Where do bullet trains go in Japan? The Shinkansen network is very extensive, and covers the following lines: Tokyo - Osaka, Osaka - Hakata, Tokyo - Aomori, Hakata – Kagoshima, Tokyo – Niigata, Takasaki – Kanazawa, Aomori - Hokuto. Mini-shinkansen also covers Morioka – Akita and Fukushima – Shinjo lines.

The Shinkansen, or Japanese "bullet train," connects almost all of Japan's major metropolitan areas across the islands of Honshu and Kyushu. The most famous route, the Tōkaidō Shinkansen, connects the "Big Three" cities: Tokyo, Nagoya, and Osaka. Continuing west, the San'yō Shinkansen reaches Kobe, Hiroshima, and Fukuoka (Hakata Station). To the north, the Tōhoku Shinkansen travels from Tokyo to Sendai and Aomori, with a branch (the Hokkaido Shinkansen) going under the sea to Hakodate. Other major lines serve the "Sea of Japan" side, reaching Niigata and Kanazawa, and the recently opened Nishi-Kyushu line connects to Nagasaki. In total, the network services dozens of smaller but culturally significant cities like Kyoto, Himeji, and Okayama. The system is designed as the primary artery of Japanese life, allowing travelers to zip between Tokyo and Osaka in roughly two and a half hours. By 2026, the network is more integrated than ever, though some remote regions like Shikoku remain disconnected from the high-speed rails, relying instead on "Limited Express" conventional trains.