When I first arrived at Narita International Airport, the experience was somewhat overwhelming. It is important to know where you are going when you arrive. If you do not speak Japanese well enough to understand directions or have the great fortune of being greeted by a Japanese native who can guide you to your residence, you will need to know exactly where you are going and how to get there in advance. The train lines in Japan are an amazing network of railways that will take you anywhere conveniently and quickly, but this subway system can also be confusing and costly if you don’t know which train to take.
I had decided on Osaka, feeling it may be somewhat less busy and perhaps slightly more accommodating to a vacationing tourist than Tokyo. Arriving from the cold, winter climate of Canadian winter, I was also hoping Osaka’s weather would be slightly warmer. This also meant I still had four to five hours of train travel ahead of me. I had studied my route in advance and memorized the names of the lines I needed to take. I still found myself fortunate that the route I was taking was rather direct, as there are other things I would later realize were important to know.
The different lines are clearly colour coded to make them easy to distinguish and listed on overhead signs in both English and Japanese. However, it goes without saying you should also know which way you want the train to take you and this is not so distinctly defined. Many lines will only list the full route on the platform, or worse still, (in some cases), the train itself. The overhead signs will usually only state the final destination in either direction, occasionally listing the next stop or a couple of ’significant’ stops along the way. If you only know the one station you are bound for, this can be rather helpless for someone who does not know the city. The last thing you want is to board a train, have it leave the platform only to look at the route map on the wall and realize you’re going the wrong way! And yes, this has happened to me, I speak from experience. When you buy your ticket, there is usually a detailed map of all the lines coming and going from the station (each in their own colour), indicating how much exactly it will cost you to get to your stop. Make note of the FINAL destination in addition to the route you are taking, this will significantly ease your navigation to the right platform for departure. Tokyo being one of the ’significant’ destinations from Narita, it was no problem finding my train and taking the right one, though I still found myself consistently checking the in-car map to make sure, as I had no idea the trip would take an hour and forty minutes!
Travelling by train can also be very conservative; the trip to Tokyo cost only 1,200 yen. But there are many different kinds of trains, too. There are regular subway lines, express trains, super-express and everything in between, as well as the ultimate Shinkansen shuttle. I would soon learn how vastly these trains vary in price! When I arrived in Tokyo, my total travel time from departure was approaching its twentieth hour. I knew the fastest way to get to Shin-Osaka was to take the Shinkansen and I didn’t care what it cost, though I was still shocked to find out. After paying only 1,200 yen for my first ticket, the 13,200 yen I was asked to cough up for the second had me stunned. It was well worth the price for the experience alone. This train typically travels just over 200km/hr, though some reach speeds of 300km/hr and are capable of speeds exceeding 400km/hr! Incredibly, you hardly notice how fast you are going. The train is incredibly smooth, catered with attendants much like an airplane, offering drinks, snacks and meals while you travel (for a fee). You can plug in your laptop, connect to the internet and work on the fold-down tray as you make your way toward your destination. I watched the scenery fly by for a bit, then comfortably enjoyed a movie before arriving in Osaka only two hours and twenty minutes later.
The trains in Japan really are amazing. They will take you virtually anywhere you need to go and are reasonable in price. Though the Shinkansen may be expensive, if time is money, it may save you in the long run. For those who have all the time in the world, regular subway lines connect virtually every major city at a fraction of the price. If you know the name of the line you need to take, the colour the line is identified by, and the name of the final destination in both directions, you should be able to get virtually anywhere in Japan relatively quickly without too much trouble.
I have a detailed colour map of the Osaka subway and train system that has been very useful. Here is a link to a similar map of Osaka’s subway system:
Osaka subway system: http://johomaps.com/as/japan/osaka/osakametro.html
If you have links to other great maps for other cities, please post in comments. 
