Rugby World Cup Archives

2019 Rugby World Cup in Japan

Hello from Taipei, where I recently arrived back after a month in Japan for the Rugby World Cup while running my website Rugby Guide Japan (archived here), and before that a month seeing family back home (though I likely won’t blog that up as it mostly consisted of hospital visits and sadly a funeral).

Being in Japan for the rugby was awesome, definitely the best time I’ve spent in Japan that didn’t involve snowboarding. I went there with just a ticket for the Canada-South Africa match in Kobe, not a match I had much interest in but it was the best one I could get when the tickets were released to general online sales (the big ticket matches sold out within minutes). Worked out nicely though as a friend in Osaka managed to line up tickets for the England-USA match (also in Kobe) as well as finding a buyer for my Canada-South Africa ticket. So I jumped on the shinkansen down to Osaka for a few days (from Tokyo, where I’d rented an Airbnb in the western suburbs for the duration of the pool stage).

I used to live in both Osaka & Kyoto, so it’s always good to visit the Kansai region again, catch up with friends in Osaka, and do some hiking or wandering in Kyoto. For the latter, this time I just made do with a quick hike around around Fushimi Inari, and the evenings in Osaka involved plenty of beers and tasty food. That’s what Osaka does!

One of those evenings I hopped on the Hanshin line over to Kobe to meet my mate for the match. In a top piece of work he’d managed to sell my existing ticket at face value, which was 5k more than the price for the England ticket, so not only did I get to the England match, I ended up with 5000 yen cash back in hand.

Which was spent entirely on beers from the Heineken girls doing the rounds of the stands:

Pretty cool getting beer service direct to your seats like that, though Chris had an early start for work the next day and sounds like he suffered as a result… I just slept it off!

Speaking of beer, I found this monstrosity in the supermarket:

Didn’t really taste of fish, but definitely had a strong umami aftertaste. Interesting at first, but pretty rank by the end of the can.

Anyway, the match itself was a 1-sided affair, finishing 45-7 to England. Obviously there’s a gulf in class between the teams, but it was still awesome to be there and the atmosphere was great – England had plenty of travelling support, but the Japanese fans had taken it upon themselves to learn both national anthems and support both teams, many with face paint or wearing jerseys. Lots of Brave Blossoms jerseys on show too, and in fact a number of Aussie, New Zealand, and other fans wearing their own team jerseys, everyone mingling, chatting and enjoying the game.

The week before that I’d met up with old friends in Tokyo (a couple of the boys from the Gaijin Gaming Bros crew), to watch the England-Tonga match in the pub. They’re American, but they got into it somewhat and even learned where Tonga is 😉

Vending machines on the train platform in Tokyo — Random Tokyo pic: decisions, decisions

In between all this rugby watching I went on a couple of food missions, to Tsukiji Market (for the first time despite having spent so much time in Tokyo) and to try the Michelin Star-worthy ramen at Tsuta & Nakiryu.

Tan tan noodles at Nakiryu — Awesome tan tan noodles at Nakiryu

I narrowly missed scoring tickets for England-Argentina through my mate Jamie (from Tohoku volunteering days) but was too slow, so watched it in the pub with Japanese friends, immediately followed by the Japan-Ireland match. Great scenes in Shibuya when Japan won that one.

The same mate was lining up tickets for the England-France match in Yokohama and thought he might be able to get me one too, but then typhoon Hagibis rolled in and caused the cancellation of the Italy-NZ, England-France, and Canada-Namibia matches. Worse, it killed some 100 people (95 confirmed, with more missing) and caused damage in excess of 900 billion JPY (including 10 entire bullet trains scrapped after their yard flooded) – a reminder that sport is after all only sport.

Where I was in western Tokyo, it wasn’t so bad – torrential rain for 24 hours, but the wind didn’t get too crazy other than the odd savage gust. I just filled my fridge with food, made sure my electronics were all fully charged, and waited it out.

Obviously it was a shame the France game was cancelled, and Italy were pissed off at losing their shot to qualify for the quarterfinals – not that many people gave them much hope of beating the All Blacks. But the greatest shame in terms of the typhoon’s impact on the tournament was the cancellation of the Canada-Namibia match in Kamaishi. A shame for the 2 teams, obviously, losing their chance to compete for a World Cup win after getting thoroughly marmalised by NZ, SA and Italy (an absolutely brutal pool for them both to be drawn in); but a real shame for the town of Kamaishi, a traditional rugby town which suffered massive damage and loss of life in the 2011 tsunami, a town for which hosting two matches of this World Cup meant so much. At least the one match they got was a belter, Uruguay’s shock 30-27 win against Fiji.

Another totally unexpected effect of typhoons Hagibis was that I bumped into an old uni friend outside a noodle joint the night before the typhoon hit. I was helping his friend decipher the menu, and he recognised my voice and turned around. Amazing coincidence really – one of those things that makes you think ‘small world’. And also, you have to wonder, how many times have you randomly passed close to someone you know from long ago, but just missed each other?

Anyway, these guys had flown all the way to Japan for the weekend, just for the France match, only for it to be cancelled. So they were partying all night (Friday) instead, before the storm hit Tokyo on Saturday morning. And so we stood in front of a neon soaked Shinjuku noodle shop and caught up in the vanguard drizzle of the approaching storm. Small world!

I didn’t have any promising leads for tickets for the knockout stages, so that was time to bail & head back to Taiwan, where I watched the final in the pub with my South African mate – he was obviously far the happier when the game was over, but to be fair South Africa were pretty awesome and deserved to win it.

Check out my Rugby Guide Japan archive here. For more Tokyo posts see here, for more Japan posts see here, Japan travel guide here

Rugby Guide Japan Archive

Japan, Rugby World Cup

This is the main navigation page for my old website Rugby Guide Japan, which was a guide to help rugby fans visiting Japan for the 2019 Rugby World Cup. Following the end of the tournament I took the website down, but archived the useful content here either in its original form, or adapted as travel blog content or for the Tokyo 2020 Olympics.

The 2019 Rugby World Cup was the first held in Asia and the first outside rugby’s traditional heartlands in Europe & the Southern Hemisphere Tri-Nations, and was a great success – Japan did a cracking job as host nation, and the Brave Blossoms played some cracking rugby on the field to reach the quarterfinals (their best performance to date). My own team England lost the final to South Africa unfortunately, but to be fair the Springboks were pretty awesome and deserved to win it.

Japan might not be the first country that springs to mind when you think of rugby, but rugby does have a passionate and dedicated following in Japan and the general public really got into it, which was great to see & experience. Hopefully the Brave Blossoms continue to improve and pull the crowds in future.

The Web-Ellis trophy has surely never been contested in a finer collection of stadiums (see below), and I put Rugby Guide Japan together after personally visiting every one of them.

2019 Rugby World Cup match in Kobe — England vs USA at Kobe Wing Stadium

The following posts were adapted for 4corners7seas from content on Rugby Guide Japan:

Quick guides to the 2019 Rugby World Cup host cities:
Tokyo
Yokohama
Sapporo
Osaka
Kobe
Nagoya
Fukuoka

Plus these two which weren’t host cities, but are good cities for tourists to visit:
Kyoto
Hiroshima

Transportation advice on how best to travel around:
JR Pass
Local city transportation

How to get online in Japan

The following posts are archived more or less in their original form:

Japan autumn colours guide

Hanazono Rugby Shrine, Higashi Osaka

2019 Rugby World Cup Venues

The Rugby World Cup in Japan was contested in an outstanding collection of venues, mostly football stadiums (including several that were used for the 2002 FIFA World Cup), but also including a few dedicated rugby stadiums in towns which have particularly passionate rugby followings.

These dedicated rugby stadiums are more modest in stature than their football counterparts, but of course it was only right for Japan’s rugby heartlands get their time in the spotlight. The Kumagaya and Hanazono (Higashi-Osaka) stadiums underwent significant renovations to get them up to World Cup standards, while the stadium in Kamaishi was specifically built for the tournament.

This latter case is particularly noteworthy – the town of Kamaishi was utterly devastated in the 2011 tsunami disaster, losing some 1250 souls (the population stands at around 34000 today) along with most of the local economy. The new stadium is called Kamaishi Recovery Memorial Stadium, and having the world visit Kamaishi to watch rugby meant a lot for both this small town and the wider Tohoku region it’s a part of (though sadly the second of the two Kamaishi matches was cancelled due to a typhoon).

For details of each host city & stadium, click below:

Greater Tokyo

These three stadiums collectively held 12 pool matches (including the opener) and the majority of the knockout matches:

Ajinomoto Stadium (Tokyo)
Yokohama International Stadium
Kumagaya Rugby Stadium

Kansai Region

The Kansai region is home to Japan’s second-largest conurbation centred on Osaka, with Osaka and Kobe collectively hosting 8 pool matches:

Hanazono Rugby Stadium (Higashi-Osaka)
Kobe Wing Stadium (aka Misaki Stadium)

Kyushu Region

Japan’s westernmost and 3rd-largest island, Kyushu’s 3 venues between them hosted 8 pool matches and 2 quarterfinals:

Fukuoka Level 5 Stadium
Oita Bank Dome
Kumamoto Stadium

Northern Japan

Two pool matches each for tiny Kamaishi (a northern rugby town still recovering from the 2011 tsunami) and Sapporo (the biggest Japanese city north of Tokyo):

Sapporo Dome
Kamaishi Recovery Memorial Stadium

Central Japan

Another 7 pool matches took place in the central Chubu region (between Tokyo and Osaka):

Shizuoka Ecopa Stadium
Toyota Stadium (Nagoya)

Japan Autumn Colours Guide for the Rugby World Cup

Hokkaido, Japan, Rugby World Cup, Tohoku, Tokyo

Buddha statue and autumn colours at Osorezan, Aomori

This post originally appeared on my Rugby Guide Japan website (which is archived here if you want to check it out), providing information for rugby fans attending 2019 Rugby World Cup matches in Japan. But obviously autumn is still autumn regardless of whether there’s a World Cup taking place, so the following suggestions should still be useful if you’re planning a trip to see the autumn colours in Japan.

The sakura cherry blossoms are among the most iconic images of Japan (along with bullet trains and Mt Fuji) but for many (myself included) the autumn colours are arguably even better, perhaps because they’re best enjoyed by going for a hike in the mountains.

The world cup being in autumn means visiting rugby fans have the chance to see this spectacle while in Japan, though it requires a little effort due to the timing. The leaves don’t really change in major cities like Tokyo and Kyoto until late November/early December, a few weeks too late for the tournament, but if you’re heading up north for games in Sapporo or Kamaishi the timing’s good for autumn excursions in Hokkaido or Tohoku. Alternatively the colours should be good throughout October at higher elevations in the mountains around the edges of Tokyo, making it a great time for places like Hakone and Nikko.

If you are going to be in Tokyo or Kyoto in late November/early December, lucky you. Check out my posts on the best autumn colour spots in Tokyo, and especially the best autumn colour spots in Kyoto.

Hokkaido

Japan’s autumn colour season starts in central Hokkaido’s Daisetsuzan National Park in late September before sweeping its way from north to south and from high elevations to low elevations.

The two matches in Sapporo are in the early days of the tournament in late September, so it’s perfect timing for a visit to Daisetsuzan.

It’s a pretty massive park with multiple entry points, but coming from Sapporo the easiest approach is to take the Asahidake Ropeway up from Asahidake Onsen and do one of the day hikes on the trails fanning out from the upper station (get trail maps and advice from the park officials).

To get there from Sapporo you can ride the train to Asahikawa (40 minutes), then take a bus (1 hour) from there to Asahidake onsen. Alternatively it’s around 3 hours by car.

It’s quite far for a day trip, though certainly doable if you’re okay with spending half of it getting there & back – alternatively there are a few hotels near the ropeway (see here), and see here for park info.

Autumn colours at Daisetsuzan, Hokkaido — Photo credit: see bottom of page

Tohoku

The Tohoku region covers the northern end of the main Honshu Island, including Iwate Prefecture where Kamaishi is located.

If you’re attending a match in Kamaishi, the Fiji-Uruguay game in September is too early but for the Namibia-Canada match the train ride through the mountains from Hanamaki to Kamaishi should hopefully be looking pretty fine. In the wider region there are loads of famous places for the autumn colours, though you’ll generally need to get to slightly higher elevations.

Here are some good places to visit in Tohoku, with expected peak colour time in brackets though they’re all worth visiting at any other time:

Osorezan (late Oct)

Buddha statue and autumn colours at Osorezan

Osorezan, which translates as Mt Fear or Mt Dread, is a volcano at the northern end of the Shimokita Peninsula and forms the northern tip of Honshu. The poisonous caldera lake in the volcano’s crater is an otherworldly place, and rightly so – this is the gateway to the underworld. The Sansu-no-kawa river which drains Lake Usori is like a Japanese River Styx, and blind mediums called Itako perform an annual ritual at Bodaiji temple on the lakeshore in which they channel the spirits of the dead to communicate with the living. It’s a very cool place to visit, and though the colours generally peak in late October they should already be looking decent in the days following the Namibia-Canada match. For more pictures and details see my post here.

You can get there from the Kamaishi area by riding the shinkansen from Shin-Hanamaki (or Morioka) to Hachinohe, then the private Aomori Railway from there; it’s a private railway as far as Noheji, then JR from Noheji to Shimokita Station, but the whole thing’s fully covered by the JR Pass despite the private railway section. From Shin-Hanamaki it’s almost 4 hours to Shimokita, and then a 45-minute bus ride gets you up to the lake from the station. If you’re making your way down from Hokkaido, you can take the Aomori Railway from Aomori Station to Noheji (45 mins) then JR from there, again all covered by the JR Pass despite the non-JR segment.

Yamadera (late Oct/early Nov)

Yamadera literally means ‘Mountain Temple’, and that’s exactly what Yamadera is. Some 1200 years old, it’s one of the coolest temples to visit in all Japan with an upper area accessed via a steep half-hour climb up the mountain. The hike’s well worth the effort, with rewarding views across the valley from some beautiful hillside temple structures. Again the colours generally don’t peak until late October, but it should already be looking pretty good if you visit following the Namibia-Canada match. To get there simply ride the Sanzen Line to Yamadera Station from Sendai Station (1 hour) or Yamagata Station (20 minutes); once you disembark at Yamadera Station, Yamadera itself is up the mountainside on the far side of the small town. Just follow the signs (or Google Maps) and it’s about a 10-minute walk from the station to the entrance gate.

For more info and pics of Yamadera see my post here.

Tazawako & Kakunodate (mid Oct)

The old samurai town of Kakunodate and nearby Tazawako in central Akita Prefecture can be visited easily using the Akita shinkansen on which they are one stop apart (or 3 stops on the local train). The lake’s a 15-minute bus ride from Tazawako Station, and the samurai district’s walkable from Kakunodate Station. Mid-October should be perfect timing for the autumn colours in Akita; it’s perfectly feasible to visit on a day trip from Morioka or Sendai (or even from Kamaishi), especially if using the JR Pass.

Tokyo Region

Tokyo actually gets some cracking autumn colours right in the city at the various temples, parks and gardens (see here for pics), but they won’t reach their peak until several weeks after the final. If you’re wanting to see some autumn colours near Tokyo during the tournament, try the following:

Tateyama-Kurobe (late Sep/early Oct)

This isn’t exactly close to Tokyo to be fair, but if you’re in the capital during the early stages of the tournament you’ll need to travel quite far to see some peak autumn colours. The best bet is probably the Tateyama-Kurobe Alpine Route, a series of varied transportation links (various trains & buses, a ropeway, and a couple of cable cars) crossing the mountains between Nagano and Toyama prefectures. If you’ve ever seen those photos of buses driving between 15m walls of snow, that’s from the Alpine Route (though the snow’s all long gone by autumn); it’s also a really famous area for its autumn colours, and gets them earlier than most places due to the altitude. There’s a very informative website on the route here.

Nikko (throughout Oct Oku-Nikko > early Nov Nikko town)

Site of the famous mausoleum of Tokugawa Ieyasu (the first shogun of a unified Japan), Nikko also has a mountainous interior (Oku-Nikko, ‘Deep Nikko’) of lakes and waterfalls where the large elevation spread allows for an extended autumn colour season. The colours descend from the highest elevations throughout October, eventually reaching Nikko town in November; if you’re in Tokyo for a match in October, head up to Nikko and take the bus up to Oku-Nikko and you should be treated to some spectacular colours.

Nikko works as a fairly long day trip from Tokyo, though that’ll often mean only having time for the mausoleum – if you want to see Oku-Nikko too, either stay overnight (search hotel rates in Nikko) or make a super early start from Tokyo.

If you have the JR Pass you can take the shinkansen to Utsunomiya then change to the JR Nikko Line, journey time 1h45. Without a JR Pass it’s a fair bit cheaper (and only a little slower) to use the private Tobu Railway; taking their Kinu express train from Asakusa and changing to the Tobu Nikko Line at Shimo-Imaichi gives a journey time of 2 hours.

Hakone (late Oct/early Nov)

Another popular day trip or overnight trip from Tokyo, Hakone (in the mountains to the west of Yokohama) offers lake cruises and Fuji views, with the autumn colours usually peaking in late October. Again, it works fine as a day trip (and is closer than Nikko) but it’s also a nice idea to take your time and stay up there.

From Odawara Station (three Kodama shinkansen stops from Tokyo Station (35 minutes) or the stop after Shin-Yokohama) you can catch the bus (around an hour) up to Lake Ashinoko, where you can take a boat cruise on the lake and ride the Hakone Ropeway. That’s plenty for a day-trip, and you can descend to Odawara and take the train back to Yokohama/Tokyo or on to Shizuoka. You can also stay up there at one of Hakone’s hotels or ryokan, and take your time to check out the various museums, the other ropeway (there are two, the other one being the Komagatake Ropeway up Mt Komagatake), ride the scenic Hakone Tozan Railway, and soak in the hot springs. You can get the Hakone Free Pass (see here) for 2 or 3 days which covers the ropeways, local buses, sightseeing cruise, and scenic railway. Check out the Hakone homepage here, and search hotels in Hakone here

Kawaguchiko (early Nov)

The Mt Fuji climb’s already closed for the year by the time of the World Cup, but if you want to get up close for the views then Kawaguchiko (Lake Kawaguchi) in the Fuji 5 Lakes region does the job, doable as a daytrip or you can go stay up there. It’s a thousand metres higher than Tokyo so the autumn colours reach their peak a month or so earlier than in the city, generally in early November – if you’re in Tokyo for the final, that’s the perfect time to visit Kawaguchiko (though it’ll be nice throughout October too). Search Hotels Combined for Kawaguchiko hotels

Access is via the private Fujikyu Railway from Otsuki, which is on the JR Chuo Line from Tokyo Station & Shinjuku; Otsuki to Kawaguchiko takes just under an hour for 1,140 yen (plus a few hundred extra if you take the express service). If you have the JR Pass you can use it as far as Otsuki, you can jump on the Kaiji limited express which takes 80 minutes from Tokyo Station to Otsuki. If not using a pass it’s cheaper to take the rapid service as far as Takao, then the local service from there to Otsuki, overall this works out around 25 minutes slower than using the limited express. Confused? Check the train times on Hyperdia (see here for an explanation on how to use it)

See more Japan sightseeing suggestions here, and check out my quick guide to Tokyo

Daisetsuzan pic by Petr Meissner, used under Creative Commons

Yokohama International Stadium

Japan, Rugby World Cup, Tokyo Olympics

Yokohama International Stadium

This beast certainly isn’t the prettiest stadium in Japan, but it is the biggest. The home stadium of Yokohama F Marinos FC, Yokohama International Stadium has a capacity of 72,300 and played a major role in both the 2002 FIFA World Cup and the 2019 Rugby World Cup.

Yokohama International Stadium

This is the stadium where two Ronaldo goals won Brazil the 2002 World Cup against Germany, and where an awesome defensive performance saw South Africa overcome England to lift the 2019 trophy.

Now it’s set to host 10 football matches in the 2020 Olympics, including the men’s final.

Yokohama International Stadium

The stadium’s a 15-minute walk from Shin-Yokohama Station. If you’re staying in Yokohama, you’ll probably be best off riding the Yokohama subway’s Blue Line to Shin-Yokohama.

Coming from Tokyo, if you have a JR Pass you can simply jump on the Shinkansen at Tokyo Station or Shinagawa Station and boom it takes you direct to Shin-Yokohama in under 20 minutes. If you don’t have a JR Pass the Shinkansen is probably overkill (around 3000 yen from Tokyo Station), so most visitors will want to first head to Yokohama Station and switch to the Blue Line there (your best route will actually depend on where you’re starting from in Tokyo’s vastness, so check the routes on Hyperdia; see here for how to use it)

Where to Stay for Olympic Football in Yokohama

For matches at Yokohama International Stadium you can stay in Yokohama itself, or really anywhere in central Tokyo. If opting for the former, the Shin-Yokohama Station area (search here) puts you walking distance from the stadium, whereas the more central options near Yokohama Station (search here) or the Minato Mirai port area (search here) are better for nightlife & sightseeing.

If you’re thinking of staying in Tokyo, see here

Airbnb is also a great option in Japan, in fact in Japan it seems to work particularly well – most hosts arrange self-checkin & checkout systems, allowing you to arrive & leave flexibly without needing to meet someone for the keys (the key’s often left in a lockbox for you). The wifi is always super-fast, and I’ve never had an Airbnb nightmare in Japan (have had a few elsewhere). There was a crackdown in 2018 with the introduction of new regulations which led to a collapse in the number of listings available and accordingly a jump in prices, with a lot of travellers reporting that their reservations were suddenly cancelled as a result. It was all a bit of a mess at first, but you can be confident that any listings remaining on there at this point are legit. Prices went up unfortunately, but then so did standards, and Airbnb is still my usual go to for accommodation in Japan.

New users can get a $35 discount from their first Airbnb rental through 4corners7seas, simply click here and sign up.

Transportation in Greater Tokyo

If you have a JR Pass you can use it on the JR lines in Tokyo & Yokohama, most significantly the Yamanote Line (the main Tokyo loop line) and Chuo Line (which bisects the Yamanote east/west and more directly connects Tokyo Station to Shinjuku). However a good percentage of your travel in Tokyo & Yokohama is likely to involve non-JR trains, e.g. the Yokohama Blue Line to the stadium. If you don’t have a JR Pass it’s easiest to get an IC card, and even if you do have a pass you’ll still want an IC card for the non-JR trains. For more on IC cards see here

This post was archived from my Rugby World Cup website; see here for more (including the Yokohama quick guide which was the other half of this original post)

See also my Japan travel guide and my other Japan posts

Kobe Wing Stadium

Japan, Rugby World Cup

Still popularly known by its former name of Kobe Wing Stadium, Kobe Misaki Stadium is home to Vissel Kobe (football J1) and Kobelco Steelers (rugby union Top League), so while not a dedicated rugby stadium it does see regular rugby and was therefore a logical choice for the Rugby World Cup. It was also used for a few matches in the 2002 FIFA World Cup.

It’s one of the most convenient venues on the list, a short walk from Misaki-Koen Station on the Kobe Subway Kaigan Line. If staying in Osaka, you can ride the JR, Hankyu, or Hanshin lines (depending on your starting point) and change to the Kobe subway at Sannomiya.

Where to Stay for Matches in Kobe

Sannomiya’s the main centre of Kobe in terms of shopping, eating & drinking, and accommodation, and is the obvious place to stay; you can take the subway from Sannomiya straight to the stadium. It’s also feasible to stay in Osaka, as it’s just 25 minutes from Osaka Station to Sannomiya; for this, Umeda would be the best place to stay. See my Kobe guide here

Hotels in Kobe

New users can get a $35 discount from their first Airbnb rental through Rugby Guide Japan, simply click here and sign up.

Iniesta Bar inside Kobe Wing Stadium — Iniesta presently plies his trade for Vissel Kobe, and they make a fairly big deal out of it

This post was archived from my Rugby World Cup website; see here for more (including the Kobe & Osaka quick guides and Hanazono Stadium guide which formed the rest of this original post)

See also my Japan travel guide and my other Japan posts

Ecopa Stadium, Shizuoka

Japan, Rugby World Cup

Shizuoka Prefecture’s 50,000 seat Ecopa Stadium opened just before the 2002 FIFA World Cup (hosting 3 games), and as the prefecture’s biggest stadium is used as a part-time home ground by both main Shizuoka teams (the nearby Jubilo Iwata, and Shizuoka City based S-Pulse). It’s also sometimes used by the Brave Blossoms for home international test matches, so it was an obvious venue choice and Japan will play Ireland here in what could be a crucial Pool A match (one of 4 pool matches at this stadium).

Schedule

September 28 Japan vs Ireland
October 4 South Africa vs Italy
October 9 Scotland vs Russia
October 11 Australia vs Georgia

How to Get to Shizuoka Ecopa Stadium

The stadium’s a 15-minute walk up the hill from Aino Station, a fairly minor station on the main JR Tokaido Line. If arriving by shinkansen from the Tokyo direction you need to get off at Kakegawa then take the local train 1 stop west to Aino – the Nozomi & Hikari trains don’t stop at Kakegawa, so make sure to take the Kodama (it’s also possible to take the Hikari to Hamamatsu (see below) then double back to Aino – it’s more expensive, but with the JR Pass that makes no difference, and the journey time’s about the same)

Coming from points west, the closest shinkansen station is Hamamatsu from where it’s another 20 minutes on the Tokaido Line. Hamamatsu is served by the Kodama and most Hikari trains, but not the Nozomi.

IC cards can be used throughout the region from Nagoya across through Shizuoka, but don’t get the Luluca (local Shizuoka card) or Nicepass (local Hamamatsu card); instead get the Toica card from any JR station to ensure compatibility in other regions (or use your existing Suica, Pasmo, Icoca etc from Tokyo or elsewhere)

Hotels near Shizuoka Ecopa Stadium

There’s a budget hotel in front of the station called Cosmo Inn, very likely to be fully booked of course and it’s not listed on the usual OTAs but you can try using their website (Japanese only) here, reservation page here (the email address is probably the best bet). There’s little else in the vicinity of the stadium, but the small towns of Fukuroi & Iwata (one & two stops west on the Tokaido line respectively, search here), and Kakegawa (one stop east where you change to/from the shinkansen, search here) have a few business hotels. There are two small hotels near Iwata Station which again aren’t listed on the OTAs and only have Japanese websites, but you could give them a shot: Iwata Park Hotel and Iwata Station Hotel (maybe try the reservation page here)

If those are all full (likely) or you just want to stay somewhere bigger, your best bet would be Hamamatsu – the largest city in Shizuoka and just 20 mins away on the Tokaido Line; search & book hotels in Hamamatsu. Another alternative would be Shizuoka City (Shizuoka-shi), search here, 50 minutes to the east along the Tokaido Line (or 25 minutes if you use the shinkansen with a change at Kakegawa). Nagoya (search here) is also a feasible option (especially if you already have the JR Pass), an hour or so away by bullet train (changing from Hikari at Hamamatsu, or from Kodama at Kakegawa; if you take the shinkansen from Nagoya but don’t have a pass it’s cheaper to change at Hamamatsu); check train journey details on Hyperdia (for an explanation on using Hyperdia see here)

Yaizu & Toyohashi could also potentially work if you can’t find anything else.

See here for more on Nagoya.

There aren’t any listings around the stadium, but it could be a good option for basing yourself in Hamamatsu or Nagoya. New users can get a $35 discount from their first Airbnb rental through Rugby Guide Japan, simply click here and sign up.

Statue of Ayumu Gomoramu at Shizuoka Ecopa Stadium

Things to Do in Shizuoka

Hamamatsu: the ACT Tower at Hamamatsu Station has an observation deck on the 45th floor. From the station you can take bus #4 (25 minutes) to the Nakatajima sand dunes

Kakegawa: Kakegawa Castle is a modern reconstruction, but as it was done using traditional techniques it’s considered one of the better castle reconstructions in Japan. It’s a 10-minute stroll north of Kakegawa Station. You can also tour Shizuoka’s famous tea fields by steam locomotive on the Oigawa Railway, accessed from Kanaya Station which is two stops (15 minutes) east of Kakegawa on the JR line.

Hakone: the Fuji-Hakone-Izu National Park occupies eastern Shizuoka Prefecture (as well as bits of neighbouring Yamanashi & Kanagawa prefectures), consisting of the Mt Fuji area and the Izu Peninsula. The World Cup’s too late in the year for climbing Fuji (the trails are closed in early September), but you can still take the bus up to ‘Fujinomiya 5th Station’, which is the car park and trailhead on the south side of Fuji at 2400m. Catch the bus from Shin-Fuji Station (weekends only during the World Cup, 2 round-trips per day with 30 minutes at 5th Station, schedule here), which is served by shinkansen bullet trains (specifically, the ‘Kodama’ all-stop trains).

Large torii gate at Lake Ashinoko, Hakone — Hakone

Other than that the easiest bit of the park to visit is Hakone, actually just across the prefectural boundary in Kanagawa. From Odawara Station you can take the bus (around an hour) up to Lake Ashinoko, where you can take a boat cruise on the lake and ride the Hakone Ropeway; that’s plenty for a day-trip, and you can descend to Odawara and take the train on to Tokyo (half an hour by Kodama shinkansen) or Shizuoka. You can also stay up there at one of Hakone’s hotels or ryokan, and take your time to check out the various museums, the other ropeway (there are two, the other one being the Komagatake Ropeway up Mt Komagatake), ride the scenic Hakone Tozan Railway, and soak in the hot springs. You can get the Hakone Free Pass (see here) for 2 or 3 days which covers the ropeways, local buses, sightseeing cruise, and scenic railway. Check out the Hakone homepage here, and search hotels in Hakone here

Hamamatsu Nightlife

Hamamatsu’s relatively large expat population mostly consists of Brazilians & Peruvians, so the nightlife has a reputation for being livelier than usual in medium-sized Japanese cities and with a little Latin flair; I’ve never personally sampled it though, so you’ll just have to see what you can find.

Any questions about Hamamatsu or Ecopa Stadium? Give me a shout below and I’ll get back to you.