Know Your Trains: Shinano and Hida

Previously on Sekai Ichi, I visited Nagoya, the biggest city in the central Chubu region of Japan.  Not only does the city have plenty of attractions of its own, but it can also serve as a base for exploring the Chubu region.  The terrain of Chubu is largely mountainous, in particular dominated by the Japan Alps, and has many options for rural getaways.  Most of these places can be accessed by limited-express trains running along JR Central's Chuo, Takayama, and other lines.

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A 383-series "Shinano" train.
By Tsuginosuke (Own work) [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons

Name	Start Station	End Station(s)	Time*	Max. Frequency**
Shinano	Nagoya	Nagano	3 hours	1 per hour

*Approximate time between start and end stations.
**Departures are based on May 2016 schedules and are subject to change.

The "Shinano" service runs between Nagoya and Nagano, on the Chuo Main Line (to Shiojiri) and the Shinonoi Line (to Nagano).  Along the way, it stops at a few stations in the Kiso Valley, a region with several well-preserved post towns (lodgings for travellers during the Edo period), and at the castle town of Matsumoto.

Num.	Name (English)	Name (Japanese)	Line	Shinano
CF00	Nagoya	名古屋	JR Chuo (CF)	X
CF01	Kanayama	金山		O
CF03	Chikusa	千種		X
CF12	Tajimi	多治見		X
CF17	Ena	恵那		O
CF19	Nakatsugawa	中津川		X
CF23	Nagiso	南木曽		O
CF29	Agematsu	上松		O
CF30	Kiso-Fukushima	木曽福島		X
	Shiojiri	塩尻		X
			JR Shinonoi ⬛
	Matsumoto	松本		X
	Akashina	明科		O
	Hijiri-Kogen	聖高原		O
	Shinonoi	篠ノ井		X
			JR Shin'etsu ⬛
	Nagano	長野		X

Legend:
X: All trains stop at this station.
O: Some trains stop at this station.
I: No trains stop at this station.

Notable stops

• Nakatsugawa: Access to the post town of Magome.
• Nagiso: Access to the post town of Tsumago.
• Kiso-Fukushima/Shiojiri: Access to the post town of Narai, via local trains to Narai Station.
• Shiojiri: Junction of the Chuo and Shinonoi lines.
• Matsumoto: City with a long-standing castle.
• Nagano: Site of the 1998 Winter Olympics.

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A KiHa 85-series "Wide View Hida" train at Toyama Station.
Taken on Friday, 18 May 2018.

Name	Start Station	End Station(s)	Time*	Max. Frequency**
Hida	Nagoya	Takayama	2 hours 30 minutes	1 per hour
		Toyama	3 hours 50 minutes	1 per 2 hours, 4 per day
	Osaka	Takayama	4 hours 25 minutes	1 per day

*Approximate time between start and end stations.
**Departures are based on May 2016 schedules and are subject to change.

The "Hida" runs between Nagoya and Takayama, primarily along the Takayama Main Line (from Gifu).  Along the way, it stops at Gero, a hot spring resort town, and Takayama, a well-preserved old town with a famous twice-annual festival.  Some Hida trains go beyond to Toyama, on the Sea of Japan coast, while one other service per day starts from Osaka, bypassing Nagoya and connecting with another set at Gifu.

Num.	Name (English)	Name (Japanese)	Line	Hida (Nagoya)	Hida (Osaka)
A47	Osaka	大阪	JR Kyoto (A)	I	X
A46	Shin-Osaka	新大阪		I	X
A31	Kyoto	京都		I	X
			JR Biwako (A)
A24	Kusatsu	草津		I	X
A12	Maibara	米原		I	X
			JR Tokaido (CA)
CA77	Ogaki	大垣		I	X
CA68	Nagoya	名古屋		X	I
CA72	Owari Ichinomiya	尾張一宮		O	I
CA74	Gifu	岐阜		X	X
			JR Takayama (CG)
CG05	Unuma	鵜沼		O	X
CG07	Mino-Ota	美濃太田		X	X
	Shirakawaguchi	白川口		O	X
	Hida-Kanayama	飛騨金山		O	X
CG16	Gero	下呂		X	X
	Hida-Hagiwara	飛騨萩原		O	X
	Hida-Osaka	飛騨小坂		O	X
	Kuguno	久々野		O	X
CG25	Takayama	高山		X	X
CG28	Hida-Furukawa	飛騨古川		O	I
	Inotani	猪谷		O	I
	Etchu-Yatsuo	越中八尾		O	I
	Hayahoshi	速星		O	I
	Toyama	富山		O	I

Legend:
X: All trains stop at this station.
O: Some trains stop at this station.
I: No trains stop at this station.

Notable stops:

• Gifu: Junction of the Tokaido and Takayama lines.
• Gero: An urbanised yet popular onsen town.
• Takayama: A city with a well-preserved old district.
• Hida-Furukawa: A small town with a historic crafts industry.
• Inotani: Where JR Central's coverage ends and JR West's begins.
• Toyama: A transportation hub on the Hokuriku Shinkansen.

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The interior of a KiHa 85-series train, looking out from the wraparound window.
Taken on Friday, 18 May 2018.

Both the Shinano and the Hida are branded with the "Wide View" name, meaning their train sets have wide windows for excellent views.  If you get a seat in the front car, you can even look out the wrap-around front window!  On Hida trains between Nagoya and Toyama, only cars #8-10 travel the full length.  Cars #1-4 are only used between Nagoya and Takayama, at which point the two sets split up or join together.

Service	Total Cars	Non-Reserved Cars	Reserved Cars	Green Cars
Shinano	6	2 (Cars #5-6)	3 (Cars #2-4)	1 (Car #1)
Hida	7	2 (Cars #3, 9)	3½ (Cars #1-2, 4, 8)	1½ (Cars #2, 10)
	6	2 (Cars #3, 9)	3 (Cars #1, 3, 8)	1 (Car #10)

Tips:

• If you're going from Osaka to Takayama, you may want to take the Tokaido Shinkansen (Nozomi ⬛ or Hikari ⬛) to Nagoya, and transfer to a Hida train there.  This method is more expensive (at least ¥10,000) unless you have a Japan Rail Pass, but is slightly faster (about 4 hours, depending on connections) and far more frequent.

Trivia:

• The Shinano (しなの) and Hida (ひだ) are both named after old provinces of Japan.  After the Meiji Restoration of 1868, Shinano Province became Nagano Prefecture, and Hida Province became part of Gifu Prefecture.
• Even though the train models used for the Shinano and Hida are similar, they are different models using different power sources.  The Shinano uses the electric 383-series, while the Hida uses the diesel-powered KiHa 85, since the Takayama Main Line it rides on is not electrified.
• There used to be occasional Shinano services that started from Osaka, just as there is now with the Hida.  Those were cancelled in 2016.