Coin lockers or staffed luggage storage
You have a big suitcase, a few free hours before check-in and no idea where to leave it.
Reference data
Luggage transfer complexity scale
You want to know how much suitcase-dragging a route really means.
This page gives common Japan routes a luggage score from 1 (almost no carrying) to 5 (many moves with heavy bags). It exists so you can compare routes before booking hotels, not after.
How is the score built?
We add three things for each route.
- One point for each hotel change.
- One point for each long leg, meaning a rail ride of about two hours or more, or a domestic flight.
- One point if a leg includes stairs, several transfers or a rural bus with limited luggage space.
Then we subtract one point per leg where luggage forwarding is used. The scale is our judgement. The travel times and luggage rules behind it are sourced below.
What do common routes score?
| Route shape | Hotel changes | Long legs | Score without forwarding | Typical use. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| One city base with day trips | 0 | 0 | 1 | Tokyo or Osaka only. |
| One base plus one overnight add-on | 1 | 0 | 2 | Tokyo with a night in Hakone. |
| Two cities | 1 | 1 | 3 | Tokyo to Osaka. |
| Three bases on one island | 2 | 2 | 4 | Tokyo, Kyoto, Osaka and Hiroshima. |
| Four or more bases or rural legs | 3 or more | 3 or more | 5 | Central Japan circuits, multi-base Hokkaido. |
The Tokyo to Osaka leg is the usual long leg: the fastest Nozomi takes 2 hours 21 minutes 1. Within Kansai, Kyoto, Nara and Kobe are each about an hour from Osaka 2, which is why a Kansai base scores low. Tokyo to Hokkaido is a flight of about 90 minutes, or around eight hours by train 3.
What lowers a score?
Luggage forwarding is the strongest tool. Airports and most major hotels can send bags ahead, within 160 linear cm and 25 to 30 kg 4. Coin lockers help on short gaps and cost about 300 to 600 yen, but popular ones fill early 5.
Packing one small overnight bag for a night away, and sending the big case on, is the simplest trick. Read sending luggage between hotels and packing light for multi-city Japan.
How do you use it?
- List your hotels in order and count the changes.
- Mark every leg of about two hours or more.
- Add the points and compare with who is travelling.
- Reduce the score by forwarding bags or merging two bases into one.
For elders, see fewer luggage transfers with grandparents. For vocabulary, see takkyubin and coin lockers.
Tell us your route and who is travelling, and we will score it, then show where forwarding or a base change removes the heaviest carrying.
Keep planning
Coin locker, the station bag locker
You are dragging a suitcase between hotel checkout and your afternoon plans.
Sending luggage between hotels: what to check
You are tired of dragging suitcases across cities and want to know if sending them ahead is safe.
Takkyubin, Japan's luggage forwarding
You dread dragging suitcases through stations, and wonder if someone can carry them ahead.
Japan with grandparents, fewer bag transfers
You keep picturing a parent on a station staircase, suitcase in hand.
Packing light for a multi-city Japan trip
You are moving between cities, and every extra kilo has to be carried up a station staircase.
Questions travellers ask
Is this scale an official rating?
No. It is our own planning tool. The inputs are facts you can check, such as hotel changes and published travel times, and the 1 to 5 score is our way of adding them up. Treat it as a conversation starter, then confirm the details for your own dates.
Can luggage forwarding lower my score?
Yes. Airports and most major hotels can send bags ahead, within the size and weight limits the operator sets. Each forwarded leg removes most of the carrying, so we count it as a reduction of one point on that leg.
What score is right for grandparents or toddlers?
We suggest staying at 2 or 3 for elders and small children, and using forwarding on every change-over day. A 4 or 5 route can still work, but it needs rest days and a clear plan for where bags wait.
Sources
Figures are checked against these sources and dated so you can see how current they are.
- JR Central Annual Report 2025accessed 2026-10-20
- JNTO, Osakaaccessed 2026-10-20
- JNTO, Hokkaidoaccessed 2026-10-20
- Japan National Tourism Organization (JNTO), luggage storage and forwardingaccessed 2026-10-20
- Japan National Tourism Organization (JNTO), luggage storage and forwardingaccessed 2026-10-20
Ready to shape your Japan trip?
Tell us your dates, who is travelling and what you hope to see. We will reply with ideas and a tailored quote.