JR Pass not valid on all train

Hi,

I am aware that the JR Pass is not valid on all train in Japan so if I buy a JR Pass I will only be restricted to JR train which can make getting to places more difficult? For example you can't use the non-JR train which is quicker or more frequent and some places don't even have JR rail to get there, which has to pay extra money that defeat the purpose of having the pass to save money in the first place?

What are your thought? Thanks.

What are your thought?

What is your full itinerary?

I am aware that the JR Pass is not valid on all train in Japan so if I buy a JR Pass I will only be restricted to JR train which can make getting to places more difficult?

JR has by far the largest network of all railway companies in Japan. It covers all major regions of Japan. For long-distance travel, JR is almost always the fastest and very often the only way to travel.

But it is true that inside some cities and in a few other areas (for example, travel between Matsumoto and Takayama), non-JR options can be better than JR.

The pass should be seen as a way to reduce travel costs on long-distance train travel. Not as a one-for-everything solution.

Full itinery: arrived Haneda airport then Tokyo for 5 nights around Tokyo ONLY no side or day trip to elsewhere. Then to Kyoto for 3 nights around Kyoto ONLY no side or day trip to elsewhere. Then to Osaka for 2 nights will have a day trip to Iga Ueno and back then to Kansai airport leaving Japan.

JR Pass doesnft look justifying my trip as I am not making any more long distance trip (only one from Tokyo to Kyoto). I can also freely choose any rail I like during the earoundf trips at Tokyo, Kyoto and Osaka without JR rail only restrictions, not to mention I can now choose to use Shikansen Nozomi which is not covered by the Pass and I can arrive in Kyoto faster. Does my logic make sense?

Thanks.

Does my logic make sense?

Sure, for your specific itinerary a JR Pass will not pay off.

Of course, for many other itineraries a JR Pass easily pays off.

I think on one of our trips I added it up and if we had paid for JR fares it would have cost us in excess of 130,000 yen.

Enjoy your trip!

Under your current itinerary, even 7 day JR Pass doesn't pay off.

Thanks for your valuable opinions guys. The most important thing is that we can choose our train freely any rail/line we want to anywhere we want not to restricting ourselves to JR trains only. We have a young child travelling with us convenience and flexibility is utmost important if we can save from not using a JR Pass that is a bonus to us, meaning we save money, time, convenience, flexibility all at the same time!

But all these lead to another question about cost for reservation (when not using a JR Pass) which I will start in another thread.

Another thing is for the 4 days in Kyoto we will only be using bus or taxi as most attractions couldnft be reached by train let alone JR train so if I have a JR pass it will not be fully utilised there.