From Kagoshima, Japan’s southernmost major city in the Kyushu region, you will enjoy quiet back roads and excellent cycle paths. Exploring a mix of pristine coastline, traditional villages, lush forests and renowned tea producing areas. Be immersed in Japanese history at the ruins of Chiran Samurai District and staying in traditional Ryokan.
This tour has been designed for everyone, whether you are a regular biker or not, to enjoy. Utilising electric bikes means you can choose how challenging your ride each day will be. Evenings will be spent in luxurious accommodations, from high end hotels to beautifully presented Ryokans. And don’t forget the food … it will be a culinary journey to remember, sampling delicious traditional and contemporary meals throughout the tour.
Start and Finish: Kagoshima City
The biking includes rides between 40 km & 70 km on paved/ smooth gravel surfaces. We use quiet back roads and Japan’s excellent network of cycle paths, for the majority of the tour. The terrain is gently rolling with some hills. The biggest day has a total ascent of 700m spread over the whole day.
This is a fully supported cycle tour, there will be one crew riding sweep to provide mechanical or medical support if required. Plus, a driver with our trusty support vehicle going ahead. Snacks and water are on board the vehicle for refills during your ride.
Please do read about the daily riding distances in the itinerary and prepare accordingly. The more prepared you are the more you will enjoy your adventure!
Your preparations should involve:
Getting comfortable riding 2-3 times a week with regular rides of 20 – 30 km in length.
Riding on paved surfaces
Some hills
Please do contact us if you would like some help with a detailed training plan.
On this cycle tour we have both pedal and electric bikes available, we will be using hybrid bikes, (good allrounders not specifically for road or mountain), with flat handlebars and narrow tyres, perfect for rolling on smooth surfaces.
E-bikers: You will have one battery per day and be able to recharge every night.
We hire two types of E bikes to make up the fleet, with multiple size and set up options to suit all rider heights.
Giant ESCAPE R E+
Panasonic Jetter
Your tour leaders will take care of your meals and snacks throughout your adventure with us. This excludes all lunches and two evening meals which are at your own cost to give you the opportunity to explore eating options of your own choosing. We are most definitely able to cater for vegetarians and special diets and if this includes you, it is essential to advise us of this before your tour begins, so that the support vehicle can be stocked with the necessary supplies. Typical meals include:
All accommodation for the duration of your tour is included. For this tour we have made the most of Japan’s incredible accommodation options and warm hospitality, staying in luxurious Japanese hotels when we are in towns and beautifully appointed traditional Ryokan when we are in smaller villages.
Singles: We do not charge a single supplement!
If you are traveling on your own, we will pair you with another single biker of the same gender to share a twin room. If you do not wish to share, that is fine too, but a single supplement will apply!
This trip has 8 – 10 guests, plus one experienced Escape Adventures guide and a local interpreter/ driver.
We had a great time! In the Escape Adventures style this was a well-organized adventure. We felt well looked after and supported and had amazing experiences. For us the biking was just right. Challenging enough to felt like we had achieved something for the day but not too hard (due to the e-bike) or too long. As I am currently not doing a lot of biking the e-bikes for this trip were a good part of the reason for signing up (I don’t think I would have managed the hills without), I told Logan he had to save up his battery for me if I needed it, which meant he did most of his biking without – but he is younger and fitter! The cherry blossom – as lovely as I had hoped for. The food! – this was amazing.
It’s a safe and supported way to explore places you might not feel confident. Cycling is a great way to see beyond the tourist parts of a country.
Thankyou escape adventures for giving a couple of 83 years, the opportunity at our age to see Japan and experience the beauty, hospitality, history ,and the people of Japan on a bike.
The accomodation was such a treat, banquets at every meal , and comfortable authentic rooms, even the futons!!
The route was so interesting, seeing the grass routes of rural life and the industry. Lovely quiet roads and bike trails.
The leader Bruce made our trip so achievable and comfortable. As did the local guides, relaxed and inclusive.
We are so grateful for this opportunity with fellow kiwis.
I have recently completed the Escape Adventures Japan Cycle Tour. Riding in the spring enables you to experience the cherry blossom trees. We encountered them everywhere along the route. So beautiful.
Being exposed and immersed into the wonderful Japanese culture adds another dimension to this tour, also the food which I loved, the Onsen [ hot pools], sand sauna, visits to a green tea factory, and Japanese whiskey all added to the adventure.
We also gained an insight into the history and biked through some stunning landscapes. Being in the south meant a lot less traffic and tourists. I loved the off road trails that took us through forests and farmland with a volcano ever present.
The accommodation was very different at some stops and most quite luxurious and this enhanced the whole encounter.
From the photos I sent to my family and friends the overwhelming comment was “ you look as though you are having a fabulous time. It looks amazing.”
I really enjoyed myself and didn’t want it to end.
“Wonderful to immerse ourselves into the surroundings & culture of the Japanese people sharing their beautiful, historical country with a fun, quietly challenging cycle tour ! Our Escape Adventure team of: NZ tour leader – Bruce, local host – Saori & driver Mitsu, were great company & fantastic with sorting tour detail.
Awesome friendships made & contact for future tours ahead……. I will remember most, the people, scenery, industry, green space incl. commercial & bush lands of tall, beautiful trees, food, ocean views, stunning volcanic reminders, sad loss of life memorials that form the basis of the communities we travelled thru’ & yet love of the land & importance of the family, overall.
