SL Moka

Published: Aug 11, 2026

Updated: Aug 11, 2026

SL Mokasteam locomotiveMoka RailwayMashikorural railway

Representative image — not a photograph of this location.

The Moka Railway is a 42-kilometre single-track line running east from Shimodate through rice country to Motegi, and at weekends it puts a steam locomotive on it. SL Moka is not a preserved line running in a circle for tourists — it is an ordinary local railway, used by schoolchildren on weekdays, that happens to run a C12 tank engine and a rake of old carriages on Saturdays and Sundays.

That makes it a different proposition from the more famous steam operations. The train stops at small country stations, the windows open, and the scenery is unglamorous flat farmland that turns bright green in June and gold in September. Moka Station itself is built in the shape of a steam locomotive and houses a preserved engine hall. Tickets need booking online from a month ahead, though a limited number go on sale on the day at staffed stations, and it costs a fraction of what the headline steam trains charge.

Essential Information

Opening Hours

SL Moka operates mainly at weekends | Check the published operating calendar

Closed: No service on most weekdays | Operating days vary by season

Entrance Fee

SL reserved ticket plus the ordinary fare for the distance travelled — confirm current prices with Moka Railway

Best Season

June for green rice fields | September–October for the harvest | April for blossom along the line

Visit Duration

Half a day for a one-way ride with a stop | Full day with Mashiko

Getting There

Access Information

Moka Station, Daimachi, Moka. SL Moka runs mainly at weekends. Reserved SL tickets are booked through the Moka Railway website from one month before departure until 11:55 PM two days ahead; a limited number of same-day tickets are sold at the staffed stations of Shimodate, Moka, Mashiko and Motegi. Ordinary fares apply in addition to the SL ticket. Check the operating calendar before travelling — Moka Railway 0285-84-2911.

Insider Guide

Premium

**Book a month ahead for a seat.** Online reservations open one month before and close at 11:55 PM two days before. Same-day tickets exist but are limited and go at the staffed stations only. In peak season the reserved allocation goes early. **You need two tickets.** The SL ticket is on top of the ordinary fare for the distance you travel. Budget for both, and note that this is a private railway so national rail passes do not apply. **Ride it, or photograph it, but pick one.** The line runs through open farmland with plenty of accessible level crossings and bridges, and a good proportion of the people you see beside the track are there with cameras rather than tickets. Doing both in one day means driving parallel to the train, which is possible but frantic. **Get off at Mashiko.** The pottery town is on the line and is the obvious break in the journey — kilns, galleries and the twice-yearly pottery market, reached by steam train. **The engine hall is free to look at.** Moka Station is built to look like a locomotive and has preserved engines on site, which is worth twenty minutes even if you are not riding.

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