TOKYO, Japan Wire - Passengers riding Japan’s shinkansen bullet trains are often encouraged to be alert and ready to board or alight the trains, which typically stop for only a minute or two at stations on the route.
There will be no such rush for a shinkansen in Aomori, northeastern Japan, however, with East Japan Railway Co. turning one of its trains into an overnight relaxation space for an event timed to coincide with the Aomori Nebuta Festival in August.
The event at Shin-Aomori Station invites people to spend the night on board a stationary E5 series shinkansen after it finishes regular service for the day on Aug. 2.
JR East is offering regular and women-only carriages for the “premium time” overnight experience, with participants able to reserve their own two-seat row for 5,000 yen ($31) or three-seat row for 6,000 yen.
Family carriages are also available, with rows of seats turned to face each other to create booths that can accommodate groups, with prices starting at 15,000 yen.
The event begins with check-in at the station’s shinkansen ticket gates, where staff will assign seats to people with bookings.
Participants will be able to board the shinkansen at around 11:40 p.m. and will be required to leave at around 4:50 a.m. the following day, after completing a questionnaire aimed at improving services.
While participants are not allowed to leave the station beyond the shinkansen ticket gates, the train’s carriage doors will remain open throughout the night and participants can use platform facilities, including vending machines, toilets and smoking areas.
Bedding or similar items will not be provided, and lights on board the train will remain on throughout.
In a press release, JR East warned against photography and live streaming on social media that may disturb other participants.
Rather than turning the train into a hotel, JR East said the event is designed to allow participants to enjoy the unique atmosphere of spending time on board a shinkansen late at night.
Bookings for the event opened online on July 23 and are due to close on July 31, depending on availability.
The overnight experience is scheduled to coincide with the Aomori Nebuta Festival which starts on Aug. 2 and runs through Aug. 7.
One of the major summer festivals in Japan's northeastern Tohoku region, the Aomori Nebuta Festival attracts throngs of visitors with its large lantern floats paraded through the city of Aomori.
The event at Shin-Aomori Station is not the only opportunity to experience a shinkansen overnight that operators have offered travelers this summer.
Central Japan Railway Co., better known as JR Tokai, announced in June the operation of its first overnight shinkansen, scheduled to depart in August.
The sold-out special Tokaido Shinkansen service, Tokaido Lumiere Express, is due to depart Tokyo and nearby stations on the evening of Aug. 8. The train will arrive at Kyoto and Shin-Osaka stations the following morning, more than one hour earlier than the arrival of the day’s first shinkansen departure from Tokyo Station.
En route, the train is scheduled to stop for around six hours at Gifu-Hashima Station where passengers will be allowed to use platform facilities for a limited time. Lights on board the train will remain on for the duration of the trip.
Reserved seats in normal carriages for the journey between Tokyo and Shin-Osaka stations were priced at 15,000 yen.
JR Tokai said the service is designed to meet the varied needs of passengers during the summer holiday season and allows travelers to maximize time at their destination.
This article was submitted by a contributing writer for publication on Japan Wire.
