Cycling in Winter - recommendations

hi there,

I will be traveling to japan for about 4 weeks (dec26 - jan22)

At present my itinerary is very open and I would like to tailor it around some substantial cycling tours. I did the shimanami kaido loop last year and the year before and LOVED it! I was hoping to do a 2 to 3 day ride AND / OR a 4 to 5 day ride.

It will be cold and in many parts of Japan there may be snow / ice, which I would like to avoid :)

Is anyone able to suggest a cool route (preferably one they have done themselves). I like to be safe and although japanese drivers are extremely safe and courteous, would like to keep off highways etc. I hear Fuji 5 lakes and Hakone has some nice rides?

Also, previously, I just hired very old bikes from rental shops in onomichi. Can anyone suggest how / where to hire something a little more suitable for longer rides. I don't want to take my bike on the plane :)

Thanks for any input!

Expect it to be very cold with some of the smaller roads shut. There are English speaking cycling groups in Japan who may be able to offer help. You might start with www.tokyocycle.com Gsastuto rents good quality bikes from his shop and is a good guy http://www.gsastuto.com/japan-bike-rental I must admit that I travel with my own bike. In three weeks time I will be in Fukuoka with it.

thanks stan :)
yeah, i am expecting it to be very cold but i will try and do as much riding i can as far south as i can. my whole trip is not just cycling, so i will have a small suitcase, so i may need to leave it in a locker or hotel. if it was just a cycling holiday - id love to bring my own bike.
have fun with your ride - seems like it will still be quite fresh (cold) for you too! :D

Half is Not.
http://www.data.jma.go.jp/obd/stats/data/mdrr/snc_rct/index_snc.html
http://www.jma.go.jp/en/amedas/000.html?elementCode=4
Above record(JP/EN) is realtime today's but no big different.

Also you can watch past weather forecasts on YouTube like this.
https://youtu.be/S1xsf1xdAno
Search by title "SOLiVE24" and "date(YYYY-MM-DD)".
Real time on air : https://youtu.be/kfTq_A9nBM0
"Sora" means "sky" so means Sora live 24hrs = 24hrs live weather forecast.
https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/%E7%A9%BA

My holiday is more than just the bike :) I will be in Japan for three weeks and expect to ride about every third day. The rest of the time I am just another foreign tourist. I make sure that I book an airline that I can take the bike on without it costing too much. The bike goes in a rinko bukuro & stays in the hotel room when I'm not using it. As @Hill climb girl says a lot of the roads will be open in December but the more interesting small roads in the mountains won't be.