My hotel for the night was a parked Japanese bullet train. I had an entire carriage to myself—but no bed. So I built one.
During Akita’s Kanto Festival, JR East offered a special overnight stay aboard an E6 Akita Komachi Shinkansen at Akita Station.
I booked through JRE MALL, packed supplies from Don Quijote and Daiso, and turned the train seats into my own makeshift bed. Only five guests stayed that night. With room to spread out, dinner to find, and a bed to construct, this became a very different Shinkansen adventure. Even the JR East staff asked if they could take a photo of what I’d built! Come along for the preparations, check-in, and overnight experience—and find out what it’s actually like to sleep inside a bullet train that goes nowhere. Japan’s railways are experimenting with overnight Shinkansen stays.
Their experiment became my experiment. Would you spend a night here? And what would you bring? 
⚠️ This was a special overnight stay during Akita’s Kanto Festival. My bed setup used items placed on the floor or tucked into the seats; nothing was taped or clipped to the train. Please don’t attach anything to train seats, walls or floors, block the aisle, or use a setup that could cause damage. Always ask staff before arranging your own sleeping setup. 
Did I get any sleep? Better than if I hadn’t built a bed! Watch to see how I put this all together.
