Cycling the Shimanami Kaido in Japan | Bikes, Views, Cafes, Cats

November 21, 2022
Shimanami Kaido is a beautiful cycling route that travels over 6 islands between Onomichi and Imabari. There are many ferry ports along the route which allows for endless exploration. If you wanted to do the full route you would need to be going decently quickly and it would take a full day. A lot faster than Ian and I were going. We decided to go slow and stop a lot so in our 5 hours we only managed to do half of the route.
We cycled from Onomichi to Ikuchi Island and took the ferry from Setodacho Setoda to get back to Onomichi.
Places stopped:
Giant bicycle rental - (5 hrs) - Ian's carbon bike: 6,600 yen. Laura's electric bike: 9,240 yen
-goo.gl/maps/jWPmnvku4jBxasRz9...
Onomichi - Mukaishima - about 500 yen each I think? I can't remember. Below is the approximate location of the wharf.
- goo.gl/maps/6PVjUG1ibeP2dMhX8
Innoshima Truck Stop - 600-800 yen
- goo.gl/maps/HYYbinsFaRyGHZZh8...
Dolce Ice Cream - 600 yen
- goo.gl/maps/KdeqmFe9rFtb1Pfg9...
Kousan-ji and Hill of Hope - 1,400 yen each
- goo.gl/maps/EMkMRTx73GueL23r7...
Setoda-Onomichi Ferry - 1,800 yen each
- goo.gl/maps/epvP2vNMauJS5qx88...
Cat alley - Free
- goo.gl/maps/9a7qkRwYFFwNKX3J6...
Ushitora Shrine - Free
- goo.gl/maps/JfwMgdmomLjvwCYS7...
Cat cafe that I wanted to spend all my money at but was too broke to:
- goo.gl/maps/yFfnoz7JjpmMxEH39...
Gyuchan Onomichi - 400-700 yen each
- goo.gl/maps/f12i7yX2hUydQrAs9...

[@melocitysolo9574]

Oh, the islands in the Seto Inland Sea are really beautiful. It's great that you visited Onomichi. Onomichi is a small port city, but among the Japanese, it has been the scene of several movies and is a very famous tourist destination. But it doesn't seem to be well known to foreigners yet. Many foreigners visit Hiroshima City and Miyajima, but pass by Onomichi. The Onomichi ramen you ate is also a famous local food.

[@laura7murray]

We really enjoyed the vibe of Onomichi. When we watched the movie Suzume it made us very nostalgic of the Seto Inland Sea.

[@ClarisseDeGuzman]

You capture everything so beautifully! I enjoyed seeing all the cats and the Hill of Hope

[@laura7murray]

i love seeing your cat ;) #chloesupremacy

[@veryboringname.]

Thanks for all the Google Maps links! They're a great help!

[@laura7murray]

I'm glad they were able to help you!

[@joshinmizutani5528]

I had been waiting for your Japan asventure clip haha

[@laura7murray]

Thanks! I'm slowly getting my videos out!

[@moog5508]

Onomichi is my favorite❤

[@laura7murray]

Onomichi is such a cute city! I would love to go back.

[@akhwanmuntaha]

Enjoy your ride my friend Awesome view along the way

[@laura7murray]

Thanks for watching!

[@DebyHariyanto-de3eq]

I LOVE❤ JAPAN❤❤ FROM JAKARTA CITY" BEKASI CITY" TANGERANG CITY" DEPOK CITY" BOGOR CITY" BANDUNG CITY" INDONESIA..❤❤💕👍👍👌👌

[@Its_just_me_again]

what a great vid - i never get tired of watching shimanami adventures. it is however nice when the quality is this good. great framing and pacing, very enjoyable. thx for giving me wonderful flashbacks. the gelato place u stopped in had a wonderful lil italian shack in the carpark with pasta to die for. the see through metal panel 2 storey shop @22:27 was built after the fire which took out quite a few shops - some still vacant to the left of it. the santa clause shop on the corner has different themes - i had a pumpkin scarecrow when last there during halloween :)

[@laura7murray]

Wow! Thank you for all the extended lore! That's really good information. Ian's going to be sad about missing the Italian pasta. I'm glad you enjoyed watching it.

[@Its_just_me_again]

yw and yea i loved it. have now watched ur other vids too :)@@laura7murray

[@laura7murray]

I'll be going back to Japan next year for my friends wedding so I'll have some new adventures then!@@Its_just_me_again

[@Its_just_me_again]

nice :) ill keep an eye out. im back there in 2 weeks for another month. i like making vids of my trips too but more for my own memories and not fast paced enough for others to watch :)@@laura7murray

[@captainsolon]

Loved watching all your Japan videos so far! Do you happen to have your full itinerary available to share anywhere?

[@laura7murray]

travelbylaura.notion.site/Japan-2022-95d6f1c24ba44795b5085d3fed2fefa7 I made this notion for my Mom to be able to follow along on my trip. Feel free to check it out!

[@captainsolon]

@@laura7murray amazing thank you so much!

[@laura7murray]

@@captainsolon You're welcome!

[@samgardiner8346]

I am doing the Shiminami in a couple of months, travel tip what did you guys do with your luggage whilst riding?

[@laura7murray]

We had a hotel in Hiroshima that we kept our luggage at. Since we just did half of the Shimanami we were able to easily get back to Hiroshima by about 10 or 11pm. If you plan on doing the whole Shimanami Kaido you could leave your luggage in a locker room at the station (most of the JR stations have locker rooms) and then grab it the next day. Japan also has very reliable and easy to use luggage forwarding services. You can have your hotel send your luggage to your next hotel at a very reasonable price. We didn't do that this trip because its not really something you can plan ahead and I was too anxious to figure it out there :P It's more of a thing that you just show up and ask about and they will almost always be able to help out. Yamato Transport is the main company that I saw a lot of. I personally recommend doing only half of it and having it as a short day trip if you are short on time. We were able to get a very nice taste of the ride without spending too much time and energy on it. We rode from Onomichi to Setoda and took this ferry back - goo.gl/maps/uLoPF2Puq9Zq3SNH6?coh=178572&entry=tt

[@roseofsharon7551]

You can send your luggage to your next hotel stay, same day delivery. Look up Yamato Transport Global.

[@ky_jellybean]

such a nice video. found it because i’m planning a shimanami kaido trip as well. didn’t know you could do a half day! that’s awesome. was it onomichi that you were exploring in the afternoon? and what kind of camera did you use for this trip? cheers! :) glad you had such a great time and hope you’ve enjoyed WoW since then. 🍻

[@laura7murray]

I have WoW open right now! hah. We are hoping to go back and do another half day from the other direction eventually! We would start at Imabari and head north instead. Yes, the town we were in at the end was Onomichi! We barely scratched the surface exploring it and I'd love to go back! There's an amazing view from the top of the mountain.

[@anchuMansyur_]

Awesome stuff! The scenery is beautiful, and it's great to see you having such a wonderful time. By the way, I couldn't help but notice that you rented from Giant. Would you recommend their services?

[@laura7murray]

Thanks for watching! The quality of the bikes was very good! definitely a bit more expensive than normal bike rentals but worth it in my opinion! They were very friendly and helpful at the store.

[@user-co7vb4lk6q]

Love this video, what song is at 3 minutes? It’s Made In Abyss Hanazeve Caradhina but I’ve never heard this mix. I love it.

[@laura7murray]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/rau9q6mId7ashdk I think its this one! Thanks, Ian picked out this song ❤

[@user-co7vb4lk6q]

Thanks a bunch !!

[@mrfrancisngtc]

What equipment were you using to film the video? Thanks

[@laura7murray]

Just an IPhone 13 pro. 4k 60fps videos. no gimbals etc were used. Thanks for watching!

[@parrotsinwild]

Was the cave of 1,000 Buddhas 😧 as terrifying as it looked?

[@laura7murray]

It was definitely something! I thought it was a quick in and out cave but it just kept going! It was so weird how we were completely alone! I wouldn't describe it as terrifying though lol

[@johnkies1189]

20:29 money shot. Nice video! Informative. One question though... Horde or Alliance? 🤣🤣

[@laura7murray]

Horde!! 🤣 How about you? Thanks for watching!

[@johnkies1189]

@@laura7murray Horde as well!! Let's goooooooo 😂

[@laura7murray]

@@johnkies1189 Nice!! I'm such a sucker for WoW

[@joshinmizutani5528]

Are you guys American?

[@laura7murray]

Canadian

[@joshinmizutani5528]

@@laura7murray Thanks

[@ohwell2790]

It is no wonder we do not see many birds with all the cats. Why the masks outside?

[@laura7murray]

Haha yeah dangerous little hunters! This was taken when Japan first opened up to international travelers. We were mostly just following what everyone else was doing, and sometimes we just forgot we were wearing them!

[@camperstar6stringer]

why are you wearing a mask outdoors?

[@laura7murray]

This was taken right after Japan first opened up. We were following what everyone else was doing. We wore the mask so much that we would sometimes forget it was even on! Its not a requirement to wear a mask outside but in most places people still wore masks outside.

[@user-binten]

Worse, dramatized Japan, Shibuya, Harajuku and Akihabara, theme park Disneyland and Universal Studios Japan I think that you can experience the real Japanese people who are the opposite of these. Cycling the Shimanami Kaido.

[@laura7murray]

When we visit again we will definitely be staying to rural areas. Such a better vibe for us than the big flashy cities!

[@sanynava9160]

Guys I wanted to ask you a few questions did you guys rent your bikes from the giant store and where they open at 8 a.m. or before? Secondly were you guys able to return the bike especially the e-bike at a different location? And did you guys do the whole trip in one day ? How were the hills really ? And finally do you guys still have to wear masks in Japan?

[@laura7murray]

Giant store is open at 9am. goo.gl/maps/WQLwM4mFA64s7nZ57 This other bike rental place nearby is open at 7am if you want to leave earlier. Looks like you can return the e-bike at their imabari location. I think that the onomichi port bike rental one has a fee for returning to a different location. They've changed the rental sites and they aren't working for me now. Maybe just a weekend glitch... We did only the first half in one day. So only 2 out of 6 bridges! The two hills that we did weren't awful if you are on an e-bike. I would have been walking if I was on a normal bike. I hear that the last hill before going into Imabari is massive. If we had to do the whole route in one day it would be rough, and we wouldn't have had much time to look around. We are back in Canada now, so I'm not sure. Japan was already a mask wearing culture, I wouldn't be surprised if most people are still wearing them inside. It might have relaxed a bit for wearing them outside. You can watch recently updated Japan walking videos to feel out if people are still wearing masks outside. We just went with the flow and did what everyone else was doing.