There’s something slightly mystical and Harry Potter-like about a platform 0 and one has to wonder why some stations have them whether it be because it’s been added on that particular side of platform 1 or just because they began their numbering from zero! I’m not sure if I’ll ever visit all of them but certainly hope to tick a few more off as the years go by! The challenge continues with a couple of stations I’ve frequented a few times before but unfortunately those visits were before I was even aware of the platform 0 phenomenon!

1. Kyoto station, Kyoto Prefecture

The first station to feature in this post is a little-known countryside station barely known by anyone!!

Kyoto is Japan’s second largest station building after Nagoya, and it’s platform zero serves the Biwako, Kosei and Kusatsu lines. The Thunderbird limited express train which runs between Osaka and Tsuruga in Fukui Prefecture also uses this platform. It is also known as Japan’s longest platform which is more than 550 metres in conjunction with platform 30!

2. Okazaki station, Aichi Prefecture

Not only had I visited this station before but back in 2018 I went on the platform and remarked about it in this post but just didn’t take a photo of it!! I was more interested in the name due to the connection with Leicester’s samurai hero Shinji.

Many of the platform zeros often seem to be used by private lines so the worry for me is always that an extra ticket may be needed to access it. Indeed, there is a card reader but I ignored that as I was only stepping on it briefly for the all-important mission of photographing this wonder!

The platform 0 at Okazaki serves the Aichi-kanjo Tetsudo line which takes you on to the likes of Setoshi and Shin Toyota; the latter being the closest station to Toyota Stadium which is the home of J1 League club Nagoya Grampus.

I was never really planning to stop at Okazaki on this particular trip but decided late on that it was a good opportunity whilst I was only half an hour away in Odaka (the closest station to Odaka Ryokuchi Greens which houses Kyoryu Hiroba a.k.a. Dinosaur Park) and heading that way too.

• Here is the complete list of stations that have a platform zero. Let me know of any mistakes or omissions…

Morioka & Kitakami (Iwate)

Sakata (Yamagata)

Kashiwazaki, Echigoyuzawa, Shibata & Higashisanjo (Niigata)

Tatsuno, Okaya & Matsumoto (Nagano)

Anamizu (Ishikawa)

Takasaki (Gunma)

Nippori & Ayase (Tokyo)

Sawara & Yotsukaido (Chiba)

Okazaki (Aichi)

Toba (Mie)

Gifu-Hashima (Gifu)

Kyoto (Kyoto)

Himeji (Hyogo)

Gobo & Shirahama (Wakayama)

Yonago (Tottori)

Hashioka (Kagawa)

Naruto (Tokushima)

Gomen (Kochi)

Nagatoshi, Iwakuni & Ube (Yamaguchi)

Tagawagotoji & Haruda (Fukuoka)

Ishaya (Nagasaki)

Kumamoto (Kumamoto)

Click here to read ‘#WeStopAtNothing! Visiting All The Platform Zero Stations In Niigata’

Click here to read ‘#WeStopAtNothing! Platform Zeros In Japan, Z Stations In Tokyo & The Opening Of A New Yamanote Line Station’

Click here to read ‘The Complete Tour Of Katakana-Named Stations In Tokyo’