Sunriseexpresstickets Reviews 

Reserved a ticket 3 months ago. Emailed them multiple times for ticket status update, 1 week away from travel and not response. Physically went to JR station in Japan, and they confirmed all tickets sold out. Emailed them for refund of deposit and still no response. SUNRISE EXPRESS TEAM - CAN YOU PLEASE RETURN MY DEPOSIT, IF YOU ARE READING THIS?

Edit on 16 Oct: I have received the tickets as of today. Nonetheless, the experience is not that great for a first-time customer who does not know what to expect. Interim updates while processing the delivery would be appreciated.

I have placed an advance reservation for a ticket on 28 Oct and was expecting to receive news for my ticket on 28 Sep. I didnt get any updates until I emailed them on 29 Sep, and only heard on 30 Sep that my preferred ticket is not available, but there is an alternative. I am okay with the alternative offered and made the final payment on the same day. Since then, I have not received any news on when my ticket will be delivered, despite sending several emails. This is not acceptable since I needed to make alternative travel arrangements if I cannot get the tickets. The uncertainty from a lack of response is much more stressful than trying to get the tickets by yourself through JR. It's is not worth the marked up price and I would not recommend this. Instead you are better off trying to buy from JR directly.

I booked a ticket via the Sunrise Express tickets service because I thought it might be easier than to do it on the Japanese website myself. One month before my train ride, I got an email that they bought my ticket and it worked. So far so good. But after that, the situation got worse. I emailed them because they wanted to send me the ticket either to my home country for a very high price (which is probably due to the delivery, I don't blame them) the other option was to send it in Japan. The problem was I arrived at the early morning on which I wanted to use the ticket on. Which means I couldn't send it domestically, but I didn't want to send it to my home country because it was so expensive. So I emailed them about this issue. I didn't get a reply. I emailed them several times, then I got a reply that they could send it to a station where I can pick it up. So far so good. I asked them at what station and how it works. I didn't get a reply. I emailed them. I emailed them. I emailed them even more because it was getting closer and closer. I was literally sitting in the plane flying to Japan with only several hours left, not knowing if I can ride the Sunrise Express or not this night. Until it came to my mind that I can write a review on this website. I wrote that I didn't receive the ticket yet. And they noticed it and wrote me back. And after that it got resolved rather quickly and I received the ticket. In the end, I do not recommend their service though. They are very kind and it works as advertised.

However there are several points i don't like:
1. to reach them is nearly impossible. And for me it was way harder than to just buy the ticket myself on the Japanese website.
2. this is also way more expensive. It is more like double the amount. I paid about 250 Euros for the ticket that would have normally cost me one hundred and twenty Euros at most, if I had booked it myself.

I'm glad it worked, and the sunrise express was awesome. But I recommend buying the ticket yourself, as it is cheaper and safes a lot of hassle.

I booked Sunrise Express tickets for three members of my family for Saturday, September 19, the first day of Japan’s Silver Week holiday period.

I knew how extremely popular the Sunrise Express is and how quickly tickets sell out on such a high travel season like Silver Week holiday , so I decided to use the Sunrise Express Team rather than try to secure the tickets via the most popular means - JR ticket service.

Before placing the order, communication by chat and email was very smooth and responsive. Unfortunately, after I made the reservation, the communication became much slower, and this caused me considerable stress.

I was told that I would receive an email by 1:00 p.m. on August 19, when the tickets became available for booking, informing me whether they had been successfully secured. However, I received no message. I contacted the team myself but received no reply. Early the following morning, I finally received an email confirming that the tickets had been successfully booked.

That was excellent news, but I still did not know when or how I would receive the actual tickets. I sent several emails asking about delivery, but again, timely responses were difficult to obtain. As our departure date approached, I became increasingly concerned about whether the tickets would actually arrive.
Finally, on August 28, the tickets arrived safely.

And the result? Our journey on the Sunrise Express was absolutely wonderful.

My family and I had a fantastic experience, and I am genuinely grateful to the Sunrise Express Team for giving us the opportunity to make this journey. Their ability to secure extremely difficult-to-get Sunrise Express tickets is impressive, and in that respect, the service delivered exactly what we hoped for.

However, I was disappointed with the timing and speed of communication after the booking. I have noticed that other reviewers have raised similar concerns, so I believe the team is already aware that this is an area that needs improvement.

A short message such as “Your tickets have been secured and will be sent by approximately XX date” would have removed most of the anxiety. Customers who use this service are entrusting the team with an important part of their trip, so timely communication is almost as important as successfully obtaining the tickets.

The final result was excellent. The process was much more stressful than it needed to be.

If the Sunrise Express Team can improve its communication while maintaining its excellent ability to secure these very difficult tickets, I believe this could become an even better service.

Thank you again for making our wonderful Sunrise Express journey possible. I wish the Sunrise Express Team continued success.

3rd party seller with no affiliation to Japan Rail. The markup is insane. $1000 for a ticket with face value $250. Also advertising twins as 1st class, when they are 2nd class, nice but never good value at $1000.
The website makes it look like a fancy tourist train- However most of the journey is in darkness apart from 5am-7am. There is no food service. Feels very misleading.

I wanted to ride on the Sunrise Express badly. I tried my luck booking myself thru the JR West website but it was near impossible. All tickets were snapped up in seconds. I was so happy when I chanced upon the Sunrise Express Tickets website where they are able to secure the tickets for you with an advertised 93% success rate. So I made a booking 1 month ahead and made the deposit to secure 2 tickets for my friend and myself on the Sunrise Express from Tokyo to Izumo. The date of the ticket booking arrived and I was waiting eagerly for them to get back with my tickets. Besides, they mentioned that they will get back within 3 hours after they have made the booking. After 3 hours, silence. After 1 day, silence. After 3 days, silence. Emailed them, no response. There was also no telephone number to call and check. So after 4 days, I chat with them using the Chat Box on their website. They finally got back and responded. They mentioned that they were unsuccessful in getting 2x tickets that I had requested earlier. However, they only manage to secure 1x ticket to Izumo and another ticket to Okayama instead. However, they were nice to provide a separate ticket for the journey from Okayama to Izumo. I mean I wanted 2x tickets, but they only managed to secure 1 only and my friend & I wanted to travel together. So our hopes were dashed and I was disappointed. I initiated a refund of my deposit and they were glad to assist. They mentioned that the refund will take 7 to 10 working days. But after 2 weeks later, I have yet to receive the refund. Until now, I am still waiting for it.

My recommendation is to proceed and book at your own risk. Never trust the nice reviews that you see and always have a Plan B. My feedback to Sunrise Express Tickets, never advertise what you cannot achieve. The success rate of 93% is clearly false and should set a lower benchmark.

From first reaching out to completing my journey, my experience with Sunrise Express Tickets was fantastic.

It had been my long time dream to take the Sunrise Express overnight train so when I started planning my trip to Japan I knew I wanted to make this happen. I understood it could be difficult to get tickets so after researching and finding this service, reading positive reviews, I decided to reach out.

I felt very aligned with my requested date and travel options and the quick communication left me hopeful and assured. I was very excited once my tickets were confirmed and the delivery to my hotel in Tokyo was very smooth.

The journey was absolutely amazing and worked perfectly with my travel back to Tokyo at the end of my trip. The Single Deluxe room was so nice and the whole experience was better than I could have imagined.

I would recommend Sunrise Express Tickets to everyone who is interested in taking this amazing train journey. I have full trust in this service and it was a pleasure working together to make this dream come true.

Thank you so much!

I booked the Sunrise Twin Cabin with SunriseExpressTickets and the entire process went extremely smoothly!

The physical tickets arrived a few days before I travelled along with a letter explaining how to use them.

I’ll have to admit that going through the process the first time, waiting for the tickets to arrive by post can be a bit nerve wracking. Thankfully the team at SunriseExpressTickets answered all my frequent emails which reduced my worries!

This is the only way to book this particular train in Japan without having a local purchase them for you, so I was very grateful for the service!

Awesome service if youre looking for an easy way to reserve a ticket. Requested some tickets, with options if i couldnt get my first option. Got an email 30 days prior to my departure date (when they go on sale) to confirm what tickets they were able to secure. Paid, then got the tickets FEDexed right away to my house. I would definitely recommend and use again.

BEWARE SCAM!
I paid a significant deposit in July to secure a ticket for the end of November. I'm now just a few days from travelling to Japan with no confirmation from sunriseexpresstickets.com. I've tried emailing 3 email addresses with no response. There is no phone number I can call either.
Update: The ticket date came and went with no communication or deposit refund.

Hello,
We did a pre-reservation for 2nd nov. 2025. But after confirmation & 30$ paid, no news since 3rd october! We send emails to booking adress as blog adress: no reply.
Please, sunriseexpress send money back!

There are many complimentary reviews of this service, but my current experience is like that of one other.

I made a reservation for 23 October 2025 on the website, successfully paid the USD30 deposit, and received a confirmation email on 21 August. I reconfirmed my request and received another confirmation. It said that information would come on 23 September.

However, I have received no communication at all. I have now sent five reminders. Some were by direct email and some by putting my question in the on-line question form. In case of difficulty in communication, I offered an alternative email address and suggested an sms message to my mobile phone. But I have still received no information.

If I don’t have a reservation, it is now very urgent to alter my travel plans. It looks like this business has closed down.

Hello Sunrise express tickets! If you see this, please say something immediately!

Geoffrey Warren (in UK)

I am pleased to acknowledge this helpful response from Sunrise Express Tickets. My deposit was fully refunded. Thank you.

Unfortunately, Sunrise Express Tickets could not obtain the reservation that I wanted. This is not surprising to me, since the demand is very high. I recognise that even these people, with local knowledge and expertise, are not always successful.

Also unfortunate was the breakdown in our email communications. I did not receive the email apparently sent on 23 September, either in inbox or spam folder despite checking both almost daily. It’s still surprising that my enquiries by the alternative route of the website enquiry form, as mentioned above, failed to get a reply.

For these reasons, I cannot give a 4 or 5 star rating. For anyone who would use Sunrise Express Tickets, I say:
Give it a try and hope for better luck with communications and ticket availability! And have an alternative travel plan ready.

I booked a ticket for the Sunrise Izumi Express for May throught this website and their service was impeccable. The information was clear, and when the ticket was secured, they let me know swiftly. Beause I was traveling from Belgium, and for three weeks, I asked them to send my ticket to an andress in Japan in stead of to Belgium, and that went smoothly. The invoices I needed were also provided perfectly. O, and the train was lovely as well. I recommend this service wholeheartedly.

Great experience with a hand made assistance by Nico. I will definitely book again.

We had a wonderful expérience on the Sunrise express which was made easier
by using this service: communication was super easy and it was very reliable. If
we ever go back on the Sunrise, I will definetely use this again.

Everything was quick and easy. Nico answered quite quickly to all our questions and doubts. I was a bit scared of using an intermediary in order to secure our tickets in advance, but our tickets were waiting for us at the hotel as we asked when we arrived!

I was nervous to rely on this service provider to get us Sunrise Express tickets, but they turned out to be reliable and reasonably priced. Communication was excellent, and my family had a great time. I strongly recommend using them.

The process of purchasing (email communication), payment (bank transfer) and subsequent collection (in-person at my hotel) went very smoothly. I recommend providing a couple of date options and accommodating your itinerary around those dates.

I have ridden the Sunrise Express twice, once via this service, and would not hesitate to repurchase from this service. So much easier for me, compared to the first time when I camped on the JR website for several days at 9am JST and clicking like mad through a less-than-intuitive online order form. Save yourself the headache and guesswork!

A young enterprising businessman, Niko found a great market niche as it is impossible for to buy Sunrise express tickets outside of Japan. Like some of the reviewers I was a bit concerned by the lack of address on the website until I realised he is just a young person starting off. I can vouch that he is honest and trustworthy - just don't expect an Amazon service. Instead, Niko is very responsive, you can have google calls, will get send photos of the tickets and a beautiful old fashioned envelope with the tickets at your hotel (we kept that one as a souvenir;-) The perfect complement to the Sunrise Express Experience! Enjoy and support this young man!

Nico/Sunrise did his best to get us tickets during a particularly busy time. My wife and I were looking for something very specific, but he was only able to secure one ticket in the berth we wanted initially. At the same time because he could only get 1 he was very adaptive, suggesting alternatives so we could both take the train together, and updating us as he'd check in regularly on availability. Very happy with the service.