Hey everyone, Golden Week is around the corner! Golden Week this year is especially long (spanning 10 days) due to the emperor's coronation.
In case you are thinking of booking train tickets, I'm happy to share that students are eligible for discounts on Shinkansen! Please do book your tickets ASAP since it is a peak traveling period for Japan.
・Shinkansen Student Discount
Junior high, High school and university students are eligible for 20% off their ticket. Most vocational institutions are also eligible for the discount.
The student discount is applicable for distances over 101km by JR, including Shinkansen. Simply put, if your one-way journey is longer than 101km, you are eligible for the discount.
Please remember to bring along your student identification card issued by your school/university as proof.
・Not applicable for seat tickets
The 20% student discount is only applies to regular (普通 futsuu) JR trains.
Shinkansen tickets come in a set consisting of a train ticket (乗車券 joshaken) and a seat ticket (特急券 tokkyuuken). You need both the train and seat tickets to board the Shinkansen.
The 20% discount is only applicable to the train ticket while the seat ticket is sold at the usual price.
Therefore, the total discount for a Shinkansen ticket set is actually about 12~13%.
The same applies to Limited Express trains. Seat tickets are sold at the usual prices.
・Can I reserve Shinkansen seats while using the student discount?
Yes, you can. You will only be given 20% off your train ticket so you can get a reserved seat (指定席 shiteiseki) at the usual price. You can also get premium seats in the Green Car or Gran class at their usual prices.
・You can use the discount on a return-trip package
JR offers a package for return trips, such that you will be given a 10% discount if your total journey is more than 601km.
You may use your student discount in addition to this promotion. In this case, you will be charged 28% less in total. Seat tickets are not applicable.
Note that you have to purchase your Shinkansen or regular train tickets as a return trip (往復 oufuku) rather than a one-way (片道 katamichi) trip in order to be eligible for the return-trip package. However, you may purchase your seat tickets separately from the train ticket.
・How to purchase train tickets with student discount
＊Ensure you have a student identification card. If not, ask your student office to issue one for you.
＊You can only purchase tickets with student discount at the train station ticket counters. You will not be able to get the discount if you pruchase online or via ticketing machines.
Present your student identification card to the counter staff.
It is possible to get same-day tickets using the student discount.
Details about student discount (Japanese only): https://shinkansen-yoyaku.com/ryoukin/gakuwari/#i6
In case you are thinking of booking train tickets, I'm happy to share that students are eligible for discounts on Shinkansen! Please do book your tickets ASAP since it is a peak traveling period for Japan.
・Shinkansen Student Discount
Junior high, High school and university students are eligible for 20% off their ticket. Most vocational institutions are also eligible for the discount.
The student discount is applicable for distances over 101km by JR, including Shinkansen. Simply put, if your one-way journey is longer than 101km, you are eligible for the discount.
Please remember to bring along your student identification card issued by your school/university as proof.
・Not applicable for seat tickets
The 20% student discount is only applies to regular (普通 futsuu) JR trains.
Shinkansen tickets come in a set consisting of a train ticket (乗車券 joshaken) and a seat ticket (特急券 tokkyuuken). You need both the train and seat tickets to board the Shinkansen.
The 20% discount is only applicable to the train ticket while the seat ticket is sold at the usual price.
Therefore, the total discount for a Shinkansen ticket set is actually about 12~13%.
The same applies to Limited Express trains. Seat tickets are sold at the usual prices.
・Can I reserve Shinkansen seats while using the student discount?
Yes, you can. You will only be given 20% off your train ticket so you can get a reserved seat (指定席 shiteiseki) at the usual price. You can also get premium seats in the Green Car or Gran class at their usual prices.
・You can use the discount on a return-trip package
JR offers a package for return trips, such that you will be given a 10% discount if your total journey is more than 601km.
You may use your student discount in addition to this promotion. In this case, you will be charged 28% less in total. Seat tickets are not applicable.
Note that you have to purchase your Shinkansen or regular train tickets as a return trip (往復 oufuku) rather than a one-way (片道 katamichi) trip in order to be eligible for the return-trip package. However, you may purchase your seat tickets separately from the train ticket.
・How to purchase train tickets with student discount
＊Ensure you have a student identification card. If not, ask your student office to issue one for you.
＊You can only purchase tickets with student discount at the train station ticket counters. You will not be able to get the discount if you pruchase online or via ticketing machines.
Present your student identification card to the counter staff.
It is possible to get same-day tickets using the student discount.
Details about student discount (Japanese only): https://shinkansen-yoyaku.com/ryoukin/gakuwari/#i6
