Japanese officials pitched the latest bullet train service, due to link Tokyo with the popular destination of Kanazawa, Ishikawa Prefecture, starting next month, at a tourism promotion event Wednesday in New York's Grand Central Terminal.

East Japan Railway Co. gave a video presentation of tourist spots and places of scenic beauty along the Hokuriku Shinkansen Line.

The line's extension from Nagano to Kanazawa is scheduled to open March 14. The fastest service from Tokyo to Kanazawa on the Sea of Japan coast via Nagano will take less than 2½ hours.

Also showcased at the Japan Week event, running through Friday, is a mock-up of a carriage from the E7 series train that will run on the line. Adults and children got a chance to take pictures beside it wearing a stationmaster's cap and uniform.

At an ad hoc market, visitors could buy a popular "bento" lunchbox featuring seasoned sliced and ground beef and steamed rice sold at the JR station in Yonezawa, Yamagata Prefecture, as well as sweets and other local specialties from across Japan.

Planning his first trip to Japan in August with his wife, Arturo Delapaz, 39, said of the promotional event: "I think it's very nice. I was able to get my information for my trip to Japan."

Delapaz, whose great grandfather was from Osaka, said his trip will center on places in Tokyo such as Sensoji Temple and Tokyo Skytree, but now he's interested in traveling on a bullet train to Kanazawa in the future.