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My s/o and I are looking into the possibility and feasibility of starting a 4 day long weekend cycle holiday in the South West of England starting next spring. Would appreciate any input from anyone about the kind of 4 day cycle break you would like, what would you like included or not included, board basis etc etc if you were looking for a 4 day break, in fact any input at would would be very welcome.
Thanks in advance
Furry Duck
That sounds like a very cool project. Best wishes to both of you. ;)
I just did something along these lines recently, where I rode for 6 days with two friends of mine in Scotland. It was a self guided tour and our luggage would be moved from town to town each morning. I loved it!
What I wish had been different:
- Guest houses that offered early breakfast. The earliest the places in which we stayed offered breakfast was 7:30am, most frequent 8:00am.
- I wish we had known about the drying rooms earlier. It rained 3 of the days we rode and I only learned of drying rooms by the third day.
- From another friend, I just learned that in Switzerland "bike hotels" offer cycling clothing laundry... a basket in the reception for cycling clothes with a specific time each day for getting them washed (e.g. put in basket by 7pm, clean by 6am next morning, picking up from the same basket). Having our cycling clothes cleaned would have felt so luxurious.
- We rented bikes. The rim tape was cheap and I had a total of 4 flat tires (3 of them in one day) and one of my friends had 2 flats. The brakes in the bike were not new (on day 4, we needed new brake pads), nor was the bike well tuned (skipped gears).
- In smaller towns, a list restaurants that are open after 9PM. A couple of days we rode past 8PM and had trouble finding where to eat.
PS: I hope I did not misunderstand your question.
How fun! I'm going to Austria in a few weeks for a three day tour alone. Here are some of the things I have decided for my trip: if you fly Lufthansa (rumor has it other european airlines as well) you can take your bike for free as one of your pieces of luggage. I decided to do that - I know my bike - it's in good shape, it fits me etc etc etc...
There is a company "cycline" that makes great detailed bike tour books of routes in Europe. Most are published in German, but some are in English - absolutely the best purchase so far. There is a book: "Europe by bike" by Karen and Terry Whitehall that is no where near as detailed as the cycline book, but nonetheless worth having a look at (maybe interlibrary loan?).
Often hostels will allow you to leave some stuff there locked up while you are gone - good for me becaue I will have work stuff with me that will need to be left as well as my bike case. That is worth looking into.
Um... I also have heard to carry cash - (depending on where you stay) often little hotels don't take credit cards etc.
The Europe by bike book has common routes all around Europe (including the UK).
Good luck! How fun!
From one duck to another: I'll tip my daughter (UK Elephant) about your post. She may have some useful tips to offer. She's recommended that area to me as a good bike touring site, maybe next summer.