Booking Conditions

A1. How a Booking Is Confirmed and Paid

Submitting the booking form on this site is a request, not a confirmed booking. It reserves nothing and charges nothing. Within 24 hours, a member of our concierge team checks availability for your selected departure date and party size and replies with written availability confirmation and payment instructions for the price shown and submitted with your request.

Because every journey is a single day, we do not take a deposit. A booking becomes confirmed only once we have received payment in full, in US dollars, through the secure payment link we send you, processed by Stripe. We do not accept card details by email or telephone. Until payment clears in full, the date remains available to other parties and nothing is held for you.

The confirmed availability and price remain valid for 72 hours from the moment we send them. If payment has not cleared within that time, the offer expires and we may release the date without further notice. We accept booking requests only for departures at least 14 calendar days after the request date, calculated in Japan time.

Bank charges, card issuer fees and currency conversion costs are yours to bear, and are not refundable at any stage. Where a refund is due under these conditions, we refund the amount we received, less the payment processing fees already incurred on the transaction, to the card originally used.

A2. If You Cancel

All cancellations must be made in writing by email to experience@jimott.jp. A cancellation takes effect only when we receive it, and the fee is fixed by the time of receipt in Japan Standard Time — not by the time you send it. Notice given by telephone, to a guide, or to any third party is not a cancellation.

Cancellation fees

The following applies to the total price of your booking, counted from the date we receive your written cancellation to the date of departure. This schedule is set at the limits of the standard travel agency terms for a domestic day tour under Japanese law.

Fees are calculated on the full quoted price, including any confirmed options, and apply per person cancelled. Where part of a party cancels, the remaining guests are re-quoted under Article A4.

These fees apply whatever your reason for cancelling — illness or injury, a bereavement, a missed or cancelled flight, a change to your wider itinerary, a visa refusal, quarantine, an epidemic, or the closing of a border. That is what the cancellation insurance recommended in Article B7 is for.

Changing your date

A change of date, subject to availability, is free of charge if you request it 11 days or more before departure; the seasonal fare of the new date applies, and any difference is payable before departure. From 10 days before departure, a change of date is treated as a cancellation and a new booking, and the schedule above applies.

A3. If We Cancel

We may cancel or postpone a journey for reasons of safety — most commonly severe weather, typhoon warnings, flooding or high river levels along the route, earthquake, or road and traffic restrictions. Where possible, this decision is made and communicated to you by 17:00 (5:00pm) the day before departure, so that it is never left until the morning of the ride. Light rain does not stop a ride.

If we cancel a journey before it begins for these reasons, you may choose a full refund or a free transfer to another available date. That is the whole of our liability: we are not responsible for flights, accommodation, transfers or any other cost you have committed around the day, and no further compensation is payable.

Where a journey has begun and we end it early on safety grounds, the day is treated as delivered. Costs are committed from the morning of departure — guides, vehicle, bicycles, venues and meals — and no partial refund is payable. Article B11 governs changes short of ending the day, and Article B13 governs events of force majeure.

A4. Minimum Numbers and the Guarantee to Run

Every journey is private to your party. Our fares are quoted per person by group size, so the price depends on how many of you ride. The published minimum is two guests.

Riding alone

We will run a journey for a single guest on the two-guest fare — that is, at twice the per-person price — and we guarantee that it runs. If you would rather not pay that fare, we will instead hold $300 as a credit toward a future date on which another party is already confirmed. That credit is a convenience offered in place of riding alone, not a substitute for the cancellation fees in Article A2: it is valid for three years, applies to a journey of equal or greater value, is not transferable, and is not redeemable for cash. If you cancel rather than move your date, Article A2 applies as it does to any other cancellation.

If your party gets smaller

Where guests withdraw from a confirmed booking, the fee schedule in Article A2 applies to those who cancel, and the remaining guests are re-quoted at the per-person fare for the smaller group. The difference is payable before departure. For example, a party of four on the Kyoto → Osaka Crossing at $1,190 per person which becomes a party of three moves to the three-guest fare of $1,450 per person, and the balance falls due. We will always tell you the new figure in writing before we charge it, and you may cancel under Article A2 if you would rather not proceed.

B1. Definitions and Contract Structure

In these conditions, “JIMOTT”, “we” and “us” mean HISHIDA Sports Tours — a travel agency registered with the Kyoto Prefectural Governor under the Travel Agency Act of Japan, Registration No. 2-247 — in partnership with Jimott Inc., which plans the itinerary and provides guiding, photography and hospitality. “You”, “your” and “the traveller” mean the person who makes the booking and every guest travelling under it. “Journey” and “tour” mean the day we operate for you. “Departure” means the published start time of your journey on the date confirmed in writing.

The person who makes the booking does so on behalf of everyone named in it, warrants that they have the authority to accept these conditions for all of them, and is responsible for passing these conditions to every guest in the party. Payment by any member of the party binds them all.

Part A and Part B are read together. Where they differ on the same point, Part A governs the commercial terms of your booking and Part B governs everything else.

B2. Eligibility

Riders aged 12 and over are welcome. Any rider under 16 must ride alongside a parent or guardian who is also booked on the journey, and that parent or guardian signs the form described in Article B9 on the young rider's behalf. A booking may only be made by an adult of 18 or over, who remains responsible for the conduct of every minor in the party throughout the day.

We are glad to advise on route, distance and pace for younger riders before you book. We may decline any booking at our discretion.

B3. Preparing for Your Journey

Our journeys are physically active days on a bicycle. By booking, you confirm for every rider in your party that they can ride a bicycle competently and unaided, and that they are fit enough to ride the stated distance — up to about 45km on mostly flat ground — over a full day, in the weather of the season. If you are unsure, ask us before you pay rather than on the morning.

You are responsible for arriving in a condition to ride: rested, appropriately dressed, and with any personal medication you may need. Breathable layers and closed-toe shoes work best. Kyoto is hot and humid from June to September and cold from December to February; you should prepare for the conditions of your date. Bicycles, helmets and on-route refreshments are provided; personal equipment beyond that is your own responsibility.

Our journeys pass through working neighbourhoods, temples and shrines. You agree to observe local custom and any instruction given by our guides at these places — removing shoes, silence in a hall, no photography where it is asked of you.

B4. Travel Documents

Passports, visas, residence documents and any permit required for your stay in Japan are your own responsibility. We cannot advise on immigration matters, and we are not liable for any loss arising from documents that are missing, expired or incorrect — including a journey you cannot join for that reason, which is cancelled under Article A2 like any other.

B5. External Travel Services

Flights, trains, accommodation, hotel transfers, onsen and bathhouses, restaurants, cruise operators, and any other service you arrange yourself — or that we arrange on your behalf as a booking agent, at your request — are supplied by third parties under their own terms and conditions.

We act only as an intermediary in arranging them. We are not responsible for the acts, omissions, defaults or failures of those suppliers, nor for any injury, loss, damage, delay or expense arising from them, and any claim in respect of such a service lies against that supplier. Where a third-party supplier withdraws a service on the day, we will substitute what we reasonably can under Article B11.

B6. Health, Fitness and Conduct

By booking, you confirm that every rider in your party is in adequate health and physical condition to complete the stated distance and duration, and that you have disclosed in writing at the time of booking any relevant medical condition, injury, mobility limitation, allergy, dietary restriction, pregnancy, cardiac or respiratory condition, and any medication being taken. You must tell us of any change between booking and departure. Riders carry their own medication with them on the day.

Failure to disclose a material condition may make it unsafe for us to take a rider out, in which case participation is refused under this Article and no refund is due.

Our discretion on the day

We may, at our sole discretion and on safety grounds: decline a booking; alter the route, distance or pace; ask a guest to ride in the support vehicle instead of on a bicycle; or end a guest's participation in a journey, or the journey itself, at any point. No refund is due where participation ends for this reason, and any onward cost — a taxi, a train, accommodation — is yours.

Helmets

Helmets are provided and must be worn by every rider, correctly fastened, at all times while cycling. A rider who declines to wear one may not ride, and no refund is due.

Alcohol and conduct

Riding under the influence of alcohol is a criminal offence in Japan and is prohibited by us absolutely. Alcohol served as part of a meal or an evening at an onsen is taken after riding has concluded for the day. Riders must follow the instructions of our guides at all times, ride within the group as directed, and obey the road traffic law of Japan.

We may end the participation of any guest whose conduct, in our reasonable judgement, endangers themselves or others, causes distress to other guests or to members of the public, or damages property. No refund is due in that event, and Article B9 applies to any loss caused.

B7. Insurance

Every journey carries domestic travel accident insurance for the day, arranged and paid for by the operator, covering injury sustained during the course of the tour. Every journey also runs with a support vehicle carrying a mechanic and an AED, and e-bikes are available to any guest on request.

That cover is limited, and you should not rely on it as your only protection. It is a domestic Japanese policy with fixed benefit limits; it does not cover trip cancellation or curtailment, medical treatment beyond its stated limits, medical evacuation or repatriation, lost, delayed or damaged baggage, personal liability, or any cost incurred outside Japan. Any loss beyond the limits of that policy is yours to bear or to recover from your own insurer. The certificate and its limits are available on request before you book.

Travel insurance — strongly recommended

We strongly recommend that every guest, and international guests in particular, arranges comprehensive travel insurance before leaving home, covering at least medical treatment and hospitalisation in Japan, emergency medical evacuation and repatriation, personal accident, personal liability, and baggage and personal effects. Check that your policy covers cycling as a leisure activity; many exclude it or treat it as a sport requiring an extension.

Cancellation insurance — strongly recommended

We further recommend that your policy covers cancellation and curtailment. The cancellation fees in Part A apply whatever your reason for cancelling — including illness or injury, a bereavement, a missed or cancelled flight, a change to your wider itinerary, a visa refusal, quarantine, an epidemic or pandemic, or the closing of a border. The whole of the price you have paid is exposed to those fees, and any resulting cost is yours to bear or to recover from your insurer. We do not waive the schedule in these circumstances.

B8. Risks

Cycling in Japan carries risks inherent to the activity. Some cannot be eliminated without changing the character of the journey, and you accept them by taking part. They include, without limitation:

• Falls, loss of control, and collisions — with vehicles, with pedestrians, with other riders, or with fixed objects
• Shared roads, junctions, level crossings, bridges and river paths used by pedestrians, runners and other cyclists
• Uneven, wet, gravel or unsurfaced ground, and obstacles that appear without warning
• Heat, humidity, heatstroke and dehydration; cold, rain, wind and reduced visibility
• Insects, snakes and wildlife on the riverside paths, and animals in rural areas
• Mechanical failure of a bicycle, its brakes, tyres or battery, notwithstanding maintenance and the mechanic travelling with you
• The physical demands of a full day in the saddle, and the aggravation of an existing condition
• Food and drink to which you may be unaccustomed, including allergens present in kitchens we do not control
• Distance from medical facilities: parts of our routes are rural, and a hospital, an ambulance or a specialist may be some way off. Response times in Japan are not within our control
• Theft, loss of or damage to your own belongings, including cameras, telephones and any bicycle you bring yourself
• The acts and omissions of other people entirely outside our control — other road users, members of the public, and third-party suppliers under Article B5

Photography and film are part of the day, but conditions are not within our gift: light, weather, crowds, and the rules of temples, shrines and public authorities may limit what can be taken. Drone footage requires permission and airspace that is not always available. We do not guarantee any particular image, location or piece of footage.

B9. Limitation of Liability, Release and Indemnity

Every guest signs an Acknowledgement of Risk, Release and Indemnity. It restates Article B8 and is a condition of riding. We send it with your booking confirmation for signature in advance, and a copy is available at the release form; at the latest it is signed at the morning briefing, before the bike fitting. A guest who does not sign it cannot take part, and no refund is due — the cancellation schedule in Part A applies as at that day. For a rider under 18, the form is signed by their parent or guardian.

Limitation of liability

Our total liability to you for any loss or damage arising from your booking, however caused, is limited to the total price paid for the affected journey. We are not liable for indirect or consequential loss of any kind, including missed connecting travel, unused accommodation, lost earnings, or the loss of enjoyment of the wider trip. Nothing in these conditions excludes or limits liability for death or personal injury caused by our negligence, for fraud, or for any other liability that cannot lawfully be excluded or limited under Japanese law.

Indemnity

You agree to indemnify us and hold us harmless against any loss, damage, claim, cost or expense — including legal costs — arising from your own deliberate act, your negligence, or your failure to observe these conditions, the instructions of our guides, or the law of Japan. This includes any claim brought against us by a third party in respect of your conduct.

Equipment

Bicycles, helmets and equipment are lent to you for the day and remain our property. You are responsible for their reasonable care and must return them in the condition they were issued, fair wear and tear excepted. You are liable for the cost of repair or replacement of any item lost, stolen while in your keeping, or damaged other than through normal use — up to the replacement value of the item, which for a bicycle may be in the region of $1,500. We will always evidence the cost before we charge it.

B10. Prices, Reservations and Payment

All fares are quoted in US dollars. For your selected departure date, party size and options, the booking form shows the per-person tour fare and the total price for your group. This is the price submitted with your request and carried into our written confirmation of availability. Seasonal and calendar supplements are already included in this displayed total. Any changes you request to the date, party size or options are priced again for your agreement. Submitting a request does not reserve availability; booking confirmation and the payment deadline follow Part A.

We reserve the right to correct an error in a published or quoted price before your booking is confirmed, and to adjust a confirmed price only where a government tax, levy or admission charge changes after confirmation — in which case you may accept the adjustment or cancel with a full refund. Currency conversion, card issuer charges and bank fees are yours to bear.

Unless your written quote states otherwise, the price includes: a private English-speaking guide, bicycle and helmet, a support vehicle for the duration of the ride, on-route refreshments, the meals stated in your itinerary, admission fees named in the itinerary, domestic accident insurance for the day, and a same-day photography selection.

Not included

• International and domestic flights, and transport to and from your ride's starting point
• Accommodation, unless explicitly named in your quote
• Travel and cancellation insurance (see Article B7)
• Guide and driver gratuities
• Personal expenses, alcoholic beverages beyond those stated in the itinerary, and items of a personal nature
• Optional add-ons (for example, a sake cellar visit, a tea ceremony, or a private cruise dinner) unless purchased separately
• Any cost arising from your early departure from a journey, for whatever reason

B11. Discretion to Run Journeys

Whether a journey runs at all on a given day, and in what form, is entirely at our discretion. Guide judgement and rider safety take priority over the published itinerary in every case.

We reserve the right to shorten, lengthen, reroute or resequence any part of a journey — including meal venues, the order of stops, the choice of onsen, and the mode of transport between points — where our guides judge it necessary for safety, road or river conditions, weather, crowding, the closure or unavailability of a venue, or any circumstance beyond our control. We will keep the spirit of the day intact wherever we can.

A change of this kind, including a substitution of lesser value than the element it replaces, does not entitle you to a refund, in whole or in part, and is not a cancellation. Where a journey is cancelled outright, Article A3 applies; where the cause is an event of force majeure, Article B13 applies.

B12. Photography, Film, and Media Consent

A photographer or filmmaker accompanies most journeys. By joining a tour, you consent to being photographed or filmed, and to JIMOTT and Jimott Inc. using resulting images and footage in marketing — including the website, social media, and print materials — without further payment.

Images and footage taken for your own keeping (delivered privately after your journey) are excluded from this consent unless you separately agree to their use.

Opting out

If you would prefer not to appear in marketing use, tell us in a single email to experience@jimott.jp — before, during, or after your journey — and we will exclude your images from any public use going forward.

B13. Force Majeure

Neither party is liable to the other for delay or failure to perform caused by an event beyond its reasonable control. Such events include, without limitation: natural disaster, earthquake, tsunami, typhoon, flood, fire or volcanic activity; epidemic, pandemic, quarantine or public health order; war, terrorism, civil unrest or crime; strike or industrial action; the closing of a border or the suspension of transport; the failure of public infrastructure; and any act, order or restriction of a government or public authority.

Where such an event prevents a journey from proceeding, we will refund what we can — at our discretion and after deducting all costs already committed on your behalf and not recoverable from our suppliers. That may be the whole of the price, part of it, or nothing at all, depending on what has been committed. We may offer a credit toward a future journey in place of a refund, valid three years and not redeemable for cash.

Any additional cost you incur as a result of such an event — accommodation, flight changes, transport, quarantine — is yours to bear, and is exactly what the cancellation insurance recommended in Article B7 is for. Where the cause is severe weather along the route and we cancel before departure, Article A3 applies instead and you receive a full refund or a free transfer.

B14. Taxes and Governing Law

Prices are inclusive of Japanese consumption tax where it applies. Any tax, duty, levy or bank charge raised in your own country is yours to bear.

Language

These conditions are written in English, and the English text governs. Any translation is provided for convenience only; in the event of a discrepancy, the English version prevails.

Governing law and jurisdiction

These conditions, and any contract formed under them, are governed by the laws of Japan. The Kyoto District Court has exclusive jurisdiction as the court of first instance over any dispute arising from a booking. If any provision of these conditions is found to be unenforceable, the remainder continues in force.