Marriott International has announced that it is collaborating with JR Central to open a new Courtyard by Marriott hotel this year which will be just a few steps away from Kyoto Station.

Called “Courtyard by Marriott Kyoto Station,” this will be the ninth Courtyard brand hotel in Japan and the second in Kyoto, following Courtyard by Marriott Kyoto Shijo Karasuma, which opened last year. The hotel brand, which is mainly aimed at international business travelers, now has 1,285 hotels in 60 different countries and territories. [Read more…]

A luxury Conrad Hotel is to open in one of Kobe City Hall’s main buildings in 2029. Kobe City Hall Building No. 2, which is currently being rebuilt, occupies a prime location in Kobe’s city center, being close by the main JR, Hankyu and Hanshin railway stations of Sannomiya and having easy access to the waterfront attractions of the Kobe Port area.

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You have probably seen people rushing onto a train just as its doors are closing. Although there are regular announcements warning people not to do it, it is a common sight in Japan — but it’s actually pretty dangerous. If someone was trapped in the doors they could be pulled along the platform and seriously hurt.

Train drivers always check to see if any passengers are approaching the doors before closing them, but it can be difficult to do a thorough check if there is only one driver on the train and the platform is crowded.

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Hotel Associa Shin-Yokohama, a luxury hotel in the Shin-Yokohama Station building, is to be rebranded, renovated and reopened in August 2026 as Courtyard by Marriott Shin-Yokohama Station.

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A new type of platform door is to be installed on the Shinkansen platforms at Tokyo Station. The first platform doors of their kind, the new doors can automatically open at a location that suits the different door positions of each type of Shinkansen train.

Several different types of Shinkansen train stop at Tokyo Station which range in length between 7-car and 17-car trains and they also have doors in different positions. Platform doors will be installed in a layout that corresponds to all of these different Shinkansen train formations. JR East is currently developing a system that can use QR codes to identify each of these train formations. [Read more…]

JR East have announced that they will develop a new Shinkansen inspection train to be introduced in 2029, which will be called the E927. The new train will be used to inspect all five Shinkansen lines that run north from Tokyo: the Tohoku, Joetsu, Hokuriku, Yamagata, and Akita Shinkansen networks.

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Keio Corporation has announced that it will introduce a new #2000 series commuter train in early 2026. The new train will run on the Keio Line that connects Shinjuku in Tokyo with the western suburb of Hachioji.

The company plans to introduce a total of four 10-car trains by March 2027, with one 10-car train set to make its commercial debut in early 2026. [Read more…]

Passengers traveling between Narita Airport and central Tokyo now have a new option with the addition of a direct airport bus service for Ginza Station. The new service which runs directly to and from Ginza Station has been added to the TYO-NRT airport bus service that previously ran only to Ginza Station via Tokyo Station.

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A bright pink train-themed entertainment restaurant built on a disused railway line is to open in Kyoto this month.

‘Future Train Kyoto Diner & Cafe’ has been built on a disused elevated railway line in the Umekoji Park area, which is already home to Kyoto Railway Museum.

The Future Train restaurant is actually located inside the cars of a decommissioned Thunderbird limited express train (#681 series), which once ran between Kyoto and the Hokuriku region. According to the designers, this train has now been converted into a “train to the future that runs on the imagination.” [Read more…]

For 25 years JR Shikoku has been running special Anpanman Trains that celebrate the popular children’s manga and anime character Anpanman, a superhero with a head made of anpan — a bun filled with sweet red bean paste.

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