AndyP

My girlfriend and I are considering a bike tour through Provence or Tuscany in May for a portion of 12-14 day trip. Can anyone share their experience on one of these trips? Can anyone suggest a certain tour or touring company?

jh6000

Andy,

I have not done a bike tour, but have done research on them for others. Here are 4 companies I think you should check out: Backroads (www.backroads.com), VBT (www.vbt.com), Buttterfield and Robinson (www.butterfield.com), and DuVine Adventures (www.duvine.com).

Have fun!

John H

StevePWales

Some friends and I did a cycling day trip in Madrid last October which was very well run.
The company was Bravo Bike :
http://www.bravobike.com/ingles/indexmenu.html

They also do tours in other parts of Spain, longer tours staying in quality hotels, and I believe tours in Switzerland.

travelgirl2

Our family booked a 10-day bicycling tour along the Danube River in Austria through www.eurobike.at - it looks like they also have tours in Italy. Some tours are guided and some are self-guided.

We took a self-guided tour. They booked the hotels with breakfasts, transported the luggage each morning to that night's hotel, arranged for the bike rental and provided transportation to the rental shop, and provided maps and directions to each night's hotel. We took our time each day, riding at a comfortable pace and stopping whenever we wanted to.

The trip was very reasonably priced. I just checked the website and the current price for this 10-day trip is 545 euros per person plus a 40 euro high season surcharge plus a 50 euro bike rental fee.

panecott

If you are planning to cycle in Tuscany, I hope you like hills! I don't, but I did a hiking tour a few years ago with Ciclismo Classico. It was well run, but I do think CC is a bit pricey. I think VBT's prices might be a bit less and they go to both locations you're looking at, and are reputable.

I've done bike tours in France (Loire Valley), Portugal, Ireland and the Canadian Maritimes. It's a wonderful way to travel and experience the sights and sounds, and smells of a country.
Most groups will have a support van to carry your luggage and sweep the route a few times a day in case anyone needs help, or a lift. They keep snacks and water in the van.
Breakfast and dinner are usually included in the price and are taken as a group. Lunch along the route is usually on your own, altho' groups often meet up for lunch. You can cycle at your own pace and don't have to stay with the group. They give you a map and explanation of the day's route every morning. Accommodations can vary from B&B's to lodges to luxury chateaux.

Palenque

I'd take Provence for less hilly terrain and to me nicer old villages that are not on the tops of hills.

There are also French services that move your luggage from hotel to hotel - the main advantage of a group tour IMO for a fraction of the price of a typically high-priced tour.

Inquire at tourist offices in Provence - Google Avignon Tourist Office and send them an e-mail asking about those services.

Covington

We biked through Tuscany and used Backroads. They did a wonderful job but that has been the only bike tour that I have taken so I can't compare it to anything else. The places we stayed were great and we even had a cooking class one night. All of the meals were good and you usually had time to shop a little during the day. There is a van that loops past the group every so often in case you need anything. I don't really bike a lot and don't have any hills where I live. The guides knew this and would tell me where to meet the van so I wouldn't have to walk my bike up a steep part. They would pick me up (and whoever else didn't want the stress of riding uphill), load the bike into the van and bring me to the hotel. It really was a great trip and the group's skill level really varied - from people who don't ride much like me to those who train and ride all the time. And if you didn't want to bike on a particular day that was no problem - you could do whatever you wanted.

Momliz

we did a bike tour in the Dordogne {I really need to finish that trip report } and ditched the bikes halfway through. They did not have the gel seats or toe clips that I had requested, and mine, at least, did not fit. And, some of our group were just not in good enough shape, and were scared of going fast downhill. So, it was a bust. But, ours was a self guided tour. If it had been a guided one with van support, our problems could have been avoided.

I would do it again in a heart beat, however, it was really fun. But, I would bring my own seat, and toe clips, and go with a tour with van support. Oh, and get a GPS, we did get a little lost a few times. The directions were OK, but we got turned around.

Momliz

hope these links help:

http://europeforvisitors.com/europe/..._bicycling.htm

http://www.biketour-reviews.com/index.htm

http://www.bikexchange.com/tourtrav.htm

travelgirl2

Momliz - your tour was self-guided, but it sounds like the group rode together?? Our self-guided tour meant we rode by ourselves each day. What a disappointment it must have been, if you ditched the bikes halfway through. I brought my own seat and was glad I did, as my tush was not used to so much saddle time!

Momliz

our group was a family - there were seven of us, so I refer to the "group", but we were a group of us. And, no, we didn't ride together due to the difference in fitness levels. DH, older DS and nephew zoomed ahead, and I stayed back with the lesser fit ones, my sister and two younger sons.

And, yes it was a disappointment , but we'll do another one, with van support, someday. It really is the perfect way to see France - that way you can eat all you want, and still end up thinner and fitter than you started !

babsNYC

To TravelGirl2 and Momliz (and anyone else who can help):

I'm now looking into the Eurobike tours (possibly Northern Europe but not necessarily). They are certainly reasonably priced, especially compared with Backroads, which is very expensive and out of our range. I'd like to get a sense of the quality. How are the bikes? How about the accomodations? Also, are their trips suitable for a family with kids (ages 10 and 19)- they don't seem to mention that on their website. Any other thoughts, consideraions or warnings?

Thanks so much.

flygirl

Several years ago I did a bike tour in Ireland with the below company:

http://www.cyclingsafaris.com/

I had a great time and they took good care of us. They are in their 20th year so they must be doing something right. They have also expanded considerably since my trip (mostly Ireland at the time) so I think that also shows keep their clients happy.

I can't believe it really was 2000 that I did the bike tour - 9 years already!

Momliz

don't know anything about them - sorry! but check the reviews link - they may be there...

travelgirl2

babsNYC - regarding www.eurobike.at :

We were also looking for a bike trip for 4 people, so the expenses really started adding up. Backroads and similar companies were definitely out. Plus, if I'm going to spend $800+ per day on a vacation, I'd rather use that money for some real luxury (not just at the end of a day of cycling). I'm sure the luxury tours are wonderful, I just could not see spending that much money for bicycling.

We took our boys in 2007 when they were 12 and 14 years old. It was great for the whole family. We chose the Danube trail, since it was flat, paved and all off-road. The website says this route is "ideally suited for a cycle holiday with the whole family". Plus our mileage averaged 25 miles per day (for a 10 day trip which included 8 days of riding), which was enough for us, but light riding compared to many possible routes.

We chose a self-guided trip, so I can't say how their guides might be. We are usually very independent travellers, so being on our own was fine. Plus, I wanted to be able to take my time, without holding up a group of people.

The accommodations were simple, in 3 and 4 star hotels. Mostly fairly basic accommodations, always a private bath. We always had 2 rooms for 4 people. Comfortable enough but definitely NOT luxurious. Breakfasts were usually pretty good, but again not fancy.

I was concerned about the bikes we would be able to rent. That turned out to be no problem at all. I actually loved my bike and had no problems with it. My husband's chain fell off about a mile from the start, so he rode back and exchanged bikes. I did bring my Terry seat from home and attached it to the bike, which I think was helpful.

One thing I did not realize before going, is how everyone we met was bicycling. Lots of families, elderly folks, etc. We felt a sense of comraderie, as we were all doing the same thing. We saw a handful of Americans, but not really that many. We rode with some Spanish ladies for a couple of days. We met a German man and his teenage daughter on a ferry one day, had lunch together and laughed and talked for a couple of hours, along with the Spanish ladies and a Spanish fellow we also met on the ferry. There were lots of Germans, also many Italians, riding on the path.

One thing I liked about the Danube trail was that we had other options, if we wanted. One day it was pouring rain, so we rode a couple of miles and then caught the ferry the rest of the way. The ferry schedule was not too flexible, but it seemed there was always a second option of a train. Each little town seemed to have a rail station where you could board and park your bike in the bike car for the ride. The kids and I did this one day when my husband really wanted to ride like the wind, but we were just too sore to move faster than snails that day.

It was easy to find our way on the path. However, upon arrival at that day's stopping point, we had to leave the path and head for the hotel. Sometimes finding the hotel was simple, other times the translated directions we'd been provided were challenging to decipher, and once the hotel was just really difficult to find. We always found it, but sometimes it was an adventure.

Boy, just writing this makes me want to do another one of these trips. My boys enjoyed the trip, but I think cycling for 8 days in a row was a bit much for them. I would try to arrange a day off in the middle, if we should try it again.

Besides cycling, the biggest challenge was doing laundry. I thought we'd find laundromats, but we didn't see a single one (not to say that there weren't some, somewhere). We were travelling through some very small towns. We brought lots of cycling gear that could be washed out in the sink at night. What we wore over and over were those items that dried the fastest. I brought some little packets of liquid detergent, which came in handy.

travelgirl2

One more thing. We brought a phone with us, which turned out to be helpful since one evening we had to call the hotel to come get us and drive us straight up a hill to the hotel. We were given instructions to call the hotel for a pickup.

The next morning, we rode down the hill from the hotel. I pressed on the brake the entire way down. The rest of the family flew down, laughing all the way, and I met them at the bottom. This was the day it was pouring rain, so that was an interesting ride, to say the least.

amyb

One thing to remember when comparing bike tours like VBT, Backroads and Ciclismo Classico, is that VBT's prices include airfare, whereas the others do not. That is a huge difference if you are watching your pennies.

cageym

I sort of said my piece in the thread on Travel Tips http://www.fodors.com/community/trav...-bike-trip.cfm, but will reiterate the link to the Discover France tours: http://www.discoverfrance.com/index.html. Cycling Classics http://www.cyclingclassics.com/, is another option, if you're looking for something more challenging.

cageym

Geez, just realized that the original post was over five years ago! But this is turning into a nice, informative thread at long last!

panecott

cageym,

That's too funny! I had no idea this was an old thread, and wondered why Andy never answered!