@japan.beforeyougo: Your Suica won't open the bullet train gate 🚄 It's the most common surprise at Tokyo Station: you tap the same card that got you everywhere else, and the Shinkansen gate slams shut. On the Tokyo–Kyoto–Osaka line (Tokaido Shinkansen), an IC card by itself isn't a bullet-train ticket. Two fixes: buy a ticket at the machine or counter, or book in the Smart EX app and link your Suica to it — then tapping works. Do it before you reach the gate, not while a queue builds behind you. Save this 🇯🇵 #japan #japantravel #shinkansen #suica #howitworks

Japan Before You Go :

How It Works #35 next — subscribe so you don't miss it. What I checked (Sept 2026): (1) Tokaido/Sanyo/Kyushu Shinkansen (Tokyo–Osaka–Hakata): tapping a Suica alone won't let you through. Book in the Smart EX app and register your IC card, or buy a paper ticket. (2) Smart EX: changes are free before departure, as many times as you like. (3) JR East's lines are different — Tohoku, Joetsu, Hokuriku, Yamagata and Akita Shinkansen: register your Suica free for "Touch de Go! Shinkansen" and you can ride unreserved seats by tapping. (4) Your Suica still pays for the local train to and from the Shinkansen station. (5) If the gate stops you, the staffed window next to the gates will sort it out.