Hello,
We will be arriving at Tokyo Narita airport on April 10th for 14 days and will travel to Misawa and do some site seeing in that area and then travel to Kyoto and Tokyo. What is the schedule for the bullet train to Misawa and which pass should we buy for our trip? Thank you for your help.
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It's a long way from Narita to Misawa so you will need to exchange your pre-purchased rail voucher for your rail pass at the airport. It's easily done downstairs at the JR ticket office or if out of hours at the ticket counter across the way from the office. The trip is almost 800km and will take 4h 45m with a train change in Tokyo. It's a good idea to book your seat. That can be done when you exchange your voucher for your rail pass. You may wish to stop at Tokyo for some refreshments, so take that into consideration when making your booking. Without a rail pass the trip on the shinkansen would cost around $200 one way.
Japan's trains are well organised and the signage on the station is colour coded and easy to follow. On the platform, usually referred to as track in Japan, there are markings on the ground to show you where to line up to board your correct carriage. You will need to know the train size, i.e. number of carriages to identify the exact spot. The information you need is on the ticket you get when you book a seat. They don't put the track number on the booked seat ticket, you need to look it up on one of the train information boards that are located conveniently around the train station. The trains can be identified by name and number. I often use the departure time to initially locate the train I'm looking for. If all else fails just ask for help. I've always found the Japanese people friendly and willing to assist.