Booking a Bicycle Tour
A large number of bicycle tours can be found on the Internet, local cycling clubs, or outdoors stores, ranging from leisurely day excursions to lengthy adventure tours (not for the faint-of-heart). Touted by some as an ideal way to spend a beautiful day outdoors in the company of “friendly bicyclists with nice legs,'' cycling is a surefire way to have fun.
Bicycle tours are the “in” thing in Europe, providing a perfect way to take in the countryside or explore picturesque old villages. Some sporting events such as the tour de France are called tours, but typical bicycle touring is non-competitive, and done for leisure rather than sport. Bike tours are gaining in popularity all over the world – even in Africa, where the intrepid traveler can go on two-week adventures with an experienced tour guide. Cycling allows people to discover the world on a more personal level. Unadulterated sights, sounds, smells, and sweat can be experienced without barriers. Creative agendas have been created by some cycle tour companies in order to allow interaction with local communities and facilitate trips to out-of-the-way destinations, away from congested cities, beaches, or zoos.
An average person of reasonable fitness, moving at a moderate speed, is able to comfortably ride (depending on terrain and weather) 30 to 80 miles (50 to 130 km) a day.
Overnight cycle tours are also growing in popularity for family travelers, who can attach mobile baby and child seats behind their bikes.
If you are going it alone, be sure to get information that is accurate and up-to-date before you embark on a bicycle tour – you wouldn't want to get caught in torrential rain or buffeting gales – especially without the right gear.
Planning a Bicycle Tour
There are a large range of guidebooks available, and staff in local outdoors stores should have helpful advice.
Maps are also an important aid for the independent cycle tourist. Cycling and topographical maps are available at most outdoors stores and will typically combine basic road information with useful extras like point-to-point distances, support facilities, and overnight accommodations. Topographical maps will show you the lay of the land, giving useful information about the difficulty of the terrain that a given route will cross.
For long-haul tours, the cyclist often needs to carry and protect his or her own belongings. This is called loaded, or self-supported, touring, where travelers will probably need a carrier rack and panniers to carry items such as food, cooking equipment, and sleeping gear.
Serious cyclists might prefer to use special touring bikes which are built to take large amounts of luggage and can be ridden comfortably over long distances. A typical tour bike has a longer wheelbase to increase stability, but at the cost of a quick response. They have more gears to compensate for extra weight and thicker tires with a tread pattern for better durability and control over a wide variety of terrain.
