My Australian Mastercard didn't work but my Platinum Amex did. Several bookings now made.

No issue using an American AMEX with SmartEX a couple of days ago.

My own frustration: after a few minutes of futzing, my iPhone wouldn't display the number I needed to link my digital Suica to SmartEX, and I was also traveling with kids who don't have their own phones, so I needed to get paper tickets for them to board. It turned out to be impossible to do this at the ticket machine because I needed a SmartEx smartcard, or something, so I ended up cancelling the reservation (paying a penalty) and buying new tickets at the machine. Screw this app, seriously.

Did you use the Suica app? That's how I found my digital Suica number since Apple wallet won't display it.

Last November I used my US-issued MasterCard with SmartEX and it worked flawlessly.

Today the same card (already connected to my SmartEX account) gets rejected. I try two different MC cards and they are also rejected. This is so infuriating!

I know I can purchase the tickets when I get to HND, but are there any other online alternatives that allow me to book in advance + free changes + seat selection?

I couldn't use my Citi Mastercard and US Bank Visa with SmartEX, but my Discover surprisingly worked and I booked two pairs of tickets a few days ago. I'm currently in the US. The transactions coded as travel related services.

As an alternative to Smart Ex not accepting your cards, has anyone purchased single shinkansen tickets directly from JR WEST website?
https://www.westjr.co.jp/global/en/ticket/overview/

And if I understand correctly, I can then collect the pre-purchased tickets directly at the JR EAST Travel Service Center at Haneda Airport Terminal 3.

Normally I wouldn't worry too much about purchasing the tickets upon arrival in HND, but this will be my son's first time in Japan and I want to get him a right-side window seat on the Nozomi green car (from Shinagawa to Kyoto). We'll be landing in late May and hoping to board a train around 12pm. Do I even have to worry about not getting the seats I want when purchasing at the Service Center in Haneda?

If you're unlucky, you might not find the seat that you want on the first available train, but considering there are Nozomi departures every few minutes, you will find an available right-side, Green Car, window seat on a convenient-enough train.

Thanks for the input. I think you're right. I'll just wait and purchase the tickets when we get to Shinagawa Station.

That's what I would do. And if the weather is like it is today, take any available seats because the mountain will be hidden by clouds.

Just a note that October eki-net online shikansen bookings with US and JP language accounts both refused CSR. The checkout flow behavior was similar to SmartEx issue where fraud reps insisted they couldn't see the charge attempt and it never made it to the intermediate charging page.

I am also thinking of applying for a forex friendly Amex so I don't need to use my ATM debit (went through after a call to non-Chase bank) on certain transportation options and possibly domestic online shopping websites.

Successfully used a Rogers (Canadian) issued Mastercard this past weekend... my RBC Avion Visa with no FTF didnt work however.

Worked out well as we got the postcard view with Fujisan's first snow of the season the night before !

https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...6a4b478ded.jpg

Didn’t try any other cards based on reports here and on Reddit - Amex did come up with a SafeKey verification challenge that sent a code to my phone and email before the purchase completed. Worked fine - my reservation is for Jan 1, and it says I’ll receive an email with my assigned seat on Dec 1 from Nagoya to Tokyo. Here’s hoping that all works well.

Hi, just following up on this? Did you receive the tickets with seat allocation on Dec 1?

Did you choose 'extra luggage space' etc and did they provide it?

Thanks

I was able to purchase without issue 30 days in advance for the holiday travel period. Simply chose the 'with Oversized Baggage Area' under 'Seat Types' and was able to purchase without issue. You can see your chosen seats on the 'Seat Map' - oversized baggage is the last row of the selected car. Tickets are automatically issued in the app and can be added to Apple Wallet if you're using an iPhone.

Yes, I received a seat assignment via email on Dec 1 - I need to download the app and check to see how easy it is to extract the ticket there.