Today, we will experience a 4-day trip on the world’s only 7-star train, Japan’s luxurious sleeper train “Seven Stars In Kyushu”.
■Train information
Train name: Seven Stars in Kyushu
Started operation: October 15, 2013
Operator: Kyushu Railway Company (JR Kyushu)
Design: Eiji Mitooka
Vehicles: DF200 series diesel locomotive 77 series passenger cars
Gauge: 1,067 mm
Electrification: AC 20,000 V, 60 Hz
Maximum speed: 100 km/h (62.1 mph)
Train date: April 2025
Fare ¥1,870,000 / $13,100 (3 nights, 4 days course, 1 person)
Official website: https://www.cruisetrain-sevenstars.jp/english/
Seven Stars in Kyushu is a special cruise train operated by JR Kyushu. The train began operating on October 15, 2013, and its purpose is to travel around Kyushu and enjoy nature, food, hot springs, history, and more.
The train consists of seven cars, and the manufacturing cost was approximately 3 billion yen. In preparation for its 10th anniversary in 2022, some of the cars have been renovated. The number of rooms has been increased to 10, with a capacity of 20 people.
The train name represents the seven prefectures of Kyushu (Fukuoka, Saga, Nagasaki, Kumamoto, Oita, Miyazaki, and Kagoshima), the seven main tourist attractions of Kyushu (nature, food, hot springs, history and culture, power spots, human kindness, and trains), and the seven passenger cars.
As of spring 2017, the application ratio was about 22 times, and the most repeat passengers were 5 times, making it famous as a train that is difficult to reserve.
In 2014, it won the Brunel Award. In 2021, it won first place in the train category of the Conde Nast Traveler Readers’ Choice Awards 2021 conducted by the American travel magazine Conde Nast Traveler. It also ranked first in 2022 and 2023, making it the world’s best for three consecutive years.
■Table of Contents
00:00 Intro
00:45 Day 1 Course
00:57 Seven Stars Lounge at Hakata Station
02:50 Boarding and Departure
04:52 Room Tour (Suite)
14:22 Lunch in Car 1 (Day 1)
19:22 Tea Room Experience (Day 1)
21:52 Hita Geta Clog Making Experience (Day 1)
22:46 Exploring the Train – Cars 2 to 7
29:52 Formal Dinner (Day 1)
33:30 Bar Time (Day 1)
34:26 Bed and Amenities (Day 1)
36:23 Day 2 Course and Breakfast (Day 2)
38:26 Tea Time (Day 2)
40:16 Lunch (Day 2)
41:23 Seven Stars Bus
43:30 Excursion Kagoshima’s Satsuma Pottery Kilns (Day 2)
45:42 Onsen Ryokan in Kirishima, Kagoshima (Day 2)
53:16 Dinner at the Ryokan (Day 2)
57:46 Day 3 course and breakfast at the Ryokan (Day 3)
1:00:00 Boarding the Seven Stars at Kareigawa Station (Day 3)
1:01:40 Excursion in Oike, Miyazaki Prefecture (Day 3)
1:05:47 Boarding the Seven Stars at Takahara Station (Day 3)
1:07:37 Formal dinner (Day 3)
1:10:16 Bar time (Day 3)
1:11:35 Day 4 course
1:12:20 Breakfast at a sake brewery in Oita (Day 4)
1:14:29 Meditation experience at Zenkoji Temple in Oita (Day 4)
1:16:43 Tea time (Day 4)
1:17:22 Lunch at the Seven Stars restaurant at Aso Station, Kumamoto (Day 4)
1:21:01 Departing from Aso Station (Day 4)
1:22:35 Farewell event (Day 4)
1:23:16 Final in-car announcements and arrival (Day 4)
1:24:54 Album sent one month later
#sevenstars #sleepertrain #sevenstarsinkyushu #sevenstartrain #7startrain #japan
