How to Use Busta Shinjuku | 4F Boarding Bays and Ticketing Counter, Getting There from Shinjuku Station, Coin Lockers, and Waiting Room Hours
How to use Busta Shinjuku (Shinjuku Expressway Bus Terminal), the expressway bus terminal on the south side of Shinjuku Station, explained with official information and photos taken on site. Learn how to get there from the New South Gate of JR Shinjuku Station, where to board on 4F (bays A to D), which tickets you can buy at the Ticketing counter and ticket machines, what to do before boarding, coin locker fees, and the hours of the waiting room, convenience store, and Tokyo Tourist Information Center.
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Overview
Busta Shinjuku is an expressway bus terminal on the south side of JR Shinjuku Station. Its official name is Shinjuku Expressway Bus Terminal. On the day we took the photos, the departure boards showed buses to places such as Fuji-Q Highland and Kawaguchiko, Gotemba and Hakone Togendai, Haneda Airport, and Nagoya.
- You board buses on 4F. The waiting room, Ticketing counter, ticket machines, and coin lockers are also on 4F.
- Expressway buses drop passengers off on 3F. The taxi stand and the Tokyo Tourist Information Center, the Tokyo Metropolitan Government's tourist information center, are also on 3F.
- In front of the New South Gate of JR Shinjuku Station, there is an escalator up to 4F (Busta Shinjuku information).
The photos in this article were taken in October 2026. Shops, notices, and boarding bays may change. Floor numbers match the signs in the building (the ground floor is 1F).
Getting there
Getting There from Shinjuku Station
If you come by JR train, leave Shinjuku Station through the New South Gate. The escalator in front of the gate takes you up to 4F, where the waiting room and Ticketing counter are. The walk from the New South Gate takes about 2 minutes (Busta Shinjuku information).
- The New South Gate is open from 5:45 to 24:00. Outside these hours, use the JR South Gate. The walk from the South Gate takes about 4 minutes (Busta Shinjuku information).
| Station and gate | Walking time |
|---|---|
| New South Gate, JR Shinjuku Station | About 2 min |
| South Gate, JR Shinjuku Station | About 4 min |
| South Gate, Shinjuku Station on the Odakyu Line | About 4 min |
| Keio Department Store Gate, Shinjuku Station on the Keio Line | About 5 min |
| Keio New Line Gate (Exit 2), Shinjuku Station on the Keio New Line, Toei Shinjuku Line, and Toei Oedo Line | About 5 min |
| Shinjuku-sanchome Station on the Tokyo Metro Fukutoshin Line (Exit E10) | About 8 min |
| Shinjuku-sanchome Station on the Tokyo Metro Marunouchi Line (Exit E10) | About 10 min |
The times in the table are estimates given by Busta Shinjuku. Allow plenty of time.
- If you have large luggage, you can also use the elevators. In four places in the building, elevators go up from 2F, where the station gates are, to 3F and 4F (Busta Shinjuku information).
- The address of Busta Shinjuku is 5-24-55 Sendagaya, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo.
To go back from 4F to the JR gates, take the down escalator with the yellow sign that says “JR Line”. This escalator goes straight down to 2F, where the gates are.
Step by step
How to Buy Tickets and What to Do Before Boarding
Buses that leave from Busta Shinjuku fall into the following three types, depending on how you buy the ticket (Busta Shinjuku information). To find out which type your bus is, check the bus company’s information or Route Search on the official Busta Shinjuku website.
| Type of bus | How to buy the ticket |
|---|---|
| Buses whose tickets are sold at Busta Shinjuku | You can buy tickets at the Ticketing counter or the ticket machines on 4F. Whether a reservation is required, and how far ahead you can book, differs by bus company |
| Buses with no reservations | These buses do not take reservations. Go straight to the boarding bay and pay the fare to the bus crew when you board |
| Buses whose tickets are not sold at Busta Shinjuku | These are mainly buses you book and pay for online. There is no ticket pickup at Busta Shinjuku, so go straight to the boarding bay |
- Busta Shinjuku sells tickets only for buses that are booked or sold through four reservation systems (Highwaybus.com, Kousokubus.net, Hassha Orai Net, and Airport Limousine). Some types of tickets cannot be bought at Busta Shinjuku (Busta Shinjuku information).
- Busta Shinjuku does not take reservations by phone. Make reservations with each bus company (Busta Shinjuku information).
At the Ticketing counter, you can pay by credit card and with some QR code payment services (Busta Shinjuku information). The screens above the counter show the departure time, destination, bus company, and bay number.
At the ticket machines (sign: Tickets), you can pay by credit card. The ticket machine hours differ by reservation system, as shown below (Busta Shinjuku information). The Ticketing counter hours also differ by reservation system, and for every reservation system they are shorter than the ticket machine hours. Check the Ticketing counter hours on the official Busta Shinjuku website.
| Reservation system | Ticket machine hours |
|---|---|
| Highwaybus.com, Kousokubus.net, Hassha Orai Net | 5:00–24:00 |
| Airport Limousine | 3:40–22:50 |
Steps Before Boarding
- Go to 4F before your departure time.
- If you do not have a ticket for your bus yet and Busta Shinjuku sells that ticket, buy it at the Ticketing counter or a ticket machine.
- Check the bay number of your bus on the departure boards.
- Follow the bay number signs to the boarding bay, and show your ticket or reservation screen to board. On buses with no reservations, pay the fare to the bus crew when you board.
Areas
4F Boarding Bays (A to D)
The boarding bays on 4F are divided into four areas, A, B, C, and D, and are numbered from A1 to D12 (Busta Shinjuku information).
| Area | Bay numbers |
|---|---|
| A | A1, A2, A3 |
| B | B4, B5, B6 |
| C | C7, C8, C9 |
| D | D10, D11, D12 |
You can check the bay number of your bus on the departure boards or on Today’s Scheduled Departures on the official Busta Shinjuku website. If you are not sure, ask at the Information counter or ask a staff member. Showing your ticket or reservation email helps staff assist you more quickly (Busta Shinjuku information).
The B area bays are next to the waiting room. Colored lines on the floor lead to the boarding bays.
To reach the A area and D area bays, walk along a covered walkway. When we took the photos, signs on the walkway pillars said “A area (A1–A3) ahead”, “D area (D10–D12) to the left”, and “B area and C area: toward the waiting room behind you”. Follow the signs.
Services
Waiting Room and Useful Facilities for Travelers
| Facility | Hours / fees | Location |
|---|---|---|
| Waiting room | From 3:30 until 1:00 the next morning (after midnight) | 4F |
| Information counter | 7:00–23:00. While the counter is open, you can get help in Japanese and English. There are no set hours for help in Chinese | Inside the waiting room on 4F |
| ATM (Seven Bank) | From 3:30 until 1:00 the next morning (after midnight) | Inside the waiting room on 4F |
| Convenience store (Daily Yamazaki) | From 3:30 until 1:00 the next morning (after midnight) | 4F |
| Souvenir shop (The Souvenir Shop) | 6:00–24:00 | 4F |
| Tokyo Tourist Information Center | 6:30–21:00. Open every day | 3F |
The hours in the table are from the official websites of Busta Shinjuku and the Tokyo Tourist Information Center.
- Free Wi-Fi: The network name is Shinjuku-Bus-Terminal_Free_Wi-Fi. You can use it after registering an email address (Busta Shinjuku information).
- ATM: At the Seven Bank ATM, you can also top up transport IC cards (such as Suica) and check the balance (Busta Shinjuku information). How to use Suica is explained in Welcome Suica: How to Buy and Use It | A 28-Day IC Card for Visitors to Japan.
- Smartphone charging: Next to the ticket machines on the north side, there are coin-operated chargers: ¥100 for 20 minutes. There is also ChargeSPOT, where you can rent a power bank (Busta Shinjuku information).
- Luggage carts: Not available to borrow (Busta Shinjuku information).
- Tokyo Tourist Information Center (3F): Besides sightseeing information, it offers temporary luggage storage, luggage shipping, foreign currency exchange, and sales of transport tickets (Tokyo Tourist Information Center information).
Coin Lockers
Around the waiting room on 4F, there are coin lockers that you operate by touching a screen. You can use a locker continuously for up to 72 hours from when you start (Busta Shinjuku information).
| Size | First fee | Additional fee |
|---|---|---|
| Small | ¥100 for the first 60 minutes | ¥500 for each additional 6 hours |
| Medium | ¥100 for the first 40 minutes | ¥600 for each additional 6 hours |
| Large | ¥100 for the first 30 minutes | ¥900 for each additional 6 hours |
- The table shows the fees as they are written on the official Busta Shinjuku website. The official information does not say how the “Additional fee” is added to the first fee (from when the 6 hours are counted). Check the fee on the locker screen before you use it.
- The coin lockers can be used from 30 minutes before the first bus of the day leaves until the last bus leaves (Busta Shinjuku information). The official information does not say whether you can take your luggage out outside these hours.
- You can pay by credit card (contactless), transport IC card (such as Suica and PASMO), or QR code payment (such as Alipay). Some card brands and payment services cannot be used (Busta Shinjuku information).
- To take your luggage out, you need the QR code on the receipt you got from the locker. Do not lose the receipt (Busta Shinjuku information).
- How to use coin lockers at other stations in Tokyo is explained in How to Use Coin Lockers at Train Stations in Japan | Typical Prices, Payment and the 3-Day Limit.
Good to know
Things to Keep in Mind
- There is no place to smoke inside Busta Shinjuku (Busta Shinjuku information). The information board on 4F shows the way to the smoking area outside the building. Getting back to the boarding bay from the smoking area involves taking several escalators, so head back early enough to make your departure time.
- The size and number of bags you can take on a bus are set by each bus company. For large items such as bicycles, large musical instruments, snowboards, and surfboards, check with the bus company before you board (Busta Shinjuku information). How to send suitcases to your hotel or the airport is explained in Send Your Suitcase by Courier | Airport to Accommodation, Accommodation to Airport (Yamato Transport).
- On the day we took the photos, the departure boards also showed a message from the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism asking for cooperation regarding power banks. The rules for power banks on flights are explained in Power Bank Rules on Flights in Japan (from April 2026) | How Many You Can Bring, Capacity (Wh), Charging on Board, and Checked Baggage.
- Where to ask about lost items depends on where you left them. For items left on a bus, contact that bus company. For items left on 4F of Busta Shinjuku, tell a nearby staff member (Busta Shinjuku information).
- Fares and reservations for buses from Shinjuku to the Kawaguchiko and Mt. Fuji area are explained in Tokyo/Shinjuku to Kawaguchiko & Mt. Fuji: How to Get There | Fuji Excursion Limited Express, Changing Trains, Highway Bus Fares, Travel Times and Booking.