Backroads, a California company that offers bike tours of China, Bali and northern Thailand, lets participants cycle at their own pace and take a break from biking with sidetrips like elephant trekking or whitewater rafting (Tel: 1-510-527-1555).

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April is usually the peak of tourist season, but the natural disasters have resulted in cancellations of tours from Hong Kong, China, Russia, South Korea, Thailand and other countries that normally send many tourists to Japan.

BBC: Cherry blossom festivals amid tragedy

Bowler, a Thailand-based Australian, has run half a dozen of the tours in recent years, during which participants are taught the basics of Islamic practice, study Islamic history and calligraphy, pray in mosques and live and eat with Muslim families.

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