Typhoon Travel Turned Luxury Adventure! Gran Class, Green Car & an Unexpected Meitetsu Bonus
15 August 2024. We were supposed to be in Tokyo that day.
This is what happened the day after an emergency meeting in Kanazawa, where we decided to run west rather than into a typhoon making landfall in Kanto.
Forced into rearranging everything, we held an emergency meeting, mascots included.
“If we’re changing the plan anyway, let’s make it a luxurious one.”
From that moment the mood of the trip lifted considerably. Typhoons aren’t all bad, we thought.
Our First Gran Class — for 22 Minutes, With No Food or Drink Service
Conclusion number one of the emergency meeting was to book Gran Class, the class above Green Car and the highest on the Shinkansen.
We booked it with some enthusiasm. The reality was rather different from what we’d pictured.
On the rails Hokuriku Shinkansen Hakutaka No. 560 — Kanazawa 10:58 → Toyama 11:20 (22 minutes) Seats: Car 12, seats 5B and 5C Gran Class (no food or drink service) As of August 2024
First, it lasted 22 minutes. We settled in, tested the seat, took a few photographs — and were in Toyama.
And as the booking screen had stated, this service’s Gran Class was the “no food or drink” configuration. No attendant on board, and no drinks or sweets of any kind. Gran Class as a seat, and nothing else.
The seat itself really was in another league. The leather powered recliner goes back a long way, the spacing is generous, and the car was remarkably quiet. There were only a handful of other passengers.
But the parts you usually read about — the attendant service, the drinks, the dessert — we experienced none of them on this occasion.
Worth knowing before you book Gran Class Gran Class comes in two configurations: with food and drink service, and seat-only (no food or drink). Which one you get depends on the individual train. The Hakutaka No. 560 we rode was seat-only. The booking screen shows which configuration applies, so if you’re expecting the full service, check that line carefully. The same name can mean two quite different things.
We were, frankly, a little deflated. That said, this particular disappointment gets properly resolved a year later — see the end of this article.
Second Decision: Green Car on the Limited Express Hida
Conclusion number two was to book the Green Car on the Limited Express Hida, running from Toyama through Takayama toward Nagoya. Here too the carriage was nearly empty and we had space to spread out.
Watching the summer landscape of Gifu slide past the window, the anxiety about the typhoon seemed to drift away.
The Limited Express Hida is operated by JR Central between Nagoya and Hida-Takayama / Toyama.
An Unexpected Stop at Gifu — the Typhoon Catches Up
Then, as we approached Gifu Station, the Hida came to a stop. Services had been suspended because of the typhoon.
Halted with Nagoya almost in sight, we had no choice but to change at Gifu onto the Meitetsu line and continue to Nagoya from there.
An unplanned Meitetsu ride — a bonus stage, of sorts.
Meitetsu (Nagoya Railroad) is a private railway serving Aichi and Gifu. Meitetsu Gifu to Meitetsu Nagoya takes about 30 minutes by limited express. Worth knowing as an alternative when JR services stop.
A Wonderful Surprise — the Green Car Fare Was Refunded
“We got to enjoy the Green Car as far as Gifu, so fair enough,” we thought — and then the Green Car charge was refunded to us, because we hadn’t reached Nagoya.
What we’d planned as an indulgence turned into a bargain. The typhoon’s disruption ended up as a pleasant surprise.
What to Remember When Travelling by Train During a Typhoon
Refund rules If a limited express or Shinkansen service is suspended, or you don’t reach your destination, the limited express and Green Car charges are refunded. Don’t panic — ask at a station counter. In our case we didn’t apply for anything; the refund simply came through afterwards.
Use substitute transport When services are suspended, you can often transfer to another operator’s line. Our switch to Meitetsu is one example. On sections where a private railway runs parallel to JR, knowing your options means you can keep moving.
And sometimes, the answer is to travel away from it The decision we made in Kanazawa the night before — to abandon Tokyo — was ultimately what saved the trip. Rather than heading toward the storm, rearranging your plans to move away from it is the more reliable approach.
Summary | Turning Travel Chaos into Something Memorable
Journey
Details
Hakutaka No. 560, Gran Class
Kanazawa 10:58 → Toyama 11:20 (22 min, no food or drink service)
Limited Express Hida, Green Car
Toyama / Takayama → suspended at Gifu
Meitetsu
Gifu → Nagoya (the unexpected bonus)
And the Green Car charge came back to us.
A typhoon’s disruption turned into a summer trip we won’t forget. Plans changing is part of travel.
What happened afterwards
The Gran Class experience that ended here after 22 minutes with no service was repeated properly in the summer of 2025 — Morioka to Tokyo, two hours and fifteen minutes, with the full service this time.
A hot towel to start, sparkling wine, Aomori apple and nuts, a pound cake. Everything we missed on this occasion was there. Homework handed in, a year late.
