乗Japan Train Trips
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How to ride trains in Japan

Kyushu

How to ride the Kumamoto city tram: ¥200 anywhere, pay as you get off

熊本市電（路面電車）の乗り方

Board at the middle or rear door, pay a flat ¥200 (child ¥100) at the front when you get off — nationwide IC cards, contactless credit cards, QR payments and exact cash all work.

  • Board at the rear
  • Exit at the front
  • Pay when you get off
  • IC cards OK
  • Flat fare
↑ OUT↓ IN◀ Front (driver)Rear ▶
Board at the rear Exit at the front

Kumamoto's city trams, run by the Kumamoto City Transportation Bureau, connect Kumamoto Station with the city centre (Karashimacho, Hanabatacho, Torichosuji) and the stop for Kumamoto Castle. There are two routes, A and B, which meet at Karashimacho.

Every ride costs the same: ¥200 for adults (junior-high age and up) and ¥100 for children of primary-school age. One preschool child rides free with each paying passenger.

▶

乗り方の流れ

Step by step

  1. 01Get on at the middle or rear door

    On ordinary trams, board through the middle or rear door. On the low-floor trams you can board at either end. You don't tap anything when you get on.

  2. 02Pay when you get off

    Get off at the front and tap your IC card (Suica, ICOCA, SUGOCA, nimoca and the other nationwide cards) or contactless credit card on the matching reader by the driver. Paying for more than one person, or a child fare? Tell the driver before you tap.

  3. 03Cash: exact fare only

    Drop the exact fare into the fare box — no change is given. Change ¥1,000 notes and coins at the changers at the front and rear of the car first; ¥10,000, ¥5,000 and ¥2,000 notes can't be changed.

  4. 04QR payment: tell the driver

    PayPay, Alipay and many other QR apps work: scan the payment QR code inside the car while riding, enter the fare and show the screen to the driver as you get off.

  5. 05Changing between routes A and B

    At Karashimacho, take a transfer ticket from the driver when you get off (cash, credit card or QR), or tap your IC card again when you board the second tram. The transfer must be within 20 minutes.

Day passes

The tram-only one-day pass costs ¥700 (child ¥350) as a scratch card, or ¥500 (child ¥250) as a mobile ticket in the QUICK TRIP web app (no install) or the Jorudan and My route apps. A mobile 24-hour ticket is ¥600 (child ¥300). Show the ticket to the driver as you get off — don't tap the IC reader. These passes are not valid on buses.

With a paper pass, scratch off the year, month and day before your first ride. The paper pass is sold at the bureau's ticket offices (see the official list of sales points).

Good to know

  • At ¥200 a ride, the ¥500 mobile day pass pays for itself on the third ride — handy for Kumamoto Station → castle → Suizenji Garden.
  • Paying with a contactless credit card gives a ¥20 discount when you change to another tram, bus or Kumamoto Electric Railway train within 90 minutes. Nationwide IC cards other than nimoca don't get this discount.
  • The JAPAN RAIL PASS is not valid on the city tram.

Sources

Rules differ between railways and change from time to time — last checked 5 Nov 2026. Follow signs and staff on the day.