Cycle-Friendly Hotels

The following hotels are welcoming to cyclists and offer safe indoor storage of bikes.

Izu

1. Guesthouse Sora, Yumigahama - fairly new guest house near Yumigahama beach which is good for swimming. The guest house is very welcoming to cyclists and has a nice lounge area with a wood stove. There is a kitchenette for preparing your own meals, and they do a basic breakfast. The owner does guided kayak tours around the beautiful UNESCO Geopark. The website has an English section.

2. YU-ZA Cycle Yado, Koura - a new guest house in Minami-Izu aimed at cyclists. They also have facilities for non-guests, including showers and workshop.

3. Ryokan Ogawa, Shimoda - a stylish guest house with indoor bike storage.

Tsuchiura, Ibaraki

1. BEB5 Tsuchiura by Hoshino Resorts - easy access to the Rin Rin Road which stretches on for about 180km around Kasumigaura Lake; there are also mountains to climb at Mt. Tsukuba. The hotel is part of the JR Tsuchiura station, which is also a one shot train from Tokyo (about an hour on the Joban Line). Bikes can be locked on railings on the hallway, or some rooms come with bike hanger hooks so you can keep them in your room. Rooms start at about 8000 per person, but you can get discounts for booking early and the rooms are pretty nice as the hotel IS run by Hoshino Resorts. There is a large room with all the Park Tools bike tools if you need to fix something, and overall, it's a little bit more high-end for cyclists, but also kind of out in the boonies.

Nasu, Tochigi

1. Chus Guest House - on the ground floor is a local food store and excellent restaurant, and on the second floor is beautifully designed accommodation. You can take bikes up on to the second floor for safe storage. On the third floor, there is a lounge. The staff are friendly and helpful (they will make sandwiches if you want a very early start). There is excellent cycling in the mountains both east and west of Nasu (see the TiT website for rides).

Matsumoto (near Norikura), Nagano

1. Guesthouse Raicho - has a nice community kitchen that guests can use to cook their own meals. During green season, the winter sports storage hut can store bikes inside. The owners speak English and the guesthouse itself is a great hub if you want to explore Nagano's cycling routes. Easy access to Echo Line to climb Norikura (highest point you can cycle in Japan at about 2,700 meters or nearly 9,000 feet). You can also go over to Gifu on the Sky Line, explore Kamikochi, and do other outdoor activities.

Ise, Mie

1. Ise Guest House Kazami - another stylish and friendly guest house with communal areas and safe bike storage indoors. The private rooms are around a hexagonal courtyard. For a two-day ride in the beautiful Ise-Shima National Park, see the TiT Ride with GPS site.