Tag Archives: Trek Travel

Best Bike Trips for This Summer’s Travel

Fondest memories of travel are from bike tours like BoatBikeTour’s Bruges-Amsterdam trip, with this memorable scene of biking passed windmills after a rain © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

By Karen Rubin, Travel Features Syndicate, goingplacesfarandnear.com

Biking is my favorite form of travel – I love the perfect pace – not to fast, not too slow to be able to really be in the moment – being outside with no window or barrier, going through villages and neighborhoods you would not likely see traveling by car, bus or train, being able to stop and admire the view. And I love at the end of the day, feeling both physically accomplished and exhilarated, with the endorphins sparking. You feel you are an active participant in your surroundings, not a mere spectator. All your senses are activated.

The end of our self-guided bike trip along the Danube Bike Trail from Passau to Vienna © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

In decades of travel, the experiences I cherish most include riding the biketours.com’s self-guided Danube Bike Trail trip from Passau to Vienna with my sons; being transformed seeing people and villages in Albania (e-bike recommended); the exhilaration of reaching the top of Cadillac Mountain on Discovery Bicycle’s Maine Coast tour; and the warm feeling after a hot shower, wrapped in a lush bathrobe in a historic inn after a hilly, rainy ride on a hybrid bike (e-bike available)  on Discovery’s Eastern Quebec Townships trip; the sheer delight of biking from Bruges to Amsterdam and sailing on a boat with Boat Bike Tours.

Bike trips have become so popular, they have veered far from the humdrum into the heretofore unimaginable. There is hardly any place in the world where you cannot explore on two-wheels (hybrid, road bikes, gravel bikes, e-bikes), where there are not guided trips, or self-guided trips (where you rent the bike, have vouchers for accommodations, and your luggage is picked up and magically appears at the next inn, much easier now with Ride GPS and similar apps). Also, e-bikes have opened a world and extended your years in the saddle – you no longer have to be afraid when the ride is rated a 4, with major hills.

Jubilant to have made it to the top of Cadillac Mountain, a five-mile ascent (with a hybrid!), a wonderful option on Discovery Bicycle’s Coastal Maine trip© Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

Also, whether you are a family, a couple, a group of friends, or traveling solo (as I do), bike tours are ideal. Here are some recommendations:

Biking the award-winning Mickelson rail trail on Wilderness Voyageurs’ Badlands and Black Hills trip through South Dakota © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

Wilderness Voyageurs has a huge selection of offerings, especially trips that take advantage of rail-trails (the company is based along the Great Allegheny Passage in Ohiopyle, PA).They have trips on 30 rail-trails across the USA (11 are in the Rails to Trails Conservancy Hall of Fame), and have been the operator of RTC’s Sojourn trips on the GAP. They offer a marvelous selection of trips on New York’s Erie Canalway, on the new Empire Trail Network (from Battery Park up to Albany, but the trail network actually goes all the way up to Canada), as well as Missouri’s KATY Trail (longest rail trail in the USA), C&O Canal and Mickelson Rail Trail in South Dakota (I thoroughly enjoyed its Badlands & Black Hills tour). The trip I am looking to do next is the Coeur d’Alene & Hiawatha Trail in Idaho – two Rail-to-Trail Conservancy Hall of Famers, with 10 tunnels including the famous “Taft Tunnel” at 8771 feet long, 7 steel trestles, one 220 feet high). The company has an extensive selection of road bike tours in Michigan, Texas, Maryland’s Chesapeake Bay, Gettysburg & the civil War, Shenandoah & Skyline Drive, Kentucky Bike & Bourbon, Colorado, New York’s Finger Lakes and the Adirondacks and a new offering on the Maine Coast & Acadia (I am eying the San Juan Islands, Washington, six-day trip covering San Juan, Lopez and Orcas Islands). It also offers gravel bike tours and two itineraries in Cuba. The trips are well marked for their ability, and the guides, accommodations and meals are superb. (Wilderness-Voyageurs.com, 855-550-7705).-

Feeling tired but exhilarated at the end of a challenging ride (on a hybrid) on Discovery Bicycle’s Eastern Quebec Townships trip © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

Discovery Bicycle Tours has actually added departures on four otherwise sold out itineraries this year: GAP Trail Getaway, ride the full Great Allegheny Passage (GAP) Trail in 4 days, from Cumberland, Maryland, to Pittsburgh, PA (Level 1), new departures Sept. 14-17, Sept. 19-22; six days of carefree riding on the P’tit Train du Nord, one of the most scenic rail trails in the lovely province of Quebec, just over the border in Canada (take your passport! Level 2-easier to intermediate, new departure Sept. 17-22); a four-day Appalachian Rail Trails, one of Discovery’s newest tours, offers some of the best trail riding in the Virginia-West Virginia region; new departure Oct. 6-11); and a four-day New York Finger Lakes Getaway trip where you unpack once, stay in a high-end inn, and spin through New York State’s famed winery region filled with delightful farms and villages and perhaps spot Amish buggies (easier-intermediate, departure Sept. 22-25). Discovery Bicycle Tours offers cycling vacations through the US, Canada, New Zealand, Europe,
Chile, Cambodia, and Vietnam. They are already taking bookings for 2025 for its 8-day Bike & Barge Netherlands North tour; 8-day Moselle River Bike & Barge; 8-day E-bike & Cruise Croatia. Discovery Bicycle Tours, which I traveled with on their marvelous Maine Coast and their Eastern Quebec Townships trips, provides excellent value for what is high luxury (inns, dining) – including bike rentals, even e-bikes, in the cost. (800-257-2226, 802-457-3553, [email protected], discoverybicycletours.com).

Catching up to our boat hotel, Royal Princess, as we bike on the path to Kinderdijk on the Bruges to Amsterdam trip with BoatBikeTours © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

Netherlands-based Boat Bike Tours, which I traveled with on their fabulous Bruges-to-Amsterdam tour (by boat), has special offers for this summer, with up to 200 Euro savings per person on select tours: Sail & Bike Ijsselmeer & National Parks- 100 euro discount per person, on an elegant three-masted sailing ship, Elizabeth, cycling through dune landscapes, peaceful pastureland and historic fishing villages. In France, get 200 Euro discount per person: Taste Champagne (and brie!) in Champagne (Paris-Eparnay or Eparnay-Paris on the Zwaantje); or visit the best winemakers in Northern Burgundy (on the Zwaantje); the Paris-Montargis tour for beautiful medieval towns and royal history on the Fleur. There is also a 100 Euro discount pp on its Croatia/Greece programs; cycle through ancient landscapes as you explore the Aegean or Ionian islands of Greece, experience the layered history of the Croatian coastline or island-hop the gorgeous Croatian islands. (https://www.boatbiketours.com/all-offers/, boatbiketours.com, NL: +31 20 72 35 400, USA: +1 203 814 1249).

Discover Slovenia’s attractions, like Predjama Castle with Backroads © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

Backroads, a pioneer in biking trips since its founding in 1979 by Tom Hale, has branched out to all manner of active, multi-sport programs, and from its California origins, to span the world. It still offers one of the most extensive opportunities for biking – in fact, 143 different itineraries this year, including all the major US destinations (California, New York, Kentucky, Vermont), plus a huge selection of international destinations. Among them: 6-day Bordeaux & Dordogne Bike Tour; Brittany & Normandy Bike Tour; 6-day Tuscany by the Sea Bike Tour; and  Croatia & Slovenia Bike, and eight-day Vietnam & Cambodia Bike Tour, and the trip I am eyeing, eight-day Japan Bike Tour featuring Nikko National Park to Kyoto (https://www.backroads.com/trips/BJNI/japan-bike-tour). (backroads.com, 800-462-2848).

Among DuVine Cycling’s favorite itineraries for first-timers is the Douro Valley of Portugal © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

There’s still time for DuVine Cycling & Adventure Co.’s offer to first-time Duvine travelers to take $250 off any 2024 scheduled departure tour booked by June 9. Among the favorites for first timers: Bordeaux, France; Douro Valley, Portugal; Tuscany, Italy; Costa Brava, Spain; Greek Isles Yacht & Bike Tour. Its catalog of all-inclusive, luxury cycling vacations spans the United States, Europe, Latin America and Africa and include family, adventure, challenge, cycle & sail, specialty, villas, private tours, and, of course, classic itineraries. BTW, 2025 tour dates are live on duvine.com to take advantage of best rates and dates—especially for destinations that sold out fast in 2024: tulip season in Holland, new departures in Norway, and its popular hiking and biking tour in the Italian Dolomites (duvine.com, 888 396 5383)

Butterfield & Robinson offers such exotic cycling trips such as Ultimate Morocco, The Sahara to Marrakech Biking © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

The high-end operator, Butterfield & Robinson, offers such exotic cycling trips as Ultimate Morocco, The Sahara to Marrakech Biking (with time spent in bustling souks, historic Kasbahs and indigenous Berber camps hidden among the Sahara’s silky dunes) and Vietnam biking Expedition through lush rice paddies and local villages, discover ancient cities, enjoying delicious Vietnamese cuisine and culture. B&R has released its 2025 offerings, including a new Bali Multi-Active; Japan Tayoma biking. It’s new, limited edition Sri Lanka: Cultural Triangle to South Coast Biking, February 9 – 16, 2025  is an eight-day sojourn that takes you from the port city of Negombo to the sacred city of Kandy, concluding in Galle Fort, and visiting the UNESCO World Heritage sites like Sigiriya Rock. (butterfield.com, 866-551-9090)

VBT Bicycling Vacations’ Prague to Budapest tour is available as an 11-day air-inclusive © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

VBT Bicycling Vacations, an early pioneer in bike trips through Vermont, has long ago spread wings to far-flung destinations, to the far reaches of North America, South America, Europe, Africa, Asia and Oceania. One trip that has caught my eye is a six-day Utah: Bryce Canyon & Zion National Parks (rated easy/moderate, bike included, offered September to October) and Maryland: Eastern Shore & Chesapeake Bay (easy, bike included, offered June-October), Among the Europe itineraries is an eight-day Danube Bike & River Cruise: Prague to Budapest, available as an 11-day air-inclusive. More exotic: South Africa: Cape Town & the Garden Route, easy/moderate, bike included, available as an 11-day air-inclusive package, or 9-day land-only; New Zealand: The South island, 12-days,Jan 6-17, 2025,air included.(vbt.com, 877-774-1942, 855-443-0719) 

Looking for more hard core?

Biking in Sonoma, California’s wine country, one of Trek Travel’s most romantic bike tours of 2024 © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

Trek Travel’s trending trips include: Andalucia bike tour (breathtaking views, savor exquisite tapas, taste classic wines, and experience warm hospitality set to the rhythm of passionate music.); Norway bike tour (Pedal past the Nigardsbreen and Bergset glaciers and conquer Sognefjellet Mountain Pass, northern Europe’s highest); Shenandoah Valley Gravel Bike Tour (pedal along pristine unpaved roads nestled in the valley between the Blue Ridge and Allegheny Mountains). Cycle through Tuscany, or Explore Coastal Charm of Croatia. Looking for romance on your bike trip? Its top “Romantic Bike Tours in 2024” include Mallorca Island; Loire Valley; Andalucia; Santa Barbara Wine Country; California Wine Country. Trek Travel is also a leader in gravel bike trips, the newest trend in cycling. (There may still be time to take advantage of a $250 discount: use code EXPLORE250 at checkout. trektravel.com, 866-464-8735)

Escape Adventures has a bike tour along the North Rim of the Grand Canyon © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

Prominent in active travel, Escape Adventures has a wonderful selection of rides through national parks, including Glacier National park Road Bike tour; Canyonlands National Park; North Rim of the Grand Canyon; Bryce, Zion, Grand Canyon Road Bike Tour; Canyonlands, Arches & Moab by Mountain Bike. More exotic: a road bike Tour de France Experience; Vuelta a Espana Experience; New Zealand road trip. With 100 destinations, Escape Adventures caters to the full spectrum of active travelers, respective to fitness level and activity type. From road cyclist to mountain biker to electric biker, hiker, and multi-sport enthusiast, and from first timer to friends and family groups of all ability levels. Escape Adventures is introducing a guided “bikepacking” 5-day camping and mountain biking trip along the 144-mile-long Maah Daah Hey Trail System (MDH). Majestic plateaus, jagged peaks and valleys, large expanses of rolling prairie, and rivers intertwine to offer the adventurous outdoors enthusiast a taste of pure, unadulterated badlands. Located adjacent to Theodore Roosevelt National Park, the MDH is one of the lengthiest stretches of continuous trail in America. Hailed as an IMBA epic, the MDH unfolds on 95% singletrack. The guided tour starts at $1,499 per person double. (https://escapeadventures.com/tour/maah-daah-hey-singletrack-mountain-bike-tour/ https://escapeadventures.com/, 800-596-2953)

Discover France is offering cycling trips that combine the exploration of iconic mountain pass and Tour de France routes with daily luxury accommodations and local gastronomy. Available in the Alps, Provence Mont Ventoux, the Pyrenees and the French Riviera, these prestigious cycling adventures lets you discover charming regions while taking on a sporting challenge. Its trip through the Dordogne region lets you ride and discover charming villages, stroll through the narrow streets of medieval towns built on cliffs, such as Rocamadour, experience its rich gastronomy, such as the famous black truffle and finish the trip with an escapade in the Lascaux Caves, one of the many prehistoric sites of the region. Its “Tour de France: Dolomites & Grand Departure Adventure,” is an 8-day VIP Bike Tour that includes a ride through the famous Dolomites and a stop in Florence(Italy) for the grand departure of the Tour de France. During the first few days you will challenge yourself by riding in the Italian mountains. Then enjoy VIP access to the Tour’s historic start in Florence. Riding on the official road of the Tour and crossing the finish line in Bologna will end this adventure on a high note. (DISCOVER FRANCE 427 Rue Hélène Boucher Mauguio 34130 France, discoverfrance.com).

Biketours.com pioneered biking in Albania © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

For excellent value in bike tours, my go-to is BikeTours.com – basically a broker of programs in just about every country in Europe, even Montenegro, Poland, Romania, and Estonia (I took a fabulous boat/bike trip through Greek Islands), plus Japan and South Africa and the United States. They basically represent local operators, so offer much the same itinerary as the high-end offerings, but with more choice of accommodations and opportunities for lower cost. They also offer perhaps the best selection of self-guided trips, which can be 30-50 percent cheaper than guided tours (we’ve done their self-guided Danube Bike Tour Passau-Vienna, and self-guided Venice-Croatia and guided Greek Isles boat/bike trip, and a guided Slovenia trip). The company, under its previous owner and founder, Jim Johnson, opened Albania for biking, which I experienced the trip with Johnson. You appreciate how significant biking is to really understanding a country and its people, when you ride through villages (e-bike recommended). Albania is perhaps Europe’s best kept secret. We were impressed by Albania’s diverse landscapes—snow-capped mountains, deep forests and beaches—its rich heritage and culture and how people in rural areas were actually excited and curious to see visitors in their villages, especially those traveling by bicycle. This also has to be one of the best values in European cycling: experience the 9-day “UNESCO Sites of Albania” guided 1190E or self-guided from 950E. (biketours.com, 833-216-0635, 215-613-0874)

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Bike Tour Operators Respond to Booming Demand With Itineraries Near & Far

E-biking through Albania with Jim Johnson of Biketours.com. Responding to a surge in demand for cycling trips, bike tour operators are offering itineraries as near as the Hudson Valley and as far as Japan and as novel as Norway and Albania © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

By Karen Rubin

Travel Features Syndicate, goingplacesfarandnear.com

Bike tour operators, many still with marvelous fall 2021 itineraries available, are gearing up for 2022, many offering next year’s tours at this year’s prices for those who book early (most have liberal cancellation or change policies).

Responding to a boom in demand for biking, they are back to offering itineraries to international destinations that are classic favorites as well as newly emerging, off-the-beaten track places, as well as coming up with new domestic trips.

Biking has been extremely popular – ideal for enabling people to explore uncrowded destinations while being outside and sufficiently distant, while the wide availability of e-bikes have expanded the boundaries of where cyclists can venture.

Bike tours have been my favorite form of travel – you get to see things at just the right pace to really experience and enjoy, but still cover enough ground to be constantly delighted.

The best bike tours are designed to bring you to the most scenic and interesting places and attractions, provide accommodations in quaint local inns or even incorporate boat or barge.

There is a lot that the tour companies do, beginning with designing itineraries that maximize gorgeous scenery, immersion in local culture, and give you a great ride. They also shuttle bikes to the start and end of a daily ride if you aren’t riding point to point; shuttle luggage inn-to-inn (unless you are on a boat or barge tour, the added beauty of a boat or barge tour is that you don’t have to pack and unpack); booking charming accommodations and dining; and often arrange sightseeing as well as dining experiences. They also can change the itinerary on the spot should circumstances warrant and provide assistance if there is any difficulty along the way.

Self-guided trips also provide a lot of support beginning with an intensive orientation by a guide who provides detailed maps of the route (if not online GPS navigation) and vouchers to the pre-booked accommodations, shuttle luggage from one inn to the next, makes sure the bike properly fits and provide links to service if necessary.

Jim Johnson, Biketours.com founder and company president, preaches the benefits of bike tourism as one of the best ways to explore and become immersed in a destination, heritage and local cultures, a low-carbon, ecologically-friendly way to travel, and especially now, with more interest in being away from crowds.

“By creating a world almost devoid of tourism, the pandemic has provided us with a unique opportunity–a blank slate, in effect–to define what tourism will look like in the future. Bicycle travel provides a superb model for more responsible tourism, for better, more authentic experiences, and for more comfortable traveling,” Johnson writes on his Tailwind blog.

Biketours.com’s Venice-Trieste-Istria self-guided biketour brings us to colorful Caorle © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

BikeTours.com has a fabulous catalog of European destinations, from Albania to Bosnia and Herzegovina, to Estonia and Montengro, Romania and Slovenia.

Johnson offers this list of eight lesser-traveled European bike tour destinations deserving a visit: Bulgaria; Transylvania; Slovenia; Connemara Ireland; Apulia, Italy; Umbria, Italy; the Balkans.

I’ve traveled with BikeTours through Albania (by e-bike), on an incredible bike and boat tour through the Greek Islands, and guided tour of Slovenia, and self-guided trips on Danube Bike Trail and Venice to Croatia. The company is a broker for superb in-destination bike tour operators that provide excellent service, bikes, delightful accommodations, and offers excellent value.

I’m next eyeing one of Biketours.com’s Amsterdam-Bruges by bike and boat.

You can join Johnson on his Founder’s Tour, November 6-13, 2021, for Bike the South’s final Athens to Savannah tour of the 2021 season.

“I founded Bike the South during the pandemic, and I hope some of my BikeTours.com friends who have delayed overseas travel will join me for this last-minute domestic opportunity.”

The cost per person, double occupancy, $2,879, includes a donation to the Georgia Hi-Lo Trail, a 250-mile paved path under development from Athens to Savannah. This tour also helps create awareness about the project and demonstrate the potential economic impact of the trail and sustainable tourism on rural Georgia. (Contact [email protected], www.bike-the-south.com/tours/athens-to-savannah). 

Biketours.com, Chattanooga, TN, 877-462-2423, [email protected], biketours.com.

Discovery Bicycle Tours’ Coast of Maine cyclists enjoy a classic view at Thurston’s Lobster Pound © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

You can lock in your Discovery Bicycle 2022 biking adventure and your preferred dates for international tours, including the Moselle River Bike & Barge, by booking by November 1.

The 8-day Moselle River Bike & Barge tour, August 13-20, 2022, is maxed out at 24 passengers on the Iris. Just as on other Discovery Bike barge tours, there are two guides and a support van that accompany the riders; breakfasts and most dinners are on board. Cabins have two beds and a shower ($3695).

International travel will likely be extra popular in 2022 so it is recommended to book early.

Here are other international offerings from Discovery Bicycle:

In Europe tours are scheduled in ScotlandEnglandIreland or Denmark; in Italy,  three itineraries to choose from:  TuscanyPuglia and Dolomites to Venice; in Iberia, cycle Spain’s gorgeous Catalonia or take a voyage on the ancient paths of El Camino de Santiago; or visit Portugal and taste the treasures of the sea.

Other international cycling trips are available in ChileNew Zealand and Vietnam. Closer to home, is Quebec’s Eastern Townships.

Discovery Bicycle Tours offers what may be the first to design an itinerary on New York State’s new Empire State Trail, from the tip of Manhattan to Albany (the trail continues north to the Canadian border, and connects with the 353-mile east-west Erie Canalway).

In addition, Discovery has domestic bike tours to Coastal Maine (which we enjoyed this summer); Cape Cod; Idaho; Mickelson Trail & Black Hills, South Dakota; Tucson & Saguaro National Park; Lake Champlain Islands; Crater Lake & Scenic Bikeways; Texas Hill Country; Florida Keys, Florida Gulf Beaches; California’s Death Valley; Taste of Southern California; and Vineyards , Canyons and Charming Inns of California.

Discovery Bicycle Tours, 2520 W. Woodstock Rd., Woodstock, VT 05091, 800-257-2226, [email protected], www.discoverybicycletours.com.

Crazy Horse Memorial is visited on bike tours along the Mickelson Trail, South Dakota, © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

Bicycle Adventures is giving a $300 discount on 2022 bookings made by October 31. (No code is needed when booking online, your discount will be applied automatically to your balance payment.)

Bicycle Adventures has itineraries on some of the most wonderful rail trails, like the Mickelson in South Dakota (6 days, $2948) and Trail of the Coeur D’Alenes in Northern Idaho (5 days, $2898), which are ideal for beginners, and Washington’s Olympic National Park & Discovery Trail (6-days, $3398).

Its selection of road cycling itineraries include California Redwoods (6 days, $3698) and Montana’s Lewis & Clark Country (6 days, $3098), a new tour through the Valley of Fire & Death Valley in Nevada (6 days, $3148).

There are also international offerings including a new Ireland ‘s Wild Atlantic Way (7 days, $4373) and a new France Bike and Barge from Strasbourg to Lagarde in Alsace (7 days, $5123); other itineraries are available to Spain’s  Medio Camino, Scotland’s Isle of Arran, Chile’s Lakes and Volcanoes, Mexico’s Yucatan, and for advanced riders, a bike, hike, paddle and sail through the Sognefjord, Norway’s longest, deepest fjord (8 days, $5180).

Bicycle Adventures, Seattle, WA, 800-443-6060, bicycleadventures.com.

Wilderness Voyageurs offers supported bike tours on the Great Allegheny Passage Rail Trail © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

Wilderness Voyageurs has a marvelous selection of bike tours oriented around rail trails including the New York’s Erie Canalway, Florida’s Sun Coast, Idaho’s Hiawatha Trail, Pennsylvania’s Great Allegheny Passage and C&O Canal Towpath; Wisconsin’s  Elroy-Sparta Trail, Missouri’s Katy Trail, South Dakota’s Mickelson Trail & Badlands (which I enjoyed). Explore Pennsylvania’s Grand Canyon cycling the Pine Creek rail trail, starting and ending in Black Lick that also features Bald Eagle State Park and Ghost Town trail (3 days, $975).

Wilderness Voyageurs offers a broad selection of road bike trips. Among the intriguing offerings is a “Kentucky Bike & Bourbon” tour that explores the state’s horse farms and whiskey-making (four days, $2100), plus trips through Pennsylvania including Amish Country,  Gettysburg and the Civil War; in Virginia, Colonial Williamsburg Shenandoah and Skyline Drive; Washington’s San Juan Islands, and Texas Big Bend. The operator also has expanded its super-popular New York Finger Lakes bike tour to six-days ($2150).

Another featured bike tour is Cuba Clasico through central Cuba that takes you off the beaten path and Cuba’s tourist track. Biking from Havana, Santa Clara, Trinidad and Sancti Spiritus, Cienfuegos, it’s a tour through Cuba’s heritage and homeland from the best seat in the house—a bicycle seat (8 days, $3990).

Wilderness Voyageurs, 103 Garrett St., Ohiopyle, Pennsylvania 15470, 800-272-4141 , https://wilderness-voyageurs.com/

Biking in Peru with Butterfield & Robinson

For 2022, Butterfield & Robinson is launching the collection of new trips that were supposed to be launched in 2020, but kept back because of the coronavirus pandemic. New scheduled trips for 2022 have been refined further to accommodate local regulations and are limited to 16 people – you can join other travelers on a scheduled departure or take over a trip and turn it private with your family and friends.

Kyushu Biking: In true Japanese style, each intricate detail of this trip was crafted with intention. Pedal into lush subtropical landscapes with green tea fields and smoking volcanoes on the horizon. Connect with the fascinating local culture from samurai practice to mythological stories and “power spots.” Talented chefs, brewers and artisans  bring you closer to deep cultural roots, while each stay shows you a new way to relax and rejuvenate.

Alsace E-biking: Wind passed stretches of tidy vineyards, take the time to explore colorful towns and sample regional wines along the way. Alsace is a mix of France and Germany, blending cultures, flavors which make for a unique and hyper-local experience.

Butterfield & Robinson (which offers hiking and walking tours as well), has bike tours in Africa (for example, eight-days Morocco e-biking and Namibia Bespoke), Asia, Europe (like a 7-day Bulgaria biking and 6-day Cotswold-Bath biking), Latin America (like 7-day Chile Wine country and a Costa Rica Bespoke), and North America (for example, Quebec Bespoke). There is a selection of self-guided trips, as well as guided.

Butterfield & Robinson, Toronto, Ontario, Canada, 866-551-9090, www.butterfield.com, [email protected]

Biking over the Rosendale Trestle on the Wallkill Rail Trail, Hudson Valley, New York, part of the 750-mile long Empire State Trail Network © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

In 2022, Duvine Cycling & Adventure Co. is traveling to England for the first time, hitting the rolling hills for a new Cotswolds Bike Tour (5 days, $4895).

The company has an extensive catalog of “classic” bike tours all over the world including the United States, like a new four-day Hudson Valley Bike Tour ($3695); a new six-day Maine tour to Camden and Penobscot Bay (3995); a new Santa Fe and Taos bike tour (5 days, $3595), a four-day Shenandoah Valley ($3595) and a four-day Blackberry Farm Bike tour in Tennessee’s Smoky Mountains ($6495)

Also new is a Sardinia Yacht & Bike Tour in Italy (7 days, $7695) and new private tours including an 8-day Maui Villa bike tour (8 days, $6995); a 7-day Tuscany Villa Bike Tour (7 days, $5995) and a 7-day Mallorca Villa Bike tour.

Duvine, Somerville, MA, 617 776 4441, 888 396 5383, [email protected], duvine.com.

Trek Travel is celebrating 20 years of cycling vacations in 2022 by inviting people to cycle through a bucket-list destination and the company sure offers many of them spanning the globe.

Trek Travel is celebrating 20 years of cycling vacations in 2022 by inviting people to cycle through a bucket-list destination and the company sure offers many of them spanning the globe – in Europe like a new self-guided Ireland trip (6 days, $2599); a new self-guided Scotland tour (6 days, $2299); a new self-guided Portugal tour through Alentejo region (5 days, $2199). For avid riders, a new “Classic Climbs-Slovenian Alps Tour” (6 days 3899), and a 6-day tour through the Greek islands of Crete and Santorini ($5499); South America (Chile, 7 days, $5699); Asia (Japan Bike Tour, 7 days, $8799) and North America (South Dakota Glamping, 5 days, $3299).

What could be more “bucket list” than “Classic Climbs: The Tour Bike Vacation” which has you ride the most famous climbs of the Tour de France on a nine-day cycling tour of the Alps and Pyrenees. You ride the legendary cols of Aubisque, Galibier and the mythic Ventoux, along with the test of all tests: the grueling ascent up Alpe d’Huez, following in the tracks of pro riders.

Trek Travel, 613 Williamson St., Madison,WI, 866-719-2427, https://trektravel.com/

Biketours.com’s bike/boat trip through Greek Isles © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

BSpoke Tours curates cycling itineraries with an eye toward eco-friendly cycling holidays to European destinations: For history and wine lovers, Bordeaux; for cyclists looking for an adventure in an authentic corner of Spain, Asturias where one third of the region is environmentally protected with nature reserves and protected landscapes.

Among its new trips is a curated tour by e-bike in Sussex and the Cotswolds, starting in the north at Moreton-in-Marsh and an opportunity to visit Stratford-upon-Avon, the birthplace of William Shakespeare, continuing down the picture-perfect countryside to the south, stopping in beautiful towns and villages, including Bourton-on-the-Water, Upper & Lower Slaughter, Tetbury, Cirencester and Bibury and ending in the Roman spa town of Bath.

Another new UK program explores Scotland’s most iconic castles and coastlines by road bike.

BSpoke Tours also offers itineraries throughout Europe –including e-bike and boat-and-bike programs, food-and-wine, eco-friendly, luxury, self-guided, group. New offerings include the island of Sardinia, and in Puglia in Italy; and Andalusia and Camino di Santiago in Spain.

BspokeTours is touting its flexible booking policy because of uncertainty about travel plans. Deposits have been removed and change fees eliminated so you can change your date and destination for no cost up to 12 weeks before departure (monies paid are secured through ABTA and ATOL).

BSpoke Tours, [email protected], bsoketours.com (has a live chat option).

Discover France is featuring biking trips through the Loire Valley, where there is a 800 km cycle route. A large stretch of the Loire is a UNESCO World Heritage Site; in parts it’s also known as France’s Valley of the Kings and as The Garden of France. All along The Loire Valley, you stick closely to France’s last great wild river, with its sandy banks and islands, its vine-covered slopes, its typical towns and villages, its fine food and its unique atmosphere. The route ends at the Loire’s Atlantic estuary.

A five-day/six-night “Loire Valley Secret Castles” bike tour starts in Joué-les-Tours and takes you to Azay-le-Rideau, Langeais, the Chateau de Villandry and Ussé, and the famous Fontevraud Abbey. You cycle through some important wine regions such as Chinon and Saumur for some wine tasting. This is a self-guided trip (start any day), priced from 760E.

Among the new itineraries: self-guided French Riviera-South of France by the Coast, from Nice to St. Tropez (6 days, 1280E); and self-guided Veloscenie From Nogent le Rotrou to Mont Saint Michel (7 days, 1570E).

Also: an 8-day Bordeaux Vineyards by Bike tour travels Saint-Emilion to Entre-Deux-Mers (1550E); a 7-dayAlsace by the Wine Route (1350E). There are also itineraries through Champagne and Burgundy.

Discover France, 427 Rue Hélène Boucher, Mauguio 34130, France, 800-929-0152, discoverfrance.com.

Biking in Mekong with Grasshopper Adventures

Other prominent bike tour companies include Backroads Bicycle (backroads.com), Pure Adventures (pure-adventures.com), Escape Adventures (escapeadventures.com), Freewheel Holidays (ww.freewheelholidays.com, www.freewheelholidays.co.uk) Grasshopper Adventures (grasshopperadventuers.com), Ride & Seek (www.rideandseek.com).

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