Hello everyone! My name is Minami Chaya (@minamihaaaan).
I imagine some of you are asking who I am, but I usually work behind the scenes at SimWorks and Circles, handling various tasks. I’ll save my proper introduction for later, but first, I want to share my ride report from a recent trip to Izumo with PFM Miyumiyu! Let’s get to it!
Beyond Yakumo lies Izumo
Every year, the myriad gods gather in Izumo, a place where the month of October, usually known as "Kannazuki" (the month without gods) elsewhere, is called "Kamiarizuki" (the month when gods are present), and where stories from the Kojiki and Fudoki feel connected to reality.
Centering on Izumo Taisha, one of Japan's most prominent shrines, it is a place where the culture and mythology that built an ancient nation still remain in everyday life.
As someone born in October, I’d always felt I had to visit someday, but because access from the Kanto region was difficult, I kept putting it off and had never set foot there. Finally, I took this opportunity to bring my bike and go!
When I asked locals, they told me that people who have left the prefecture often consider Izumo an "island on land" due to the poor access from Nagoya and Osaka.
But if you use FDA (Fuji Dream Airlines)...
- 30 minutes to the airport
- 30 seconds to check-in
- 20 minutes to pack
- After that, you just carry your personal belongings and wait to board...
I realized that you can reach Izumo in a flash—just slip through the clouds, close your eyes, and you're there.
Honestly, once you experience this ease, it feels impossible to imagine bringing a bike on the Shinkansen again... I really want women in particular to try it!
As long as you can remove the front and rear wheels, you can easily get to Izumo Taisha using FDA
For me, growing up in Kanagawa, the most familiar airport is Haneda. While it’s convenient, you have to transfer between buses to get to the boarding gates, and moving around the large terminal is a hassle—it doesn't feel like a stress-free experience.
Nagoya's Chubu Centrair International Airport is also quite complex, isn't it?
It’s even harder when you’re traveling with a bicycle. Narrow hallways, crowds, bus transfers, stairs, escalators... just thinking about it makes me breathless, and I can practically feel the shoulder strap of my bike bag digging in and cutting off my circulation.
On that note, Nagoya Station and Tokyo Station are just like Haneda or Centrair—the station interiors are so large and difficult to navigate that I rarely bring my bike.
In that respect, forget about the complex navigation when using an airport served by FDA.
It's almost like taking a streetcar. (Well, that might be a slight exaggeration.)
First, the convenience starts with the fact that if you take the highway, you can arrive at the airport from the center of Nagoya in just 20 minutes.
Even on local roads, it’s 30 minutes, or an hour by bicycle.
Once you arrive at the airport, you drop off your bags at the drop-off area and park your car.
It’s so close that I feel like I could reach the entrance to the terminal building in ten large strides. You don't have to carry your heavy bike up or down a single step until you reach your accommodation in Izumo.
In other words, the physical fatigue from transporting your bike is significantly reduced.
From the entrance, it’s another five large strides to the check-in counter. And then, 30 seconds to check in by scanning your QR code.
When you tell the counter staff that you are bringing a bicycle, they will lend you a dedicated box for bike transport. (Free, reservation required)
Packing takes 10 minutes once you’re used to it
My bike, being for someone 160cm tall, fit by just removing the front and rear wheels. Packing took 20 minutes, and assembly took 5 minutes.
After that, you just toss your bags into the box. The limit for checked baggage is 20kg. Plan your souvenirs accordingly!
Your hands will get a little dirty, so having wet wipes is very helpful.
Just in case, it’s safer to plan on arriving at the airport one hour before departure.
Once you’re finished packing, the bike box goes through X-ray inspection and you drop it off at the check-in counter. All that's left is to head to the boarding gate, grab some snacks and juice on the plane, and wait for your arrival.
The walk to the plane is also close enough that you could count it in about 50 large strides if you really tried.
FDA’s colorful planes are cute
FDA currently has 15 aircraft, each with a different body color.
I only saw a few on the way there, but when all the colors were lined up in Nagoya on the last flight back, they looked shiny and plump—really quite cute. It was the first time I'd ever felt the emotion of finding an airplane "cute."
Miyuki is cute, too. We added a wish for good fortune to the purple plane to commemorate the new route to Izumo.
Izumo: A City for Bicycles
It takes about an hour by bike to get from Izumo Airport to the city center, heading west.
The city itself is also making a concerted effort to support cycling; there’s a roughly 50km cycling path that extends to the neighboring city of Matsue, and all trains running through Izumo city are cycle-friendly all day long, allowing you to bring your bike on board as-is. Izumo was the perfect city for casual cycling trips.
Izumo Taisha remains full of mysteries, and it seems that research is still ongoing, with 13th-century ruins having been discovered only recently. That’s precisely why it continues to captivate those who find romance in its history. It’s certain that people have lived here and culture has flourished since ancient times, so I recommend seeing the extensive exhibits at the Shimane Museum of Ancient Izumo next to the shrine.
The sea is nearby, so there’s an abundance of seafood, and a rich brewing culture—sake, wineries, soy sauce, and more. Even better, all of it pairs perfectly with the local fish. There is a solid, vibrant local lifestyle here, and despite being a tourist destination, it somehow doesn’t feel like one. The local Izumo soba has a unique way of being eaten, so be sure to stop by for lunch and ask about its history.
This time, I focused on the Izumo City Station and Izumo Taisha area, but I hope to visit the Oki Islands someday, which are accessible by ferry from Matsue.
＜Special Thanks＞ Pratyaya
Thank you to Mr. Ishibashi, the owner of the local bike shop Pratyaya, who kindly acted as our guide in Izumo despite our sudden visit!
He is at the center of Izumo’s cultural scene—and not just regarding bikes—so be sure to stop by his shop when you visit and ask him for recommendations on sights around Izumo☆
PRATYAYA
http://www.pratyaya13.com/
Minami ( @minamihaaaan )
★Check out PFM Miyumiyu’s article here
PFM Pottery Hunting Trip – To Izumo by FDA Airplane/Bicycle Transport
https://pfm.nagoya/blog/izumo_miyuki
★Everyone’s airplane/bicycle transport journals are here
In search of the views I want to see and the people I want to meet in the town of hills – To Biei by FDA airplane/bicycle transport
https://circles-jp.com/event/116678/
Captivated by the stunning views – To Aso and Unzen by FDA airplane/bicycle transport
https://circles-jp.com/event/112248/
Shikoku Karst above the clouds – To Kochi by FDA airplane/bicycle transport
https://circles-jp.com/event/112274/
How to get to the "island on land" super easily – To Izumo by FDA airplane/bicycle transport
https://circles-jp.com/event/113699/
PFM Pottery Hunting Trip – To Izumo by FDA airplane/bicycle transport
https://pfm.nagoya/blog/izumo_miyuki
Touching the island and coming back – To Sado Island by FDA airplane/bicycle transport
https://circles-jp.com/event/115105/
Beautiful beaches and dark tourism – To the Goto Islands by FDA airplane/bicycle transport
https://circles-jp.com/event/116756/
BIKE to Yamamichi Festival and Shimanami Kaido – To Kochi by FDA airplane/bicycle transport
https://circles-jp.com/event/134546/
★★★Recommendations for FDA airplane/bicycle transport
https://circles-jp.com/products-review/110981/
