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Shinkansen from Uena to Kanazawa which day? 2025/1/21 01:45
We will be going from Sumida to Kanazawa on the Shinkansen. Would it be more crowded on a Friday or a Saturday? Thank you
by ksbgeb  

Re: Shinkansen from Uena to Kanazawa which day? 2025/1/21 06:48
Saturday tends to be the busiest day of the week on trains from Tokyo in the direction of Kanazawa.
by Uji rate this post as useful

Re: Shinkansen from Uena to Kanazawa which day? 2025/1/21 07:08
What Uji says has been my own experience.

You can check seat availability by using JR Cyberstation (between 6:00 and 23:50 Japan time).
https://www.jr.cyberstation.ne.jp/index_en.html

Select "available seats" and then Hokuriku Shinkansen for the line, then enter your boarding and arrival stations, date, and time period. Sure enough, the results show far greater availability this coming Friday than Saturday, with Saturday morning being potentially the most problematic. The following weekend seems to be even worse.
by Kim (guest) rate this post as useful

Re: Shinkansen from Uena to Kanazawa which day? 2025/1/21 07:17
Correction: it's Saturday February 8 that is already showing some sold-out cars. Probably something going on that weekend. I have run into this situation before.

At any rate, you can usually get seats on the Hokuriku shinkansen if you are a little flexible as to which train you take. But if you want multiple seats together on a specific train, or if you are traveling on a holiday, it's a good idea to book ahead of time.
by Kim (guest) rate this post as useful

Re: Shinkansen from Uena to Kanazawa which day? 2025/1/21 07:30
git's Saturday February 8 that is already showing some sold-out cars. Probably something going on that weekend. I have run into this situation before.h

Probably skiing and long weekend (if you take the 10th)
by LikeBike rate this post as useful

Re: Shinkansen from Uena to Kanazawa which day? 2025/1/21 07:57
It generally makes better sense for any day trip from Tokyo to be done on a weekday instead of weekend or holiday. That includes Karuizawa, Hakone, the Fuji 5 Lakes, etc.
by Ken (guest) rate this post as useful

Re: Shinkansen from Uena to Kanazawa which day? 2025/1/21 09:04
Often sold-out cars can simply be school trips - they get a special rate. I have been on trains where multiple cars have been booked solid. The occassion had problems booking seats on this section was due to major transport disruptions - an exception, not the norm.
There are, of course, multiple trains, and while not as frequent as the Tokaido shinkansen, usually possible to get seats (even if not together) - depends on how big your group is. I have not struck this on the Hokoriku trains, but north to Sendai I have encountered soldout trains on Saturdays.
by JapanCustomTours rate this post as useful

Re: Shinkansen from Uena to Kanazawa which day? 2025/1/21 10:26
Actually, I meant booked-out trains (all reserved cars sold out), not sold-out cars. My error. I have encountered this on the Hokuriku shinkansen during busy times. Once, I had to stand part of the way. Another time I solved the problem by booking separate segments. (If a seat is occupied for even part of the distance you want to book, it will simply show up as being sold out, and you cannot buy a point-to-point ticket for that ride. But for example, you might be able to get a seat as far as Karuizawa, and then a different seat the rest of the way. But this strategy is impractical and time-consuming to implement (you have to check availability on different segments), and I would only do it if I had a rail pass, which very few people have these days.)

If I had to get to Kanazawa from Tokyo on a Saturday and all the reserved seats were sold out, I would probably go to Tokyo Station (not Ueno) and line up for nonreserved seating.

If you are returning from Kanazawa on a Sunday, better watch out, too.
by Kim (guest) rate this post as useful

Re: Shinkansen from Uena to Kanazawa which day? 2025/1/21 12:19
If I had to get to Kanazawa from Tokyo on a Saturday and all the reserved seats were sold out, I would probably go to Tokyo Station (not Ueno) and line up for nonreserved seating.
The slower trains (more stops) have non-reserved cars. The Kagiyaki trains are all reserved seating.
by JapanCustomTours rate this post as useful

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