Sendai JR Station 仙台駅 is an interchange train station for Tohoku Shinkansen line 東北新幹線, Tohoku main line 東北本線, Joban line 常磐線 and Senzan line 仙山線. Sendai is the capital city of Miyaji Prefecture and also the most populated city in Tohoku region. This explains why the transport infrastructure in Sendai is well established, as this metropolitan city is served by high speed trains, Sendai Airport (which is 25 minutes by train from its city center) and has its own subway network (仙台市地下鉄).
Shinkansen and other trains serving this train station include:
(1) Hayabusa はやぶさ, commuting northwards towards Morioka 盛岡駅, Shin Aomori 新青森駅 via Tohoku Shinkansen line and eventually to Hokkaido via Hokkaido Shinkansen line, terminating at Shin Hakodate Hokuto 新函館北斗駅.
(2) Hayabusa はやぶさ, commuting southwards towards Tokyo 東京駅 via Tohoku Shinkansen line.
(3) Yamabiko やまびこ, commuting northwards towards Ichinoseki 一ノ関駅, Shin Hanamki 新花巻駅 and Morioka 盛岡駅 via Tohoku Shinkansen line.
(4) Yamabiko やまびこ, commuting southwards towards Fukushima 福島駅 and Tokyo 東京駅 via Tohoku Shinkansen line.
(5) Sendai Airport Access Line 仙台空港アクセス線, where trains commute between Sendai JR Station and Sendai Airport. Do take note this train is operated by Sendai Airport Transit 仙台空港鉄道. It takes about 25 minutes by local train and 17 minutes by rapid service train to commute between the terminus stations.
Sendai Airport Access Line: http://www.senat.co.jp/timetable
(6) Sendai Subway 仙台市地下鉄. This is also the interchange station for both Tozai (東西線 East-West) and Nanboku (南北線 North-South) lines of Sendai Subway. If you plan to take multiple rides on the subway network, a one day pass [850 yen] can be purchased at the automated ticket counters at the subway station.
Sendai Subway: https://www.kotsu.city.sendai.jp/subway/station/station.html
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| Kotodai Koen subway station. |
What's nearby?
(1) AER, about 2 minutes walk from the west exit of the train station.
The 31st storey of this building is open to public as an observation terrace 展望テラス where an excellent view of Sendai city can be captured. Highly recommend to pay here a visit just before sunset to admire the transition of the city from daytime to nightfall. Admission is also free of charge.
(2) Bus stops, located on the west exit of the train station.
Bus Stop / Platform 16: for Loople Sendai るーぷる仙台, a sightseeing city loop bus, which covers major tourism spots in Sendai city. For single ride on this bus, it cost 260 yen per trip. There are two one day passes which give unlimited rides on board Loople Sendai bus.
- One day Loople Sendai pass るーぷる仙台一日乗車券: 620 yen
- One day pass for Loople Sendai and Sendai Subway るーぷる仙台・地下鉄共通
一日乗車券: 900 yen
For my trip, I bought the one day pass for Loople Sendai and Sendai Subway at the ticket counter just beside Platform 16, the place where Loople Sendai bus departs from. Utilised this convenient bus service to visit Zuihoden Mausoleum 瑞鳳殿, Site of Sendai Castle 仙台城址 and Sendai Mediatheque 仙台メディアテーク in a day. Loople Sendai operates from 0900 hrs onwards at Sendai Station and the last bus departs at 1600 hrs. The buses run at 20 minutes intervals on weekdays (except in August) and run at 15 minutes intervals on weekends, public holidays and for the entire month of August.
Loople Sendai bus: http://loople-sendai.jp/
Bus Stop / Platform 31: for buses departing for Sendai Airport.
Bus schedule: https://www.sendai-airport.co.jp/access/bus/
(3) Kikusuian 喜久水庵, a local sweets and confectionery brand with shops located on the 2nd floor (near the ticket gates) and 3rd floor (in the Shinkansen transit area) of the train station.
https://kikusuian.jp/shops/
When I was in Sendai on both trips to Tohoku region, I was intrigued by numerous pictures depicting a bright green coloured bean paste. Found out that this bean paste is called zunda ずんだ and is a specialty of Sendai. Zunda is created by first mashing boiled edamame and then mixing the paste with salt and sugar, and is commonly used as a dressing for mochi and dango. While strolling around the shops in the transit area, I saw pictures of zunda yet again. Stopped by Kikusuian and decided to grab a cup of soft serve topped with zunda to try. The consistency of zunda is a bit like sweet red bean paste, but with more chunky bits of beans in it. Taste wise, it is less sweet than azuki and more refreshing in my opinion. As I am a fan of edamame, this dessert hit the spot right from the start.
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| Parco departmental store on the right and LOFT on the left. |
- On the west side of the train station, there are two Parco departmental stores and LOFT, one of my favourite lifestyle goods store to hang out in whenever I am in Japan. This particular outlet of LOFT spans from the second to seventh floor of the building and MUJI is located on the sixth floor in the same building. The sheltered walkway of Hapina Nakakecho Shopping Street (ハピナ名掛丁商店街) and Omachi 大町 are also located on this side of the train station.
- On the east side of the train station, there is BiVi departmental store and Yodobashi Camera.
Stayed in Sendai city for a night during my first trip to Tohoku region in Oct 2015. Chose Toyoko Inn Sendai Higashi Guchi 2 東横INN仙台東口2号館, which is about 8 minutes walk away from the East Exit of the train station, because it was relatively cheaper than the ones situated much closer to the train station.
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| Sendai JR Station West Exit. |
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| Hapina Nakakecho Shopping Street. |
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| Sendai JR Station at night. |
Commemorative stamps:
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