How to use shinkansen tickets

Every time I took a shinkansen, I seemed to do something wrong and would get 'beeped' by a ticket gate, requiring the assistance of various rail staff. I think I've finally figured it out, so I'll share the benefit of my experience with you. ^_^

To ride a shinkansen, you need two tickets. One of these connects you from one city zone to another city zone (eg, from Nagoya city zone to Tokyo city zone). Let's call this the 'city ticket'. The other has your seat reservation. Let's call this the 'seat ticket'.

[You can also get 'non-reserved' seats, which means you don't have a set seat but must sit in the non-reserved car. This is risky as you might not get a seat at all. The price difference between a reserved and non-reserved seat is pretty small, so if you know for sure which train you want to take, you might as well just buy a reserved ticket.]

You will use the city ticket when travelling between two cities, eg Nagoya and Tokyo. See, if you get a shinkansen ticket from Nagoya station to Shinagawa station (in Tokyo), what it actually means is you can travel from anywhere in Nagoya city to anywhere in Tokyo city (but you must use JR train lines).

You will use the seat ticket merely when entering and leaving the shinkansen gates.

Let me give you a concrete example.

You are travelling from Kanayama, in Nagoya, to Shibuya, in Tokyo. The shinkansen travels from Nagoya station to Shinagawa station.

1. When you go to JR Kanayama station, put in the 'city ticket' and go to Nagoya station.

2. Transfer to the shinkansen within Nagoya station (do not exit the main station), and put both shinkansen tickets in the ticket machine. (You can put them both in at the same time, one on top of the other.) Do not lose these, as the conductor will check them on the train, and you need both of them to exit.

3. When you get to Shinagawa, transfer to the JR lines (do not exit the main station). Put both shinkansen tickets in the machine. Now your 'seat ticket' will be eaten, as you have finished with the shinkansen. You will get your 'city ticket' back.

4. Go to Shibuya, and you can use your 'city ticket' to exit the final JR ticket gate at Shibuya station.

Where it gets (even more) complicated is if, for example, you are using a Suica card or travelling outside the designated city zones.

For example, let's imagine I'm going from Kanayama station (in Nagoya) to Kawasaki (which is near Tokyo, but not in the Tokyo city zone). Steps 1 - 3 above remain the same. However, once you get to step 4, the ticket gate won't let you out. This is because you've left the Tokyo city zone, and you have to
pay the fare from Tokyo to Kawasaki. To remedy that situation, at Kawasaki station, put your shinkansen 'city ticket' in the 'fare adjustment' machine, and you can pay the extra 150 yen.

This situation also applies if you are going somewhere within Tokyo city, but using the subway. Your shinkansen tickets will only cover JR lines. If you change from the JR line, you have to pay for your own ticket on the new line.

What if you're using a charge card?

Okay, let's imagine I'm going to use my Suica card and travel from Kawasaki back to Nagoya. At Kawasaki station, I would use only my Suica to enter Kawasaki station. Then at Shinagawa station, I would transfer to the shinkansen line, using my Suica AND two shinkansen tickets. The Suica would deduct the fare from Kawasaki to Shinagawa, while the two shinkansen tickets would register that you've entered Shinagawa station.

(If you have cumbersome luggage, it requires some sleight of hand to scan your Suica card and put your two shinkansen tickets in the machine simultaneously...)

I hope that makes sense, and covers the main situations. :)