Japanese bullet train — Shinkansen
The shinkansen, or bullet train, is more than just a mode of transport – it’s a truly Japanese experience. Immaculately clean, comfortable and fast, it’s the epitome of efficiency and the jewel in the crown of the shockingly prompt Japan Rail network.
Originally built to connect Japan’s urban areas for the 1964 Tokyo Olympics, building the shinkansen network was a tremendous feat, as most of the track had to be raised above existing developments or tunnelled through mountains. The bullet trains themselves are a marvel of engineering, and the new trains are as sleekly futuristic now as the originals were when they were built over forty years ago.
Incredibly, in a land of typhoons, earthquakes and heavy snowfall, the trains always keep to schedule, sometimes running just three minutes apart at 300kph. The fastest shinkansen service covers the distance between Kyoto and Tokyo in under three hours: more efficient than air travel, and more comfortable.
There will be ample opportunity during tours to experience speeding through the countryside with tea fields, orange groves, quaint rice paddies, and Mount Fuji providing the perfect backdrop. Eating a bento, or boxed lunch, on the bullet train, and watching the scenery going past is a wonderful way to experience Japan much as the Japanese do.