I sort of have this dream of going to Japan, and riding from the southern most point to the northern most point. The tough part is, I'd rather not rent a bike, so what would be the cheapest way to get 2 people and 2 bikes to Japan? My budget for transport is probably, say, 2,000-3,000. -wk
I'm going to be doing the exact thing starting march next year, just hitting the start/mid spring till end of summer... Don't know if its more economical to get bikes in or buy them there in truth.... I'm still trying to work things out atm.. Bikes are costly there but at the least buying one there means you can sell it easier... I'm working off 10 000 which is everything covered including buying a bike there, visa, getting licence, food ect.. 3000 would not be enough unless your shipping a bike in your already have. But then again I plan on staying afew months.
Do Japan on the cheap Take a tent, you can camp anywhere and I mean anywhere, carparks, parks, beaches, all for free. We stayed 6 weeks there and only payed for 5 nights. You find public clean toilets all over Japan, they are free and sometimes have even showers (they might cost a little). At some places you can find riders houses, that are cheaper hostels, they cost about 10 Euros a night. No fresh fruit, an apple can cost 4euros, only bananas are affordable. Look out for cheap supermarkets (they sell out of the box like "Aldi" and go shopping in the evening or in the morning when stuff is discounted, look out for the food on sale or reduced marked stuff. Take your camping stove, glass noodles are cheap. People are very nice and help you. We got given fresh food and a couple of times an overnight stay at their private homes with great Japanese food. We payed for shipping from Yokohama to Bangkok 1500 Euro. We used the company Shipmates but they were not very experienced. Good luck and come back to us, if you have more questions. Chris and Ina www.thataway.de
Is it possible for a foreigner on a tourist visa to actually buy a motorcycle and register/insure it in Japan? Most countries make that hard or impossible.
http://www.geocities.jp/classic_sports71/check/a006.htm A 250 is more than enough bike to tour Japan.
No. Need to have at least a work permit. Japan does have a working holiday scheme though, so check to see if your country is eligible. http://www.mofa.go.jp/j_info/visit/w_holiday/
Japan is great and full of wonderful people (and really hot girls!). I loved it there, can't wait to go back!
