What is Advance Reservation? A system called “advance reservation” or “advance application” that can be used earlier than “10:00 a.m. one month in advance” exists in all of JR East and JR Hokkaido’s “Ekinet”, JR Tokai’s “EX Service”, JR West and JR Shikoku’s “e5489”, and JR Kyushu’s online reservation service. JR West and JR Shikoku’s “e5489”, and JR Kyushu’s online reservation service. There is no particular difference in the application procedure. The only difference is that the date you specify is one month ahead of the date of application, and then a few days later. The “Eki Net” service is easier to understand because it adds the “Advance Request” indication to the list of train dates. On JR Kyushu’s online reservation service, a pop-up window appears or the background color changes on the date selection calendar to indicate that the date is subject to advance reservation. There is one point to note about the “e5489” service. Although “e5489” itself can be used without membership registration, advance reservations cannot be made. Only J-WEST Card members and J-WEST Net members (general card members) can apply for e5489 in advance. It can be said that advance application is an incentive for J-WEST cardholders. In addition, membership registration is a prerequisite for advance application for “Ekinet”, “EX Service”, and JR Kyushu’s online reservation service. Of course, the official application period starts at 10:00 a.m. one month prior to the boarding date, so at the stage of pre-registration or pre-application, you will be placed in a queue without being processed. After 10:00 a.m. one month prior to the boarding date, applications are processed in order from the top of the waiting list. As with normal online reservations, you will be notified by e-mail if you have secured a reservation, and you will also be notified if you have not. After that, there is no particular difference in the boarding procedure, even if the application is made in advance or in advance of the reservation. The same is true for paper tickets, which must be issued if necessary.
Cases in which Advance Acceptance is Possible and Cases in which it is Not Possible However, there may be some restrictions on this advance acceptance and advance application. A clear example is “Eki Net,” which does not allow advance application for applications that include sections of JR Tokai, JR Shikoku, and JR Kyushu lines. Therefore, all Tokaido Shinkansen lines are excluded. In fact, in the past, “Eki Net” also allowed advance registration for Tokaido Shinkansen trains, but since when, it is no longer possible. If you want to use the advance reservation service for Tokaido Shinkansen trains, you have to use the EX Service. For this reason, when the author uses the Tokaido and Sanyo Shinkansen trains during the extremely busy season, he cannot use the “Eki Net” advance reservation service anymore, and has to do the “Self 10:00” service after 10:00 a month in advance. However, if the round-trip discount train ticket is discontinued, using the EX service will not make much difference, so I intend to use the EX service advance reservation from now on. Strictly speaking, however, there is a difference in that conventional lines within the Tokyo metropolitan area, which are the departure points, are cut off separately. In addition, as mentioned above, the e5489 system does not allow advance reservations except for members who meet certain conditions.
© Source travel watch