When a typhoon or record rainfall approaches Japan, the railways announce the day before that they will not be running. Flights are cancelled in blocks, and expressway operators warn of possible closures before the rain has even started. The system is built to stop before it breaks, rather than after. This article is not a bulletin about any particular storm. It sets out what to look at and what to decide once it becomes clear services are about to stop, limited to what can be confirmed in material published by Japanese government bodies and transport operators. Where conditions differ from one company to the next, this guide says so instead of generalising.

Japan stops its transport before it breaks: how planned suspensions work

A planned suspension (keikaku unkyu) means railway operators announce in advance that trains will not run, while a typhoon is still only forecast. After the response to the typhoons of 2018, Japan's Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (MLIT) convened a review panel and published a consolidated set of principles dated 11 October 2019. It states that planned suspensions are necessary when a large typhoon approaches or makes landfall, because operators need to prevent trains stopping between stations and to avoid confusion at stations.

The same document notes that the effect reaches beyond the railway. Announcing a suspension encouraged people to go home early, discouraged non-essential travel, and led to events being cancelled or cut short, which the ministry describes as a role in securing public safety. For a traveller, a suspension notice therefore means more than the absence of trains. Shops, attractions and events in the same area are likely to close at the same time.

The order of announcements is also set out. Operators give early notice that a suspension is possible, then specific detail if one goes ahead, then information about resumption, updating as the situation changes and, where possible, stating the time of the next update. If an operator's service-status page says the next update is expected at a given hour, that is this framework in action.

Three assumptions are worth fixing in mind before a storm arrives.

  • A planned suspension is a plan, not an accident. It is always announced in advance, but you will only know if you go and look.
  • Alternative transport between operators is not guaranteed. The MLIT document states plainly that it is sometimes not offered, because demand would exceed the receiving operator's capacity and compromise safety.
  • The time of resumption cannot be promised in advance, because it depends on post-storm damage and the safety inspections that follow.

The warning names have changed: Japan's level-numbered weather alerts

This section reflects the position as of 7 August 2026. On 29 May 2026 the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) overhauled the names of its disaster-prevention weather information. Per the JMA's press release of 30 April 2026 and its explanatory pages, the change covers four hazards, namely heavy rain, river flooding, landslides and storm surge, and alert-level numbers are now built into each name. What used to be a Heavy Rain Warning is now a Level 3 Warning (Heavy rain).

Three changes matter most when deciding whether to travel. The pre-2026 Flood Warning and Flood Advisory, which the JMA issued for each municipality, have been abolished; on rivers covered by joint flood forecasting the equivalent is a Level 3 Warning (Flood), and on other rivers it falls under the Level 3 Warning (Heavy rain). A Level 5 Emergency Warning (Flood) has been created for river flooding. And the Landslide Alert Information that municipalities use as a trigger for evacuation orders is now a Level 4 Urgent Warning (Landslide). Note that the word Flood appears in both the abolished names and the new ones, so read the level number rather than the hazard word: a name with no level number in front of it belongs to the old system. Separately, Record-Breaking Short-Time Heavy Rain Information and Significant Heavy Rain Information have become Weather Disaster Flash Reports.

The JMA's own English leaflet gives the wording for each level: Level 1 Early Advisory (white), Level 2 Advisory (yellow), Level 3 Warning (red), Level 4 Urgent Warning (purple) and Level 5 Emergency Warning (black). Much English-language material still uses the pre-2026 names, so reading by colour and number is more reliable than reading by name.

The levels line up with the evacuation information issued by municipalities. In the JMA's correspondence table, Level 3 (evacuation of those who need more time) pairs with a Level 3 Warning, Level 4 (evacuation order) with a Level 4 Urgent Warning, and Level 5 (emergency safety measures) with a Level 5 Emergency Warning. Kikikuru, the JMA's real-time risk map, uses the same scale: yellow at Level 2, red at Level 3, purple at Level 4 and black at Level 5. Thresholds may be revised again, so check the JMA site for the current position.

Where to look: operator pages beat aggregator apps

Rail, airports, airlines and roads all publish separately. Aggregator apps and social media summaries are fast, but the facts that change a decision, such as whether a service is suspended, when it may resume, and whether alternative transport is offered, originate with the operator. MLIT asks railway operators to publish service information promptly and accurately in multiple languages through websites, social media, service apps and station notices.

For the weather itself, go straight to the JMA. Its page on typhoon information states that the forecast circle marks the area within which there is a 70 per cent probability that the centre of the typhoon will lie at the forecast time, and that the storm warning area shows the full extent that could come within the storm zone up to five days (120 hours) ahead if the centre moves inside that circle. A typhoon does not track along the centre line, nor is it obliged to stay inside the circle.

For risk on the ground, use Kikikuru. It comes in four versions covering landslides, heavy rain, inundation and river flooding, refreshed every ten minutes and colour-coded. Check where you are now, and the route and destination as well.

For official sources in languages other than Japanese, the JMA runs multilingual pages of its own, carrying warnings, advisories, typhoon information and earthquake and tsunami information in 15 languages including Japanese, which is 14 foreign languages. Separately, the Japan Tourism Agency lists the following on its page of disaster-time tools for international visitors (as that page stood in August 2026).

  • Safety tips: a push-notification app supervised by the Japan Tourism Agency, in 15 languages, covering earthquake early warnings, tsunami warnings and emergency weather warnings.
  • Japan Safe Travel Information (JNTO, English): weather warnings and transport information during disasters.
  • Japan Visitor Hotline (JNTO): 050-3816-2787, staffed 24 hours a day, in English, Chinese, Korean and Japanese.
  • NHK WORLD-JAPAN: a 24-hour English-language channel, listed by the agency as a disaster information source.

The decision to make the day before: move, or stay put

A planned suspension does not land without warning on the morning itself. MLIT asks operators to give early notice when a line is likely to be affected, and in practice a first announcement often appears one to two days out, with the detailed operating plan following the day before. Roads work the same way: NEXCO Central Japan states on its official site that it begins publicising warnings three days ahead of expected rainfall.

The decision itself is simple. If you are going to move, move before the storm. If you cannot, do not force it. The risky case is leaving on the morning itself on the grounds that trains are still running. Suspensions usually thin services out in stages before stopping altogether, so a train running now does not mean it will take you where you are going. Before setting off, work out whether you would have a way back if you were put off at an intermediate station.

Contact your accommodation early, allowing for both an extra night and a cancellation. Cancellation terms vary by property and booking channel, so asking the property directly beats reading a booking site's general terms. Whether travel insurance covers extra accommodation costs likewise depends on the specific policy, so check the wording with your insurer. Neither question can be settled by a general rule.

The following are worth doing before the storm arrives.

  • Bookmark the service-status page of every operator you will use: rail, airline, bus and expressway, each one separately.
  • Charge your phone and carry a power bank. A power cut takes out communications and payment at the same time.
  • Carry some cash. Where the power is out, card and QR payments may be unusable.
  • Leave large luggage at your accommodation or send it by delivery service. Moving through a crowded station with bags is itself a hazard.
  • Note down your booking reference, flight number and train name. You will be asked for them at every refund or rebooking counter.

After it stops: what happens to rail tickets and air tickets

Rail is governed by the carriage contract. JR Central's official page opens by stating that where trains cannot run or are delayed because of an accident or similar cause, the company applies only the conditions set out in the Passenger Business Rules, the JR carriage contract, and nothing beyond them. Fares and charges are refunded as those rules provide, but compensation for accommodation or meals sits outside them.

According to the same page, if a suspension causes you to abandon the trip, the full fare and charges are refunded. If you abandon it partway, the fare for the unused portion is refunded and the limited express or express charge for the suspended train is refunded in full. You may also return free of charge to your starting station, and unless you have already broken your journey with that ticket, the full amount is refunded. Commuter passes and coupon tickets qualify for an extension or refund only where the line is out of service continuously for five days or more. On delays, where a limited express or express train arrives two hours or more behind schedule, the express charge is refunded in full.

Airlines differ from one another. As one example, ANA's official page for domestic flights (as it stood in August 2026) states that where a booked flight is delayed or cancelled because of bad weather, the airline will accept a change to another ANA flight or a refund, and states separately that costs arising from a change made for bad weather, such as transport and accommodation, are borne by the passenger. Changes are to be completed from the point the delay or cancellation is decided up to 20 minutes before scheduled departure. Those are the domestic conditions and international flights are governed separately, so check deadlines and scope on the official page for the airline and the route category you are actually flying.

Highway buses, ferries and package tours are handled under their own carriage or travel-agency terms. What another company did is not a guide. Find the operator's name on the ticket or booking confirmation and open that operator's official page. If the counter is crowded, ask whether the claim can be made later and what documentation, such as a delay certificate, you need to keep.

If you are stranded at a station or airport

Services resume only after inspection. The MLIT document states that where a large typhoon has produced strong winds, operators generally need to check the condition of structures and any obstruction from wind-blown debris along the entire line before resuming, and that the time required carries considerable uncertainty. When an operator will not name a resumption time, it is because the time is not yet determined, not because it is being withheld.

The period straight after resumption needs care too. The same document notes that passengers converge on stations when services restart while the number of trains is still limited, which can lead to entry restrictions and confusion, and it asks operators to encourage passengers to delay their arrival at the station. Heading straight for the station on the first news of resumption often means a long wait.

On being stranded at an airport: according to the Civil Aviation Bureau's A2-BCP guideline (revised edition, June 2024), 95 airports across Japan have adopted an airport business continuity plan whose core includes a plan for handling stranded passengers. The guideline asks major airports to secure an environment in which all foreseeable stranded passengers can stay safely inside the airport for at least 72 hours. That is a floor for basic conditions, not a guarantee of seating or catering, so carry your own water, food and charging capacity.

The storm passing is not the end

Risk does not fall away the moment the rain stops and the sky brightens. Kikikuru assesses danger using indices for how much rain has accumulated in the soil and how much of the rain that fell upstream is still working its way down to a given point. Rivers in particular peak with a lag, so the crest can pass after the rain has stopped where you are. Going to look at the water from a bridge or a riverbank is dangerous for exactly this reason.

Recovery is uneven. Fallen trees, landslides and flooding differ line by line and road by road, so within one region a line can be running while another stays closed for days. Visitor attractions, hiking trails, riverside paths and campgrounds may remain shut even after the trains are moving. Check the venue's own site or the municipality's tourism information again before you set out.

Where power is still out, traffic signals, lighting, communications and payment systems all become unreliable. Avoid travelling at night, and avoid travelling into affected areas to see the damage, which also blocks the roads recovery vehicles need.

How to check the current situation yourself

Everything above will date, because names and operating practices are revised. What follows is a checking sequence that should still work whenever you read this.

  • Check warnings and advisories for where you are and where you are going on the JMA site, reading the level number in the name.
  • Check the Kikikuru colour for that location and your route. Purple corresponds to alert level 4, black to alert level 5.
  • Check the evacuation information issued by the municipality. If a Level 4 evacuation order is in force, moving away from danger comes first and travel decisions come afterwards.
  • Check the official service status of each operator you will use, rail, airline, bus and expressway, individually rather than through an aggregator.
  • Check the refund and rebooking conditions on that operator's own official page.
  • If you need information in another language, use the JMA multilingual pages, the Safety tips app, and the Japan Visitor Hotline on 050-3816-2787.

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