Great Japanese Railway Journeys
2026 · Documentary · 1 Season · 15 Episodes ·
Michael Portillo is in Japan for a breathtaking railway journey through the country that launched the magnificent Shinkansen bullet train.
Episodes
1. Osaka to NagoyaBeginning his journey in Osaka, Michael explores the artistic phenomenon of manga, takes a trip on the Shinkansen and, in Nagoya, visits the factory making the smart loo.
2. KyotoMichael travels to the cultural heart of Japan, Kyoto, the city that for a thousand years was the capital. He visits a Shinto shrine, learns about a classic of Japanese literature and meets a geisha.
3. Shima Peninsula to NaraMichael takes a luxury, panoramic Shimikaze train to the beautiful Shima peninsula. He visits Nara, the ancient capital of Japan, and encounters one of the largest bronze Buddha statues in the world.
4. Kanazawa to Kurobe GorgeMichael begins in the city of Kanazawa, where he goes behind the scenes of the Shinkansen operation. He discovers the history of the Maeda family and rides the exhilarating Kurobe Gorge railway.
5. Japanese Alps: Nagano to Narai JukuMichael ends the first leg of his Japan adventure on a Shinkansen bullet train, heading to Nagano, the host city of the 1998 Winter Olympics and the gateway to the Japanese Alps.
6. Kagoshima to ChiranMichael starts a journey in and around Japan's southernmost main island, Kyushu. He begins in Kagoshima, an extraordinary city which sits in the shadow of Japan’s most active volcano, Sakurajima.
7. Amakusa Islands to Shin OmutaMichael Portillo takes the ferry to the Amakusa archipelago, visits the town where missionaries brought Christianity to Japan and meets a master swordsmith in Shin Omuta.
8. Yame to NagasakiMichael visits a Kyushu tea farm and the city of Nagasaki, the only port open to foreign trade when Japan was closed to the outside world for more than 200 years.
9. Arita to FukuokaMichael arrives in the home of Japanese porcelain, Arita, where a railway line runs straight through the town’s stunning porcelain Shinto shrine.
10. Shimonoseki to HiroshimaMichael tries the deadly delicacy of pufferfish in the harbour town of Shimonoseki and visits Hitachi’s Kasado Works, where the iconic Shinkansen high-speed trains are manufactured.
11. Tokyo (1)On board a sleek Shinkansen bullet train, Michael arrives in Tokyo, one of the greatest cities on earth, with a population of 37 million in the metropolitan area.
12. Tokyo (2)Michael rides the 21-mile Yamonote line, an elevated railway that encircles the city, and visits the busiest train station in the world by passenger numbers.
13. Tokyo to SendaiMichael heads north from Tokyo to Honshu’s Tohoku region, known as the rice granary of Japan. In the city of Sendai, he learns about the disaster of the 2011 earthquake and tsunami.
14. Sendai to Lake ToyaMichael’s bullet train takes him through the undersea Seikan tunnel to Hokkaido. He explores the southern port city of Hakodate, one of the first to trade with the outside world.
15. Lake Shikotsu to OtaruMichael explores the history of Hokkaido’s indigenous Ainu people. At Lake Shikotsu, he enjoys a traditional meal of salmon soup and witnesses a performance of the ancient Dance of the Cranes.
