train the next morning to continue the journey. With a Japan Rail Pass, a connection to a Sakura at Okayama will get you to Kagoshima at around 10:50 AM. Without a Rail Pass you can connect in Okayama to a Mizuho that gets to Kagoshima by 9:45 AM.
Rail Pass holders must pay the lodging charge on the Tokyo-Okayama segment; the rest of the trip by Hikari and Sakura is covered under the pass. Lodging charges currently range from �9450 for a B solo to �10500 for a B single, to �16500 for an A single deluxe. If you really want to travel on the cheap side, �3660 gets you your own floor space... literally, you sleep on the floor.
Overnight by train with rest stop
Perhaps the best overnight train option - especially those using a Japan Rail Pass - is to split up the journey, stopping at an intermediate destination en-route in order to sleep somewhere. The cost incurred will only be for the hotel room; the Rail Pass covers your transportation. This is a good way to travel overnight, especially if you are able to find cheap accomodations, such as a business hotel. Yes, it may be a little hectic, and it might require some research, but this method carries two significant advantages: location and money. You will more than likely find good accomodations very close to a main train station in a smaller city, compared to a big city such as Tokyo, and it will more than likely be cheaper than hotels found in big cities. You could use the money you save to forward some of your luggage to Kagoshima using a luggage delivery service and take an overnight bag with you, which will make the journey easier.
As of March 2012, here is one way you could go about this from Tokyo: at 7 PM, leave for Himeji by taking the Hikari train and changing to a Kodama service at Shin-Osaka station. Once in Himeji (arriving around 11 PM) you can take a rest at Himeji's Toyoko Inn which costs as low as �5230 for a single room or �2990 double occupancy. At 6:54 AM the next
