Download - Audley Travel
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Nebuta festival float, Aomori<br />
Rail travel<br />
Stretching from the southern tip of Kyushu Island<br />
to the far north of Hokkaido, Japan’s extensive<br />
rail network is justifiably the envy of the world,<br />
running with a speed and efficiency that make<br />
travel by train an absolute pleasure. Furthermore,<br />
with English increasingly in use around the<br />
network, it is becoming ever easier for the<br />
first-time visitor to make the most of this fantastic<br />
service. The world-famous, futuristic shinkansen<br />
‘bullet trains’ link Japan’s main cities and make<br />
journeys from Tokyo to Kyoto (and beyond) an<br />
experience in themselves. There are also some<br />
truly scenic rail journeys in Japan: among the best<br />
are the journeys that show off the coastal views<br />
around Tottori and Matsue or the dramatic river<br />
valleys and mountain vistas leading up to the<br />
Japan Alps region. In the majority of trips,<br />
we will include a Japan Rail Pass for either<br />
standard or first class seating, which<br />
allows free access on almost the<br />
entire Japan Rail network.<br />
These passes represent<br />
excellent value (a one-week<br />
pass costs less than a return<br />
Tokyo to Kyoto ticket)<br />
and allow a degree of<br />
flexibility that puts<br />
you in full control<br />
of your trip.<br />
Regions of Japan<br />
For the purposes of this brochure we have<br />
broadly split Japan into three sections. Northern<br />
Japan encompasses the northerly island of<br />
Hokkaido and the region known as Tohoku<br />
which stretches north from Tokyo to the<br />
tip of the mainland, Central Japan, which<br />
takes in central and western Honshu island<br />
and Southern Japan, which covers the<br />
smaller southerly islands of Kyushu<br />
and Shikoku and the sub-tropical<br />
island chain of Okinawa.<br />
Rice fields, Shikoku<br />
www.audleytravel.com/japan ● 01993 838 210 ● Introduction 5