The “Zombie Train” is back. Following its hugely successful debut run last summer, Watarase Keikoku Railway Co. decided that the haunted house-on-rails, in which passengers are scared out of their wits by actors posing as reanimated corpses, was worth pursuing for another year.
The hair-raising characters returned on Sunday, June 2, and will appear eight more times over the next three months. Passengers can enjoy the experience either on the outbound service, which departs from Omama Station in Midori city, Gunma Prefecture, in the morning, or the outbound one, which leaves from Tsudo Station in Nikko city, Tochigi Prefecture, in the afternoon. While the whole journey lasts 90 minutes, the zombie course is one hour.
Zombie Train: Appealing to a Younger Crowd
It was the Nikko city government that came up with the concept last year in an attempt to encourage young people to use the scenic train line, which tends to appeal more to older customers. The idea worked well, with almost all the seats selling out, according to The Asahi Shimbun. With Japan’s tourist industry thriving right now, the service is likely to prove just as popular this time around. Organized by the Tokyo-based horror event production company Kowagarasetai, the action takes place on the first car of the tram. It costs ¥3,500 for adults and ¥2,000 for children (elementary school age and lower). The next service will be on Sunday, June 9. It runs until September 1.
More information can be found here.
Photo by Neptunestock via Shutterstock
Entertainment on Japanese Trains
Another idea that proved very popular last year was wrestlers brawling on a bullet train. In September, Minoru Suzuki fought Sanshiro Takagi within the narrow aisles of the Nozomi Shinkansen between Tokyo and Nagoya. All 75 premium seats priced at ¥25,000 and reserved seats costing ¥17,700 were sold out within 30 minutes. Earlier this year, passengers on the Green Car of the Kodama Shinkansen could enjoy a sushi course meal with some sake. A chef from the high-end restaurant Koraku Sushi Yasuhide prepared the meal after boarding the train at Tokyo Station. Costing ¥55,000, the tickets quickly sold out.
