Hi Everyone,

Well just got back from a three-month (Jul/Aug/Sep) holiday/trip in Japan. Went by train (Shinkansen & Express & local trains) and Ferries from up near the top of Hokkaido (Shiretoko Peninsula) down to the bottom to the city of Kagoshima and many places in between. I am a paraplegic in a manual w/chair, l am upper middle 60’s in age, from Australia, travelled with my wife.

I would like to give this review.

Well firstly, train travel in Japan is excellent for people in wheelchairs and mobility issues. All levels of the train system -bullet/Local Express/Express & Local trains, all have allocated wheelchair spaces (95% of the time). The wheelchair space and or the wheelchair transfer-over to seat, are always in the Reserved seating part of the train for Shinkansen & Express train trips, so you will need to buy a ticket for that journey in advance. Go to the JR (Japanese Rail) Ticket office to buy the ticket. Possibly takes 2+ hours to go through the queue and work with ticket staff to get your reservation. I go to the local tourist office and request them to write my ticket details out (date/time of trv/name of train/destination/etc) in Japanese from my English note, l then take that Japanese note to the JR ticket staff/office, seemed to make the process easier, less chance of mistakes/misunderstandings. Some regional local trains are older and can have step up into/out-off the train carriage to the platform. My advice is to ask for ‘Assistance’ from the JR train staff as you enter through the ticket gates, give yourself +20minutes before train departure time to enter the JR train station, or more time. Then the JR staff will guide you to the correct platform assist you onto the train with portable board “Slope”, then there will be another JR staff person waiting at your destination train platform doorway as you arrive to assist you off. All with the Japanese efficiency of service & assistance, there is no charges for this service. Often in busy Tokyo stations l ask for assistance just to help me navigate the train station to find the elevators & departure/transfer platform, takes a lot of stress out of navigating in w/chair or whatever device, they love to help! I used a free Japanese App on my phone for all train planning, it never seemed to be inaccurate, it was JAPANTRANSIT it has a little red train icon on it.

Getting around by public Bus also works well. Correct Japanese procedure on buses is to enter from rear door on the side of bus, swipe your IC card on the reader as you go in & find a seat, then exit the bus always at the front next to the driver, swipe your IC card or pay driver as you exit. Wheelchair users have an allocated bus seat-space, the driver will assist you on to the bus with a ‘pull-out slope’ from under the bus structure and then tire you down in the allocated space with safety restraint ties. This time is usually good to tell the driver where you wish to get off, so he/she has some pre-warning, otherwise just push the Stop-buzzer approaching your stop. Buses are a cheap easy way to get about in a city area’s. Taxis are too expensive and complicated for me in w/chair, l did see a couple of w/chair taxis about.

My wife & l stayed at the Japanese hotel chain of TOYOKO INN https://www.toyoko-inn.com/eng/ in their wheelchair twin room, called Heartful-B (heartful ‘A’ is a single bed room). This room & the hotel chain was the reason this long trip went so well. Overall, we stayed at 19 Toyoko Inn’s, all their hotels are well located close to the train stations for easy access. We paid between $92-$129AUD p.n. at these hotel stays. Overall average per night charge for all these hotel stays was 109,949 JPN/Yen p.n. You also get an included in the overnight charge a cooked Japanese breakfast. We were often the only Western’s at busy breakfast area. It is a very authentic Japanese experience at Toyoko Inn, it clean & basic and excellent place to stay in our opinion.

Travel Assistance company, we used “Wheelchair Travel Japan” . They organized some of our bookings that l felt were complicated and needed local knowledge to achieve. Ie-Sumo wrestling tickets, overnight Ferry tickets & complicated Shinkansen train tickets. Great effort was made by WTJ to secure these bookings, highly impressed with their level of service. Not expensive service fee.

Public wheelchair/disable toilets are a ‘art form’ in Japan. The toilets are every were all in clean & fully functional facility condition.

Otherwise just use your common sense with getting about , trying to find accessible restaurant’s, museums Shrine & Temples access, there is always barriers in life, the quest is how you behave around those obstacles. My advice is be like the Japanese people, humble & helpful.

Japan, what a different & wonderful place.

toyoko-inn.com

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