Getting to and From Kiryu & Ashikaga | Tokyo, Narita, Haneda > Kita Kanto Region
Table Of Contents
While another world away in terms of feel, the Kita Kanto Region is actually quite close in terms of transit to the greater Tokyo Metro. In fact, thanks to the Tobu Railway’s Ryomo Line, much of the foothills of Kita Kanto are connected by an express train to Asakusa Station in central Tokyo.
So, what are the best ways to get to the cities of Kiryu & Ashikaga from Tokyo? Below are our top recommendations from Tokyo, and the Tokyo Airports (Haneda/Narita).
A Few Quick Notes!
*Please Note: Throughout this article I write Ashikaga-Shi Station with a hyphen to emphasize the difference between it and Ashikaga Station. You will mostly see it written Ashikagashi Station when in Japan, but as non-Japanese readers might confuse the two I am over emphasizing the “Shi” part to avoid any confusion.
*Please Note: You may see Tobu-Asakusa Station as well as Asakusa Station listed throughout this article. While seemingly two different stations, they in fact the same general station connected via underground tunnels between different train platforms. If you are concerned on transferring, please see this article for an in-depth explanation on getting to the Tobu wing of Asakusa Station.
OK, enough notes, onto the article. Feel free to hop around via the table of contents as well!
The Most Direct Way to Kiryu & Ashikaga | Asakusa or Kita-Senju Station to Shin-Kiryu or Ashikaga-Shi Station
In short you will take the Ryomo Express train from Tobu-Asakusa Station, Tokyo Skytree Station, or Kita-Senju Station and get off at either Shin-Kiryu or Ashikaga-Shi Station.
If you are coming out for one of our trips we will be transiting through either Shin-Kiryu or Ashikaga-Shi Station. These both are on the Tobu Ryomo line which stops at 3 key stations in Tokyo where you can get on. These stations are Tobu-Asakusa Station, Tokyo Skytree Station, and Kita-Senju Station.
IF traveling to Ashikaga-Shi, you can take trains bound for Akagi, Ota, or Isesaki.
IF traveling to Shin-Kiryu you must take trains bound for Akagi.
Your best friend in this whole endeavor is Google Maps. Google Maps is so well versed in Japanese train timetables and platforms, it is as easy as typing in your start and end points!
Below is the link to the itinerary on the side.
https://goo.gl/maps/XBKgU87aZmPaMAbh8
Give it a try yourself, you can even put in things like departure or arrival times!
Buying Seat Tickets in Advance Online (click here to expand and read!)
You can use this site below to buy your seat tickets in advance in English.
https://www.tobu-ticket.jp/guest/
Start by clicking the little globe at the top right corner of the page labeled “language” and choose English. Then, follow the menu options, pick your train, and enter credit card information.
Note: Many people forget to change to “non-Tobu Credit Card” option before entering their card info!
Once you complete the purchase you will receive an email with the ticket confirmation.
Note: This is only a “seat ticket” you still have to pay the “fare”. So this ticket will cost maybe 1,400yen or so, then you will still need to pay about 1,200 yen for the fare. This is because most of Japan uses touch pay cards like Suica or Pasmo to pay for trains quickly. So, they simply buy their seat, then tap in and tap out to pay fares.
If you don’t have one of these cards yet, they are great to have if you plan to spend even just a few days in Tokyo/Osaka/Kyoto/etc and use the subways. If not, no worries just go to a machine and buy a ticket, or walk up to the attendant and tell them where you are going. They can give you both the seat & fare ticket, just be sure to show them your email confirmation if you already pre-purchased your seat fare to not be double charged.
The JR Way | Bullet Trains Are Actually Slower?
While this route is often the easiest from central Tokyo, some might opt to use the JR Railway to transit. This takes around the same amount of time but involves taking a Shinkansen Bullet Train followed by a local train.
This can make more sense for those coming directly from Tokyo Station assuming they can get the transfer to lineup, but for 90% of people, transiting to Asakusa or Kita-Senju Station from most any station in Tokyo or the airports will be the better choice as it is both faster and cheaper.
Here is a sample of that itinerary as well as link below.
But How Do I Get There From An Airport? | Narita and Haneda Transfers
So you are flying into Tokyo’s Haneda or Narita Airports and you want to transfer out to Kiryu or Ashikaga? Easy, you just need to get to Asakusa Station first then take the above Ryomo Express train as described before.
How do you do that you ask? Well luckily Asakusa is a major transit hub in Tokyo so both airports have direct trains to Asakusa that leave regularly and take around 40min-1hr.
Here are some sample itineraries, remember Google Maps has got your back here!
Narita Airport to Asakusa Station
https://goo.gl/maps/eLw9oLfg7c2eSTK19
Haneda Airport to Asakusa Station
https://goo.gl/maps/wgCL4ZM1uT6XxLTL7
Shibuya, Shinjuku, and Other Parts of Tokyo?
If you are coming from West Tokyo (Shinjuku, Shibuya, etc) you might do best to transfer at Kita-Senju Station instead of Asakusa.
The upside to going through Asakusa Station is that the platform is very easy to identify, see this wonderful article explaining the Tobu-Asakusa Station area.
When transferring at Kita-Senju special attention should be paid for the oddly placed “express platform” shown below.
The tickets and gate to the express train section are at the far end of platform 2 and there is a ticket gate just around the corner where you can buy a ticket if you are confused with the machines.
Plan extra time with Kita-Senju as this is one of the less intuitive train platforms out there and you don’t want to miss your express train.
One Last Option | Green Car + Ryomo for Shinjuku & Shibuya Stations
Not to confuse things further, but there is one last option that might appeal to those coming from Shibuya or Shinjuku Station. That is, to take the Shonan-Shinjuku Like (which has Green Car assigned seat options) from Shibuya or Shinjuku Station to Kuki Station. From here, you can transfer to the Ryomo Express to complete your journey.
This is actually one of the fastest ways (2hrs) if schedules line up and allows an assigned seat from start to finish. The Green Car System can be read about here, but in short it works, just be sure to leave around 10min or more to transfer at Kuki Station unless you are decently versed in Japanese train station transfers.
Below is the link to this sample itinerary.
So to summarize, easiest is gonna be getting to Asakusa Station then taking the Ryomo Express Train. Both Narita and Haneda have direct trains to Asakusa Station. And, if you are coming from Shinjuku or Shibuya you might want to consider the Green Car on the Shonan-Shinjuku Line to Kuki and then transfer to the Ryomo.
Hope to see you out in Kita Kanto soon!
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