Originally Posted by
MegatopLover
Anything I should be aware of that would make me change my mind? Such as, say, no Green Car on the train to Aomori? From my research, I recall seeing Green Cars on all of these trains. Will have luggage on the ride to/from Karuizawa and the N'Ex. No luggage, just sightseeing rides, on the trains to Niigata and Aomori.
There should be Green Cars on all these trains, and they are indeed more comfortable than ordinary ones.
On the Shinkansen, you get more space and a better recline (must be like 135 degrees). On Limited Express trains, you often get a much nicer interior in addition to better seats, and sometimes you get a nice view ahead since the green car is often the first car of the train with just a glass wall separating you from the train driver. On some local trains in the Tokyo area, a green car (no reservation needed) means you get to sit in comfort while ordinary cars look like sardine cans.
Note that a Green Car rail pass does not always guarantee a reservation - a few times I was forced to sit in ordinary cars, because the few green cars were booked out.
There are no Green Cars on the Shinkansen west of Osaka (except for Nozomi trains which cannot be used with JR pass), on many trains in Hokkaido and on most local trains outside of Tokyo.
A good website for checking Japanese train timetables is
http://www.hyperdia.com/
I am surprised to read about smoking cars. Hasn't smoking been banned on the Shinkansen 3 years ago?