Samurai in the Saddle: Japan

A city that’s part of Japan’s motorcycling heritage opens the ride, before soaking that evening in one of the country’s most prestigious hot spring towns – fourteen nights from Tokyo to the Japanese Alps and the Noto Peninsula.

From£9,045pp

Duration14 days

StyleGuided

Best suited toExperienced riders

Find out more

An independent Stradora pick. Details from the operator's published information, last checked 28 Oct 2026. Stradora DiscoveryChosen independently by our editors because we think it's worth the drive. We're not partnered with this operator: dates, prices and booking are handled by them, and we last checked their published details on 28 Oct 2026.

Booked with the operator?

Tell us your trip details and we'll put together a complimentary Stradora Expedition Pack for the journey.

Claim your pack

14 nights through Japan

Fourteen nights in Japan on a hired BMW, from Tokyo through the Fuji lakes and the Japanese Alps to the Noto peninsula. It is the most expensive tour the operator sells and the furthest from home.

Tokyo starts it, and the route goes out over the Yokohama bridges to the Hakone Turnpike, a private toll road of long, well-surfaced curves with Fuji across the water on a clear day, and then the Izu Skyline along a ridge above the peninsula.

The Fuji Five Lakes follow in the UNESCO listed area at the foot of the mountain, where the reflections in the water are the subject of roughly every photograph of Japan ever taken. Hamamatsu comes next on the coast, a city that matters to motorcyclists for obvious reasons: both Honda and Suzuki began there, and Yamaha is still headquartered in the city.

The Japanese Alps follow to Gero, one of the most highly regarded onsen towns in the country, where the evening bathing is treated as part of the trip rather than a hotel amenity, and the etiquette gets explained before anyone undresses. Nanao and the Noto peninsula close the route, on sweeping coastal roads through rolling country and villages that have changed very little. The bike hire, hotels, breakfasts, dinners as listed, maps and GPS routes are included, with fuel, flights and other meals separate. The price is quoted per person. Japanese roads are immaculate and the driving standard is high, but the road culture is unfamiliar enough that a guided group is the sensible way to ride the country for the first time.

Style

Guided

Duration

A fortnight (11-15 nights)

Region

Asia

Vehicle provision

Vehicle provided

Departures

May

Starts/ends

Tokyo, Japan → Japan