Getting Around Osaka, Kyoto and Nara by Train | Fares and Travel Times on JR, Hankyu, Keihan and Kintetsu, and Which Stations to Use
Between any two of Osaka, Kyoto and Nara, there are JR West or private railway (Hankyu, Keihan, Kintetsu) trains that take you there without changing, so you can get around without taking the Shinkansen. Based on each company's official information, this guide covers example fares and travel times for each section, the different stations each company uses, the cost of limited express trains and paid seats, which trains you can ride with an IC card or the JAPAN RAIL PASS, and how to get to Nara Park.
Ad · Affiliate This article contains links to partner booking and shopping pages (affiliate links). If you book or buy through these links, the site operator may receive a commission from the partner. Our advertising policy
Overview
Between any two of the three cities of Osaka, Kyoto and Nara, you can travel on JR West trains and on trains run by railway companies other than JR (Hankyu, Keihan and Kintetsu). On every route, there are trains that take you there without changing. You can get around without taking the Shinkansen. The fares and travel times in this article were checked on each company's official website on October 15, 2026.
- Osaka: trains to Kyoto leave from JR Osaka Station, Hankyu Osaka-Umeda Station, Keihan Yodoyabashi Station and Shinkansen Shin-Osaka Station. Trains to Nara leave from JR Osaka Station and Tennoji Station and Kintetsu Osaka-Namba Station.
- Kyoto: trains from Osaka arrive at JR Kyoto Station, Hankyu Kyoto-kawaramachi Station and Karasuma Station, and Keihan Gion-Shijo Station, Sanjo Station and Demachiyanagi Station. Trains to Nara leave from JR Kyoto Station and from Kintetsu Kyoto Station. These two stations are in the same place.
- Nara: JR trains arrive at Nara Station, and Kintetsu trains at Kintetsu-Nara Station.
- The station where you board and the station where you get off differ by company. Choose the company by which stations are close to where you are staying and where you want to go.
- You can ride JR (excluding the Shinkansen), Hankyu, Keihan and Kintetsu trains with an IC card such as ICOCA or Suica. However, Kintetsu Limited Express trains and paid seats (JR's A-Seat and Ureseat, Hankyu's PRiVACE and Keihan's Premium Car) require a separate ticket in addition to your IC card.
- The JAPAN RAIL PASS covers JR trains only. It cannot be used on Hankyu, Keihan or Kintetsu trains.
Your options
Between Osaka and Kyoto
| Train | Route (stations) | One-way adult fare | Example travel time |
|---|---|---|---|
| JR Special Rapid Service | Osaka ↔ Kyoto | ¥580 | About 29 min |
| Hankyu Limited Express | Osaka-Umeda ↔ Kyoto-kawaramachi | ¥410 | About 43 min |
| Keihan Limited Express | Yodoyabashi ↔ Gion-Shijo / Sanjo | ¥490 | Not officially stated |
| Keihan Limited Express | Yodoyabashi ↔ Demachiyanagi | ¥550 | About 54 min |
| Shinkansen (non-reserved seat) | Shin-Osaka ↔ Kyoto | ¥1,450 | About 13 min |
- The Hankyu station is named "Osaka-Umeda" and is a different station from JR Osaka Station. Hankyu Limited Express trains also stop at Karasuma Station, the station just before Kyoto-kawaramachi Station. The fare from Osaka-Umeda Station to Karasuma Station is also ¥410.
- Keihan's Gion-Shijo Station and Sanjo Station are on the way from Yodoyabashi Station to Demachiyanagi Station. Keihan does not officially state the travel time from Yodoyabashi Station to Gion-Shijo Station or Sanjo Station.
- You board the Shinkansen at Shin-Osaka Station, not at Osaka Station. The Shinkansen fare in the table is the total of the basic fare and the limited express fee for a non-reserved seat.
Between Kyoto and Nara
| Train | Route (stations) | One-way adult fare | Example travel time |
|---|---|---|---|
| JR Miyakoji Rapid Service | Kyoto ↔ Nara | ¥720 | About 47 min |
| Kintetsu Limited Express | Kyoto ↔ Kintetsu-Nara | ¥760 + limited express fee ¥520 | About 33 min |
| Kintetsu Express | Kyoto ↔ Kintetsu-Nara | ¥760 | About 46 min |
- Kintetsu's Kyoto Station is in the same place as JR Kyoto Station. From the middle of the Kintetsu platforms to the West Ticket Gate of the JR conventional (non-Shinkansen) lines is about a 5-minute walk.
- Kintetsu Limited Express and Express trains leaving Kintetsu's Kyoto Station include trains whose destination is Kintetsu-Nara Station and trains whose destination is not Kintetsu-Nara Station (for example, trains bound for Kashiharajingu-mae Station). To get there without changing, take a train whose destination is "Kintetsu-Nara". If you board a train whose destination is not Kintetsu-Nara Station, change at Yamato-Saidaiji Station on the way to a train whose destination is Kintetsu-Nara Station.
Between Osaka and Nara
| Train | Route (stations) | One-way adult fare | Example travel time |
|---|---|---|---|
| JR Yamatoji Rapid Service | Osaka ↔ Nara | ¥840 | About 50 min |
| JR Yamatoji Rapid Service | Tennoji ↔ Nara | ¥510 | About 33 min |
| Kintetsu Express | Osaka-Namba ↔ Kintetsu-Nara | ¥680 | About 38 min |
| Kintetsu Limited Express | Osaka-Namba ↔ Kintetsu-Nara | ¥680 + limited express fee ¥520 | About 35 min |
- Kintetsu's Osaka-Namba Station is in the Namba area of Osaka. From Osaka-Namba Station to Kintetsu-Nara Station, besides Kintetsu Express trains there are also Kintetsu Rapid Express trains. The fare is the same as on the Kintetsu Express.
About the example travel times
All the travel times in the table are examples for trains with no change. For Keihan between Yodoyabashi Station and Demachiyanagi Station, the time shown is the one Keihan gives for its daytime Limited Express trains. The others are examples: for each route, we looked up one train running during the daytime on October 16, 2026 (a weekday) using the timetable search on each company's official website. Travel times vary by time of day and by train.
Child fares
Elementary school students pay the child fare. One-way JR child fares are ¥290 from Osaka Station to Kyoto Station, ¥360 from Kyoto Station to Nara Station, and ¥420 from Osaka Station to Nara Station. For a child taking a non-reserved seat on the Shinkansen from Shin-Osaka Station to Kyoto Station, the total is ¥720.
On Hankyu, Keihan and Kintetsu, the child fare is half the adult fare. If half the fare is not a multiple of 10 yen, it is rounded up to the next 10 yen. The Kintetsu limited express fee for children is also halved in the same way. The detailed rules for child fares are covered in Child Fares on Japan's Trains and Subways | When Kids Pay Adult Fare, Free Rides for Young Children, Child IC Cards.
Costs
Every route has trains you can ride with the basic fare alone (JR Special Rapid Service, Miyakoji Rapid Service and Yamatoji Rapid Service, Hankyu Limited Express, Keihan Limited Express, and Kintetsu Express). On trains you can ride with the basic fare alone, you may not get a seat when they are crowded. If you want to be sure of a seat, you can use one of the paid seats below or a Kintetsu Limited Express. Each costs the charge shown in the table on top of the fare.
| Seat / train | Charge in addition to the fare | How to buy |
|---|---|---|
| A-Seat on the JR Special Rapid Service | ¥840 (¥600 ticketless) | This seat ticket cannot be bought on the train. Buy it before boarding. Ticketless tickets are bought through JR West's online reservation |
| Ureseat on the JR Miyakoji Rapid Service and Yamatoji Rapid Service | ¥530 (¥300 ticketless) | This seat ticket cannot be bought on the train. Buy it before boarding. Ticketless tickets are bought through JR West's online reservation |
| PRiVACE on the Hankyu Limited Express | ¥500 | Reserve online. If seats are available, you can also buy it on the train |
| Premium Car on the Keihan Limited Express | ¥500 | Buy online, at the ticket machines on the platform, or at the station ticket office |
| Kintetsu Limited Express | Limited express fee ¥520 | Buy a limited express ticket before boarding. You can buy it at a station ticket office or ticket machine, or through Kintetsu's online service |
- The Ureseat price of ¥530 is the regular-season price in JR West's information. The price may change depending on the season.
- On Hankyu's PRiVACE, a child who sits in a seat also needs a seat reservation ticket of ¥500, the same as an adult.
- The Keihan Premium Car charge of ¥500 applies when riding from Yodoyabashi Station to Gion-Shijo Station, Sanjo Station or Demachiyanagi Station.
- On the Kintetsu Limited Express, all seats are reserved. The limited express fee of ¥520 in the table is the same from Kintetsu Kyoto Station to Kintetsu-Nara Station and from Osaka-Namba Station to Kintetsu-Nara Station.
- For child prices other than Hankyu's PRiVACE and the Kintetsu limited express fee, please check each company's official website.
Step by step
Riding with an IC card
- Touch an IC card such as ICOCA or Suica on the ticket gate to enter. It works at the ticket gates of JR (excluding the Shinkansen), Hankyu, Keihan and Kintetsu.
- Touch it again on the ticket gate at the station where you get off to exit. The fare is paid from the balance on your IC card.
- To ride a Kintetsu Limited Express, buy a limited express ticket before boarding. To sit in a paid seat, buy a ticket for that seat. Buy either ticket separately from your IC card. You can buy them at the places shown in the charges table in this article. You can pay the fare with your IC card. With an IC card alone, you can neither ride a Kintetsu Limited Express nor sit in a paid seat.
The Shinkansen works differently from riding with an IC card as described here. To take the Shinkansen from Shin-Osaka Station to Kyoto Station, buy a basic fare ticket and a limited express ticket from a ticket machine or the ticket office at the station. Where IC cards such as Suica can be used is covered in Where in Japan can you use Suica and ICOCA? | IC card areas and what to know when riding between areas.
Don't go to the wrong station
- Osaka: JR Osaka Station and Hankyu's Osaka-Umeda Station are different stations. The Shinkansen station is Shin-Osaka Station.
- Kyoto: JR trains arrive at JR Kyoto Station, and Kintetsu trains arrive at Kintetsu Kyoto Station. These two stations are in the same place. Hankyu's Kyoto-kawaramachi Station and Karasuma Station, and Keihan's Gion-Shijo Station, Sanjo Station and Demachiyanagi Station, are in different places from Kyoto Station.
- Nara: JR Nara Station and Kintetsu's Kintetsu-Nara Station are different stations.
Getting to Nara Park
Nara Prefecture's guide to Nara Park gives the following walking times from Kintetsu-Nara Station.
| Destination | Walking time from Kintetsu-Nara Station |
|---|---|
| Noborioji area (around the entrance to Nara Park) | About 5 min |
| Todaiji Temple | About 20 min |
| Kasuga Taisha Shrine | About 25 min |
From JR Nara Station to Nara Park, Nara Prefecture's guide describes taking a Nara Kotsu bus (the city loop line, outer loop) to the "Kencho-mae" bus stop.
Good to know
- JR West's Kansai Area Pass stopped being sold on September 30, 2026.
- Getting around Kyoto city by bus is covered in Kyoto City Bus and Subway: How to Ride and Fares | Paying Fares, IC Cards, and the Subway & Bus 1-Day Pass.
- Fares and travel times may change. This article is based on official information as of October 15, 2026, so check the latest information on each company's official website before you set out.