HyperDia-Tips to plan travel routes in Japan

What is HyperDia? Anyone who first come into contact with the Japanese train system map would be shocked by the massive train routes operated across the country. Sure blurr and stressss at first sight! How do we decipher this colourful criss-cross line map and know which is the best train route to take based on our requirements? Try HyperDia!

The HyperDia route search engine designed by Hitachi Systems Ltd is our easy solution to calculating and generating up to a maximum of 10 possible train routes to your point of destination, simply by selecting a few search parameters!

How to use the HyperDia system?

• Go to http://www.hyperdia.com/
• Zoom in to the Timetable and Route Search Engine table located on the left of the website. Click on the English or Chinese tab based on your preferred language. We will use English language medium for easy illustration here.
  
• FROM field: Key in the Station name that you are travelling FROM – eg: your point of origin. (Note: The station names will be prompted once you key in the first 3 letters. Must include hypens or space where necessary. Eg: Omote-sando, Shin-Osaka, Tokyo Skytree).
• TO field: Key in the Station name that you are travelling TO- eg: your point of destination. (Note the same conditions as mentioned above.)
• DATE field: Key in the date that you are planning to take the train. (Note: You can key in any future date actually but of course, the closer it is, the more accurate your results will be.)
•  TIME field: Key in the time that you are planning to take the train. (Note: If you do not have a strict itinerary, you can just key in an estimated time. However, do not key in late night timing like 11am etc as it will affect the results if you have missed the last available train.)
• TYPE field: Select between Departure, Arrival or Average.
  – Departure: The time which you have entered earlier in the TIME field will be programmed as your preferred time to board the train at your point of origin.
  – Arrival: The time which you have entered earlier in the TIME field will be programmed as your preferred time to reach your point of destination.
  – Average: The system will generate basic results based on the minute that you are travelling. (Note: Do NOT choose this option.)
• MORE OPTIONS field: Click on this to key in more detailed parameters.

• VIA 1 / VIA 2 / VIA 3 fields: If you have preferred train stations that you would to travel via, key in the station name. Otherwise, you can leave these blank.
• ORDER field: Select between Time, Transfer or Money.-Time: Your results will be presented in the ascending order of time; shortest route on top and longest route below.- Transfer: Your results will be presented in the ascending order of number of transfer required; shortest transfer on top and longest transfer below.

  – Money: Your results will be presented in the ascending order of cost; cheapest route on top and most expensive route below. (Note: Select this if you are price-conscious and are not using any JR or special passes.)

• MAX ROUTE field: Select from 1 to 10, based on the number of routes you would like the system to generate.
• FARE TYPE field: Select between Ticket or IC.
  – Ticket: Select this if you are buying one-time ticket from the ticket vending machine.
  – IC: Select this if you are using IC card to generate accurate results as the cost of travelling will be lower
  (Refer to this website for the list of IC cards available in Japan: http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2359_003.html).
• VEHICLE Type field: You will see the list of all types of possible transport modes and yes, walking is also considered a transport mode. (Note:  They are all pre-selected by default. For JR pass holders, do note that NOZOMI and MIZUHO trains are not covered by JR Pass. However, we will still select this option of NOZOMI / MIZUHO /
  HAYABUSA (SHINKANSEN) as HAYABUSA trains are covered by JR Pass.
• CORP field: You can select both Japan Railway (JR) and Private Railway. (Note: Select JR only if you would like to maximise the usage of your pass.)
• Click on SEARCH to generate results based on your search parameters.

Dah-da! You will see the most optimal route to reach your point of destination with essential information like how long the journey takes, the arrival and departure train track, train arrival and departure time (Note: Japan train system is well-known for their time accuracy!), different train number of transfer to take, estimated total fare charge and breakdown of charges if you are travelling on tracks operated by different train companies.

If you click on STATION TIMETABLE, it will display all the timings of similar train journey for the day.

Click on TRAIN TIMETABLE, it will display the number of stations you will travel based on the generated train journey.

If you click on INTERVAL TIMETABLE, it will display the combined detailed information of the station timetable and train timetable.

There are also useful links on the right side where you can search for map, hotels, restaurants and rent-car service around the vicinity.

JR Vacation says:

• The HyperDia search engine works for all train routes in Japan. As such, you can use it to plan all your travelling routes in any part of Japan.
• You can also download the app version, available both on app store and android. 
• Remember to always select the option of NOZOMI / MIZUHO /
  HAYABUSA (SHINKANSEN) even though Nozomi and Mizuho trains are not covered by JR pass. 

Have fun exploring the amazing things that technology do for us!