Shuttle service from ship to city - Kochi, Japan

[asebastian]

Hi all,

 

To those who may be in the Japan cruises in March, April or later, and if you're stopping in Kochi, can you please come back and let us know if there is a free (or paid) shuttle service that is run from the port to the city? I understand in the past the cruise lines seem to have provided the shuttle, but that was pre-Covid. I wonder if things may have changed since. Cost cutting and all that.

 

Thank you.

[Weather Report]

On 1/18/2023 at 12:40 AM, asebastian said:

Hi all,

 

To those who may be in the Japan cruises in March, April or later, and if you're stopping in Kochi, can you please come back and let us know if there is a free (or paid) shuttle service that is run from the port to the city? I understand in the past the cruise lines seem to have provided the shuttle, but that was pre-Covid. I wonder if things may have changed since. Cost cutting and all that.

 

Thank you.

Great question.  I was wondering that myself.  We probably won't know until we are on the ship.  Until then, here's a link regarding standard procedures for those who are curious.  https://www.whatsinport.com/Kochi-Japan.htm  Taxi cabs may be the best option.

[asebastian]

4 hours ago, Weather Report said:

We probably won't know until we are on the ship

When is your trip? Mine is in October this year.

[Weather Report]

On 1/23/2023 at 12:08 AM, asebastian said:

When is your trip? Mine is in October this year.

We are on the March to May cruise.  Coming up soon!

[asebastian]

5 hours ago, Weather Report said:

March to May cruise

Good, I hope you report back on the shuttle situation. Also if there was no shuttle provided and you had to take a cab to the city center, what was the cost (I assume meter as Japanese taxis are usually very honest). Thanks

[Weather Report]

On 1/25/2023 at 12:34 AM, asebastian said:

Good, I hope you report back on the shuttle situation. Also if there was no shuttle provided and you had to take a cab to the city center, what was the cost (I assume meter as Japanese taxis are usually very honest). Thanks

I too wondered about taxi service and fares.  The only source I could find that claims to know about taxi fares is https://www.taxi-allo.com/index.php.  There is also a phone app called JapanTaxi but I haven't been able to get it to work.  Maybe it works once we are in Japan?

[asebastian]

The best source I've come across says this:

 

When using a standard four-passenger taxi, fares typically start around 400-750 yen for the first 1-2 kilometers and increase by around 80-100 yen for every additional 200-400 meters traveled. The cost also increases when the taxi is not moving for a prolonged time. Late in the evening (typically 10pm to 5am), rates are raised by typically 20 percent. If the taxi uses expressways, the expressway tolls are added to the fare.

 

Google says the bus terminal drop off point is roughly 8km from the Kochi port, so it computes to approximately 2250 yen for the 1 way trip (assuming traffic flows smoothly).

[CJRH]

On 1/18/2023 at 1:40 PM, asebastian said:

Hi all,

 

To those who may be in the Japan cruises in March, April or later, and if you're stopping in Kochi, can you please come back and let us know if there is a free (or paid) shuttle service that is run from the port to the city? I understand in the past the cruise lines seem to have provided the shuttle, but that was pre-Covid. I wonder if things may have changed since. Cost cutting and all that.

 

Thank you.

 We are on Holland America Line - apparently the first cruise ship ( March 11) to come to Kochi since 2020. HAL is offering a PAID  (USD$25)shuttle to the bus station. HAL  is charging for all kinds of things now that others are offering for free for their guests.. sigh.

[austromyrtus]

enjoy your day in kochi. i am sure the locals will be extremely welcoming and excited to have cruise ship passengers back in town after three years. i have fond memories of our day in port in 2019 - really enjoyed eating the seared bonito tuna for lunch in the hirome market near kochi castle - was worth the wait in the queue with the locals. near the castle is a shinto shrine where you may be lucky, as we were, to see a wedding party in traditional japanese dress. 

[asebastian]

19 hours ago, CJRH said:

HAL is offering a PAID  (USD$25)shuttle to the bus station

Is the HAL shuttle fare for the return trip or just 1 way? Check out the local taxi service, supposed to be about USD10 per trip, pre-Covid. May have gone up a little bit, but not guessing $25.

[cruisemom42]

On 3/10/2023 at 2:55 AM, CJRH said:

 We are on Holland America Line - apparently the first cruise ship ( March 11) to come to Kochi since 2020. HAL is offering a PAID  (USD$25)shuttle to the bus station. HAL  is charging for all kinds of things now that others are offering for free for their guests.. sigh.

 

Is that per person round-trip?  Seems a ridiculous amount!

 

I'll be joining Westerdam March 27.

[alanstarr]

5 hours ago, cruisemom42 said:

 

Is that per person round-trip?  Seems a ridiculous amount!

 

 

That's a lot better than in Tokushima, where its $150 round trip just to get downtown!

 

[cruisemom42]

1 minute ago, alanstarr said:

 

That's a lot better than in Tokushima, where its $150 round trip just to get downtown!

 

 

😱😱😱

[USN59-79]

5 hours ago, alanstarr said:

 

That's a lot better than in Tokushima, where its $150 round trip just to get downtown!

 

Could you expound on that?  Who is charging $150 roundtrip?  Is there no public transportation?  From a map it looks like Tokushima is a seaport with downtown less than a mile away.  

[alanstarr]

2 minutes ago, USN59-79 said:

Could you expound on that?  Who is charging $150 roundtrip?  Is there no public transportation?  From a map it looks like Tokushima is a seaport with downtown less than a mile away.  

 

Ship docks an hour away from downtown. Haven't checked into public transportation yet, I think it's a bus line.

 

[USN59-79]

Thanks for the reply.  We board the Westerdam soon with fifteen different Japanese ports.  Fortunately Tokushima is not one of them.  If it were, I would be looking for an alternative way to get around.

Ray

[alanstarr]

On 3/13/2023 at 1:11 PM, USN59-79 said:

Thanks for the reply.  We board the Westerdam soon with fifteen different Japanese ports.  Fortunately Tokushima is not one of them.  If it were, I would be looking for an alternative way to get around.

Ray

 

I know I'm hijacking this thread a bit, but just to close the loop - arrived in Tokushima this morning. They announced there's a free shuttle bus, run by the local port, which will take you to the train station (about 15 minutes away). 
 

[Queen of DaNile]

On 3/12/2023 at 2:12 PM, cruisemom42 said:

 

Is that per person round-trip?  Seems a ridiculous amount!

 

I'll be joining Westerdam March 27.

Round trip to Harimayabashi Bus Terminal. Travel time is approx. 30 minutes.

[ROCruiser]

When we were in Kochi in March, the shuttle was $25 per person round trip from port to bus station downtown. We opted for taxis since there were 6 of us. Each taxi was about 3200Y from port to Kochi Castle. There was a sign posted the price of taxis to city for around 3500Y at the taxi stand. The problem was the long line for taxis (no line at the shuttles). Get in line as early as possible because there weren't many taxis coming into port, maybe because we were the first ship there after the restart. We were about the fifth in line so the wait was OK but a huge line was already formed behind us.

[floralscent]

On 4/13/2023 at 3:28 PM, ROCruiser said:

When we were in Kochi in March, the shuttle was $25 per person round trip from port to bus station downtown. We opted for taxis since there were 6 of us. Each taxi was about 3200Y from port to Kochi Castle. There was a sign posted the price of taxis to city for around 3500Y at the taxi stand. The problem was the long line for taxis (no line at the shuttles). Get in line as early as possible because there weren't many taxis coming into port, maybe because we were the first ship there after the restart. We were about the fifth in line so the wait was OK but a huge line was already formed behind us.

Hi ROCruiser. Can you clairify if the shuttle was for anyone or exclusive to the ship you were on? Thank you

[ROCruiser]

On 6/18/2023 at 10:31 AM, floralscent said:

Hi ROCruiser. Can you clairify if the shuttle was for anyone or exclusive to the ship you were on? Thank you

Sorry, just returned from another cruise on Queen Elizabeth. The shuttle in Kochi was at the cruise terminal which is far away from anything, so it was for passengers of the cruise ships docked there and we were the only ship that day.

[Traveler1946]

The shuttle to town was $25 round trip.  What was the cost of the bus/tram to Kochi Castle?

[Ombud]

@ROCruiserWhere did it drop you off & did you have a set time to return or was it open ended? (On Princess cruise next month)

Edited March 12 by Ombud

[thehowlingroad]

$25/round trip/person?? YIKES. I can't help but feel like I could get a cab direct to Kochi Castle or Station for 3 people for less than $75 total...

[Ombud]

6 minutes ago, thehowlingroad said:

$25/round trip/person?? YIKES. I can't help but feel like I could get a cab direct to Kochi Castle or Station for 3 people for less than $75 total...

Perspective .... I'm a solo