Sunrise Seto

The is an overnight sleeping car train service in Japan operated by the East Japan Railway Company (JR East), Central Japan Railway Company (JR Central), West Japan Railway Company (JR West), and Shikoku Railway Company (JR Shikoku) since July 1998.

Operations

The Sunrise Seto runs daily between Template:STN and Template:STN in Kagawa Prefecture on the island of Shikoku, taking about 9 hours 30 minutes for the journey. The service operates in conjunction with the Sunrise Izumo service to Template:STN between Tokyo and Template:STN. The combined 14-car train departs from Tokyo, and stops at Template:STN, Template:STN, Template:STN, Template:STN, Template:STN, Template:STN (final midnight stop), Template:STN (first morning stop), and arrives at Template:STN, where the train splits, with the Sunrise Izumo half of the train heading to Template:STN. Between Okayama and Takamatsu, the 7-car Sunrise Seto train stops at Template:STN and Template:STN, before arriving in Takamatsu. The return train departs from Takamatsu, and is coupled with the Sunrise Izumo from Izumoshi at Okayama Station, departing together from there, and arriving at Tokyo Station in the next morning.

There are seasonal extended services which Sunrise Seto trains from Tokyo run beyond Takamatsu, to Template:STN on the Dosan Line. These extended service trains run during particular seasons (Differs each year), and during the holidays.

Sunrise Izumo and Sunrise Seto pass through stations in Nagoya and Kyoto without stopping due to the fact that they arrive at these stations around midnight and are unable to play the announcements.

• A Sunrise Seto & Sunrise Izumo combined formation on the Sanyo Main Line, May 2012
  A Sunrise Seto & Sunrise Izumo combined formation on the Sanyo Main Line, May 2012
• Sunrise Izumo and Sunrise Seto units being uncoupled at Okayama Station, March 2013
  Sunrise Izumo and Sunrise Seto units being uncoupled at Okayama Station, March 2013
• Destination indicator for a Tokyo-bound service
  Destination indicator for a Tokyo-bound service

Station list

Line	Station		Distance (km)		Time		Location
	Name	Japanese	Between stations	From Tokyo	Westbound (-> Takamatsu)	Eastbound (-> Tokyo)	Ward / City	Prefecture / Metropolis
Tōkaidō Main Line	Template:STN	東京	-	0.0	21:50 Departure	07:08 Arrival	Chiyoda	Tokyo
	Template:STN	横浜	28.8	28.8	22:14 Arrival 22:15 Departure	06:44 Arrival 06:45 Departure	Yokohama	Kanagawa
	Template:STN	熱海	75.8	104.6	23:21 Arrival 23:23 Departure	05:43 Arrival 05:45 Departure	Atami	Shizuoka
	Template:STN	沼津	21.6	126.2	23:38 Arrival 23:39 Departure	05:26 Arrival 05:27 Departure	Numazu
	Template:STN	富士	20.0	146.2	23:52 Arrival 23:53 Departure	05:09 Arrival 05:10 Departure	Fuji
	Template:STN	静岡	34.0	180.2	00:18 Arrival 00:20 Departure	04:38 Arrival 04:40 Departure	Shizuoka
	Template:STN	浜松	76.9	257.1	01:11 Arrival 01:12 Departure	↑ (Brief stop)	Hamamatsu
	Template:STN	豊橋	36.5	293.6	(Brief stop)		Toyohashi	Aichi
	Template:STN	名古屋	72.4	366.0	↓	↑ (Brief stop)	Nagoya
	Template:STN	岐阜	30.3	396.3	↓ (Brief stop)	↑	Gifu	Gifu
	Template:STN	米原	49.6	445.9	(Brief stop)		Maibara	Shiga
	Template:STN	大阪	110.5	556.4	↓ (Brief stop)	00:31 Arrival 00:33 Departure	Osaka	Osaka
	Template:STN	三ノ宮	30.6	587.0	↓	00:10 Arrival 00:11 Departure	Kobe	Hyogo
San'yō Main Line	Template:STN	姫路	57.3	644.3	05:25 Arrival 05:26 Departure	23:32 Arrival 23:33 Departure	Himeji
	Template:STN	岡山	88.6	732.9	06:27 Arrival (Decouple and separate from Sunrise Izumo) 06:31 Departure	22:23 Arrival (Couple with Sunrise Izumo) 22:34 Departure	Okayama	Okayama
Uno Line, Honshi-Bisan Line
	Template:STN	児島	27.8	760.7	06:52 Arrival 06:53 Departure	22:00 Arrival 22:01 Departure	Kurashiki
Yosan Line	Template:STN	坂出	22.7	783.4	07:09 Arrival 07:10 Departure	21:43 Arrival 21:44 Departure	Sakaide	Kagawa
	Template:STN	高松	21.3	804.7	07:27 Arrival	21:26 Departure	Takamatsu
Seasonal extended services (from Tokyo) to Kotohira
Yosan Line	Takamatsu	高松	-	804.7	07:54 Departure	/	Takamatsu	Kagawa
	Template:STN	多度津	32.7	837.4	08:33 Arrival 08:35 Departure		Tadotsu
Dosan Line
	Template:STN	善通寺	6.0	843.4	08:43 Arrival 08:45 Departure		Zentsuji
	Template:STN	琴平	5.3	848.7	08:52 Arrival		Kotohira

• Trains make brief stops for several reasons, here being crew changes at JR region boundaries. Passengers cannot board or get off the train when it makes such stops.
• Regularly, only eastbound services will operate between Atami and Yokohama via the Tōkaidō Freight Line, where trains enter the line at Odawara and exit at Chigasaki back to the Tōkaidō Main Line.

Formation

Trains are formed of dedicated 7-car 285 series Sunrise Express electric multiple units (EMUs) owned by both JR Central and JR West. They are formed as shown below, with cars numbered 8 to 14 in the down (westbound) direction, with car 14 at the Tokyo end, and 1 to 7 in the up (Tokyo-bound) direction, with car 7 at the Tokyo end.

Car No.	1/8	2/9	3/10	4/11	5/12	6/13	7/14
Numbering	KuHaNe 285	SaHaNe 285	MoHaNe 285	SaRoHaNe 285	MoHaNe 285	SaHaNe 285	KuHaNe 285
Accommodation	B single berths	B single berths	B solo berths	Single DX berths	B single berths Nobinobi floor space	B single berths	B single berths
	B single/ single-twin berths	B single/ single-twin berths		Sunrise twin berths		B single/ single-twin berths	B single/ single-twin berths
Facilities			Mini lounge area, vending machine, shower		Vending machine

• Car 2/9 has a wheelchair-accessible compartment
• Each car has toilet facilities at one end.
• Smoking is permitted in car 6/13, and some compartments in car 4/11.

Accommodation, Ticketing and Facilities

The Sunrise Express services consist of six types of accommodation. There are five types of berths: A Single Deluxe, B Sunrise Twin (2-person use), B Single Twin (1 or 2-person use), B Single and B Solo. There is also a carpeted sleeping space called the Nobinobi sleeping area.

To ride the train, several fares are required. All passengers require a and a based on the distance traveled. On top of these, those wishing to travel in a private room must also pay for a , while those traveling in the Nobi-nobi sleeping area must pay a small in order to reserve an individual sleeping space.

The berth and seat reservation charges are fixed, regardless of where the journey starts and ends.

Accommodation Price Table

Person	Accommodation	Price
1-person use berth	A Single Deluxe	¥13,980
	B Single Twin	¥9,600
	B Single	¥7,700
	B Solo	¥6,600
2-people use berths	B Sunrise Twin	¥15,400 for two people
	B Single Twin	¥15,000 for two people
1-person use seating	Nobinobi sleeping area	¥530 seat reservation charge (+200 for peak seasons) (-200 for off-seasons)

Tickets can be purchased up to one month before departure at a JR Midori no Madoguchi ticket counter or ticket machine in Japan, or online through the JR West Seat Reservation website.

A shower is located in cars 3 and 10. Passengers using the A Single Deluxe compartments are provided with a free shower card to use the showers on the train, while other passengers have to pay ¥330 for a 6-minute shower card if they desire to use the showers. Shower cards are not allocated to specific time slots, however due to the limited number of these cards issued on each train passengers are advised to purchase one as early as possible.

Mini lounge areas are located in cars 3 and 10 which have a bench table with 4 seats on each side of the train. Small drink vending machines are available in cars 3, 5, 10 and 12 - these only vend a limited variety of drinks such as Coca Cola, Real Gold (energy drink), green tea (cold) and water. There is no food available for purchase onboard the train - passengers are required to purchase food before boarding the train.

Other than the mini lounge areas in cars 3 & 10 there are no seating areas anywhere on the train. (The "A Single Deluxe" compartment has a seat and desk).

• "Single Deluxe" compartment
  "Single Deluxe" compartment
• Car 4/11 corridor
  Car 4/11 corridor
• Single berth
  Single berth
• Single-twin berth
  Single-twin berth
• Nobinobi open-plan sleeping area (car 5/12, upper floor)
  Nobinobi open-plan sleeping area (car 5/12, upper floor)
• Nobinobi open-plan sleeping area (car 5/12, lower floor)
  Nobinobi open-plan sleeping area (car 5/12, lower floor)
• Shower cubicle (car 3/10)
  Shower cubicle (car 3/10)
• Mini lounge area (car 3/10)
  Mini lounge area (car 3/10)

Japan Rail Pass

Holders of the Japan Rail Pass can reserve a Nobi-nobi space (open-plan carpeted sleeping area with a small blanket provided) for free. Use of any berth requires payment of the limited express and berth charges.

All travel on Sunrise Seto requires a seat reservation at a Midori no Madoguchi ticket counter or ticket machine. The "seat" number shown on your reserved seat ticket is the number of your berth or Nobi-nobi space. Demand is high for this train so a seat reservation should be made as soon as possible after picking up your Japan Rail Pass.

History

File:JNR EF65 1019 seto.jpg

Locomotive-hauled Seto service, October 1995

The Sunrise Seto services were introduced together with the Sunrise Izumo on 10 July 1998. Previously, the Seto operated as a separate "Blue train" service connecting Tokyo with Takamatsu. The Sunrise Izumo was intended to attract more passengers to train transportation by introducing newly designed trains and by reducing the journey time.

Ridership on overnight trains in Japan continues to decline, and from March 2009, the Sunrise Izumo and Sunrise Seto became the only overnight sleeping car trains to operate west of Tokyo via the Tokaido Line.

From the start of the revised timetable on 12 March 2021, the departure time of the Sunrise Izumo and Sunrise Seto from Tokyo was changed from 10:00 PM to 9:50 PM. It is the first time that the departure time was changed since the services' introduction in 1998. The change cleared the 10:00 PM departure slot for one of the new Shōnan limited express services to Odawara.

See also

• Sunrise Izumo
• Seto (train), the blue train predecessor to the Sunrise Seto
• List of named passenger trains of Japan

External links

• JR West Sunrise Izumo / Sunrise Seto Template:In lang