A special new type of Shinkansen bullet train is pulling into stations in Japan to take riders on a Disney adventure.
The Magical Journey Shinkansen is designed after the new “Fantasy Springs” area of Tokyo DisneySea Park.
Featuring colorful artwork and music from iconic films like Frozen and Tangled, these unique trains will run for a limited time only, so catch them while you can.
Of course, you don’t have to actually go to Tokyo Disney to ride the trains. In fact, the Magical Journey Shinkansen is included in the JR Pass!
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Where can I catch the Magical Journey Shinkansen?
The Disney-themed trains will run on the route between Tokyo and Shin-Hakodate-Hokuto.
This includes the following lines and trains:
- Tohoku Shinkansen line: Hayabusa, Hayate, Yamabiko, and Nasuno trains
- Hokkaido Shinkansen line: Hayabusa and Hayate trains
These routes allow passengers to ride from Hokkaido and Northern Honshu all the way to the capital, where the Toyko Disney Resort awaits.
You can catch these trains at any of the scheduled stations along these lines.
However, only a certain number of Magical Journey trains run on these lines each day, so if you’re on a strict schedule, you might have to go to the station and hope you get lucky.
Features of the Magical Journey Shinkansen
The Magical Journey bullet train breaks new ground for JR East — it’s the first E5 Series 10-car train to be fully wrapped in a themed design.
The cars are all designed after the 3 famous Disney movies featured in Fantasy Springs at Tokyo DisneySea:
- Frozen
- Tangled
- Peter Pan
The exteriors are painted in bright colors with characters and scenes from these films.
Inside the cars, you’ll be treated to Disney music from Fantasy Springs, window shades with designs of your favorite characters, from Anna and Elsa, to Peter and Tinker Bell.
It promises to be a delightful ride for kids and adults alike.
How to ride the Magical Journey Shinkansen
The routes where the Magical Journey trains run are covered in the Japan Rail Pass.
This is the easiest and most cost-effective way to travel around the country, and gives you access to these unique Disney-themed vehicles.
Remember that if you want to board a Hayate train, you must reserve a seat. You may want to consider this on other types of train too, although there is non-reserved seating available.
Hours of operation
The Disney-themed trains will run around 3 times a day along the Tohoku-Hokkaido lines between Tokyo and Shin-Hakodate-Hokuto.
The first departs at 6:35 a.m. from Sendai Station, heading towards Tokyo.
Visit the Offical Website for updated timetables (in Japanese only).
How long the service will run
The Magical Journey Shinkansen is available for a limited time only.
The specially designed trains were launched on October 10 2024.
The service is scheduled to run until June 2025, although it could be extended beyond this.
While they’re available, these shinkansen are sure to bring joy and wonder to kids and fans of Disney.