Originally Posted by
silentbob1974
... I spent a couple of hours on HyperDia and found only two Hikari trains going from Kyoto to Hiroshima, both before 9 am (train 491 and 493). Everything else appears to be Nozomi. Does that sound right or am I searching wrong? Similarly, for the return trip there don't appear to be any non-Nozomi trains available for a direct trip back to Kyoto, and instead we have to take the Sakura through Shin-Osaka. Is that true as well, or is there some way to search that I'm missing?
There are a couple of not-obvious tricks to using Hyperdia when planning Rail Pass trips. Be sure to click the "Details" link on the first page and uncheck the selection for "Mizuho/Nozomi/Hayabusa." That will limit the search to trains you can ride with the Rail Pass. For more information, you can also use the results page and select the "Intervals" link to see only the schedule for the specific trains you are interested in.
All that said, it is true that most trips from Kyoto to Hiroshima require a connection at either Shin-Osaka, Shin-Kobe or Himeji, with the majority at Shin-Osaka. It is not a difficult change as all the shinkansens arrive and depart at the same part of the station. Often you will be using the same platform or one very nearby. If you look closely at the Hyperdia results, they will often list the exact platform used.
The train connections from Kyoto are a lot like hub-and-spoke air connections in the US. I can't get anywhere from my regional airport without connecting somewhere either.
