Shinkansen – Tokyo to Nagano

The main cities of Japan’s main island Honshu are connected by a network of high speed trains called ‘shinkansen’ (bullet trains). The train operating between Tokyo and Nagano is the ‘Asama’ which runs more or less every half hour from Tokyo during winter. Look out for the ‘shinkansen’ signs at Tokyo station to buy your ticket. The train takes around 1 hour and 30 minutes to Nagano and provides some pretty spectacular scenery. I loved the first part of the journey coming out of Tokyo seeing the housing styles change, and an abundance of golf driving ranges! Keep your camera at the ready on the platform while waiting for your train, to catch a snap of a shinkansen on the move (albeit not quite at max speed!). Once you arrive at Nagano, pop downstairs to catch a bus to Hakuba where the White Horse Hotels will pick you up.