This is the Tokaido Shinkansen
This is the Tokaido Shinkansen, one of the bullet trains in Japan. The train is fast and smooth. However, reservation is motu always smooth. The reservation site is not fully active between 23:30 and 5:30 pm. During that time only reservation for up to 3 people are possible, and the reservation is completed only the next morning after 5:30pm. Sometimes (especially in busy times, and/or if you book with short advance) it is not possible to reserve seats. This is what happened to our group, and we ended up traveling for 1h30 on a very busy train, having to stand in the aisle, passing basically the same price of a reserved seat. In the end, only the fact that the train is so fast compensates for the difficulties of the reservation and of the trip.