Japan · Scenic

HIGH RAIL 1375

HIGH RAIL 1375 runs across the Koumi Line between Kobuchizawa and Komoro, with daytime and evening services designed around elevated scenery and the night sky.

Kobuchizawa → Komoro

Scenic

HIGH RAIL 1375 crossing the highland Koumi Line beneath summer clouds.
HIGH RAIL 1375 crossing the highland Koumi Line beneath summer clouds. · Photo: MaedaAkihiko · CC BY-SA 4.0
Experience
Photographers · Couples
Route
Kobuchizawa → Komoro
Time aboard
Approx. 2h 40m

Why this train

A journey shaped around the train

Choose it for a compact highland experience where the train theme matches the landscape, especially if the Hoshizora evening service fits your date.

The experience

Design carried through the journey

JR East HIGH RAIL 1375 two-car train at Kai-Koizumi Station on the Koumi Line in Japan.
JR East HIGH RAIL 1375 two-car train at Kai-Koizumi Station on the Koumi Line in Japan. · Photo: D-s-yama / Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0
  • Café / food service

    Advance-reservable bento is offered on selected services.

    Verified

  • Themed interior

    Train design is explicitly built around the highland/starry-sky concept.

    Verified

Along the line

The route behind the experience

The published route runs from Kobuchizawa to Komoro via Nobeyama Station.

Key stops

Kobuchizawa StationNobeyama StationKomoro Station

Kobuchizawa StationKomoro StationNobeyama Station
Japan · geographic corridor through verified stops · indicative alignment, not exact track geometry
  1. Kobuchizawa Station

    Japan

  2. Nobeyama Station

    Japan

  3. Komoro Station

    Japan

Along the line

  1. Koumi Line highlands

    The Kobuchizawa–Komoro route is the landscape foundation of the experience.

  2. HIGH RAIL Hoshizora

    Selected evening services explicitly build the trip around the night sky.

Design / special

What to know before you choose

01

What makes the train special

Themed interior: Train design is explicitly built around the highland/starry-sky concept. Food service: Advance-reservable bento is offered on selected services.

02

What defines the route

Koumi Line highlands: The Kobuchizawa–Komoro route is the landscape foundation of the experience. HIGH RAIL Hoshizora: Selected evening services explicitly build the trip around the night sky.

03

Before you book

Reservation: required. Direct online booking is recorded. Booking window: 30 days. A rail pass is accepted under the recorded booking profile. All seats are reserved. Purchase the basic fare and reserved seat in advance through JR East channels; selected JR East/Japan Rail Passes may cover the fare within their valid area while a seat reservation is still required.

Verified 2026-09-28

Plan the ride

Plan the special-service experience

Use the verified journey, booking, season and onboard facts below to decide how to take this experience. Unknowns stay explicit.

Time aboard
2h 40m
Reservation
Required
Booking
Direct online booking; recorded window 30 days
Rail pass
Accepted under the recorded profile
Price context
Fare varies by route, seat class and operating date; no single representative total is asserted without a route-specific current fare lookup.
Timing
Check the current operating calendar
On board
Themed interior: Train design is explicitly built around the highland/starry-sky concept. Food service: Advance-reservable bento is offered on selected services.

This guide does not imply a product variant unless a separate comparison decision is published.

Evidence on demand

Practical reality

Route, onboard, season, fit and booking detail remain available without interrupting the journey above. Unknowns stay visible.

Time & itinerary

Approx. 2h 40m

View route map and verified stops

Kobuchizawa → Komoro

The published route runs from Kobuchizawa to Komoro via Nobeyama Station.

Key stops

Kobuchizawa StationNobeyama StationKomoro Station

Kobuchizawa StationKomoro StationNobeyama Station
Japan · geographic corridor through verified stops · indicative alignment, not exact track geometry
  1. Kobuchizawa Station

    Japan

  2. Nobeyama Station

    Japan

  3. Komoro Station

    Japan

On board

The route does most of the work here, it is a journey taken for what passes the window rather than for the destination. At a few hours between Kobuchizawa and Komoro, it is long enough to feel like a journey and short enough to watch the whole of it without losing concentration. The middle of the route, through Nobeyama Station, is where the journey stops feeling like a departure and starts feeling like a place of its own. With only a handful of calls, the journey holds its momentum from end to end.

Food & drink

Café / food service

Advance-reservable bento is offered on selected services.

✓ Yes

Also onboard

Themed interior

Train design is explicitly built around the highland/starry-sky concept.

✓ Yes

2 onboard details are confirmed against a source. Anything not listed here has not been researched yet; treat it as unknown, not absent.

When to go
  1. JanPart season
  2. FebPart season
  3. MarPart season
  4. AprPart season
  5. MayPart season
  6. JunPart season
  7. JulPart season
  8. AugPart season
  9. SepPart season
  10. OctPart season
  11. NovPart season
  12. DecPart season
  • Part season
Year-round
Part season

These months show when the train runs, which is a service fact. How good each month is for the experience has not been rated yet, so no month is presented as better than another.

Month-by-month notes
  • Jan: JR East Joyful Train: operates on selected published dates; verify the current calendar for this route and train.
  • Feb: JR East Joyful Train: operates on selected published dates; verify the current calendar for this route and train.
  • Mar: JR East Joyful Train: operates on selected published dates; verify the current calendar for this route and train.
  • Apr: JR East Joyful Train: operates on selected published dates; verify the current calendar for this route and train.
  • May: JR East Joyful Train: operates on selected published dates; verify the current calendar for this route and train.
  • Jun: JR East Joyful Train: operates on selected published dates; verify the current calendar for this route and train.
  • Jul: JR East Joyful Train: operates on selected published dates; verify the current calendar for this route and train.
  • Aug: JR East Joyful Train: operates on selected published dates; verify the current calendar for this route and train.
  • Sep: JR East Joyful Train: operates on selected published dates; verify the current calendar for this route and train.
  • Oct: JR East Joyful Train: operates on selected published dates; verify the current calendar for this route and train.
  • Nov: JR East Joyful Train: operates on selected published dates; verify the current calendar for this route and train.
  • Dec: JR East Joyful Train: operates on selected published dates; verify the current calendar for this route and train.
Good for

Good fit for

  • Photographers

    Especially good

    Highland scenery and evening star-sky services create strong visual appeal.

  • Couples

    Good fit

    Compact route and evening themed service work well as a shared outing.

  • Rail enthusiasts

    Good fit

    Purpose-built themed rolling stock on the Koumi Line adds train interest.

Think twice if

  • You cannot just turn up

    A reservation is required for this journey.

How it scores

Our current editorial assessment, for comparing journeys, a considered judgement, not a measurement.

SceneryStrong
ComfortStrong
Value for moneyStrong
Food & drinkModerate
Character of the trainExceptional
Show the full editorial profile

More subjective

UniquenessExceptional
Iconic statusStrong
PhotographyExceptional
RomanceStrong
Travelling with childrenModerate

Not rated yet: seat quality, onboard service, slow travel quality, remoteness.

Step-free access and assistance are set out with the practical detail further down rather than reduced to a score.

Reservation & booking
Reservation
Required
Booking difficulty
Easy
Rail pass
Accepted

Not yet verified: typical price. We leave these blank rather than guess.

  • All seats are reserved.
  • Purchase the basic fare and reserved seat in advance through JR East channels; selected JR East/Japan Rail Passes may cover the fare within their valid area while a seat reservation is still required.
  • A seat reservation is still required with a rail pass.

We link to the operator's own journey page. No direct booking channel has been verified for this service, so availability and fares must be checked there. Journey length: 2h 40m. Checked 2 Nov 2026 · JR East Joyful Trains.

Sources & freshness

The detailed source record remains at the end of this guide. Review the evidence.

Your next step

Choose the departure, then confirm it with the operator.

All seats are reserved. Purchase the basic fare and reserved seat in advance through JR East channels; selected JR East/Japan Rail Passes may cover the fare within their valid area while a seat reservation is still required. A seat reservation is still required with a rail pass.

Official journey information, JR East (opens in a new tab)

We link to the operator's own journey page. No direct booking channel has been verified for this service, so availability and fares must be checked there.

Far by Rail is a discovery guide, not a live timetable or booking service. Confirm times, fares and availability with the operator.

Sources & freshness

Journey information is reviewed against published material and maintained as sources change.

Last reviewed 2 Nov 2026.

Official sources