Arriving in Kanazawa: the Komatsu Airport Bus, the Shinkansen, and Which Card Works on Which Bus
How to reach Kanazawa from Komatsu Airport or by Hokuriku Shinkansen, what the airport bus costs since August 2026, which JR passes and visitor tickets cover the Shinkansen, and which cards work on the Loop Bus, Hokutetsu buses and JR buses.
Some links here are affiliate links. If you buy through one we may earn a commission, at no extra cost to you. It never changes what we recommend, and the pages that carry no links say so on our about page.
✓ Checked and fact-checked
Most visitors reach Kanazawa on the Hokuriku Shinkansen. If you fly, you land at Komatsu Airport, about 40 minutes away by bus. The Kansai-Hokuriku and Hokuriku Arch passes both cover the Shinkansen into Kanazawa, and the Kyoto transport guide covers the line’s Kansai end.
The Komatsu Airport bus
Hokutetsu runs the limousine bus between Komatsu Airport and Kanazawa. Its fare rose from 1,300 yen on 1 August 2026:
| To | Adult | Child |
|---|---|---|
| Kanazawa Station West Exit, Korinbo, Musashigatsuji-Omicho Market | 1,400 yen | 700 yen |
Komatsu Airport puts the trip at about 40 minutes to Kanazawa Station West Exit and 55 minutes to Korinbo. Buses leave 10 to 15 minutes after domestic arrivals, from bus stops 1 and 2. No booking is needed. You pay as you get off: cash, Hokutetsu’s own ICa card, or a tap-to-pay credit card. Change on the bus is for 1,000 yen notes only.
By Shinkansen
JR West sells visitors with Temporary Visitor status a discounted one-way ticket into Kanazawa: 6,500 yen from Kyoto and 8,000 yen from Osaka. Two JR passes also cover the Hokuriku Shinkansen into Kanazawa:
| Pass | Days | Adult | Hokuriku Shinkansen covered |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kansai-Hokuriku Area Pass | 7 | 19,000 yen | Tsuruga to Joetsu-Myoko |
| Hokuriku Arch Pass | 7 | 35,000 yen | Tsuruga to Tokyo |
Which card works depends on which bus you board, so check before you get on. Saily, installed before you fly, has you online at Komatsu or Kanazawa Station. On a longer trip through Japan and beyond, add the next country to your Saily profile.
City buses, and which card works
Kanazawa has three kinds of bus, and they take different payments:
| Bus | Cash | Suica, ICOCA and other IC cards | Tap-to-pay card | One-Day Pass |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kanazawa Loop Bus | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Hokutetsu local buses | Yes | No | Yes | Yes |
| JR buses | Yes | Yes | No | Yes |
Visit Kanazawa, the city’s official guide, warns that nationwide IC cards “CANNOT be used on Hokutetsu Local Buses”. With a tap-to-pay card, tap when you board and again when you get off.
Kanazawa Loop Bus. A flat 220 yen for an adult and 110 yen for a child. The right loop runs every 15 minutes and the left loop every 20, from about 8:30am to 6:00pm.
Kanazawa City One-Day Pass. 800 yen for an adult and 400 yen for a child, valid on the day you use it, on designated Hokutetsu and JR bus routes including the Loop Bus. It is sold at the Kanazawa Station bus terminal counter, the tourist information centre and online, not on the bus.
Emergency numbers
The Japan National Tourism Organization lists 110 for police and 119 for fire and ambulance. Its Japan Visitor Hotline, 050-3816-2787, runs 24 hours a day in English, Chinese and Korean.
Saily, a data eSIM you install before you fly and top up per country Our full write-up. (affiliate link)