Oct–NovMost one-way trips need no pass at all. A pass wins when you double back, loop to an airport or add day trips. Tap the trip closest to yours.
1Which trip looks most like yours?
Start from your route, not from the pass. A one-way trip from Tokyo through Kanazawa to Kyoto costs ¥22,320 in tickets, less than any 7-day pass. A pass pays when you double back, loop to an airport or add day trips.
Every fare here is a 2026 reserved-seat fare taken from our Hokuriku Shinkansen station table, so the sums match what you will pay at the machine. Where a pass only covers unreserved cars, the table says so. Pass prices changed on 14 March 2026 (JR West and JR East) and 1 October 2026 (nationwide JR Pass). Skiing in Nagano or Myōkō? The ski guide has the train and lift routes.
Fares used: Tokyo–Kanazawa ¥14,600, Tokyo–Toyama ¥13,180, Kanazawa–Kyoto ¥7,720, Osaka–Kanazawa ¥9,410, Toyama–Kanazawa ¥3,390 and the Kanazawa–Takayama bus ¥4,200, all one way, regular season. The Takayama–Nagoya leg is about ¥6,340 on the Hida (reserved seat).
Filter by what your trip must include and the passes that miss it fade out.
| Pass | Seats | Tokyo | Nagano | Matsumoto | Toyama | Kanazawa | Fukui | Kyoto · Osaka | Nagoya | Takayama | Shirakawa-go bus | Alpine Route | Airport train | Buy | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hokuriku Arch Pass JR East and JR West Tokyo ⇄ Kansai the Sea of Japan way | ¥35,000 | 7 | ¥5,000 | Unlimited reservations | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No | No | No | Yes | Buy ↗ |
| Takayama-Hokuriku Area Tourist Pass JR Central and JR West Kansai or Nagoya, Shirakawa-go and Takayama | ¥19,800 | 5 | ¥3,960 | 6 free reservations | No | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Buy ↗ |
| Kansai-Hokuriku Area Pass JR West A Kansai base with a run up to Kanazawa | ¥19,000 | 7 | ¥2,714 | Unlimited reservations | No | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No | No | No | Yes | Buy ↗ |
| Hokuriku Area Pass JR West Day trips from a Kanazawa or Toyama base | ¥7,000 | 4 | ¥1,750 | Unreserved seats only | No | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No | No | No | No | No | Buy ↗ |
| Alpine-Takayama-Matsumoto Area Tourist Pass JR Central and JR West The Alpine Route crossing, seasonal · Until 10 Nov 2026 | ¥24,500 | 5 | ¥4,900 | 4 free reservations | No | No | Yes | Yes | No | No | No | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | No | Buy ↗ |
| JR East Pass JR East Nagano and Myōkō, when Tōhoku is on the same trip | ¥35,000 | 5 | ¥7,000 | Unlimited reservations | Yes | Yes | No | No | No | No | No | No | No | No | No | Yes | Buy ↗ |
| Japan Rail Pass All JR companies Only when Hokuriku is one leg of a nationwide trip | ¥50,000 ¥53,000 via agents | 7 | ¥7,143 | Unlimited reservations | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No | Yes | Buy ↗ |
The JR West and JR Central passes need a foreign passport with a temporary-visitor stamp. The JR East Pass takes any foreign passport, residents included. The nationwide JR Pass costs ¥50,000 from JR and ¥53,000 through agents, Klook included, since 1 October 2026.
The old main line between Tsuruga and Itoigawa is no longer JR, so the Shinkansen and the limited expresses are what count. Pick a pass to light up its lines.
Hokuriku Arch Pass · ¥35,000 · 7 days. Reaches Tokyo, Nagano, Matsumoto, Toyama, Kanazawa, Fukui, Kyoto · Osaka, Airport train.
The regional passes cost the same on Klook, on the JR West site and at a JR counter in Japan, so buy wherever the refund terms suit you.
Pay in your own currency, get a voucher by email and exchange it for the pass at any major JR station in Japan. Every Buy button on this page goes to the matching Klook listing.
Pick a pass in the table ↑For the JR West and JR Central passes, reserve on the JR West online reservation site up to a month ahead. Pay by card and collect at a station machine with an IC-chip passport, or pay at the station.
Buy on the day at a JR West or JR Central ticket office at major stations. Queues are long in Golden Week and Obon. A foreign passport with a temporary-visitor stamp is needed.
Station guide →Data on the platform: timetable apps and e5489 seat bookings need a connection. A Japan eSIM from Klook works from the moment you land.
Japan eSIM on Klook ↗These apply to every pass on this page.
Every seat between Tsuruga and Kyoto or Osaka is reserved. The Arch Pass and the Kansai-Hokuriku pass include unlimited reservations (book at a machine or counter before boarding; from the seventh booking, at the counter). The Takayama-Hokuriku pass includes six, enough for two Thunderbird rides and four Hida or Shinkansen legs. The Hokuriku Area Pass does not reach the Thunderbird at all.
A pass started at 21:00 has used a full day by midnight. Start it the morning of your first long ride.
Between Tsuruga and Itoigawa the local line belongs to Hapi-Line Fukui, IR Ishikawa and Ainokaze Toyama. The JR West passes cover three short sections only, and only if you ride them end to end: Kanazawa–Tsubata (for the Nanao Line to Wakura Onsen), Toyama–Takaoka (for the Himi and Jōhana lines) and Fukui–Echizen-Hanandō (for the Kuzuryū Line). Get off at any station in between and you pay the full local fare.
None of the regional passes lets you ride Tokyo–Kyoto direct, or even Kyoto–Shin-Osaka by Shinkansen. Only the nationwide JR Pass does.
Toyama Chihō Railway, Echizen Railway, the Kurobe Gorge Railway and city buses are paid separately. The two exceptions are the Shirakawa-go buses on the Takayama-Hokuriku pass and the Alpine Route on the Alpine pass. Holders of the Arch Pass, the JR Pass and six other JR passes get 10% off one same-day Kurobe Gorge Railway return from 1 October to 30 November 2026 (Kurobe guide).
Not for a simple return. Two reserved tickets cost ¥29,200 and the Hokuriku Arch Pass costs ¥35,000. The pass pays once you add Kyoto or Osaka and a ride back, or several day trips inside seven days.
Only the Takayama-Hokuriku Area Tourist Pass (¥19,800, 5 days). You still have to reserve a seat on the bus. The Arch Pass, the JR Pass and the Kansai-Hokuriku pass do not cover it.
Only the Alpine-Takayama-Matsumoto Area Tourist Pass (¥24,500, 5 days), sold for the Alpine Route season. The 2026 pass can be used until 10 November.
The Hokuriku Area Pass at ¥7,000 for 4 days. One Kanazawa–Toyama return by Shinkansen costs ¥6,780 reserved, so a second day trip puts it ahead.
The JR West and JR Central passes (Arch, Kansai-Hokuriku, Hokuriku Area, Takayama-Hokuriku, Alpine) need a temporary-visitor stamp in a foreign passport, so residents cannot buy them. The JR East Pass changed on 14 March 2026 and now takes any non-Japanese passport, including foreign residents of Japan.
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