Japan Rail around New Years?

[Ziv]

I arrive at Narita on Dec 28th and my room at the Hotel Intergate near Tokyo Station is only booked through the 31st due to New Years booking the hotel up solid on the 31st.
Does anyone have a favorite hotel near Kyoto Station/Japan Rail in Kyoto?
Any tips on how to book a seemless JR trip between Tokyo and Kyoto?
Are the Shinkasen train reserved seats likely to be fully booked or is that impossible to predict?
Thanks for any advice!

 

[TRA_Thom]

I arrive at Narita on Dec 28th and my room at the Hotel Intergate near Tokyo Station is only booked through the 31st due to New Years booking the hotel up solid on the 31st.
Does anyone have a favorite hotel near Kyoto Station/Japan Rail in Kyoto?
Any tips on how to book a seemless JR trip between Tokyo and Kyoto?
Are the Shinkasen train reserved seats likely to be fully booked or is that impossible to predict?
Thanks for any advice!

The Shinkansen between Tokyo and Kyoto always have non-reserved seats as well. If you’re in Japan, you can use the ticket vending machines to see whether your specific train still has reservations available.

Do be advised that New Years is one of the most important holidays in Japan and a lot of stuff might be closed.

 

[Ziv]

Thanks, Thom! I will look for the machine later today. I am right next to Tokyo Station so it is on my walking path for today.
I arrived here yesterday and I am going to get a subway pass and reserve a JR seat to Kyoto for the 31st just to be on the safe side.
New Years Eve has me thinking that it is better to reserve early and not worry.

 

[Tlcooper44]

I just stayed at Hotel Granvia in Kyoto.
My report from last weeks trip was posted yesterday. I talked a little about Kyoto.

The hotel is affordable, very nice and right above the station - about a 7 minute walk from Shinkansen platforms.

For the Tokaido Shinkansen, we opted to not reserve and just book through the ticket offices available at both stations. There was never an issue with availability - and we took a Shinkansen on the 24th!

Edit - you must have found a place already. Where did end up staying?

 

[Ziv]

I reserved at M's Est, a bit east of the Gran Via. It is small but pretty well reviewed. Gran Via looks nice and VERY convenient to the station.
I am off to Japan Rail, I think I will try to book a Nozomi seat for tomorrow. First time on a Shinkasen so I am pretty stoked!
I really like Japan.


https://maps.app.goo.gl/vZ4hBCihBjfLgCKKA
A random building in Ginza plus a C11 locomotive in Shinbashi.

On edit: SUCCESS!
JR is jammed for New Years but i got a First Class window seat on a Nozomi train to Kyoto!
Woohoo!!
Travel firsts get me pretty fired up and this is definitely a first for me.

 

[Ziv]

THAT was a rail experience from start to finish! I checked out of my Tokyo hotel at 11am and walked to the underground shopping mall next to Tokyo Station, which is a city in and of itself. Don't get me started on the bento boxes...
Then I used my ticket to enter the station proper and IT WAS A ZOO!!! It was like Camden Yards 15 minutes before first pitch and it covered acres of station area. Holy ....
Anyway, there are like 20-some platforms, or so it seems, and I finally found mine, #17. So I climbed the stairs up there and it was only slightly less crowded. There were Nozomi Shinkasens leaving every 18 minutes from that platform alone.

How many does Tokyo Station dispatch from all of its platforms every day? The world wonders.
I watched 2 trains leave from my platform since I wanted to get there early, but 15 minutes before my train is scheduled to depart, it rolls in and the passengers debark, with the cleaning crew boarding immediately. And the seats were reversed for the entire car in about 2 minutes. Seems easy to accomplish here in Japan...
10 minutes before departure we are allowed to board and it is pretty nice, not super luxe but nice. I splurged on First class, Green Car. Costs 190,000 Yen which is around $130US?
There is room for my carry on backpack above my seat and a roomy fold down table, the seat is comfy but airline firm. The foot rest gets in the way more than it helps, but it is all good. The doors closed right on time and we rolled gently out a minute later, with probably 80% of the seats occupied. It really does not seem all that fast, but we were moving pretty smoothly, jointed rail for the first few minutes, but much smoother ride than the Acela or Empire Builder. No food service, just a damp paper towel in a cheap plastic wrapper. They did bring a trash bag through 3 or 4 times in 2 hours, so the car stayed pretty clean.
Mount Fuji was hidden by clouds. Sad.
Kyoto Station is ok, odd layout and a bit older but nice. Kyoto is a bit industrial. I really like my hotel, M's Est Naranjo, very modern and not tiny rooms, though it is in a bit of a grotty area.
Hit a very nice pizza/tapas/beer hall down the road. I had a nicely hoppy but well balanced local IPA plus tapas (smoked duck was a bit mild) in Japan. That is just wrong.
Happy New Year!

 

[Ziv]

Just as an aside, given the sad news from Noto about the older gentleman that perished in yesterday's earthquake, I thought I would point out a safety feature most (?) Japanese hotel rooms are equipped with.
Somewhere in the sleeping area (usually) there will be an emergency flashlight to use if the power goes out. They do not necessarily look like a flashlight but they are.
The arrow in the photo shows the torch type that many hotels use.
Better to know, and not need it...
On edit: Death toll is still rising, sadly.

 

[Ziv]

I just stayed at Hotel Granvia in Kyoto.
My report from last weeks trip was posted yesterday. I talked a little about Kyoto.

The hotel is affordable, very nice and right above the station - about a 7 minute walk from Shinkansen platforms.

For the Tokaido Shinkansen, we opted to not reserve and just book through the ticket offices available at both stations. There was never an issue with availability - and we took a Shinkansen on the 24th!

Edit - you must have found a place already. Where did end up staying?

Tlcooper, I just went back to Kyoto Station to get my tickets for a trip to Kansai International on the 4th and then wandered around the station and parts of the Granvia Hotel.
Wow.
That is an impressive bit of architecture!
I like my little hotel but for just $45 more the Granvia looks very interesting. Next trip.

 

[AmtrakMaineiac]

Something I saw on the CNN page relating to the New Years earthquake

Four bullet trains, whose high-speed journeys were halted when a powerful earthquake struck Japan on Monday, have now resumed service to their destinations, according to Japan’s public broadcaster NHK.

The high-speed trains had been stranded between the central Japanese cities of Toyama and Kanazawa following the 7.5 magnitude tremor.

After being stationary for more than 11 hours, two trains arrived at the Toyama station at 4 a.m. local time on Tuesday (2 p.m. ET on Monday), officials said. Another two trains traveling in the opposite direction arrived at the Kanazawa station in Ishiwaka prefecture.

Nearly 1,400 passengers had been stranded inside the high-speed trains, NHK said, citing Japan Railways West.

The broadcaster said there were no reports of anyone on the trains becoming ill during the wait.

 

[Devil's Advocate]

In addition to the earthquake disruptions there was also a recent collision involving a Japan Airlines A350 and a Coast Guard freighter that has closed all runways at HND and resulted in many unplanned diversions to NRT.

 

[Metra Electric Rider]

Yeah, Japan has not had a good '24 so far. Hope nothing else goes wrong.