Noto Peninsula Coast to Coast Bike Tour

Day4Suzu (4)

Overview

Bike along the rugged coastline of Noto Peninsula, one of the most beautiful coastal cycling routes anywhere in the world. The Noto peninsula offers some excellent cycling routes, especially along its rugged coastline which is every cyclist’s delight. It is so isolated from the rest of Japan that until the medieval age, it was a place deposed kings and noblemen were banished to. However, it is this very isolation that has allowed Noto to develop its unique culture while remaining a relatively untouched and unexplored region of Japan.

Its Oku-noto no Aenokoto rice harvesting ritual is recognized by UNESCO as an intangible cultural heritage of humanity. Much of Noto’s agricultural landscape is defined by the unique Satoyama and Satoumi agricultural techniques developed by its inhabitants, which are recognized as globally important agricultural heritage systems.

The cycling journey in the Noto Peninsula takes you through alternately, one of the most unique agricultural landscapes on earth, and some of the most beautiful coastal scenery you will ever see. And of course, there are numerous Onsen springs and stays at Ryokan or traditional Japanese inns that complement your cycling experience.

Start

Kanazawa | 17:00hrs

Finish

Toyama

Lodging

casual

Level

moderate

Avg. dist. cycled

60km/36mi

Suitable for

Age: 13+

Highlights

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Noto Peninsula's dramatic coast

Bike along the rugged coastline of Noto Peninsula, one of the most beautiful coastal cycling routes anywhere in the world.

Itinerary

Brief Itinerary

DayPlaceHotelMealsDistanceActivity
DAY 1KanazawaKanazawa Hakuchoro OnsenD
DAY 2HakuiKyukamura RyokanB,D60-75km/36-45micycling
DAY 3TogiSeaside Villa BokkaiB,D60-75km/36-45micycling
DAY 4WajimaWajima Yashio RyokanB60km / 36micycling
DAY 5SuzuNotojiso RyokanB,D77km/46micycling
DAY 6Wakura OnsenAenokaze RyokanB,D95km / 57micycling
DAY 7ToyamaIsohanabi Hot Spring RyokanB,D60km / 36micycling
DAY 8DepartureB

Accommodation

These hotels include some of the most prestigious ones. Heritage properties, art décor contemporary places or chic boutique stays that are a notch above the rest is a part of this list.

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Kanazawa Hakuchoro Onsen

The rooms capture the atmosphere and the culture of the Taisho period romanticism. Because of its mineral-rich hot water, their onsen is often referred to as "Hot Spring of the Beauty".

Detailed Itinerary

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Day 1: Kanazawa

We meet at our hotel in Kanazawa at 5:00 PM. After an introductory meeting and bike fitting, we take a stroll through the city and enjoy a welcome dinner in town.

Kanazawa is a city of half a million inhabitants which is sometimes given the moniker of Little Kyoto, on account of its being a nerve center of cultural life in the region. Kanazawa has great food, beautiful wooden townhouses, and serene gardens.

However, the one thing that Kanazawa is known for, above all else, is its gold leaf craft. In fact, Kanazawa in Japanese literally translates to “gold marsh”. Gold leaf is real gold that has been hand-beaten into a weightless, paper-thin sheet, which is then used in a range of products, from home decor to paintings, and even in food. The small town of Kanazawa makes all of Japan’s gold leaf. So significant is the gold leaf craft of Kanazawa that UNESCO recognizes the Kanazawa gold leaf craft as an intangible cultural heritage of the world. A local delicacy we suggest you must try when in Kanazawa is the gold leaf ice cream, which is, as the name suggests, ice cream with gold leaf on it.

Yet another Kanazawa highlight is the Kenrokuen Garden, considered one of the three most beautiful landscaped gardens in Japan.

With so much to explore, you’ll have your hands full in Kanazawa even before our cycling adventure has begun. This is why we recommend that you arrive a day earlier in Kanazawa to explore some of it on your own. Kanazawa is a 3.5-hour bullet train journey from Osaka and 3 hours by bullet train from Tokyo.

Meals: D
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Day 2: Hakui

We begin our cycling journey by heading due west towards the Sea of Japan and then taking a sharp northwards course to ride along the beach. The ride takes us to the famous Chirihama Nagisa Driveway — an 8 km stretch of hard-packed sand on which it is permissible to drive and bike. This makes it perhaps the only driveway of its kind anywhere in the world. We stop by the beach for lunch and then continue onwards to our destination, which is the small town of Hakui noted for its silk textile production.

Day2 Kanazawa to Hakui.png

Meals: B,D
Cycling Distance: 60-75km/36-45mi
Accommodation: Kyukamura Ryokan
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Day 3: Togi

We get on our bikes in the morning and continue heading due north along the coast. The sea is our constant companion on this day, and we cross several quaint fishing villages as we ride along the rugged Noto coastline. A particularly interesting phenomenon we get to observe this day is the fascinating rock formations along the coast, where the turbulent sea has shaped the rocks into interesting shapes over thousands of years. As we near the end of the day’s ride, we might get to catch the sun going down into the sea behind the famous Hatago Iwa, or “married rocks” that are considered sacred in the Japanese Shinto religion. We end the day’s ride at Togi, a town known for its ancient gold and silver mines.

Day3 Hakui to Togi.png

Meals: B,D
Cycling Distance: 60-75km/36-45mi
Accommodation: Seaside Villa Bokkai
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Day 4: Wajima

Today we strike a north-westerly course, straying away from the coast for a while as we ride through quiet backroads, passing by quaint wooden houses with black-tiled roofs to re-emerge along the coast. We even get to stop and step into one such house at the Kadomi Heritage House, where we experience firsthand what life inside a traditional Japanese wooden house is like. Today’s ride is quite unlike anything you’ve experienced before, as we head towards our destination for the day, Wajima. Wajima is a small town of about 30,000 inhabitants that is known for two things — its lacquerware, and its 1000 rice fields. The latter is quite a spectacle, as these rice fields are lit using solar LED lights for four hours after sunset, presenting a mesmerizing sight of beautiful rice paddies lit in colorful light. Day4 Togi to Wajima.png

Meals: B
Cycling Distance: 60km / 36mi
Accommodation: Wajima Yashio Ryokan
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Day 5: Suzu

We start off the day with a visit to Wajima’s famous morning market, one of the largest and oldest morning markets in Japan, having been in operation for over 1000 years. The market opens at 8 AM and stays running till about noon. Locals come to shop here for fresh sea and land produce. Visitors can buy souvenirs such as the famous Wajima lacquerware, or gold leaf-covered chopsticks. We then get on our bikes and ride past the famous 1000 rice fields and onwards in a northeasterly direction. Riding along the coast, we stop and see how salt is made from the sea using the ancient evaporation technique still in operation. You can even try your hand at the seawater spraying technique. We end the day’s cycling at Suzu, which is the northernmost point in the Noto Peninsula.

Day5 Wajima to Suzu.png

Meals: B,D
Cycling Distance: 77km/46mi
Accommodation: Notojiso Ryokan
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Day 6: Wakura Onsen

Since Suzu is the northernmost tip of the Noto peninsula, we now start biking in a southerly direction. We bike past fishing villages and white sand beaches, where we get off our bikes and dip our feet in the sand, relaxing for some time. We then get back on our bikes and ride through Noto Jima Island, a small island cut off from the rest of the Noto Peninsula by small strips of the Sea of Japan, forming natural bays. We ride over the bridges that connect the island to mainland Noto, and since it is quiet all around, we get to stop and admire the view of the bay from the bridge. We then ride onwards to our destination for the day, the famous Wakura Onsen.

Wakura Onsen is a system of hot water springs located close to Nanao Bay and was founded over 1,200 years ago. It is one of the oldest hot spring resorts in the region. The large ryokan offers guests excellent baths with gorgeous views. Today don't miss soaking in one of Wakura's world-famous hot springs and catching a glimpse of bottlenose dolphins from Noto Island.

suzu-wakura.png

Meals: B,D
Cycling Distance: 95km / 57mi
Accommodation: Aenokaze Ryokan
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Day 7: Toyama

Today is a splendid day on a bike along Toyama Bay with a backdrop of Mount Sekido and scenic Himi Hills. Toyama Bay area has long been cherished for its picturesque scenery and is known for bioluminescent firefly squid is only 3 inches long but packs a stunning feature in that small package. As we make our way to Toyama, admire a magnificent view of the 3000-meter Tateyama mountain range over the sea. Today's ride offers lush natural scenery, flaunting ocean and alpine vistas ending at Toyama's coastal and mountain-flanked city on Japan’s main island, Honshu.

Here we stay at Isohanabi, a hot spring ryokan with a splendid view of Toyama Bay and the 3,000-meter Tateyama mountain range soaring from the sea, a very rare sight.

Meals: B,D
Cycling Distance: 60km / 36mi
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Day 8: Departure

We meet for breakfast in the morning to reminisce over a remarkable cycling adventure. The tour ends here. You can take a train from Toyama to Kanazawa (1 hour), Kyoto (4.5 hours), or Tokyo (4.5 hours).

Meals: B
Accommodation:

Map

Dates and Prices

Note:

Our base pricing is in USD. However, we can also quote in AUD, GBP, CAD, and EUR, and you can pay in the same. Please write us.

Single Supplement

From US $350

E-Bike Upgrade

From US $150



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We offer private departures on almost all our itineraries, and for groups of four or more, they cost the same as our standard trips!


Essential Info

Inclusions

LODGING

All hotels as mentioned in the tour details or similar (subject to availability).

trip leader

Expert Trip Leader(s) who look after your every need and add meaning to your vacation.

bike

Immaculately maintained bike with helmet, suited to a terrain.

shuttle

A Van support that follows the group of riders and carries all belongings.

meals

Meals as per itinerary. Guests are given the opportunity to dine on their own so that they discover a location independently.

refreshments

Refreshments and mineral water while cycling.

entrance

Entrance fees to most of the monuments and temples.

Bikes

When you have a road and the thrill of a journey ahead of you, it’s imperative to have a good bike to enjoy it. Our fleet majorly consist of the below bikes as a part of this tour. However, sometimes due to height or availability constraints, we may provide a different but similar quality bike.

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Trek FX 7.4

hybrid

Included in your trip price

Bike Image

Trek 1.2

road

Included in your trip price

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Panasonic Jetter

ebike

Available at a surcharge

Weather

Mid-April to mid-June and mid-Sep to the end of Oct are the warm months with an average temperature of around 20 degrees and most suitable for cycling in the Noto Peninsula.

Exclusions

Airport pickup and drop

We recommend to book direclty from airport or hotel.

meals

Some meals may not be included. Please check your itinerary.

Beverages

Beverages such as alcohol, tea, coffee, juice at a hotel or restaurant.

Reviews from our friends

Deb from AU

5.0

Much Recommended

Much recommended. A fabulous coast to coast tour of the Noto Peninsula with an excellent guide and great bike. The high point was Ryokans and cycling along the coast for a good part. A great experience, not to be missed

Carolyn K from US

5.0

Excellent Trip

Excellent outing combining beautiful coastal cycling trails, iconic landmarks, and cultural immersion. We were looked after very well, the bikes were good, the guides were very nice people, and accommodation was of good quality, including a stay at some ryokans.

End of reviews