Saturday 17 December 2016

Beer-den: Mid-summer Oasis in the Local City

Unit number 7022 of the Toyama Chihou Railway De7000 series, Beer-den

Beer-den is a leisure train in Japan. It has a beer pub, and is operated on mid-summer evenings. Many railway companies operate Beer-den specifically on their tram routes in local cities. Beer-den is Japan's common mid-summer feature.

Toyama Chihou Railway (Toyama Regional Railway) is a good example. They operate Beer-den as a chartered car on the City Tram Line. Beer-den leaves Toyama Terminal at 18.34. It goes to Daigaku-mae Stop, Minami-Toyama Stop and returns to Toyama Terminal at 20.06. A toilet break is secured at Minami-Toyama Stop. Passengers can enjoy drinking beer together with tasty appetizers as much as they want during their one hour and a half trip. A beautiful urban night view of Toyama City is also offered to the passengers as an attraction. The chartered cost for one group (up to 24 persons) is 47,000 yen.

A classic electric car, unit number 7022 of the De7000 series is used for Beer-den. The De7000 series was launched in 1957 modeled after the Toden 8000 series. A total of 11 units have been built by Nippon Sharyo over 9 years. Among the 11 units, unit number 7022 only has a classic two-tone colored body with beige and deep blue. The interior is also classical. it has flame-retardant wooden desks, seats and floors.

Riding on the classic streetcar, let's enjoy drinking beer. It will be a mid-summer oasis in the local city, but don't forget that you get drunk more easily on the streetcar as it pitches and rolls.

Unit number 7022, Beer-den, stands at Toyama Terminal on the City Tram Line

Official information of Toyama Chihou Railway:
http://www.chitetsu.co.jp/english/
Official information about the leisure trains of Toyama Chihou Railway:
Official information about the rolling  stock of Toyama Chihou Railway (in Japanese):