Nozomi is the fastest train service running on the Tōkaidō/San'yō Shinkansen lines in Japan. The service stops at only the largest stations, and along the stretch between and, Nozomi services using N700 series equipment reach speeds of. The trip between Tokyo and Osaka, a distance of, takes 2 hours 21 minutes on the fastest Nozomi service. The trains stop at fewer stations than the Hikari and Kodama trains. On the Tōkaidō Shinkansen between and, Nozomi trains stop only at,, and. On the Sanyō Shinkansen between and, all Nozomi trains stop at,, and, with certain trains also stopping at additional stations. The Nozomi service is not valid for foreign tourists travelling with a Japan Rail Pass.
Stopping patterns (as of May 2019)
;Key ● All trains stop ○ Some trains stop △ Few trains stop 1 Some trains begin/terminate at Nishi-Akashi, Himeji, Okayama or Hiroshima. 2 Some trains begin/terminate at Nagoya. Note: Basic Nozomi stopping patterns are shown. Additional Nozomi trains with differing stopping patterns are added during holiday and high-peak travel periods, and are not included in this table.
Trains are formed as shown below, with car 1 at the Hakata end, and car 16 at the Tokyo end.
N700 series
700 series
History
Wartime steam services
The Nozomi name was first used for long-distance express services operated between Busan in Japanese-occupied Korea and Mukden in the former Manchukuo from 1934. From 1938, the services were extended to run between Busan and Hsinking in Manchukuo. The 1,530 km journey from Busan to Hsinking took over 29 hours, with an average speed of. The services were run down between 1943 and 1944.
Shinkansen services
Nozomi shinkansen services commenced on March 14, 1992 using new 300 series trainsets with a top speed of 270 km/h. From March 1997, 500 series trainsets were introduced on Tokyo - Hakata Nozomi services, running at a maximum speed of 300 km/h and covering the section between Shin-Osaka and Hakata in 2 hours 17 minutes. 700 series trains were introduced on Nozomi services in 1999, and N700 series trains were introduced from July 1, 2007, initially with four daily round-trip runs. All regularly scheduled through Nozomi services to the San'yō Shinkansen were operated by N700 series sets from 13 March 2010. From the start of the revised timetable on 17 March 2012, all regularly scheduled Nozomi services, including runs limited to the Tokaido Shinkansen, were operated by N700 series sets.
