International Railroad Discussion > Luxury Sleeper Cassiopeia (Japan)

Cassiopeia started service in summer of 1999 as Japan's flagship luxury train that runs between Ueno (Tokyo) and Sapporo, Hokkaido to the north. Despite the higher accomodation fares compared to the Sleeper Hokutosei which started running that same route 11 years before, in 1988, Cassiopeia would almost always sold out weeks, if not a month in advance. I have ridden the Hokutosei before, but not the Cassiopeia, due to my attempts at making reservations only days in advance in the past.

That changed last Monday when I was able to book a reservation for its southbound trip from Sapporo to Ueno. I had hurried to the JR ticket office Saturday morning specifically to try my luck at nabbing a reservation.

Disclaimer: JR Rail Pass holders still need to pay for the berthing charge and any additional limited express fares for the train travelling outside the JR network.

I still had to go to Sapporo somehow. I didn't want to waste my second day in Japan by riding Shinkansens and limited express trains all day just to overnight in Hokkaido somewhere, so I made a reservation on Sunday night's northbound Hokutosei, so I could arrive in Sapporo Monday morning. I had planned to hop on the Hokutosei at Fukushima 10:29 pm, about 275 km north from Tokyo. I was going to ride a Tohoku Shinkansen to catch up to it, to give myself extra time to visit Tokyo's Railway Museum AND go foaming.

As reported earlier, I ended up chasing JR freight trains all day Sunday, but did not go to the Railway Museum. After chasing one to Koriyama, I realized that if I hopped on the next Shinkansen back to Omiya, I could catch and chase Sunday night's northbound Cassiopeia, and still had time to hop on the Hokutosei later. That's the first and second clips in the video, Cassiopeia arriving at Omiya, then departing later at Utsunomiya.

- Rear of Cassiopeia, Car #1, facing Tokyo. The entire car is a suite, sold out, of course.
- Cassiopeia arriving in Utsunomiya.
- Video clips, with accompanying stories in the following posts.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 03/21/14 06:21 by cchan006.

---

---

You must be a registered subscriber to watch videos. Join Today!

Before Cassiopeia started running, Hokutosei and Twilight Express were considered JR's flagship luxury sleeper trains. This was my second time riding the Hokutosei. I rode it the first time to attend the wonderful Snow Festival in February about a decade ago. For both Hokutosei and Cassiopeia, dinner reservation is required at least 3 days in advance of departure so the kitchen staff can bring appropriate amount of food - this is to discourage waste of expensive ingredients. Unlike Amtrak, you still have to pay for dinner, which cost 7800 yen, choice of Japanese or French style cuisine.

Both my Hokutosei and Cassiopeia reservations were made less than 3 days in advance, so I couldn't get a dinner reservation, even though the lady ticket agent at Tokyo tried talking to a manager to see if she can make an exception for me. That gave me additional reason to hop on the Hokutosei later at night, since I was going to miss dinner, anyway.

Third and fourth clips show the typical Hokkaido scenery after I woke up Monday morning. Yeah, snow! I was enjoying myself in the lounge car before the first call for breakfast at 6:30 am, which does not require a reservation.

- Hokutosei lounge car looking in the direction of travel (Sapporo).
- Lounge car looking back (toward Tokyo). That booth in the middle is for cell phone yappers, so they don't have to annoy the rest of us. :-)
- Hokutosei dining car. I showed up early and got a seat before the car became full. My breakfast (Western style: sausages, scrambled eggs, ham, hash browns, croissant, fruits, etc) cost me 1600 yen.

---

---

---

I reserved the cheapest accomodations on the Hokutosei, bunk beds on the B sleeper, where you share a compartment with 4 other people. There is a curtain around each bed for privacy, but that's it. I sleep well almost anywhere, so it worked out just fine.

Both Cassiopeia and Hokutosei require 3 locomotive sets for the journey. From Ueno to Aomori, they use a 6 axle electric locomotive like the EF510 shown in the video clips in this thread, and also in my JR freight chasing thread where I nab a southbound Hokutosei. From Aomori to Hakodate (Hokkaido), they use a 4 axle electric locomotive specifically for the underwater Seikan Tunnel, like the red ED79 shown in the sixth clip. From Hakodate to Sapporo, a pair of DD51 diesels are used (hydraulic transmission) since many lines in the JR Hokkaido system are not yet electrified.

- B sleeper bunk beds, standard for a typical sleeper train, or "Blue Train", railfan's nickname for the sleeper trains that used to roam everywhere until the Shinkansen network got larger and faster.
- Welcome to Sapporo.
- Pair of DD51 diesels that pulled the Hokutosei, at Sapporo.

---

---

---

After spending the day foaming and eating the famous miso ramen in Sapporo, I was finally ready for my first journey on the Cassiopeia, and it did not disappoint. The A sleeper bedrooms were spacious, equivalent to Amtrak's Superliner bedrooms in size, but felt roomier due to a more modern arrangement of furniture and amenities. The "Cassiopeia Twin" bedrooms are the cheapest available on this train. The much bigger "Cassiopeia Suites" were of course sold out.

Fourth clip in the video shows the Cassiopeia being pulled by a pair of DD51s arrive in Higashi-Muroran, about 129 km south of Sapporo. I started my journey here instead of Sapporo as "foamer insurance" in case something interesting showed up last minute and I couldn't get back to Sapporo in time. Fifth clip shows a diesel-electric DF200 with a unit tank train arriving just before Cassiopeia departed Higashi-Muroran.

- My "Cassiopeia Twin" bedroom, shown from the entrance.
- The bedroom shown toward the entrance, with the bathroom in view.
- Built-in TV and radio entertainment systems. I can watch satellite TV, listen to the radio, or monitor the real time GPS-based map, as shown in the photo.

(More posts to follow, I am heading out for another foaming trip right now)

---

---

---

Man, that is one super cool train! Like a high tech mix of the Hiawatha, Crusader and 20th Century Limited. really interesting photos and video.

Most impressive! Glad you were able to take this great trip and share it with us. Travel is the greatest high there is.

GettingShort Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Most impressive! Glad you were able to take this
> great trip and share it with us. Travel is the
> greatest high there is.


I was able to ride it a couple of years ago. It remains one of the greatest journeys in the world.

Ptolemy Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> GettingShort Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > Most impressive! Glad you were able to take
> this
> > great trip and share it with us. Travel is the
> > greatest high there is.
>
>
> I was able to ride it a couple of years ago. It
> remains one of the greatest journeys in the world.

Indeed, it's a great journey.

JR Kyushu has decided to trump the Cassiopeia last October, with even more luxurious "Nanatsu Boshi" (Seven Stars). Reservations for the next trip in summer are already sold out, and while Cassiopeia is measured in hundreds of $dollars$, Seven Stars is measured in $$thousands$$.

One of the best features of Cassiopeia is Car #12, the lounge car, which is the last car when travelling southbound from Sapporo to Ueno. Yup, this is the modern version of the classic rear observation car. For people who are willing to spend more money, they can get a better experience by reserving Car #1, which is a personal suite with the same view, facing the opposite direction of travel.

While people with dinner reservations were enjoying fine dining, I went to the lounge car to take some photos while no one was around. Wow, I was impressed.

- Many of the A sleeper cars are double-decked. Luckily, I got the upper bedroom. Here's a photo of the entrance to the lower bedroom.
- Car #12, the lounge car, opened to the riding public. Facing towards the rear.
- Lounge car, facing toward the entrance.

---

---

---

At 9:30 pm or so, there was a first call for "pub time" where snacks and less expensive meals are prepared in the dining car. Since I missed the fancy gourmet dinner, this was my chance for a Cassiopeia dining experience, which cost me 2800 yen. While a Japanese "hamburger steak" dinner can be had in the 1000 yen range in Tokyo, I wasn't complaining due to the quality of ingredients and the preparation onboard.

Before dinner, I had watched the crew exchange locomotives at Hakodate. That's the sixth clip in the video, the 4 axle ED79 coupling to Car #12 at Hakodate. The cars travel in reverse inside the Seikan Tunnel, what used to be the longest tunnel in the world. Seventh clip shows briefly the travel inside the tunnel, passing by the underwater Yoshioka-Kaitei station on the Hokkaido side, which I've visited before. The public can no longer visit there due to it being used as a staging area for the Hokkaido Shinkansen construction.

After a good night's sleep, I headed to the lounge car to do some rear observation foaming Tuesday morning, and it seems others had similar ideas. Eighth clip shows the Cassiopeia passing through a freight terminal, then a meet with a unit tank car train that I almost missed. First call for breakfast was announced at 6:30 am, so I went for a traditional Japanese style meal, with fresh salmon, rice, eggs, and vegetables.

I was not going to simply ride the Cassiopeia to its terminus, Ueno. I had planned a chase, where I would detrain at Utsunomiya, ride the Shinkansen, and meet my own train somewhere between Omiya and Ueno. Ninth clip shows the Cassiopeia leaving me behind at Utsunomiya while I get a lucky meet with a northbound freight.

I took a gamble and returned to Higashi-Jujo (where I foamed JR freight trains on Sunday), and looked for a tight, elevated angle, with not much time to set up in case I screwed up. The Cassiopeia showed up less than 2 minutes later, tenth and final clip.

- Cassiopeia dining car during "pub time."
- Station agent overseeing the coupling of the 4 axle ED79 electric locomotive.
- Cassiopeia at Ueno. I rode the next available Keihin-Tohoku local from Higashi-Jujo, and got to Ueno just in time before the train shoved away from the station and into the yard.

That's all for the Cassiopeia. I hope you will be able to ride it on your next visit to Japan.

---

---

---

Wow. Even a drumhead on the front. I had no idea there were sleepers in such a small country (geographically) with so many high speed trains as Japan.

andersonb109 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Wow. Even a drumhead on the front. I had no idea
> there were sleepers in such a small country
> (geographically) with so many high speed trains as
> Japan.

The sleeper services are on borrowed time. Hokutosei, Cassiopeia, and Twilight Express all go to Hokkaido, where Shinkansens are not yet available. Rumor is that by 2016, those sleeper trains will cease to run, due to the planned start of the Hokkaido Shinkansen that year. I had a chat with the conductor of Hokutosei, and he warned me the sleeper service changes could happen as soon as October, where JR system plans to have the periodic schedule changes.

Railroad distance from Sapporo, Hokkaido to Hakata, Kyushu is ~2400 km, or just under 1500 miles. Tokyo is right around the half way point between the two, so it's no surprise sleeper services have been popular for many decades, co-existing with Shinkansens especially since the high speed trains don't run between midnight and 6 am. I tried to ride as many sleepers as I could in the 2000s, guessing that the speed increases on the Shinkansens and the rise of the budget business hotels would eventually kill the services between Tokyo and Kyushu. Only the Sunrise sleeper EMUs remain in service to the west of Tokyo, which I used Tuesday night.

Fascinating post!

Steve Mitchell
http://www.yardgoatimages.com

Surplus former JNR sleeping cars have been exported for service in Thailand, Philippines, and Myanmar. The cars in Thailand are in daily service. The cars in the Philippines are in storage as attempts are being made to restore the Philippine National RR tracks for safe operation. I do not know if the former JNR sleeping cars are still in service in Myanmar.