Never been on either until a week ago. Great, but totally different, sensations.
The Nozomi bullet train also tilts, but it’s not available to holders of a Japan Rail pass - full fare must be paid. The next step down, the Hikari bullet train, is covered by the JR pass.
I’d seen photos and videos, but it’s a different thing to see a Hikari gliding smoothly and silently into Tokyo station. Awesome - talk about looking made for speed!
When the Hikari gets underway, the first thing that gets your attention is the sound. As the speed increases, it deepens to a kind of pulsating throb, interspersed with an occasional sound like you’d get if you were grinding a piece of metal.
There is little sensation of speed inside the train. For that, just look out the window and watch the urban sprawl race by.
The Nampu diesel rail cars used by JR between Okayama and Kochi are tilt trains. From Okayama, the Nampu crosses the Inland Sea to the northern side of Shikoku Island using the Seto Bridge. What an engineering feat that bridge is!
The train then wends its way to Kochi, the main city on the south side of Shikoku, traversing the rugged mountainous centre en route. It’s in the mountains that the tilt gets exciting.
The first time the Nampu tilted, I thought I was about to meet my Maker. The tilt is very noticeable, and I didn’t see it coming. Once I got the hang of it, though, the Nampu was a fun ride - I found myself leaning into the curves!
The Nampu takes a bit over 2.5 hrs to make the trek from Okayama to Kochi. The Hikari covers Okayama - Hiroshima, a similar distance, in about 45 minutes. Different terrain, different track and roadbed, different trains.