The Segway is a two-wheeled, self-balancing, electric vehicle that was only introduced to the public in December 2001. Immediately establishing a glowing reputation amongst successful entrepreneurs and business leaders such as Bill Gates and Steve Jobs, the U.S media became obsessed with this mysterious product, and the U.S. Post Office and Police department looked into deploying them—many golf resorts even offer Segways to allow players to easily manoeuvre around the courses.
Segway has arrived in Niseko! We signed up for a 60-minute Segway tour with Saison Club in Niseko. These segway were not your average on-road machine, instead being fitted with wide tires suitable for rough terrain—designed to increase stability on uneven ground and decrease the impact of bumps.
We started off by training our control of the Segway—maintaining balance and controlling the speed was not easy at first, and it was especially hard to stand straight while going over bumpy roads, which made us very nervous: Once you bend your legs, you lose balance. Our instructor reminded us to relax and try not to focus on our legs as much, but to instead focus on the whole body to retain our balance. The Segway is very safe to ride as long as you follow the basic rules and acquire the appropriate skills. Despite what you might find on YouTube, segway falls are actually very rare.
After 20 minutes of practice, we followed our instructor into the woods. This particular course lets you enjoy the Segway experience in a forest, which is relatively rare in Japan. The course includes uphill and downhill sections, as well as the chance to go through puddles and over bumps, but the Segway ride was still incredibly smooth. It was a lot of fun exploring the woods and experiencing some uneven terrain. The beautiful views that surrounded us were absolutely stunning, and made us want to go faster and further into the forest.
The device itself is eco-friendly, and causes zero emissions and no noise. Our instructor led us through the forest while telling us all about the beautiful wildlife and plants in Hokkaido. We also stopped to enjoy a tea break in right in front of Mt. Yotei, so we were able to take lots of photos. Time flew by faster than we expected on our 12km ride!
This is a great opportunity to explore Niseko as well as experience riding a Segway for yourself.
Suitable for anyone 16 years and up.
Contact SummerJapan.com to book your own Segway Adventure!
