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Stay overnight on board JR to Sapporo 2017/12/6 00:37
I plan to travel to Japan by the end of this year. I will first visit Osaka and then Tokyo.
On January 2nd, 2018 I plan to go to Sapporo by JR because I have JR Pass.
From Google Map, I learn that there is Tohoku Shinkansen departing at 7.20 PM from Tokyo Station and will arrive at Shin-Hakodate-Hokuto Station at 11.33PM.
And then at 6.28AM Hokuto Train will depart from Shin-Hakodate-Hokuto Station and will arrive at Sapporo Station at 9.48AM.
My question is :
From the time I arrive at Shin-Hakodate-Hokuto Station at 11.33PM to the next morning 6.28AM when the train Hokuto leaves that station to Sapporo, what should I go? Do I have to wait at the station or can I sleep in the train wagon? Or do I have to find a hotel to stay the night?

Thank you for any reply.
SomySP
by somysp  

Re: Stay overnight on board JR to Sapporo 2017/12/6 10:48
Go to Hotel...
by hakata14 (guest) rate this post as useful

Re: Stay overnight on board JR to Sapporo 2017/12/6 10:50
The station closes at night, so you have to leave. What you do then is up to you.
by Firas rate this post as useful

Re: Stay overnight on board JR to Sapporo 2017/12/6 15:36
Shin Hakodate station isnft close to Hakodate city (nor anything else) so if you are not interested in sightseeing Hakodate (which would be a nice thing to do) you should take a hotel close to the station. I think I remember that there is one right outside. Apart from that around the station are mainly fields.

Maybe consider looking into taking a flight to reduce travel time? Or a day train where you can still arrive at destination at the end of the day?

Enjoy your trip to Japan!
by LikeBike rate this post as useful

Re: Stay overnight on board JR to Sapporo 2017/12/6 17:15
Map says Hotel La'gent Plaza Hakodate-hokuto is an (maybe only) option. You can not stay on a train once it goes out of service. Hakodate with a range of hotels is 18km/20 minutes away.
You could stand around for six hours overnight waiting for the station to re-open.
by JapanCustomTours rate this post as useful

Re: Stay overnight on board JR to Sapporo 2017/12/6 17:18
Well the OP is talking about January. Standing around at night outside in the snow is not going to be an option, I think.
by LikeBike rate this post as useful

Re: Stay overnight on board JR to Sapporo 2017/12/7 09:53
They could make a little snow cave . . . . Realistically, Hokkaido in winter, got to Hakodate and stay at one of the cheap hotels there and get the train from Hakodate station the next morning.
by JapanCustomTours rate this post as useful

Re: Stay overnight on board JR to Sapporo 2017/12/7 16:45
You need to get a hotel, or take a different train so that you won't get stranded at night, or skip the JR pass and buy a flight instead.
by Gigi (guest) rate this post as useful

Re: Stay overnight on board JR to Sapporo 2017/12/9 00:17

As everyone says : hotel.
Here is a good and cheap hotel very close to Hakodate station:
https://www.toyoko-inn.com/eng/search/reserve/room
by . (guest) rate this post as useful

Re: Stay overnight on board JR to Sapporo 2017/12/9 05:06
If you leave Tokyo on a 15:20 Shinkansen, you get into Sapporo at 23:40 with only a 20 minute transfer at Shin-Hakodate. Anything later and you're stuck overnight.

I think Hakodate is more interesting than Sapporo, with the museums, the old European section, the city views from Mt. Hakodate, the onsen at Yunokawa and Yachigashira, the good seafood, the large morning market, and the Lucky Pierrot restaurants.

If you take the 19:20 Shinkansen from Tokyo and are forced to stop in Shin-Hakodate, get a full night's sleep at a hotel, see a few things around Hakodate, (the morning market is right next to Hakodate Station), and catch an afternoon train on to Sapporo.

Getting a hotel from midnight to 6 AM isn't going to give much rest anyway. There are plenty of cheap hotels and some hostels near Hakodate Station as others have stated. Lately, I've stayed at the Toyoko-Inn Hakodate EkiMae Asaichi, about a block from the non-Shinkansen Hakodate Station, but I've occasionally stayed at the Park Hotel because the rooms are large for the money.

If you do decide to make a stop in Hakodate, you need to transfer to the local line from Shin-Hakodate-Hokuto to Hakodate Station to get the 20-minute ride into town.

The next day, the Hokuto and Super Hokuto express trains to Sapporo both start at Hakodate Station, so you don't have to return to Shin-Hakodate. It's about a 4-hour ride to Sapporo.
by Anaguma (guest) rate this post as useful

Re: Stay overnight on board JR to Sapporo 2017/12/9 05:33
If you left Tokyo at 3:20pm on January 2nd you could be in Sapporo by 11:40pm and wouldn't have to worry about what to do overnight at Shin-Hakodate-Hokuto station.
by curious (guest) rate this post as useful

Re: Late night arrival in Hokkaido by Shinkansen 2017/12/9 08:09
Shin-Hakodate-Hokuto Station (#1) is not in Hakodate City but in Hokuto City (#2).

Do I have to wait at the station or can I sleep in the train wagon?

Neither are you allowed through the night.
There is no lodgment service on the Shinkansen; the station gets closed after the last departure and arrival.

Or do I have to find a hotel to stay the night?

Yes; also, you should tell the hotel's staff in advance that you will get to the hotel late at night.

The vicinity of this station seems not to have large capacity of accommodation.
As other posters say, it sounds better to search for a hotel near Hakodate Station on the (non-Shinkansen) Hakodate Line.

Tokyo (19:20)
| Shinkansen: Hayabusa 33
(23:33) Shin-Hakodate-Hokuto (23:46)
| Hakodate Line: Local (Hakodate Liner)
(00:05) Hakodate.

Tokyo (17:20)
| Shinkansen Hayabusa 29
(21:48) Shin-Hakodate-Hokuto (22:10)
| Hakodate Line: Local (Hakodate Liner)
(22:29) Hakodate.

Tokyo (15:20)
| Shinkansen Hayabusa 25
(19:50) Shin-Hakodate-Hokuto (20:00)
| Hakodate Line: Rapid (Hakodate Liner)
(20:15) Hakodate
-- OR --
(19:50) Shin-Hakodate-Hokuto (20:13)
| Hakodate Line: Ltd. Exp. Super Hakuto 23
(23:40) Sapporo.

#1: Here "shin" means new; there were some people both in Hakodate and in Hokuto who insisted that their city's name must be used for the new name of this station after the Shinkansen operation got started.

#2: Please don't confuse two Hokuto Cities in Hokkaido and in Yamanashi. (Their names differ in kanji.)

by omotenashi rate this post as useful

Re: Hakodate during New Year days 2017/12/9 10:05
Anaguma:
I think Hakodate is more interesting than Sapporo, with the museums

Please note that some, probably most museums are closed around New Year's Day.
At least Hakodate Museum of Art, Hokkaido and Hakodate City Museum will be closed from December 29, 2017 to January 3, 2018.

the good seafood, the large morning market,

Hakodate Asaichi itself is open throughout the year; closed days depend on shops.

by omotenashi rate this post as useful

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