Travel JR Central tests overnight service to Kansai

JR Central said on 22 June that it will operate a special one-day overnight Tokaido Shinkansen service to gauge demand for night-time rail travel amid rising hotel costs. The train, named the Tokaido Lumiere Express, is scheduled to run on Saturday, 8 August. It will depart from the Tokyo metropolitan area at night and arrive in the Kansai region the following morning.


According to the company, the train will depart from Tokyo after regular operating hours, stopping at Shinagawa and Shin-Yokohama before arriving at Gifu-Hashima Station, where it will remain for around 6 hours. It will then continue to Kyoto and Shin-Osaka, arriving before the first scheduled Shinkansen services of the day.

JR Central said demand for overnight travel appears to be increasing as accommodation costs continue to rise in both the Tokyo and Kansai metropolitan areas. The company hopes the trial service will help it gauge passenger demand and travel patterns. Tickets will go on sale from 3 July through the JR Tokai Tours app. The operator said it will decide whether to introduce similar services in future after reviewing passenger numbers and customer feedback.

thomas said:

before arriving at Gifu-Hashima Station, where it will remain for around 6 hours.

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I was wondering how they were going to achieve an overnight shinkansen train because they are too fast.
I think this is a good idea that many people will find convenient.

I probably would have used this service from time to time if it existed when I lived there. I used the overnight bus (夜行バス) more than once to save on hotel fare.