Tourist and City Buses in Kobe

Together with Kobe’s extensive railway network and subway system, local bus services can also be used to explore the city.

Kobe has two bus services that can be useful tourists:

The City Loop is a sightseeing bus service that is aimed specifically at visiting tourists. This bus follows a route that hits most of the major tourist attractions in Kobe, so if you are just visiting Kobe for one or two days, you will probably find this useful.

Kobe City Bus is the local, regular bus service which is aimed at local residents. For most of Kobe’s major tourist attractions this bus service is not so useful, but it can be useful for getting to areas in the north of the city such as Mount Maya and Mount Rokko.

Both bus services are easy to use and fairly inexpensive. However, if you are traveling to or from your hotel with heavy luggage, we recommend taking a taxi, because buses do not have space for storing luggage.

City Loop Bus

The City Loop Bus is a convenient bus service operated by the Shinki Bus company, which runs around all the main sightseeing areas of Kobe. You can use this service to get to areas to the south of Sannomiya such as Kobe Chinatown, Meriken Park, Kobe Port Tower, the Kobe Bay Cruise Terminal and Kobe Harborland, as well as destinations to the north of Sannomiya such as the historic Western-style residential district of Kitano Ijinkan and the Nunobiki Ropeway that leads to Nunobiki Herb Garden.

Shinki Bus Terminal can be found to the northeast of JR Sannomiya Station. However, you can find a route map and a detailed list of City Loop Bus Stops on the official Kobe Loop Bus website with maps showing where each bus stop is. In Sannomiya, City Loop buses going south depart from Bus Stop 13 and buses going north depart from Bus Stop 7.

City Loop buses are easy to spot because of their dark green color and retro design. These buses are entered from the front and exited from the rear. Passengers should pay as soon as they get on the bus. If you pay by cash, you simply put your money in the fare box. There is also a change machine attached to the fare box if you don’t have exactly the right fare. You can also use a prepaid IC card instead of cash to pay your fare.

One ride on the City Loop Bus costs 300 yen for adults and 150 yen for children under the age of 12. However, if you are planning to use the City Loop Bus a lot, it makes more sense to get a 1-day or 2-day loop bus ticket that you can use to hop on and off the City Loop Bus as much as you like. These tickets can also be used to get various discounts and benefits at around 29 different attractions in Kobe.

A 1-day loop bus ticket is 800 yen for adults and 400 yen for children under the age of 12. A 2-day loop bus ticket is 1,200 yen for adults and 600 yen for children under the age of 12.

These 1-day or 2-day tickets can be bought in advance at Shinki Bus Terminal in Sannomiya, at Kobe Tourist Information Center by the East Exit of JR Sannomiya Station, and at Shin-Kobe Station Tourist Information Center. 1-day loop bus tickets can also be bought on board the City Loop Bus, or you can buy a digital 1-day ticket online from the official website.

Shinki Bus also operates a Port Loop Bus service that runs around Kobe’s waterfront area. Sightseeing locations on the Port Loop route include Meriken Park, Kobe Port Tower, the Kobe Bay Cruise Terminal and Kobe Harborland.

Port Loop buses are a dark blue color and more modern in appearance. Port Loop buses also differ from City Loop buses in that they are entered from the rear and you pay at the front when you get off. Fares for single rides are 210 yen for adults and 110 yen for children under the age of 12.

If you purchase a 1-day or 2-day loop bus ticket, it will give you unlimited rides on both City Loop and Port Loop services. As the Port Loop Bus also runs from Sannomiya and makes stops at some sightseeing locations, you may find it useful to use along with the City Loop, if you have a 1-day or 2-day loop bus ticket.

Kobe City Bus Services

Kobe City Bus services are run by Kobe City Transportation Bureau, which also runs the City Subway system. Buses are entered from the back of the bus and you pay your fare when you get off at the front by putting your coins in the fare box. These buses don’t have change machines for large bills, so it’s a good idea to have some coins ready for your ride.

For regular routes in the city center, buses have a flat rate fare per single ride of 210 yen for adults and 110 yen for elementary school children (12 years old or younger). Children under 1 year of age can ride for free, and up to two pre-school children (aged 1-6) can ride free of charge if accompanied by a paying adult.

In the suburbs, fares are calculated by distance. On these routes you will take a fare ticket from a machine by the door when you get on the bus, and then put the fare ticket in the fare box with your money when you get off.

You can also use prepaid IC cards such as PiTaPa or ICOCA to pay for your fare. Simply tap your card on the card reader by the door when you get on the bus and then tap it again on the fare box’s card reader when you get off.

Useful City Bus Services

For most of the main tourist destinations in Kobe it is often quicker and cheaper to travel by rail than by City Bus services that may follow more indirect routes, but there are some services that are useful for certain destinations. In particular, City Bus services are convenient for traveling to the Mount Maya and Mount Rokko areas.

Buses for Mount Maya

Bus Route #2 and Bus Route #18 can both be used to travel from Sannomiya in central Kobe to the base of Mount Maya. Bus Route #18 is a little more direct, but Bus Route #2 runs more frequently.

If you use Bus Route #2, you will need to get off at the Kannonji Bus Stop after a ride of about 20 minutes, and then walk 7 minutes to Maya Cable Station. This will give you access to the Maya Viewline, a cable car and ropeway system that ascends Mount Maya. Here is a map showing the route between the Kannonji Bus Stop and Maya Cable Station.

If you use Bus Route #18, after a ride of about 30 minutes you can get off at the Maya-Cable-Shita Bus Stop, which is directly outside Maya Cable Station.

Bus Route #2 can be boarded at the Sannomiya-Center-Gai-Higashiguchi Bus Stop, which can be found outside the east exit of the Sannomiya Center Gai shopping arcade.

It can also be boarded at the Chikatetsu-Sannomiya-Eki-Mae Bus Stop, which can be found under the railway tracks between JR Sannomiya Station and Hankyu Kobe-Sannomiya Station.

Bus Route #18 can also be boarded at the Chikatetsu-Sannomiya-Eki-Mae Bus Stop and at the Sannomiya-Eki-Terminal-Mae Bus Stop, which is just outside the East Exit of JR Sannomiya Station.

Buses for Mount Rokko

Buses for Rokko Cable Shita Station at the base of Mount Rokko run from three stations in Kobe: Rokkomichi Station on the JR Kobe Line, Rokko Station on the Hankyu Kobe Line, and Mikage Station on the Hanshin Main Line.

Bus Route #16 runs from all three of these stations to Rokko Cable Shita Station. Bus Route #106 also runs to Rokko Cable Shita Station from Rokkomichi Station and Rokko Station, but it is not as frequent as Bus Route #16.

Although buses do run to these stations from Sannomiya it is quicker and cheaper to go by rail first, before catching a #16 or #106 bus service. You therefore have three options:

1. Take the JR Kobe Line from JR Sannomiya Station to Rokkomichi Station. The journey takes between 4 and 6 minutes and the fare is 170 yen. From Rokkomichi Station it is a 20-minute bus ride to Rokko Cable Shita Station.
2. Take the Hankyu Kobe Line from Hankyu Kobe-Sannomiya Station to Rokko Station. The journey takes around 7 minutes for a fare of 200 yen. From Rokko Station it is a 16-minute bus ride to Rokko Cable Shita Station.
3. Take the Hanshin Main Line from Hanshin Kobe-Sannomiya Station to Mikage Station. The journey takes around 11 minutes for a fare of 200 yen. From Mikage Station it is a 32-minute bus ride to Rokko Cable Shita Station.

Bus Route #25 for Kobe Municipal Arboretum

This is a special service that runs only on weekends and holidays between early April and the end of November. This bus runs between the Sannomiya area and Kobe Municipal Arboretum — a large botanical garden near Mount Maya which has a huge collection of trees from across the world. In Sannomiya you can board this bus at Sannomiya Bus Terminal and then get off the bus at Shinrin-Shokubutsuen-Mae Bus Stop. It takes about 44 minutes for a fare of 560 yen.

Passes and Prepaid Cards for Kobe City Bus

There are a number of passes and prepaid cards that can be used on Kobe City Bus services as well as other forms of local transport. However, please note that these cannot be used on the City Loop or Port Loop services.

The City Bus & Subway 1-Day Pass gives the user unlimited rides for one day on all City Bus and Subway services in Kobe. It costs 1,040 yen and can be bought from ticket offices in Kobe’s subway stations.

The City Bus & Subway NEW U-Line Card is a prepaid IC card, which you can use on all City Bus and Subway services in Kobe. This is available to buy as a 1,000 yen card or 3,000 yen card, but the 3,000 yen card actually gives 3,200 yen’s worth of travel. If you make additional trips by bus or subway on the same day using this card you will also get a 20 yen discount. And if the final balance on your card is not enough for a full fare, you can make up the difference with cash or a new card.

The Kansai One Pass is a prepaid IC card, which is only available for foreign tourists visiting Japan. This card can be used on JR and private railways, subways, and bus services in the Kansai region, which includes Kobe, Osaka, Kyoto, Nara and Wakayama. This card costs 3,000 yen to buy and can be recharged up to 20,000 yen. This card can also be used to get various discounts and benefits at sightseeing attractions around the Kansai region. For details of where to buy it, please see the official Kansai One Pass website.

Article and original photos by Michael Lambe. All rights reserved.