Tottori

Tottori is the prefectural capital and the start of most trips to the Tottori Sand Dunes on the coast north of the centre. Buses for the dunes leave the bus terminal at Tottori Station on the Iwami-Iwai and Sakyu lines, and the visitor centre puts the drive from Tottori IC at about 20 minutes. The city rents bikes from the parking garage under the elevated tracks, a minute's walk east of the north exit, at ¥500 a day for a standard bike and ¥1,000 for an electric one.

The Tottori Uminami Road follows the coast past the city. Ride east and you reach the Uradome coast and Higashihama, where the route starts. Ride west and you pass the Karo fishing port, where the Karoichi market sells and cooks the catch, then Hakuto and its roadside station.

Snow crab season opens on 6 November, so a winter visit puts matsuba-gani on the menus at the port. The Tottori Sugoi Ride starts and finishes at the dunes each autumn and ran on 18 October in 2026.