Two Stars 4047 – Saga

Whereas there’s a new shinkansen in Kyushu that run between Takeo onsen and Nagasaki, I made a decision to take a slower practice to do the route, using the Two Stars 4047.

The practice largely run on the weekends and holidays, so ensure you take a look at the schedule earlier than planning your entire journey round taking that practice. It does the round-trip as soon as throughout the day. The route is definitely a circle, so you can take the practice in each instructions and would cross by way of completely different strains.

As I stayed in Takeo onsen the earlier evening, within the morning I solely needed to stroll to the station to attend for my practice. Whereas I used to be ready on the station, I obtained obtained some Ureshino tea in addition to an area beer on the memento retailers, then made my method to the platform, that’s on the native practice aspect and never within the shinkansen/restricted categorical aspect of the station.

The practice was straightforward to determine as it’s all white with two stars on the entrance. When getting within the practice, you will note that for probably the most half, he seat configuration is much like most restricted categorical practice, however there’s a part on either side with seats going through the window, for a extra panoramic view. The automobile #2 can be particular as it’s the lounge in addition to the gross sales counter for meals and souvenirs.

Talking of meals, you possibly can clearly eat within the practice they usually have completely different meals gadgets and drinks obtainable. If you wish to get the lunchbox, you’ll have to reserve it on the practice’s webpage. The practice may even make an extended cease at Kohoku station the place a kiosk promoting completely different gadgets is put in, that embrace some lunch bins and at Hizen-Hama station you may get an assortment of native sake at Hama bar.

I used to be sitting subsequent to a Japanese girl who opened a can of beer minutes after the departure, then she dashed out of the practice to get one of many lunchboxes, she clearly knew that they had been promoting it, then she obtained herself some sake from the Hama bar. Once we left the station, she began to speak about her sake decisions with the man on the opposite aspect of the aisle. After I obtained my lunchbox that I reserved and my craft beer, that was sufficient to start out a dialog along with her. She was doing the entire loop on the identical day, enjoyable and ingesting, simply because the couple that I met on my earlier scenic practice expertise. Clearly, talking some Japanese made this a lot simpler to change.

I can’t inform to a lot concerning the afternoon route, but it surely stops at Huis Ten Bosch and Arita, so it is perhaps an choice if you wish to go there from Nagasaki.

General, the journey was good, the practice inside is gorgeous and you’ll simply take a extra calm down strategy to shifting from metropolis to metropolis. Even when the practice took virtually 6 instances longer than the shinkansen (2h53 vs 31min) and is even barely dearer, for me the journey didn’t felt that lengthy with the attractive views, the meals and my sudden journey companion. You may also need to reserve your ticket as quickly as doable because the practice gave the impression to be largely booked on the day I used it.

Getting there

Take the practice to Takeo onsen, Nagasaki or any of the opposite stops on the way in which.