Extra-luxurious travel mode returning to Tokyo-Kyoto-Osaka bullet train route for first time in over two decades.

Japan is in a bit of a dormant season right now as far as travel is concerned. With the New Year’s vacation season over and the weather at its coldest, most people aren’t looking to do any extensive domestic traveling for a while, and many would-be foreign tourists are back at school/work after their Christmas breaks.

However, Central Japan Railway Company, AKA JR Central, and also AKA JR Tokai, is giving travelers something to look forward to later this year, as they’ve announced the date for when private booths will be added to Shinkansen bullet trains.

JR Central first revealed this luxurious new way to travel in the spring of last year, saying that their plan was to introduce them on N7000S-series Tokaido Shinkansen trains, which travel between Tokyo and Osaka (with Kyoto on the route too) in the spring of 2027. In a move appropriate for Japan’s fastest trains, though, JR Central has sped up that timeline, and now says that the first Shinkansen private booth seats will be available on October 1 of this year.

▼ Preview video of the Shinkansen private booth seats

As shown in the preview video above, the private boot seats are larger and more luxurious than the standard Shinkansen seats, with wraparound armrests, deeper reclining, and extending footrests. The booths also have their own dedicated wi-fi network and adjustable lighting and climate controls.

This actually won’t be the first time for private booths on the Shinkansen. The discontinued 100 Series Tokaido Shinkansen cars, first introduced in 1985, included a configuration with private passenger rooms, as shown in the video here.

▼ Between the corded phone and that hairdo, you know this is the ‘80s.

The 100 Series trains were retired in September of 2003, though, so the new N7000S private booths will mark the first time for such a service to be offered in 23 years, making it an entirely new experience for many passengers who weren’t in a position to enjoy such a luxurious mode of travel at the previous opportunity due to factors such as a lack of funds or not being born yet.

Speaking of costs, pricing is yet to be announced for the private booths, with JR Central only saying that they will be more expensive than tickets for the Shinkansen’s first-class “Green Car” seating sections, which typically cost around 40 percent more than a standard non-reserved seat Shinkansen ticket. A standard ticket from Tokyo Station to Kyoto, for example, is 13,320 yen (US$87), and the price from Tokyo to Shin Osaka is 13,870 yen; those jump to 18,840 and 19,390 yen for Green Car Tickets. Considering that only two private booth compartments will be added to each Shinkansen train they’re available on (for a total of six seats, as per JR Central’s initial announcement), odds are the private booth seats are going to carry a pretty big premium over even the Green Car seats.

Only a limited number of Tokaido Shinkansen trains will have private booths at the beginning of October, but JR Central says it plans to gradually expand their availability as time goes on.

Source: Livedoor News/Kyodo via Hachima Kiko
Images: JR Central
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