Guys - Please don’t make assumptions. Neither Pootpourri or “chill out music” are considered in scope here. A cursory glance at https://eurospec.eu/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/EuroSpec-Toilets-for-railway-vehicles-v3.0.pdf would of told you this.

Section TOI-0014 provides further clarity.

"The toilet system shall be able to flush the toilet
every 90 seconds."

"The flushing capacity is to be sufficient for normal-use aswell as during peak-use and cause no limitations
on the availability.
This number of flushes is not to be used for calculating capacity for fresh- and waste water tanks.

The toilet system shall be able to flush a second time within 30 seconds after the first flush. This sequence shall be able to be repeated after 90 seconds.
The flushing capacity is to be sufficient for normal use aswell as during peak use and cause no limitations on
the availability. This number of flushes is not to be used for calculating capacity for fresh- and waste water tanks

Henry Did a bit of research, Sapporo looks like it would be worth a two night stay and good fun. Found a really nice jazz club, the royce chocolate factory, the nikka distillery and a sapporo beer museum. Plus some amazing nature attractions too. Any hotel and restaurant recommendations? Should we aim to stay close to Odori park/station?

      I will say one thing for the Nipponese.

      They do a sort of minced beef and potato croquette which is like the best ‘Northern English’ food item you could ever imagine, except tastier because it’s been made by Asians.

      You should just do a mukbang video of you eating lots of those.

        bosstrabs Korrokke. Even better with curry sauce. Ate so much of it in college (cheap meal), don’t really go out of my way to search them out. They’re basically called “chops” with the anglo Indians and my family.

          rhouses Anywhere close to Sapporo Station will suit you well. I usually stay in the JR East Mets hotel, which is modern and fairly cheap. The room includes free cans of GABA to help you chill and kip.
          You can get to Odori Park directly from Sapporo Station using the underground shopping mall which stretches south of the station. No need to go to street level as the underground walking network runs for miles. It’s pretty incredible.
          A day/afternoon trip to nearby Otaru is also worth it if you time.

              Henry oh that sounds like orchard street in singapore, the entire stretch is an underground air conditioned shopping mall alongside the metro subway. Took me two trips to discover, and far too many walks in humidity and heat.

                Henry The room includes free cans of GABA to help you chill and kip.

                To be honest, mate, Gabba’s the last thing I’d want to listen to if I’m trying for a kip.

                  mono-stereo Visions of our man in Japan catastrophically clogging up the toilet system on a bullet train.

                  Sewage spurting, commuters covered in shit. The train derails because the driver jumped off.

                  The CEO of Hitachi forced to hang himself in an act of corporate contrition.

                  Anyway, have a nice trip mate.

                  Lol!

                    a month later

                    Henry Am I reading the T&Cs right, I just need my JAL intl ticket and my indian passport to get the JAL Explorer Pass? What exactly is the process? I don’t need to pay an additional amount for the pass?

                        vinnyt77 This is almost too good to be true with the discounts lol, was reading on reddit that some have get their tickets for free even. Also, Yamato, game changer.

                        Any tips on train bookings? Or should I just show up at the station and pick up? For my route, there are trains running every 30 mins from morning to evening… I’m assuming it’s pretty chill.

                        Going mid-June into July… not ideal with the rain, but hopefully Hokkaido will be pleasant.

                            rhouses Trains - I’m an anxious traveller, so tend to book regardless. Loads of travellers in Japan will tell you there’s no need. If you’re travelling solo, less important. If travelling as a group, and want to sit together, more important.

                                vinnyt77 Yeah, might as well pre-book. But I don’t want to be held to a specific timing if there are trains running through the day…

                                  For the Explorer pass just book though the JAL page. I didn’t need to use my passport. They just took one look at me when I checked in and probably though, yeah he’s deffo not Japanese. On you go lad. Have a nice flight.

                                    Henry Thanks! And thanks for the JAL Explorer tip too!

                                      Henry Ahh passport details mandatory in the check out on the JAL page…

                                          Henry For the Explorer pass just book though the JAL page. I didn’t need to use my passport. They just took one look at me when I checked in and probably though, yeah he’s deffo not Japanese.

                                          Two different cases:

                                          1. He’s British and although he might not know how to use chopsticks, he probably wears deodorant and is polite.
                                          2. This one will be shitting into his hand and flinging it out of buses.

                                            rhouses Yeah, of course you do need it! But not a problem right?