The Romancecar (ロマンスカー) is Odakyu Electric Railway's name for its limited express luxury tourist services south-west of Tokyo, to mountain resorts such as Hakone and Gotemba (Mount Fuji), and beaches such as Odawara and Enoshima. When the service started in 1957 with the 3000 series SE trainset, it broke the world speed record (145 km/h) for a narrow gauge train. This record gave impetus for the design of the first Shinkansen, the 0 series. The 50th anniversary of the Romancecar's narrow gauge world speed record was celebrated September 28, 2007. Some of the latest designs incorporate regenerative braking.

Name origin

The name comes from romance seats, two-person seats without separating armrests when one-person seats were a norm. Some Romancecars are equipped with standard seats featuring armrests. Other railroad companies also used "romance cars" or "romance seats" (a Japanese portmanteau for "loveseat") for their special accommodation passenger cars, but Odakyu holds the trademark for the term "Romancecar".

Service

Odakyu currently operates the following Romancecar services: These are classified as tokkyū (limited express) services, requiring limited express tickets and seat reservations. Bento meals are available on the train.

Trainset evolution

In popular culture