Japan’s luggage forwarding service (takkyubin) is one of the most useful and underused services available to tourists. For a fee of around 1,500 to 2,500 yen per bag, you can send your suitcase between hotels, from your hotel to the airport, or from one city to the next.
The bag is collected and delivered overnight, freeing you to travel on the Shinkansen or explore without having to pull heavy luggage. Here is how to use it.
Quick Answer: Takkyubin: Japan’s overnight luggage forwarding service. Available from most hotels, convenience stores, and ski resorts. Send bags between hotels or to the airport for 1,500 to 2,500 yen per bag. Delivered the following day by 9am or specified time window. The main operators are Yamato Transport (Kuroneko) and Sagawa Express. Worth using when taking the Shinkansen between cities or heading to a ryokan where wheeling suitcases is impractical.
Why Use Luggage Forwarding in Japan
Japan’s public transport system is excellent, but it lacks Western-style baggage facilities. Luggage rules on the Shinkansen recently changed (see the Shinkansen luggage rules guide), and large bags require reserved storage. More fundamentally, navigating Tokyo subway stations, narrow Kyoto lanes, and traditional inn corridors with large suitcases is genuinely difficult. Forwarding luggage lets you travel light with a daypack while your suitcase arrives at your next destination.
How It Works
Step 1: Fill Out a Delivery Slip
At your hotel front desk, a convenience store (7-Eleven, FamilyMart, Lawson), or a Kuroneko Yamato/Sagawa service point, fill out a delivery slip with: your name, the destination hotel name and address, your check-in date, and the phone number of your next hotel. Hotel front desk staff can help with this. The slip is attached to your bag.
Step 2: Choose Your Service
The two main operators are Yamato Transport (Kuroneko, identified by the black cat logo) and Sagawa Express. Both offer roughly equivalent service. Kuroneko is the most common at hotels and convenience stores. Specify whether you want hotel-to-hotel, hotel-to-airport, or hotel-to-station delivery.
Step 3: Specify the Delivery Date and Time
Standard overnight delivery: hand your bag over by 12 pm, and it arrives at the next destination by the following day at 12 pm. You can specify time windows: morning (before 12 pm), afternoon (2 pm to 4 pm), evening (4 pm to 6 pm), or evening (6 pm to 8 pm). Please let me know when your hotel check-in opens so the bag arrives when the hotel is available to receive it.
Step 4: Receive Your Bag
At your destination hotel, the bag is delivered to the front desk. The hotel holds it until your check-in. You pick it up at check-in.
Cost
Fees are based on bag size and distance. Approximate ranges:
- Within the same city or prefecture: 1,500 to 1,800 yen per bag
- Between major cities (Tokyo to Kyoto, Kyoto to Osaka): 1,800 to 2,200 yen per bag
- Longer distance (Tokyo to Fukuoka, Osaka to Hokkaido): 2,000 to 2,500 yen per bag
- Oversized bags may cost more
Airport Forwarding
One of the most popular uses is forwarding luggage from a city hotel to the airport before a departure flight. Leave your bag at the hotel on the morning of departure, travel light on the Shinkansen or subway to the airport, and collect your forwarded bag at the airport’s Yamato or Sagawa service counter (not baggage claim, but a dedicated service counter). Allow 2 full days: forward on day 1, collect on day 3 (the day of your flight). Many hotels in Kyoto, Tokyo, and Osaka offer this as a standard service.
Where to Drop Off Bags
- Hotel front desk: the most convenient option. Ask on check-in or the evening before departure.
- Convenience stores: Most 7-Eleven, FamilyMart, and Lawson stores accept forwarding via Kuroneko Yamato.
- Train station service points: major Shinkansen stations have dedicated Yamato or Sagawa counters.
- Ski resort lodges: Niseko, Furano, and other Hokkaido resorts use forwarding extensively to send ski bags between resorts and airports.
For storing luggage for a few hours within a day (not overnight), see the coin lockers in Japan guide.
When Not to Use It
Luggage forwarding requires at least 1 overnight and sometimes 2 days. If you are checking out in the morning and arriving at your next destination the same evening, same-day delivery is possible in some cases but not guaranteed. Same-day airport delivery requires the bag to be dropped off by 11 am in most cases. Always confirm timing with the hotel before relying on this.
Nearby Guides
- coin lockers in Japan guide
- tax-free shopping in Japan guide
- JR Pass guide
- Suica card guide
- Japan travel tips
- Japan 7-day itinerary
- Japan 10-day itinerary
FAQ
Is luggage forwarding reliable in Japan?
Yes. Japan’s delivery services are extraordinarily reliable. Yamato and Sagawa both have near-perfect delivery records and time window adherence. It is considered a routine service by Japanese travellers and hotels, not a special arrangement.
Can I forward luggage from Tokyo to Kyoto?
Yes, this is one of the most common routes. Drop your bag at your Tokyo hotel at 12 p.m., continue to Kyoto by Shinkansen with a daypack, and your bag will arrive at your Kyoto hotel by the following morning. See the Japan 7-day itinerary for how this fits into a Japan itinerary.
What if something goes wrong with my forwarded luggage?
Both Yamato and Sagawa offer basic compensation for lost or damaged items. Keep a photo of the completed delivery slip and note the tracking number provided at drop-off. Both operators offer online tracking, though the websites are in Japanese. Hotel front desks can assist with tracking inquiries.
