Japan's automatic ticket gates opened at Kitasenri in 1967. Sixty years of punched holes, magnetic standards and IC cards later, the QR switch in spring 2027 takes the journey data off the short-distance ticket.
Washing a jet at Narita still takes eight people and six hours of night work. JAL is bringing in the AW3, a Swedish robot, in service by the end of 2026. Japan once had a car wash for jumbo jets; now it buys.
Odakyu Hakone will run a charter train on August 30, 2026 with every window pushed open on a 107-year-old railcar that has no air conditioning. The Hakone Tozan Railway's Type 100 retires in January 2028.
The July 2026 Henley Passport Index puts Japan second with visa-free access to 188 destinations, four behind Singapore. What that number is made of, why Japan waives visas for only 74 countries in return, and why just 17.8% of Japanese hold a passport.
On July 7, 2026, Noto Airport became the world's first airport to carry the Pokemon name. All 111 Flying-type Pokemon and a giant Pikachu now anchor a recovery push for the quake-hit Noto Peninsula. We unpack the airport's own damage-and-revival story, Japan's distinctive model of rebuilding through beloved characters, and how to visit.
JR East will phase out magnetic short-distance train tickets in spring 2027, replacing them with QR-code paper tickets. We break down the environmental and cost reasons, why almost no one will notice, and the small ritual that is quietly disappearing.
A stray calico named Tama once saved a doomed rural rail line. Now Japan's Wakayama Electric Railway plans to turn the whole route into 'Nyanderland', a cat nation with passports, visas, and a queen.
JR Central and JR West unveil Supreme Class, the Tokaido-Sanyo Shinkansen's new top tier: a private cabin with a locked door, free service, and a steep price. Here's the cost and how visitors can book it.
On June 2, JR East expanded its UK vending business from stations to airports, acquiring around 800 airport machines for a fleet of 1,800. Here's why its touch-screen vending stalled in Japan—and why Britain may be the better bet.
In 2021 a turtle halted a turtle-painted jet at Narita Airport. Behind the viral story lies a four-year campaign against an invasive American reptile.
Japan welcomed 3.69 million foreign visitors in April 2026, down 5.5% from a year earlier, even as the yen sat near 159 to the dollar. We unpack the three forces behind the drop (China's travel advisory, an Easter calendar quirk, and Middle East flight cancellations) and ask whether this is actually the right moment for foreigners to book that long-postponed Japan trip.