Inaugurated on March 14, 1992, Nozomi is the fastest train service running on the Tokaido/Sanyo Shinkansen. Along the stretch between Hiroshima and Hakata, the train can reach speeds of 300 km/h (186 mph), making it one of the fastest commercial services in the world. A trip between Tokyo and Osaka, a distance of 515 kilometers, takes only 2.5 hours on the Nozomi. The 500 Series Shinkansen and 700 Series Shinkansen are used for Nozomi services.

The trains stop at slightly fewer stations than the Hikari trains. On the Tokaido Shinkansen, Nozomi trains stop at Tokyo Station, Nagoya Station, Kyoto Station, and Shin-Osaka Station. On the Sanyo line, all Nozomi trains stop at Shin-Kobe Station, Okayama Station , Hiroshima Station , Kokura Station, and Hakata Station. Certain Nozomi trains stop at additional stations as well. The Nozomi is the only JR train service not covered by the Japan Rail Pass .

The word nozomi (のぞみ) in Japanese means "hope" or "wish". It was selected since something faster than the existing services Hikari, "light, ray", and Kodama, "echo", was needed.