The Kansai region in Japan, including cities like Osaka, Kyoto, and Kobe, is a popular destination for travelers looking to experience traditional culture, delicious cuisine, and stunning natural landscapes. With several Japan Rail (JR) Passes available specifically for the Kansai region, it’s easy to explore this part of Japan efficiently and cost-effectively. In this article, we’ll take a closer look at the five JR passes available in the Kansai area, help you choose the right one for your trip, and also inform you of the things to keep in mind if you decide to buy one.
JR West Kansai Pass
This pass allows unlimited travel on the JR West network in the Kansai region, including cities such as Osaka, Kyoto, Kobe, Nara, and Himeji. If you’re planning to visit these cities, the JR West Kansai Pass is a cost-effective option for getting around.
What’s Included with the JR West Kansai Pass
The JR West Kansai Pass offers unlimited train rides in specified areas for 1 consecutive day. This pass includes non-reserved seats on the Kansai-Airport Express Haruka and access to Special Rapid Services, Rapid Services, and local trains on the JR-West Conventional lines. Travelers can take advantage of this pass to explore cities like Osaka, Kyoto, and Kobe without worrying about transportation costs.
What’s Not Included with the JR West Kansai Pass
It’s important to note that the JR West Kansai Pass does not cover reserved seats on the Kansai-Airport Express Haruka. Additionally, reserved and non-reserved seats on express trains, excluding the Kansai-Airport Express Haruka, are not included. The pass also does not cover the bullet train Shinkansen. Before purchasing the JR West Kansai Pass, travelers should carefully review their travel itinerary and make sure that the pass fits their transportation needs.
JR Kansai WIDE Area Pass
This pass allows unlimited travel on the JR West network in the Kansai region, as well as other cities in western Japan. In addition to Osaka, Kyoto, Kobe, Nara, and Himeji, you can also visit cities like Wakayama and Tottori with the JR Kansai WIDE Area Pass.
What’s Included with the JR Kansai WIDE Area Pass
The JR Kansai WIDE Area Pass offers unlimited train rides for 5 consecutive days in the specified areas of western Japan. This pass includes reserved seats on the Sanyo Shinkansen (Shin-Osaka to/from Okayama) and Express Trains Haruka, Kuroshio, Thunderbird, Kounotori, and Super Hakuto, as well as Special Rapid Services, Rapid Services, and local trains on the JR-West Conventional lines. Additionally, the pass also covers rides on the Kyoto Tango Railway, Wakayama Electric Railway, the San’in Main Line between Hamasaka and Tottori, and West JR Bus services within the valid area. The pass can even be used for the Hello Kitty Shinkansen.
What is Not included with JR Kansai WIDE Area Pass
It’s important to note that the JR Kansai WIDE Area Pass does not cover the Bullet Train “TOKAIDO SHINKANSEN” (Shin-Osaka to/from Tokyo), the Bullet Train “SANYO SHINKANSEN” (Okayama to/from Hakata), and the Bullet Train “KYUSHU SHINKANSEN” (Hakata to/from Kagoshima-Chuo). Additionally, the pass does not cover the Special Rapid “A Seat” paid seating service. The pass is only valid on West Japan JR Bus route buses within the valid area and cannot be used on expressway buses. Limited Express trains KUROSHIO, KOUNOTORI, KINOSAKI, HASHIDATE, and MAIZURU are all reserved seating-only, so travelers must reserve seats in advance before boarding the train.
JR Kansai Hiroshima Area pass
JR Kansai-Hiroshima Area Pass is a convenient and cost-effective option for exploring the cities of Kyoto, Osaka, Hiroshima, and more. With unlimited train rides in specified areas, including the Sanyo Shinkansen, Haruka, Kuroshio, Thunderbird, Kounotori, and Super Hakuto Express Trains, this pass offers an easy and stress-free way to travel throughout the Kansai and Hiroshima regions.
What’s Included with the JR Kansai Hiroshima Area pass
The JR Kansai-Hiroshima Area Pass is a great option for travelers looking to explore the cities of Kyoto, Osaka, Hiroshima and more. The pass offers unlimited train rides in specified areas, including non-reserved seats on the Sanyo Shinkansen (Shin-Osaka to/from Hiroshima), Haruka, Kuroshio, Thunderbird, Kounotori, and Super Hakuto Express Trains (Kyoto to/from Kamigori). The pass also includes special rapid services, rapid services, and local trains on the JR-West Conventional Lines, as well as the JR West Miyajima Ferry (Miyajimaguchi to/from Miyajima). Additionally, the pass covers the Kyoto Tango Railway, Wakayama Electric Railway, the San’in Main Line between Hamasaka and Tottori, and West JR and Chugoku JR Bus services within the area.
What’s Not Included with the JR Kansai Hiroshima Area pass
It’s important to note that the JR Kansai-Hiroshima Area Pass does not cover the Sanyo Shinkansen (Hiroshima to/from Hakata), the Tokaido Shinkansen (Shin-Osaka to/from Tokyo), or the Kyushu Shinkansen (Hakata to/from Kagoshima-Chuo). Travelers should keep these exclusions in mind when planning their trip and consider alternative transportation options for these routes.
JR Kansai Hokuriku Area Pass
This pass allows unlimited travel on the JR West network in the Kansai and Hokuriku regions, including cities such as Osaka, Kyoto, Kobe, Nara, Himeji, Kanazawa, Toyama, and other cities in western and central Japan. If you’re interested in visiting both the Kansai region and the Hokuriku region, the JR Kansai Hokuriku Area Pass is a great option.
What’s Included with the JR Kansai Hokuriku Area Pass
The JR Kansai Hokuriku Area Pass provides unlimited travel on non-reserved seats for the Sanyo Shinkansen between Shin-Osaka and Okayama, as well as special rapid services, rapid services, and local trains on the JR-West conventional lines. This pass also includes non-reserved seats on the Hokuriku Shinkansen between Kanazawa and Joetsu-Myoko, as well as on the Haruka, Thunderbird, Kuroshio, Kounotori, and Super Hakuto express trains between Kyoto and Kamigori. Please check the train route map for more information.
What is not included with JR Kansai Hokuriku Area Pass
This pass does not include the Hokuriku Shinkansen between Joetsu-Myoko and Tokyo, the Tokaido Shinkansen between Shin-Osaka and Tokyo, and the Sanyo Shinkansen between Okayama and Hakata. Additionally, the pass is not valid for the IR Ishikawa Railway and the Ainokaze Toyama Railway. Travellers should be aware of these exclusions when planning their trips.
JR Osaka – Nagoya ‘Ise-Kumano-Wakayama Area Pass’
This pass allows unlimited travel on the JR West network between Osaka and Nagoya, including cities such as Osaka, Kyoto, Nara, Ise, Kumano, and Wakayama. If you’re interested in visiting the famous Ise Grand Shrine or exploring the natural beauty of the Kumano Kodo, the JR Osaka – Nagoya ‘Ise-Kumano-Wakayama Area Pass’ is the right choice for you.
What’s Included with the JR Osaka – Nagoya ‘Ise-Kumano-Wakayama Area Pass’
Explore the beautiful cities of Ise, Kumano and Wakayama with unlimited travel on non-reserved seats for JR conventional lines running between Nagoya, Matsusaka, Shingu, Kii-Katsuura, Shirahama, Wakayama and Kansai Airport. The pass also offers free reserved seat reservation on limited express trains such as the Wide View Nanki, Kuroshio, and Express “Mie” train services up to 4 times. Enjoy a scenic train ride and explore the local area with the Wakayama Electric Railway line between Wakayama and Kishi. Additionally, the pass provides access to Mie Kotsu Buses, Kumano Kotsu Buses, and even rental bicycles “Ekirin-kun” at Wakayama, Kii-Tanabe, and Shirahama stations.
What is Not included with JR Osaka – Nagoya ‘Ise-Kumano-Wakayama Area Pass’
Please note that the pass does not cover travel on Shinkansen lines and Nankai lines, such as to Koya-san. This means that travelers will need to purchase additional tickets for these services. It is important to plan your trip in advance and understand the limitations of this pass to make the most out of your journey in the Ise-Kumano-Wakayama area.”
Cities Accessible with the 5 JR Passes in the Kansai Region
| City | JR West Kansai Pass | JR Kansai WIDE Area Pass | JR Kansai-Hiroshima Area Pass | JR Kansai Hokuriku Area Pass | JR Osaka – Nagoya ‘Ise-Kumano-Wakayama Area Pass’ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Osaka | ○ | ○ | ○ | ○ | ○ |
| Kyoto | ○ | ○ | ○ | ○ | － |
| Kobe | ○ | ○ | ○ | ○ | － |
| Nara | ○ | ○ | ○ | ○ | ○ |
| Himeji | ○ | － | － | － | － |
| Otsu | ○ | ○ | ○ | ○ | － |
| Wakayama | ○ | ○ | ○ | － | ○ |
| Tottori | － | ○ | － | － | － |
| Okayama | － | ○ | ○ | ○ | － |
| Hiroshima | － | － | ○ | － | － |
| Takamatsu | － | ○ | ○ | － | － |
| Shirahama | － | ○ | ○ | ○ | － |
| Kinosakionsen | － | ○ | ○ | ○ | － |
| Amanohashidate | － | ○ | ○ | ○ | － |
| Wakuraonsen | － | － | － | ○ | － |
| Kanazawa | － | － | － | ○ | － |
| Fukui | － | － | － | ○ | － |
| Kurobe-Unazukionsen | － | － | － | ○ | － |
| Toyama | － | － | － | ○ | － |
| Nagoya | － | － | － | － | ○ |
| Ise | － | － | － | － | ○ |
| Kumano | － | － | － | － | ○ |
Things To Know Before Purchasing a JR Pass
Availability and Eligibility
All of these JR Passes are only available to foreign tourists visiting Japan, and you must show your passport to exchange the voucher for the actual pass.
Limitations and Restrictions
The JR Passes are only valid on the JR network, so you’ll need to pay separately for any non-JR trains or buses.
Validity Period
The passes must be used within the validity period specified on the pass, and you cannot extend the validity period once it has started.
Non-JR Transportation
The JR Passes are not valid for reserved seats on the Shinkansen, so you’ll need to pay a supplement fee to reserve a seat.
Budget and Travel Itinerary
Before purchasing a JR Pass, it’s important to consider your travel itinerary and budget to determine which pass is right for you.
Bottom Line
With several JR Passes available in the Kansai region, it’s easy to explore this part of Japan efficiently and cost-effectively. However, it’s important to keep in mind the limitations and restrictions of the passes before purchasing. To choose the right pass for your trip, consider the cities you want to visit, your travel itinerary, and your budget. With a JR Pass, you can enjoy unlimited travel on the JR network, including the Shinkansen bullet trains, making it the perfect way to experience the culture, cuisine, and natural beauty of the Kansai region. Just make sure to keep the aforementioned points in mind to ensure a smooth and hassle-free experience.
