Japan guide

Getting around

Luggage: lockers & forwarding

Stations are busy and stairs are everywhere, so many visitors leave or send their bags instead of dragging them around. Lockers and luggage forwarding make that easy.

8 steps · 4 common mistakes· Show in Japanese (2)
Coin lockers in several sizes along the wall of a station.

Photo: Vantey / Wikimedia Commons (Public domain)

Coin lockers

In a station, a traveller puts a small suitcase into a coin locker marked コインロッカー; larger lockers are at the bottom.

Step by step

  1. Look for コインロッカー (coin lockers) signs in stations. Big stations have more and larger lockers.

  2. Check the size first — most lockers fit a backpack or a small case, not a large suitcase.

  3. Put your bag in, pay by coins or IC card, and keep the key or receipt with the number.

  4. Note which exit and which locker area you used — big stations have many.

Common mistakes

  • Arriving with a large suitcase and finding every big locker taken.
  • Forgetting where the locker is in a large station.

Sending your bags ahead

At a luggage counter, a traveller hands over a large suitcase and a filled-in shipping form; a van is drawn on the sign.

Luggage forwarding sends your suitcase from a hotel, airport or counter to your next stop. Counters with the Hands-Free Travel logo also keep bags for the day.

Step by step

  1. Ask at your hotel's front desk, or find a counter with the Hands-Free Travel logo.

  2. Fill in the shipping form with the address of your next hotel — show the line below.

  3. Pay and keep the receipt. Bags often arrive the next day, so check the arrival time.

  4. Keep what you need for one night in a small bag.

Common mistakes

  • Sending your bag on the morning you need it the same evening without checking the time.

Big suitcases on the shinkansen

On the Tokaido, Sanyo and Kyushu shinkansen, a bag whose height, width and depth add up to more than 160 cm needs a reserved seat with an oversized-baggage area — see the Trains page. Sending it ahead avoids this.

Common mistakes

  • Planning to keep a large suitcase in the aisle or vestibule.

Sources

Sources (checked 2026-11-04). Facts, numbers and prices on this page come from these official pages.

  1. Japan National Tourism Organization (JNTO)Luggage & Storage(opens in a new tab)JNTO: luggage storage and forwarding
  2. Japan National Tourism Organization (JNTO)Travel around Japan luggage-free(opens in a new tab)JNTO: travelling around Japan without your luggage
  3. Railway operatorsOversized baggage on the Tokaido Shinkansen (JR Central)(opens in a new tab)JR Central: oversized baggage on the Tokaido Shinkansen
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