Koriyama Station Car Rental: 7 Companies and 10 Branches Compared

Ten rental branches at Koriyama Station: how to choose

JR Koriyama Station — about 80 minutes north of Tokyo on the Tohoku Shinkansen and the rail junction for the Ban-etsu West, Ban-etsu East, Tohoku Main and Suigun lines — has 10 staffed rental branches from seven companies within a 10-minute walk. Eki Rent-a-Car sits inside the station building on 1F (south/West Exit side); six branches — Orix West Exit, Nissan, Nippon, Toyota Shinkansen Exit, Guts and Toyota Koriyama — are on the West and North Exit side; and three — Budget, Orix East Exit and Toyota East Exit — stand outside the East Exit across the free pedestrian passage.

This page compares exit walks, free station shuttles, opening hours, winter tyres and mountain road closures, one-way drops, and reference rates on Japanese and foreign licences.

• Early Shinkansen arrivals (08:00 openings): nine of the 10 branches open at 08:00 (only Guts opens at 09:00). If you need an earlier start or a late-night return, Nissan also operates two app-only 24-hour unattended stations nearby (Koriyama Ekimae Station, 5 minutes from the West Exit, and Koriyama Station East Exit Station, 8 minutes from the East Exit) for registered Japanese-app members.
• Evening returns and the 20:00 cutoff: seven branches — Toyota Shinkansen Exit, Toyota East Exit, Nippon, both Orix branches, Nissan and Eki Rent-a-Car — stay open until 20:00. Budget closes at 19:30, and Toyota Koriyama and Guts close at 19:00; no staffed branch at Koriyama Station accepts returns after 20:00.
• One-way drops to Sendai, Fukushima or Utsunomiya: all three Toyota branches allow one-way departures and returns inside and outside Fukushima Prefecture, both Orix branches allow both directions nationwide except Hokkaido, Okinawa and outlying islands, and Nissan is a two-way one-way branch. Eki Rent-a-Car advertises one-way rentals, and Nippon accepts incoming returns up to 2-tonne trucks.
• Lower base rates: on standard Japanese-licence rates before discounts, a compact car for 24 hours is ¥4,070 at Guts, ¥8,470 at Eki Rent-a-Car, ¥8,580 at Toyota and Budget, and ¥8,910 at Nippon. Guts includes no vehicle damage cover in its base rate, caps distance at 300 km per 24 hours, and does not stock minivans (D class) at Koriyama Ekimae.
• International Driving Permits: six companies (nine branches) — Toyota, Nippon, Orix, Nissan, Eki Rent-a-Car and Budget — accept a 1949 Geneva Convention IDP with your passport (or an eligible licence with an official Japanese translation). Guts Koriyama Ekimae does not rent on an IDP.

Compare the 10 Koriyama Station branches

Branch names link to their official pages. The numbers match the station data ledger (1–10) and are not a ranking.

Reference prices: standard rates at seven companies

This table compares each company's published standard rate for a compact car, together with a 48-hour total including basic collision damage waiver (CDW). Figures are regular-season, tax-inclusive rates before discounts on a Japanese driving licence.

• The 48-hour total adds the first 24 hours, one additional day and two days of basic CDW. A dash (–) means Guts does not publish an additional-day rate in its national table (note also that Guts Koriyama Ekimae stocks kei cars, kei vans/trucks, C-1 compacts and H-1 hybrids, without D-class minivans, and adds ¥1,100 per 24 hours for departures from 18 December 2026 to 4 January 2027). Extra hours, fuel, winter options, one-way fees and child seats are separate.
• Most companies offer online or member discounts: Toyota (10% and 20% member discounts), Budget (10% web member discount), Eki Rent-a-Car (up to 10% at participating offices), Orix (member discounts and 5% web discount), and Nippon (separate member rate table). Nissan's CDW uses the Standard Plan at ¥1,650 a day.
• Guts includes no vehicle damage cover in the base rate (accident excess up to ¥50,000 or ¥100,000, waived by joining CDW; NOC is ¥30,000 even if the car can be driven back) and caps distance at 300 km per 24 hours (¥11 per extra km).

Prices can differ on a foreign licence. Toyota publishes a separate foreign-licence schedule where C1 is ¥10,340 for the first 24 hours and ¥8,690 for each additional 24 hours before optional cover, compared with ¥8,580 and ¥7,260 on a Japanese licence. Toyota also runs an English reservation line (0800-7000-815, 08:00–20:00), and Eki Rent-a-Car and Budget maintain English websites.

To drive in Japan as a visitor, bring a booklet-type International Driving Permit issued under the 1949 Geneva Convention, or a licence from Switzerland, Germany, France, Belgium, Monaco or Taiwan accompanied by an official Japanese translation (for example from JAF), together with your physical passport. Budget specifically notes that visitors who entered Japan through an automated gate should also bring their boarding pass stub showing their arrival date. See driving in Japan with a foreign licence.

West Exit, in-station and East Exit walks, plus free shuttles

Tohoku Shinkansen and conventional JR ticket gates open toward the West Exit side; to reach the East Exit, cross the East–West Free Passage over the tracks. Both Toyota and Orix run separate counters on the West and East sides, so double-check your exact branch name before walking out — Orix's official pages specifically warn customers not to mix up Koriyama Station West Exit, Koriyama Station East Exit and Fukushima Station West Exit.

• Inside the station building and right outside the West Exit (1–3 minutes): Eki Rent-a-Car sits inside the station building on 1F (south/West Exit side), keeping you under cover in rain or snow. Orix Koriyama Station West Exit is 3 minutes south of the West Exit (305 m), and Nissan Koriyama Ekimae is 3 minutes north of the West Exit next to the Sumitomo Life Building opposite the Big-i tower.
• North/West Omachi and Nakamachi branches (6–10 minutes on foot, or free shuttle): Toyota Koriyama Station Shinkansen Exit (Omachi 2-18-10) is a 5–7 minute walk from the North Exit and runs a dedicated free shuttle from West Exit bus stop 6 without reservation on weekday mornings (08:00–12:00; call the branch on weekday afternoons and weekends/holidays). Nippon Koriyama Station West Exit (7 minutes on foot) runs a free shuttle between 08:00 and 14:00 timed to Shinkansen arrivals from the sightseeing/shuttle bus stop opposite Koriyama City Hotel, 30 m straight ahead from the Bus Terminal exit (call the branch after 14:00 on weekdays and on weekends/holidays). Guts Koriyama Ekimae (6 minutes from the North Exit) offers a free shuttle on enquiry outside 18 December 2026–4 January 2027. Toyota Koriyama (10 minutes south-west along Route 4 in Nakamachi 1-16) has no shuttle.
• East Exit branches (1–5 minutes, plus shuttle options): across the East–West Free Passage, Budget Koriyama Station East Exit is 1 minute from the East Exit, Orix Koriyama Station East Exit is 3 minutes (411 m), and Toyota Koriyama Station East Exit is 5 minutes. Orix East Exit can also pick you up at the West Exit sightseeing shuttle stop near bus stop 6 between 09:00 and 16:00 if you reserve by phone at least 3 days before departure, and Toyota East Exit runs a reservation-required station shuttle (note that Toyota shuttles cannot be booked on web-prepaid reservations).

Routes to Inawashiro, Urabandai and Aizu, winter closures and the 20:00 return cutoff

Drives west to Lake Inawashiro, Goshikinuma and Lake Hibara in the Urabandai and Bandai area, or onward to Tsuruga Castle and thatched-roof Ouchi-juku in the Aizu-Wakamatsu and Ouchi-juku area, follow Route 49 or join the Tohoku Expressway and Ban-etsu Expressway (E49 via Koriyama JCT) from Koriyama IC or the ETC-only Koriyama-Chuo Smart IC. Allow roughly 40–50 minutes to Inawashiro-Bandaikogen IC and 60–75 minutes to Aizu-Wakamatsu IC.

Pay close attention to seasonal mountain closures and snow tyres. All three high-elevation sightseeing roads around Mt Bandai and Mt Azuma — the Bandai-Azuma Skyline (Jododaira), Bandai-Azuma Lakeline and Mt Bandai Gold Line — closed for winter at 17:00 on 13 November 2026 until late April 2027, and Nishi-Azuma Sky Valley closed at 17:00 on 4 November 2026 (see the 2026–2027 winter road closures calendar). Even in October and early November, freezing temperatures trigger overnight gate closures. Throughout winter, Lake Inawashiro, Urabandai (Goshikinuma and Lake Hibara via Routes 115 and 459), Aizu-Wakamatsu and Ouchi-juku remain accessible, but snow and ice checks are routine on the Ban-etsu Expressway and inland highland roads from late November through early April. On their official pages, Nissan equips studless winter tyres as standard from 1 December 2026 to 31 March 2027, Budget equips studless tyres as standard in winter (around December to around March), and Guts offers studless tyres as a paid option — confirm winter tyres when booking with any company for late-autumn to early-spring trips.

Every staffed branch around Koriyama Station closes between 19:00 and 20:00, with no counter returns after 20:00. Build in a buffer for evening traffic on Sakura-dori and Ekimae-Odori and for refuelling near the station (see refuelling and returning the car). Watch closing days at Guts (Wednesdays and 30 Dec 2026–2 Jan 2027), Toyota Koriyama (1–3 Jan) and Toyota Shinkansen Exit (21 Apr), plus shortened New Year hours at Toyota East Exit (09:00–17:00 on 1–3 Jan), Nippon (08:00–18:00 on 31 Dec 2026–3 Jan 2027), Orix West Exit (09:00–18:00 on 31 Dec 2026–2 Jan 2027) and Orix East Exit (08:00–18:00 on 31 Dec 2026; 09:00–18:00 on 1–3 Jan 2027). For sat-nav returns, published MAPCODEs are 61827842*86 (Toyota Shinkansen Exit), 61827018*05 (Toyota East Exit), 61796848*00 (Toyota Koriyama) and 61 827 872*04 (Nippon).

One-way drops to Sendai Station, Sendai Airport, Fukushima or Utsunomiya, and ETC cards

Many Tohoku itineraries start off the Shinkansen at Koriyama, loop through Urabandai, Aizu or Zao, and drop the car at Sendai Station or Sendai Airport, or run north to Fukushima Station or south to Shin-Shirakawa and Utsunomiya. Check branch-level rules and one-way rental fees before booking:

• All three Toyota branches (Shinkansen Exit, East Exit and Koriyama) handle one-way departures and returns inside and outside Fukushima Prefecture. Note that Shinkansen Exit is operated by Toyota Rent a Lease Fukushima while East Exit and Koriyama belong to Toyota Rent a Lease Shin-Fukushima, so check the booking screen even for cross-station returns.
• Both Orix branches (West Exit and East Exit) handle one-way departures and returns nationwide except Hokkaido, Okinawa and outlying islands.
• Nissan Koriyama Ekimae supports one-way departures and returns (select your return branch when booking).
• Eki Rent-a-Car Koriyama Station lists one-way rentals as available, and Nippon Koriyama Station West Exit accepts incoming returns up to 2-tonne trucks (check the booking screen for outgoing drop-offs).

For expressway tolls on the Tohoku and Ban-etsu Expressways — and for ETC-only gates such as Koriyama-Chuo Smart IC and Niitsuru Smart IC — seven branches (all three Toyota counters, both Orix counters, Nissan and Nippon) confirm ETC card rental. At Nippon, an ETC card costs ¥330 for up to 7 days (¥1,100 for 8 days to 1 month) and must be requested by phone after booking online (or at the counter if stock remains). Eki Rent-a-Car and Guts supply an ETC reader in the car, so bring your own card if you plan to use ETC lanes.

Frequently asked questions

Is Times Car Koriyama Station West Exit open, and is Nico Nico within walking distance?

Times Car Koriyama Station West Exit ended counter rentals on 1 May 2025 and now operates solely as a car-share station. Nico Nico Rent a Car has seven branches in Koriyama City, but even the closest (Koriyama Haga) is a 20-minute walk from the East Exit with no station shuttle. For station-front pickup or a free station shuttle, choose from the seven companies and 10 branches compared above.

Can I rent on an International Driving Permit?

Yes at six companies (nine branches) — Toyota, Nippon, Orix, Nissan, Eki Rent-a-Car and Budget — with a 1949 Geneva Convention IDP and your physical passport (or a licence from Switzerland, Germany, France, Belgium, Monaco or Taiwan with an official Japanese translation and passport). If you entered Japan via an automated gate, Budget also asks for your boarding pass stub to verify your arrival date. Guts Koriyama Ekimae does not rent on an IDP.

What does a two-day rental cost?

On standard Japanese-licence rates before discounts, a compact car with basic CDW for 48 hours comes to ¥17,820 at Eki Rent-a-Car, ¥18,040 at Toyota, ¥18,260 at Nippon, ¥18,480 at Budget, ¥20,020 at Orix and ¥20,790 at Nissan. Guts charges ¥4,070 for the first 24 hours (plus ¥1,100/day for basic CDW, and +¥1,100/24h during 18 Dec 2026–4 Jan 2027) and does not publish an additional-day rate in its national table. On a foreign licence, Toyota's C1 base rate starts at ¥10,340 for the first 24 hours before cover. Compare excess waivers and company rules in basic CDW and the NOC explained and comparing rental company rules.

Guides to read before booking

• Urabandai and Bandai area driving guide: Goshikinuma, Jododaira and Lake Inawashiro
• Aizu-Wakamatsu and Ouchi-juku driving guide: Tsuruga Castle and To-no-Hetsuri
• Winter road closures calendar 2026–2027: Bandai-Azuma Skyline and mountain roads
• Sendai Station car rental: 17 branches compared
• Sendai Airport car rental: 8 branches compared
• One-way rentals: fees and rules
• ETC cards for rental cars: where to borrow one and how tolls are settled
• Basic CDW and the NOC explained
• Refuelling and returning the car
• Comparing rental company rules: payment, extensions, one-way rentals and more
• Driving in Japan with a foreign licence