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Questions?
Call (877) 462-2423
or (423) 756-8907
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Pros and Cons
BikeToursDirect represents bicycle tour companies based in Europe and operating in nearly 30 countries. By traveling with a Europe-based company, you benefit in several ways:
Lower Prices
Because we work directly with overseas tour operators, prices are generally quite low relative to most U.S.-based tour operators—in some cases as much as 70 percent less. Based in Europe and with a large European clientele, their volume is high and costs are low—which means you pay less, often staying in the same hotels as more expensive tours.
More Tours, More Choices
Tour companies based in Europe run many of their guided tours weekly—some even daily. Many self-guided tours can start on any day, given a minimum of two participants. BikeToursDirect also includes many tours not found on other websites—for example, tours offered by regional and local tourist offices, small tour operators and hotels.
Guided and Self-Guided Options
In most cases, you can choose between guided and self-guided tour options. Self-guided doesn’t mean you’re entirely on your own. Self-guided tours usually include daily luggage transfer, maps and information materials, and on-call support. Self-guided tours can also mean substantial savings: A tour that might cost $890 guided might cost only $650 self-guided.
International Camaraderie
Traveling with a U.S.-based company usually means that the entire tour group is American. If you choose to travel on a guided tour with a Europe-based company, you’ll generally find an international clientele, giving you a chance to experience multiple cultures. Because participants may speak several different languages, tours are frequently in English—one language that almost everybody knows—or bilingual with English as at least a secondary language.
Routes Designed by Local Experts
Most tours listed on this site are designed by local experts who live in the countries you’ll visit or by European companies with extensive operations in those countries. They know how to take you to the best sights and scenery.
“Home-Base” Tours
Since most bicycle tourists enjoy traveling each day, tour operators generally offer only point-to-point tours. Still, there’s something to be said for staying overnight in one town and doing day trips; you don't have to pack each morning, you can settle in, and you can really get to know a location. And, if you don’t feel like riding, you can rest or pursue another activity. For those who prefer to stay put, BikeToursDirect works with tour operators and local and regional tourist offices that offer ”home-base” tours. (You can find them by using our tour search and selecting “Home-base” under “Interests.”
The companies we work with were established to work with the European market, often targeting their tours to their own country—for example, an Austrian company organizing tours in Italy for the Austrian and German market. Please consider the following potential issues.
Language
On many tours, there’s not as much material in English as in the language of the tour company’s primary market. On self-guided tours, you’ll have maps and cue sheets in English, but the translations may be confusing (and sometimes amusing). We’re working with the tour companies to reduce this problem, but it will take time—and more English-speaking clients. We encourage you to do as much research in advance as possible.
On guided tours with Eurofun, Key Move, Landpartie, Austria Radreisen, Oberoesterreich Touristik, Inselhuepfen and Velociped, it’s possible that everyone else will be German or Austrian. While the guides will provide information in English as well, it may be a significantly abbreviated version. And German may be the dominant language for social settings, such as around the dinner table. In many cases, the German-speaking guests may want to practice their English and want to engage you in conversation.
Riding “Style”
On guided tours, Europeans tend to ride as a group with the guide. Sometimes, riders can go ahead to the next turn or next town, but the norm is sticking together. If you’re a more independent cyclist who prefers to ride at your own pace, a self-guided tour may be a better option.
Support
On self-guided tours, although you have hotels, luggage transfers, route planning and a service hotline, you’re pretty much on your own. If you head into bad weather or just don’t feel like riding anymore, it’s your responsibility to get to the next hotel. Except on a few tours, where noted, there is no support van. If you’re not comfortable with this, please consider a guided tour, or we can suggest tours that have easy and ample transportation options (the Danube, Mosel, Lake Constance and Rhine tours, for example).
Tour Minimums
Almost all guided tours (and some self-guided tours) are subject to a minimum number of participants. If the minimum isn’t reached, the tour may be cancelled—a decision that is usually made just 4 weeks before the start of the tour (since Europeans tend to book closer to the departure date). If a tour is cancelled, we’ll do our best to get you on a different tour, or on a self-guided tour, if available, or we’ll refund your tour payment in full.
Rentals Bikes
Rental bikes are generally quite good, but most do not come with water cages or odometers. At the other extreme, some tour companies now offer handlebar-mounted GPS. Most companies do not rent helmets. Please bring your own!
On self-guided tours, you are expected to fix your own flats. In the rare case of bicycle breakdowns, you may be asked to take public transportation or a taxi to the next town, where there may be a repair shop that can fix the problem (reimbursable by the tour company). Some companies have spare bikes at “depots” along the route. In other cases, the tour company will bring a replacement bike, but it may be at the end of the day or the next morning.
Booking Process
While we work hard to make the booking process as easy as possible, it might take 5-7 business days or longer to get confirmation from the tour operators. Most don’t have online booking systems, so we don’t know real-time availability and can’t get instant confirmations. Life is sometimes at a slower pace in other countries, and responses can take longer than we’d like. |
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