Traveling to Japan and looking for a guide to reserving Shinkansen seats online? Continue below to learn how to use Smart-Ex to reserve Shinkansen seats.
Reserving Limitations – Shinkansen Stops
Smart-Ex allows online reservation of the Tokaido, Sanyo, and Kyushu Shinkansen. Before continuing, ensure you do not have a JR Pass or Regional Pass (you can’t use them on this site) and verify that you want reservations between the following cities. Simply put, if you want to travel between Tokyo and Kagoshima, including cities in-between like Kyoto and Osaka, you should reserve on Smart-Ex.
Register on Smart-Ex for Shinkansen
To use the Smart-Ex service, you must register for an account. To do this, you’ll need:
- an email
- a credit card
Click the register button on the site; enter your email. You will receive an email from, at this time, yoyaku@expy.jp, though this can change.
Read the agreements, input your personal details, then enter your credit card information. Credit cards are recommended for refund purposes and try to use one with no foreign transaction fee. Discover cards and Capital One cards usually charge $0 USD annually and do not have a foreign transaction fee. Chase Sapphire cards are also good cards but comes with an annual fee.
Follow the prompts…and registration complete!
You’ll receive an email from yoyaku@expy.jp containing your membership ID. Save this ID in your password manager if you have one as it is your login ID, not your email.
Reserve on Smart-Ex
Login with your membership ID and password.
Click Reservation.
Enter your search conditions. Make sure to click “oversized baggage” if applicable. Notice the reservation are based on a 24-hour clock, not 12.
Alternatively, you can search by train numbers if you planned ahead with timetables.
Click Continue
Select your Train, make sure you know the differences, then you’ll see a grid of options. You’ll see the price in Japanese Yen (¥), ordinary & green (first class), as well as some other options and a symbol. These are the symbols you want:
“○”: Available
“▲”: Some seat rows sold out
“Y”: Facility available but not shown yet due to traffic
Furthermore, you may see Hayatoku discount seats if ordered 3 days in advance for green discounted tickets or 21 days in advance for ordinary discounted tickets. These are usually a good value.
After selecting your train, select your seats, confirm your purchase, and you’re done!
NOTE:
Times in JST!
Reserve Early!
Hours of Operation!
Types of Shinkansen Trains
Nozomi & Mizuho Shinkansen
The newer trains, Nozomi and Mizuho, present the fastest shinkansen and only stop at major stations mentioned below. Traditionally, foreigners ride these trains far less as the JR Pass excluded them. This may change with the JR Pass price hikes, however.
Hikari & Sakura Shinkansen
Foreigners typically ride the Hikari and Sakura Shinkansen as they present the second fastest train and the fastest train for JR Pass holders. These trains stop at major stations and a few extra minor stations.
Kodama & Tsubame Shinkansen
I recommend these trains only if you can’t make the others, OR if you’re on a budget. You can find good discounts to ride these trains if you reserve over 3 days prior. The Hayatoku (discounted) green or first class tickets are usually cheaper than just ordinary class tickets. These slower trains stop at every station on their respective lines. While not slow by any means, the frequent stops will delay your transit.
Stations and the Shinkasen
Use the following chart to see which Shinkansen train is best for you based on departure and arrival stations:
If you haven’t yet, make sure you check out these alternatives passes to the JR Pass for Japan.
