reserved seats stay as they are. ## Does the Japan Rail Pass cover the Nozomi? No. The Rail Pass covers the Hikari and Kodama but not the Nozomi or the Mizuho. A pass holder can still ride the Nozomi with a special ticket, **¥4,960** (about $32) between Tokyo and Kyoto, bought at a JR ticket machine or office up to one month ahead. The Hikari takes about 25 minutes longer and costs nothing extra. Tokyo → Kyoto with a pass Extra ticket Hikari, Kodama None Nozomi ¥4,960 · $32 Whether the pass pays at all is a separate question: a Tokyo–Kyoto round trip costs about ¥27,300 to ¥27,900, and a 7-day pass is ¥50,000 on the official website. Its prices, how to buy it and the tax-free rules are in [what to know before traveling to Japan](/blog/what-to-know-before-traveling-to-japan). Seats can be reserved in advance only with a pass bought on the official website; the smartEX app does not book pass seats. ## Where the train stops A Nozomi stops at Shinagawa, Shin-Yokohama and Nagoya before Kyoto, then goes on to Shin-Osaka. If your hotel is in the south or west of Tokyo, boarding at Shinagawa saves the ride to Tokyo Station. Tokyo to Kyoto on the Nozomi 1. **Tokyo Station** — Start of the line; Shinkansen platforms 14 to 19 2. **Shinagawa** — About 7 minutes from Tokyo; handy from Shibuya and Haneda 3. **Shin-Yokohama** — About 18 minutes from Tokyo 4. **Nagoya** — About 1 h 35 from Tokyo 5. **Kyoto Station** — About 2 h 15 from Tokyo ![The red-brick Tokyo Station building seen from above, with glass towers behind it and people crossing the square in front](/_astro/tokyo-station.DMKloKMJ_ZYRrvG.webp)[Dmitrijs Tokyo · Unsplash](https://unsplash.com/photos/sH5flaPFkh0?utm_source=traypass&utm_medium=referral) ## How do you buy the ticket? Use the smartEX app, a ticket machine or a JR ticket office; all three work in English. The app is the cheapest and the easiest. - **The smartEX app** is JR Central’s own, in English. You register once with a credit card, pick the train and the seat on a seat map, and board with a QR ticket or with a Suica or other IC card you have registered in the app. Booking opens a year ahead, and changing the train costs nothing, as often as you like, until 4 minutes before it leaves. - **Ticket machines** at the station have an English menu and take cards and cash. This is also where a Rail Pass holder buys the Nozomi ticket. - **JR ticket offices** (Midori-no-madoguchi), the staffed counters, are for anything unusual: a group, a pass, a question. The line at Tokyo Station can be long in the morning. Outside the peak weeks above, you can usually buy on the day. At machines and counters, seats go on sale a month ahead. ## Which seat for Mount Fuji? Seat E, on the right going from Tokyo to Kyoto. An ordinary car has three seats on one side (A, B, C) and two on the other (D, E), and the two-seat side is the one facing Fuji. In a Green Car, with two seats on each side, the right-hand window is seat D. ![Mount Fuji with snow on its top, seen through a train window above houses and green fields](/_astro/fuji-window.DY63PIoA_ZeOa6d.webp)[Yu · Unsplash](https://unsplash.com/photos/FI2B7e9lTeg?utm_source=traypass&utm_medium=referral) Pick the seat on the map when you book in the app. The mountain shows for a few minutes around Shin-Fuji station, about 40 to 50 minutes after Tokyo. It is often hidden in cloud or haze, more in summer; cold, clear mornings give you the best chance. Going back to Tokyo, Fuji is on the left: seat A. ## What about big suitcases? A bag of 160 cm or less (length + width + height, about 63 inches) needs nothing special. From 161 cm up to 250 cm (98 inches), you must reserve a **seat with an oversized baggage area**, the last row of some cars, where the space behind the seats is shared by that row. It costs nothing extra, but only some cars have these seats, so book it with your ticket. There are none in non-reserved cars. Bring a bag that size without the reservation and you pay **¥1,000** (about $6); the conductor tells you where to put it, and if the train is full you may be asked to take a later one. A bag over 250 cm does not go on at all. Most medium checked suitcases are under 160 cm: add the three sides before you worry. Or ask your Tokyo hotel to forward the bag to your Kyoto one. ## The train in your trip The ride is easy; the day around it is what needs a plan. The Tokyo hotel wants you out by 11:00, the Kyoto one lets you in at 15:00, and the train fills the gap in the middle. In this sample trip, the travel day reads in order: check-out at the Shibuya Excel Hotel at 11:00, the **Nozomi 25** from Tokyo Station at 12:03 (it arrives at 14:15, the sample’s own train), and check-in at the Ryokan Yoshida-sanso at 15:00 for five nights. Under it, the day’s map draws the line from Tokyo to Kyoto. Leave about 45 minutes to get from Shibuya to the platform at Tokyo Station with bags. The train fits into a full plan of the trip, with Tokyo days and Kyoto days on either side, in the [itinerary planner](/itinerary-planner). ![Monday, Dec 28 in Traypass: check-out from the Shibuya Excel Hotel at 11:00, the Nozomi 25 of JR Central from Tokyo Station to Kyoto Station, 12:03 to 14:15, check-in at the Ryokan Yoshida-sanso at 15:00 for five nights, and the route on a map of Japan](/_astro/jp-trip-shinkansen-front.ByOJDixW_Z1FhiYp.webp) ## How do you get out of Kyoto Station? The Shinkansen platforms are on the south side of the station, and the city center is to the north: follow the signs to the Karasuma central exit, a five-minute walk through the station. ![Kyoto Tower, white with a red top, reflected in the blue glass wall of Kyoto Station](/_astro/kyoto-station.FGX154oU_md54t.webp)[Hotaria N · Unsplash](https://unsplash.com/photos/EuIauFiAODg?utm_source=traypass&utm_medium=referral) - **Subway**: the Karasuma line runs north from under the station to Shijo and Karasuma Oike, the center, in about five minutes. - **Buses**: the bus terminal is in front of the Karasuma exit. Buses 100 and 206 go toward Kiyomizu-dera and Gion, for a flat city fare of ¥230 (about $1.50). They are often full; with a suitcase, take the subway or a taxi. - **Taxis**: there are stands on both sides of the station. The one on the Hachijo side, right by the Shinkansen exit, often has a shorter line. - **JR trains**: the Nara Line reaches Inari, for Fushimi Inari, in about five minutes, and the Sagano Line goes to Saga-Arashiyama in about 15. If you check in at 15:00, there is time for a first walk: Higashiyama, or the lanes of Gion as the lights come on. Your first day in Kyoto In the sample, the first full day starts at Fushimi Inari at 7:30, before the crowds, on a day marked rain, with the next morning at the Arashiyama bamboo grove at 8:00. Build your own days in the [itinerary planner](/itinerary-planner). ![Two Kyoto days in Traypass: Fushimi Inari on Tuesday, Dec 29 at 7:30 for 2h 30m, with 48° and rain, and the Arashiyama bamboo grove on Wednesday, Dec 30 at 8:00 for 1h 30m, each on its own map of Kyoto](/_astro/jp-trip-kyoto-day-front.Cry2wm3Y_1nKPOo.webp) ## Questions people ask ### How long is the bullet train from Tokyo to Kyoto? About 2 hours 15 minutes on a Nozomi, about 2 hours 40 minutes on a Hikari, and about 3 hours 40 minutes on a Kodama, which stops at every station. All three leave from Tokyo Station. ### How much is the bullet train from Tokyo to Kyoto? A reserved seat on a Nozomi costs ¥13,970 (about $89) in the smartEX app and ¥14,170 at a ticket machine or counter; the Hikari and Kodama are ¥13,650 in the app and ¥13,850 at the machine. A non-reserved seat is ¥13,320. In peak weeks add ¥200 (¥400 on the busiest days), and in quiet weeks the smartEX price drops by ¥200. ### Does the Japan Rail Pass cover the Nozomi? No. The Nozomi and Mizuho are not covered. A pass holder can ride them with a special ticket bought at a JR ticket machine or office, ¥4,960 (about $32) between Tokyo and Kyoto. The Hikari and Kodama are covered at no extra cost. ### Which side of the Shinkansen is Mount Fuji on? On the right going from Tokyo to Kyoto, so ask for seat E, the window on the two-seat side of an ordinary car. In a Green Car, the right-hand window is seat D. Going back to Tokyo, Fuji is on the left, seat A. ### Can I bring a big suitcase on the Shinkansen? Yes. A bag of 160 cm or less (length + width + height) needs nothing special. From 161 to 250 cm, you reserve a seat with an oversized baggage area, in the last row of some cars, at no extra charge. Without that reservation you pay ¥1,000 (about $6) and the conductor tells you where to put it. --- Plan this trip in Traypass. Free to plan a trip, pack it and share it. iPhone, iOS 26. https://apps.apple.com/app/id6806640640