06 May 2023
The trip started with me boarding the wrong bullet train to Utsunomiya instead of Takasaki station, which took around 45 minutes to get back on course. The final meetup station is Maebashi station, which is another 15 minutes. I was about 50 minutes later than the meetup time in the booking (very sorry about that), but I did notify the tour operator and they are very accommodating. When I arrived at Maebashi station, I were greeted by 3 guides, Shinobu (main guide), Miki (guide/main guide assistant/translator) and Hiro (trainee). The guide to tourist ratio is very high, 3 to 1 (3 guides, 1 tourist) :D.
Late start aside, the e-bike provided was just like a normal bike, with the exception of climb assist, which makes uphill cycling easy, anyone at any level of fitness can participate in this tour. Although, the seat might be a bit small for anyone with a large frame.
I love everything about this tour at first glance, it's even better in person. After staying in/around Tokyo for ~1 week, Maebashi, Gunma is a change of pace. You'll get a glimpse of rural Japanese daily life, beautiful fields and scenery throughout the cycling trip. Even the included lunch (from local restaurant) is delicious. My favorite is the soy sauce ice cream, very delicious and unique. There are many places we visited I did not mention here, you should discover them yourselves.
At the end of the tour, the guides also offer to drive me back to Maebashi station to return to Tokyo (thank you, Yusuke-san, for taking me back). I were very lucky on that day, as I were getting in the car, it started to rain and clouds covered Mt. Akagi. What an end to a perfect day!
Again, thank you Shinobu-san, Miki-san, Hiro-san and Yusuke-san for the unforgettable trip!