A Great Spot For Train Watching

[Jcarlton]

Nippori Bridge, just west of the station:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WSxesRlXdyA

[bikkuri bahn]

For train watching of "everything in your field of view" variety perhaps, but not so good for photography. For the latter, Kyoto Station is better, plus you get freight trains. As gmat has covered before, Omiya is also popular, though the fans there are sometimes not the best mannered.

[Nick_Burman]

For train watching of "everything in your field of view" variety perhaps, but not so good for photography. For the latter, Kyoto Station is better, plus you get freight trains. As gmat has covered before, Omiya is also popular, though the fans there are sometimes not the best mannered.

 

Nagoya is also good - Komeno station on the Kintetsu (access to both JR and Kintetsu yards), Sasashima-Raibu (views over the JR yard and main, freights heading to the Aonami line), Komoto and Arako stations on the Aonami line for freights to and from the yard there.

 

Cheers NB

[Kitayama]

Nagoya is also good - Komeno station on the Kintetsu (access to both JR and Kintetsu yards), Sasashima-Raibu (views over the JR yard and main, freights heading to the Aonami line), Komoto and Arako stations on the Aonami line for freights to and from the yard there.

 

Cheers NB

Two pictures from the platform at Minami-Arako (Aonami line) - confirming Nick's statement:

 

[miyakoji]

Kasadera in Nagoya is good for seeing JRF exchange cars with Meirin.

[Jcarlton]

The video said that it was the best.   I didn't.  I know better spots too, even in the Tokyo region, for instance the area around the South end of Shinagawa Station, Ochanimizu Station or Tsurumi Station's Tsurumi Line platform.  On the other hand, if I only had limited time to get shots, Nippori looks like a good place.

[westfalen]

Kiyosu, two stops north of Nagoya for freights, containers, fuel, limestone.  Spent the whole day there last year.

 

I've been to Nippori a few times.  A couple of bridges to the east of the station seem to give a better view than the one in the video but you don't get the Shinkansen.

[JR 500系]

Haha what a concidence! I was just watching this video yesterday!

 

Is there a hotel somewhere near Nippori station, so that we can view the station from the hotel room? I tried to search around the net but couldn't find one high enough to get the same bird's eye view from the hotel room. This is great so that I can officially view the trains in the hotel room while waiting for the Mrs. to make up, and without her getting all over my back for standing there so long  ~   :)

[westfalen]

And when you die you can get buried here.

[bikkuri bahn]

Is there a hotel somewhere near Nippori station, so that we can view the station from the hotel room?

 

There is a famous one in Tabata, up the line a bit.  Mainly shinkansen though:

 

This is more my taste- Hotel Live Max in Nagoya (room #406, apparently):

 

This may be one of the best rooms in Japan for train watching, the corner twin in the Kintetsu Kyoto Station Hotel (shinkansen, Kintetsu, and JR zairaisen).  Damn hard to reserve though, it's so popular.  I'm going to stay at the Marriott in the Abeno Harukas supertall instead this fall.

Edited July 22, 2014 by bikkuri bahn

[JR 500系]

Oh that is interesting! You even noted the room number!

 

HHmm the Hotel Mets Tabata is really interesting. http://www.hotelmets.jp/tabata/train/index.html

 

Gotta see how to go about booking one. Wouldn't miss viewing shinkansens in the comfort of the hotel room!

[Guest ___]

For train watching of "everything in your field of view" variety perhaps, but not so good for photography. For the latter, Kyoto Station is better, plus you get freight trains. As gmat has covered before, Omiya is also popular, though the fans there are sometimes not the best mannered.

 

West of Kyoto is even better IMO, ground level five minute walk to the museum. Got tons of good shots there.

 

Yeah, gotta agree with Omiya. That was a mess last time I was there, unlike that station whose name fails me at the moment, one station north of shinosaka, local s only. tons of older railfans there, pretty nice guys.

[miyakoji]

Higashi-Yodogawa.  On the map it appears to be literally walking distance from Shin-Osaka.  Reminds me of Higashi-Chiba, I always wondered why it was so close to Chiba.  The Osaka pair look like they are even closer, although in this case I suppose it's because they built Shin-Osaka wherever the shinkansen crossed the Tokaido.

[Guest ___]

Higashi-Yodogawa.  On the map it appears to be literally walking distance from Shin-Osaka.  Reminds me of Higashi-Chiba, I always wondered why it was so close to Chiba.  The Osaka pair look like they are even closer, although in this case I suppose it's because they built Shin-Osaka wherever the shinkansen crossed the Tokaido.

 

That's it. Great shot to get through trains, only a few locals stop there, but the ones that do, tend to offload a good number of pax. Railfans line up for the blue trains and freight there I noticed.