Travel to Nagoya

Flying to Nagoya

The state-of-the-art Central Japan International Airport (or Centrair as it's popularly called) lies on a man-made island south of Nagoya.

Flight times

From London - 14 hours 30 minutes (including stopover); New York - 17 hours (including stopover);Los Angeles- 14 hours (including stopover); Toronto - 16 hours (including stopover); Sydney - 12 hours 30 minutes (including stopover).

Travel by road

Nagoya is situated in the middle of Japan along the east-west stretch between Tokyo and the western Kansai region. It is extremely well connected, and several big motorways converge on the city. Roads are well maintained.

Traffic drives on the left and the minimum driving age is 18 years old. Speed limits vary considerably so pay attention to speed limit signs. The limit is usually 40kph (25mph) in built-up areas and up to 100kph (62mph) on expressways. Foreign drivers can use an international licence for up to one year.

The Japan Automobile Federation (JAF) (tel: +81 570 008 139; www.jaf.or.jp/e), provides an English-language ‘Rules of the Road' booklet. JAF Road Service offers 24-hour breakdown assistance for both members and non-members. In the case of an accident, you must inform the police (tel: 110).

Emergency breakdown services

JAF (tel: #8139, in Japan only).

Routes

The Tomei Expressway and Chuo Expressway both run from Tokyo westwards to Nagoya, while the Meishin Expressway takes you straight to Nagoya if you drive from Osaka or Kyoto.

Coaches

The bus station in Nagoya is located adjacent to the main railway station.

JR Bus Kanto (tel: +81 3 3844 1950; www.jrbuskanto.co.jp, in Japanese only) operates regular coach services between Nagoya and Tokyo. JR Tokai (tel: +81 52 563 0489; www.jrtbinm.co.jp) runs coach services to and from Kyoto, Osaka and several other cities.

Meitetsu (tel: +81 52 582 0489; www.meitetsu-bus.co.jp) buses run between Nagoya and Kanazawa and Takayama, while Willer Express (tel: +81 50 5805 0383; http://travel.willer.co.jp/index.html) has direct coaches from Nagoya to Sendai in northern Japan, as well as Hiroshima and Nagasaki in the south.

Time to city

From Tokyo - 5 hours; Osaka - 2 hours 30 minutes; Kyoto - 2 hours.

Travel by Rail

Services

Nagoya's huge central railway station, JR Nagoya Station, is located in Nakamura-ku, on the western side of Nagoya's city centre, right below the landmark Japan Railway Central Towers. It connects the city to national and regional rail networks. Within the city there are six subway lines convenient for Fushimi, Sakae and Imaike - the main shopping and nightlife areas in Nagoya.

Operators

Central Japan Railway Company (http://english.jr-central.co.jp/index.html) runs the Tōkaidō Shinkansen bullet train that stops at JR Nagoya Station on its way between Tokyo and Osaka. Departures are frequent.

Nozomi trains are the fastest, while hikari trains are slightly slower – add about 10-20 minutes to the journey time. Please note that the Japan Rail Pass is not valid on nozomi trains. The JR Kansai line, servicing the western region, also runs from Nagoya’s main railway station.

Next to JR Nagoya Station is Meitetsu Nagoya Station, from where Nagoya Railroad (http://top.meitetsu.co.jp) operates the local rail network for Nagoya and the surrounding region, and Kintetsu Nagoya Station, the terminal of the Kintetsu Nagoya Line (www.kintetsu.co.jp/foreign/english/index.html), which connects Nagoya with Kuwana, Yokkaichi, Suzuka and Tsu.

Journey times

Journey times using the fast nozomi Shinkansen trains: From Tokyo - 1 hour 40 minutes; Kyoto - 35 minutes; Osaka - 50 minutes.