Hello, I’m Ken, the owner of RIDE-TOURISM.
We receive an incredible number of inquiries about our One-Way rental plan from riders all over the world. In this post, I want to walk through the overview, important points to understand, and answers to the questions we hear most often.
If you’re using the One-Way plan, chances are you’re heading somewhere far — Osaka, Kyoto, or maybe even the opposite end of Japan entirely. Whether your trip is 3 days, a week, or a full month is entirely up to you. A motorcycle is both a means of transportation and an activity in itself — which is exactly why motorcycle travel is, without question, more fun than ordinary travel.
When you make a rental request with us, we don’t see it as “just a bike rental.” We see it as your entire travel plan. That’s why I approach every single request with a professional mindset and make sure it gets carried out properly. We’re not just a company that hands you a motorcycle — we’re taking responsibility for your trip, and at the same time, entrusting you with our own motorcycles.
That’s exactly why, especially for customers planning a long-distance One-Way trip, I want you to fully understand both what our service offers and the risks involved.
I’ve personally experienced car rental trouble twice while traveling abroad, and both times it threw off my entire travel plan. Trouble can happen on any overseas trip, but a lot of it can be prevented with the right preparation beforehand. I do everything I can, before your trip even begins, to make sure things go smoothly. This is going to be a fairly long read, but if you’re considering the One-Way plan, please make sure to read through it all.
About Our Company
RIDE-TOURISM is not a large rental bike company. It’s just me (Ken) and a small number of staff helping out. Our work isn’t heavily manualized — in a good way. I personally handle each customer myself, which means I can be flexible and adapt to each person’s situation. Things like the One-Way plan and custom guided tours are exactly the kind of service a heavily manualized company simply can’t offer. That’s one of the main reasons so many riders choose us.
That said, since it’s largely just me, there’s a limit to how much I can handle. Replies may sometimes be slower than you’d like, or I may not always be able to accommodate a specific date request. Thank you for understanding.
About Me
People sometimes mistake me for a foreigner living in Japan, but don’t worry — I’m Japanese! Naturally, I know Japan well, and depending on what you need, I’m happy to negotiate with hotels or make reservations at restaurants that only accept phone bookings. RIDE-TOURISM isn’t just a company that rents out bikes — we provide the entire touring experience and the grand adventure of exploring Japan. So feel free to chat with me about anything, not just motorcycles! I do this job because I love travel and motorcycles.
Communication
For One-Way plan bookings, communication via WhatsApp is required.
For short-term rentals where you pick up and return at our shop, email is usually sufficient. But with the One-Way plan, we need flexible back-and-forth communication for things like consultations, quotes, coordinating meeting times on the day (including adjustments due to traffic delays), confirming delivery details in advance, and handling any trouble that comes up while you’re using the bike.
If you can’t use WhatsApp, this service probably isn’t a good fit for you.
I live in Japan, and you’re most likely not here yet, so there will be a time difference — a message being delayed by a day or two is completely fine. However, if you find messaging tedious or difficult to keep up with, please reconsider using this service. It could easily lead to trouble on both sides.
Also, while I can handle everyday English conversation, I’m not able to give highly technical explanations in English. To prevent misunderstandings, I confirm most of the plan details in writing over WhatsApp beforehand. This also means you can always scroll back and check what was agreed on — so there’s peace of mind on your end too.
Who Is This Plan For?
Most people who use this service are international visitors with a limited number of days in Japan. If your trip is a month or longer, you might not actually need this plan — I can also suggest cheaper alternatives, like taking a ferry back.
The most popular route is departing from our shop and arriving in Osaka or Kyoto, which we can offer for ¥99,000
.
Our Price Calculator
Pickup & return location — If your location isn’t on the list, please contact us for a custom quote. Prices shown are estimates. They’re generally accurate for typical locations, but if you specify somewhere outside a city center, the price may change.
Motorcycle class — We offer four pricing tiers: Standard, Economy, Advanced, and Premium.
Number of days — Enter the number of days you need. 1 week or more gets a 10% discount, and 1 month or more gets a 20% discount.
Riders & bikes — Choose from 1 person/1 bike, 2 persons/1 bike, or 2 persons/2 bikes. If two people ride together on one bike, a tandem fee applies. If you’re renting 2 bikes, the rental fee doubles, but the delivery fee stays the same — our truck can carry up to 2 motorcycles at once.
Once you fill in all the required fields, an estimated total will be calculated. If “Contact Us” appears, that means your combination requires a custom quote.
Our Location
A lot of people assume we’re based in Tokyo, but our shop is actually on the coast just outside Tokyo. We can deliver to Tokyo for ¥33,000, but honestly, I don’t recommend starting your trip there.
Tokyo is an extremely congested city — complicated roads, narrow streets, one-way systems, countless traffic lights, heavy traffic. It’s just not well suited to riding a motorcycle. Even I, as a Japanese person, don’t enjoy it. Plenty of travelers have had a rough time renting in Tokyo. Many of our customers are riding in Japan for the second time, and precisely because they already know how difficult Tokyo is to ride in, they choose to rent from just outside the city instead.
My shop is a single, direct train ride — about an hour — from central areas like Shinjuku or Shibuya. If you start (or end) your trip at our shop, that part is completely free. You won’t need to pay any extra for delivery or pickup. There’s a real reason behind our location.
How Delivery & Pickup Work
We generally use a truck for delivery and pickup. However, for congested areas like Tokyo, or locations within about 50km of our shop, I sometimes ride the motorcycle over myself for delivery and pickup.
Delivery & Pickup Times
We don’t operate on fixed hourly time slots. For the One-Way plan especially, you’re welcome to choose whatever time works best for you.
Your Starting Point or Final Destination
Most customers specify the hotel they’re staying at. Just give me the hotel name and contact information, and I’ll reach out to the hotel directly in Japanese to check whether there’s a suitable spot at the hotel for the bike handover — or if not, whether there’s a good spot nearby.
Risks of Delivery
Delivery and pickup fees are the same regardless of the area, but please understand that delivery does come with some inherent risk:
- Road conditions may cause delays, which could push back the start of your trip.
- A loaner helmet size might not fit perfectly.
- I’ve never personally experienced this, but tip-overs while loading or unloading a bike from the truck are unfortunately quite common in this industry. This is the single biggest risk. I don’t mind if I get hurt, but if the bike gets damaged in an incident like this, it could ruin your entire trip.
On the other hand, if you start your trip from our shop and return the bike at your final destination, none of these risks apply on the return end. Even if I show up late, you can simply relax at your hotel and wait.
If your itinerary isn’t fully decided yet, and you’re choosing whether to set our shop as your starting point or your ending point, I strongly recommend making it your starting point.
Payment & Cancellation
Unlike our standard rentals, the One-Way plan cannot be cancelled.
Once your booking is confirmed, we block off those rental days and can’t accept other customers for that period. Additionally, the days I’m out delivering or picking up your bike take me away from the shop, meaning I also can’t attend to other customers during that time.
If there’s any chance you might cancel, I’d encourage you to reconsider your travel plans altogether. Please only book once your decision is fully final.
That said, don’t worry too much — we usually keep a buffer of 1–2 days before and after your booking, so some early pickup or extension requests can often be accommodated.
Payment Method
We’ll send you a secure payment link where you can pay by credit card. Your reservation is confirmed once payment is completed.
Cancellations on Our End
Multiple customers use our rental motorcycles, and we always keep backup bikes in stock for this reason. That said, during busy seasons, it’s conceivable that a string of unexpected issues could occur, potentially leaving us unable to provide a bike. This is something we absolutely want to avoid. In the unlikely event this happens, I will immediately offer you either a replacement vehicle or a refund. This has never happened in our history, but given that we’re dealing with motorcycles, the possibility isn’t zero. Thank you for understanding.
We intentionally keep our fleet lineup limited and strategic. With a few exceptions, we keep multiple units of the same model so we can substitute one for another in case of trouble. If a substitution across models is needed, we plan for CB250R ↔ NC750L ↔ CB650R or NC750X ↔ CRF Africa Twin.
License Verification
This step is optional. Send us photos of your home country driver’s license and your IDP (International Driving Permit). We verify these in advance every time, so we’ve never had a case where a rental couldn’t proceed due to a license issue — though I understand that occasionally happens at other companies. You’re welcome to skip this step, but if an issue is discovered on the day of pickup that prevents us from renting you a bike, that would not be our responsibility, and we would not be able to issue a refund. Sorting out any issues right before pickup is a real headache, so I strongly recommend sending these in advance.
Gear Rental (Beyond the Motorcycle)
We have helmets, gloves, riding jackets, and also items like protectors, intercoms, and action camera selfie sticks for motorcycles. If you’re going on a longer trip and can bring your own riding gear, I’d recommend doing so — for extended trips, gear you’re already used to tends to be better.
Rental gear is limited in quantity. Helmets in particular can be reserved in advance if you let us know your size beforehand.
ETC (Electronic Toll Collection)
ETC is Japan’s automatic toll payment system for expressways. In recent years, some roads simply can’t be used without it. All of our motorcycles come equipped with ETC, so there’s nothing to worry about there. Usage charges are billed to your credit card 2–3 weeks after your return, with a 5% handling fee. That said, ETC comes with its own discounts, so in the end it usually works out cheaper than paying cash. Still, some rural toll roads in Japan don’t support ETC, so please always carry cash as well.
Motorcycle Instruction Videos
Before your trip, I’ll send everyone a video explaining how to operate their specific motorcycle model. Please make sure to watch it. If you’re nervous about riding on Japanese roads, we also offer the option to add a guide for your first day.
That covers everything. I’m sure you’ll have other questions or requests along the way — feel free to message me anytime, no need to hold back. If there’s anything on your mind before departure, let’s get it sorted out together.
I hope your journey through Japan turns out to be something truly special!
— Ken
