Where we plan to travel in Japan and South Korea.
It is a pleasure to do trip planning for Japan. Being a nation of islands, with great ferry service, makes it easy for us to plan and provides so many options. Unlike trains and buses, which are not always trike friendly, we simply ride on the ferry with the motorcycles and cars and then make our way to our stateroom (overnight ferry) and to the onboard onsen (public baths) with an ocean view. These ships are lovely…often with entertainment, dining areas and Onsens for men and women. Think of these ships as being “every man’s cruise ship” without the expense.
We have learned that it is best for us to arrive at the smaller Osaka terminal Itami. It is a charming small airport and once we assemble our trikes, it is a pleasant 25 km ride to our hotel. On our first trip to Japan, we arrived at the huge and newer Kansai Airport. It is not possible to cycle from the airport as it is on reclaimed land and as a result we hired a van driver to transport us…it was ok but very expensive. We prefer the more user friendly experience that Itami offers.
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Osaka’s Hotel Lutheran, our home away from home, is located in the Chuo Ward. As you can see on the map it is an easy ride. So far, on each of our trips to Japan, we have bookended our trip with stays at this hotel. We love its location next to the Castle, it is affordable and they have underground parking which gives us a secure place to park our trikes. Many of the newer hotels in Japan lack accessible parking for bikes. Their parking is an automated system, where cars are individually loaded on an elevator. This type of parking is not bike friendly.
After spending some days in Osaka, we will take an overnight ferry to Toyo Port, Shikoku Island near Niihama, then ride to Matsuyama, spend a few days exploring and then proceed to Hiroshima. Ultimately we will head to Fukuoka on Kyushu where we will take a ferry to Busan, South Korea.
We are excited to visit South Korea where billions have been invested to create a cycling infrastructure. It has been on our wish list for some time. There are three major routes which cover the length of the country….one on each coast and a third one up the centre to Seoul. Our plan is to ride the east coast from Busan to the DMT, visit Seoul and then return to Busan on the central route.
This map below shows our route from Busan to the DMT. We will follow the coast and join the route above Pohang-si.
The map below shows the route we will take from Seoul to Busan.
After Korea, we will return to Fukuoka, explore the island of Kyushu for a number of weeks and then take the overnight ferry from Kagoshima to Naha, Okinawa for the final month of our trip. By then it will be December and we look forward to the warmth and the beaches of sub tropical Okinawa. We have booked a domestic flight from Okinawa to Osaka to connect with our flight back to Canada. Unlike Canada, where domestic flights are typically expensive, Japan offers a very reasonable price.
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