Head to Japan for New Year’s celebrations – JR Central’s limited-edition New Year tickets now on sale

“Hatsumode” is one of the most important New Year activities for Japanese people — visiting a shrine or temple for the first time in the new year to pray for peace and good fortune. Many shrines and temples known for being especially lucky or famous often see crowds forming before New Year’s Day, and become even more packed afterward. To help people make their New Year shrine visits more convenient, JR Central has launched special limited-time New Year tickets, available for purchase between now and January 1, 2010, making travel between Tokyo, Nagoya, and Osaka easier than ever.

JR Central’s “New Year Kodama & Wide View Free Ticket” allows you to freely ride the Tokaido Shinkansen’s “Kodama” service or take any limited express, rapid, or local trains (in ordinary cars, non-reserved seats) on January 1, for an adult price of 13,000 yen. It can also be used to ride the “Hikari” service once, or to take the Shinkansen’s Green Car and ordinary car reserved seats a total of four times, with the adult ticket priced at 15,000 yen.

Tokyo’s Asakusa Senso-ji Temple, also known as “Kinryuzan Senso-ji,” is packed with hatsumode visitors from day to night during the New Year period. Just in the first three days of January, visitor numbers can reach up to 2.2 million. Meanwhile, Kamakura’s Tsurugaoka Hachimangu Shrine, located near Kamakura Station, served as the historical and political-religious center during Japan’s Kamakura period. During the New Year’s hatsumode season, it becomes extremely crowded, sometimes requiring police and military presence to manage the throngs of worshippers with ropes dividing the flow of people. The Tokai region, as well as Nagoya and Osaka, are also home to many auspicious shrines. If you’re traveling in Japan over the New Year, why not visit these spiritual sites to join in the festive spirit and soak up the Japanese New Year atmosphere?

Extended reading: Meiji Shrine is one of the top spots for good luck (provided by Tripass Attractions)

Further reading: Meiji Shrine is one of the popular spots for good fortune (provided by Tripass Attractions).