Getting around Nara

Getting inHow you arrive in Nara

No airport, no shinkansen — 45 min from Osaka, under an hour from Kyoto by train

Confirmed journey times

Fastest services, checked on the date shown.

There is no shinkansen here: Nara has no shinkansen station. It is reached from Kyoto or Osaka, and it is close to both.
Checked 2026-08-16
From Kyoto: About 35 minutes at the fastest by Kintetsu limited express, or about 40 to 50 minutes by ordinary services. Fares are around ¥640 on Kintetsu, ¥720 on JR.
Checked 2026-08-16
Which station you arrive at matters: Kintetsu Nara station is much closer to the deer park and Todaiji than JR Nara station is — about 20 minutes on foot (1.4 km) from Kintetsu, and roughly 15 minutes more from JR, which is a kilometre further out. If Todaiji is why you are coming, arrive at Kintetsu Nara.
Checked 2026-08-16
If you hold a Japan Rail Pass: Kintetsu is a private railway and the pass does not cover it. The pass covers the JR line — but that leaves you at the further station. Either pay the Kintetsu fare and walk less, or use the pass and take a bus at the far end.
Checked 2026-08-16

A Japan Rail Pass does not cover Nozomi or Mizuho. What a rail pass covers

In this prefecture you will probably use Kintetsu — a private railway, not JR. A Japan Rail Pass does not cover it.

An IC card works on most of them. Signs and station names are in English.

Worth it the moment you leave the main city. What you need to drive here

Permit neededDrive left

Clean, safe and metered. Show the address on your phone rather than saying it. Doors are often opened for you.

Show the address

City: Usually around midnight
Country: Far earlier — sometimes mid-afternoon. Ask at the stop when you arrive, not when you want to leave
If you miss it: Ask your inn to call a taxi before the last bus goes, not after

ATMs: Use 7-Eleven or Japan Post for a foreign card. Bank ATMs are hit and miss
Carry: ¥10,000–20,000 on a day out of the city. Rural areas have very little
Small places: Cash only is common. Ask “Card OK?” before you order

Lockers: At the main station, paid by IC card. They fill by mid-morning
Send it: Any convenience store will deliver it to your next hotel, usually next day. Cheaper than carrying it up stairs
At your inn: They will hold it before check-in and after check-out