Japan prefecture offers free bullet train rides to overseas tourists

Travel & Leisure

Kagoshima pilot program seeks to boost local economy by welcoming visitors

The free rides will apply to one-way journeys from Hakata Station in Fukuoka prefecture to one of the three stations in Kagoshima. (Photo obtain by Nikkei)

MASAMITSU ITO

September 17, 2026 04:35 JST

KAGOSHIMA, Japan — Kagoshima prefecture will soon provide international tourists with free rides on a shinkansen bullet train as part of a pilot program to bring more people to its relatively seldom visited sites.