How to Get to Nara

From Foreign Countries to Nara: Fly to Osaka + Train/ Direct Bus

To get to Nara from foreign countries, you need to fly to Osaka’s Kansai International Airport (KIX) or Osaka International Airport (Itami) first and then take trains with 1 transfer or the direct long-distance bus to get there.

Kansai International Airport to Nara

1. Most Convenient Way: Airport Limousine Bus

Kansai Airport Limousine Bus

Airport Limousine Bus can take you from Kansai International Airport to Nara without transfer.
Time needed: 1h 40 minutes – 2 h
Where to take: KIX Terminal 1 and Terminal 2
Arrive at: JR Nara Station
Price: 2,400 yen

Disadvantage: only 4-5 buses very day

Departure Time:

Terminal 1: 8:45, 10:45, 14:45, 17:45, 20:45

Terminal 2: 10:32, 14:32, 17:32, 

2. Fastest Way: Limited Express Train Haruka + 1 Transfer 

Where to Take: Kansai Airport Station, which is several minutes’ walk far from KIX
Transfer at: Tennoji Station
Transfer to: JR Yamatoji Line
Arrive at: JR Nara Station
Time Needed: 1 h 10 minutes
Price: 2,680 yen (2,170 yen for ride 1 and 510 yen for ride 2)

Limited Express Haruka Train

3 Cheapest Way: Nankai Railway Kubo Line + 1 Transfer

Where to Take: Kansai Airport Station
Transfer at: Namba Station
Transfer to: Kintetsu Nara Line
Arrive at: Kintetsu Nara Station
Time Needed: 1h 30minutes
Price: 1,650 yen (970 yen for ride 1 and 680 yen for ride 2)

4. Fast but Expensive Way: Taxi

By taxi, you can get to Nara in 1 hour directly and the cost is about 15,000 yen. You can also carpool with other people.

Osaka International Airport to Nara

Similarly, there is also no direct train between Nara and Itami. The best and most convenient way is also Airport Limousine Bus. The Bus departs from Itami and gets to JR Nara Station directly in 1h 20 minutes. The frequency is 1 bus each hour from 8:40 to 21:00.

An alternative plan is taking trains with 2 transfers: you need to take a train around the Airport to get to Hotarugaike Station first; later take another train to get to Umeda Station, from which take train get to Nara. The time and cost required are 1 hour and 1,500 yen.

Another convenient but expensive way is taking taxi, which costs about 10,000 yen and takes about 1 hour.

Taxi around Osaka Itami Airport

From other cities in JAPAN to Nara

To travel from other cities in Japan to Nara, one convenient way is to fly to Osaka’s KIX or Itami airports first and then go to Nara by bus, train or taxi, as mentioned above. As a result, if there are both airports in your departure place and direct flights to Osaka, you can consider this way. Here are some Japanese cities which have flights to Osaka: Tokyo, Kagoshima, Hokkaido, Nagano, Fukuoka, Kumamoto, and Nagasaki.

Trains from other Japan's cities to Nara

Another way is train or Shinkansen, by which you can get to Nara from most Japanese cities either directly or with 1 – 2 transfers, as the below table shows:

Departure Places	Transportation	Time Needed
Tokyo	Shinkansen + Train	3h
Kyoto*	Train	30min – 1h10min
Osaka*	Train	50min – 1h10min
Kobe*	Train	45min-1h
Miyazaki*	Train	1h
Fukuoka	Shinkansen + Train	4h
Hiroshima	Shinkansen + Train	2.5-3h
Kanazawa	Shinkansen + Train+ Train	3-4h
Nagoya	Shinkansen + Train	1.5-3h
Yokohama	Shinkansen + Train	3-3.5h
Okayama	Shinkansen + Train	2h
Nagano	Shinkansen +Shinkansen+ Train	5-6h
Hakone	Train+Shinkansen+Train	3.5-4.5h
For other cities like Hokkaido, Kagoshima, Kamakura, and Nagasaki, taking train to Nara means either too many transfer or long travel time. It is more recommended to fly to Osaka first and then get to Nara.

* means that you can get to Nara from this place by train or Shinkansen directly without any transfer.