Cycling tours of Italy? Trek Travel?

My DH and I celebrated our 32nd anniversary with Experience Plus

www.experienceplus.com/

They are also a bit pricey but they are fantastic. We could not have been more happy with the bikes (we did not take our own...no rental fees, you have a choice of road, hybrid or comfort bikes) We took our own pedals, but you do not have to unless you use clipless. My husband took his own seat. The mileage was just right for me as a newbie at the time. We had wine tasting and a tour of an olive oil pressing place, with tasting. Most meals were included and all breakfasts. There were mileage options each day and no cue sheets! They chalk the road with arrows in the morning and you follow them! They even used arrows to point to sites to see, museums, and occasional picnics they provided! What fun!! We had lived in Italy for 2.5 years while he was in the service 25 years ago(in Tuscany) so wanted to ride somewhere different. We went to Puglia, the "heel" of the boot. However, I would hesitate to go there in the summer as it would be very hot. We went in early May. As noted in another post, I also STRONGLY agree that going in August is a BIG mistake. The hotels are crowded, expensive, and unavailable. If you could possibly go in September, then you will be much more able to find places to stay if you are not on a tour.

Have an awesome time and congrats on your upcoming wedding.

Here is the write up I did on our Italy trip with Trek Travel:

http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread...ong-56k-Beware

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Originally Posted by Mr. SR500

Here is the write up I did on our Italy trip with Trek Travel:

http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread...ong-56k-Beware

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Thanks for the feedback both here and on bikeforums Mr. SR500. I work for Trek Travel as a guide and this is always great to see.

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Originally Posted by Mr. SR500

Here is the write up I did on our Italy trip with Trek Travel:

http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread...ong-56k-Beware

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Great write-up. Very cool, and I think this is exactly what we're looking for. I'm wondering if you know how early they encourage you to book to ensure a spot? Also, I saw that you saved 10% by booking through Trek? How does that work?

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Originally Posted by bluebug32

Great write-up. Very cool, and I think this is exactly what we're looking for. I'm wondering if you know how early they encourage you to book to ensure a spot? Also, I saw that you saved 10% by booking through Trek? How does that work?

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I think we booked in the Late Winter/Spring for a Fall trip. Trek Travel has socials at larger dealers etc, to invite people to check out the tour. Our trip was hosted by our dealers and basically everyone was from around the same region. Because they made many of the arrangements, I guess the discount came from that. I'm not sure if you are booking online or via a Trek dealer, but I would just ask - can't hurt.

P.S. Let them know it's your honeymoon. Since we were celebrating our 10 year anniversary our guides gave us a large bottle of champagne on ice one afternoon. Ice is fairly rare in Italy, and my wife was so excited she opened a Coke and used the ice with it. We then went to share the champagne with the other members of the tour, us being typical Americans looked for some cheap/disposable glasses, but the manager of the inn insisted we use proper glasses. Made for great afternoon.

Thanks for the info everyone.

Question: how much time would you recommend before and after the actual riding trip begins? We were thinking of 2 or 3 days on either side?

-Rob

My DH and I went on a trip to Tuscany with VBT tours, Vermont touring, about 5 years ago. The guides were super. One was an Italian and the other an American very fluent in Italian. Our group bonded really well too. Just the right amount of activities, tours, and time on your own. We rented their bikes which were comparable to what we had at the time. We still get the catalogs and you can't beat the prices which include airfare and beautiful places to stay. We added on three days in Florence at the end.

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Originally Posted by Mr. BlueBug32

Thanks for the info everyone.

Question: how much time would you recommend before and after the actual riding trip begins? We were thinking of 2 or 3 days on either side?

-Rob

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Take the remnants of your first day there to recuperate, then the next day if you're out on a bike all day in the sun you're going to be better off than if you did anything else anyway.

just wanted to add my +1 to Trek Travel.

we had the best vacation EVER at the tour of california in 2008. everything about trek travel was professional, well organized, well-planned, the guides gave individual attention all the time, it was the best, i cant say enough good things about that trip!!!

We booked 3 days on either end of our trip. You need it to adjust to the time zone changes before you are actually riding. At least I did.

I think we got there a day ahead, and stayed 2 days. Many of the others traveled on their own after, but with young kids we needed to get back. I think it worked great great for us. Trek arranged our before and after hotels, so that helped as well.

For us, we did not bookend our trip at all, and it was HARD!!! 20+ hours travel time each way takes a lot out of a person (drive to BART, BART to SFO, SFO to Philadelphia, Philadelphia to Frankfurt, Frankfurt to Florence, bus to train station, train to another train station, and then a cab to our final destination -- and then the same in reverse to go back home -- yikes!!!). I set my watch to Italy time as soon as we boarded our plane in SF and made sure I kept myself awake during Italy daytime hours and made myself "sleep" during Italy night-time hours. Still woke up rarin' to go at about 2 or 3am the first morning! Getting on the bike and getting going that first day helped a lot and I had no problem with jet lag or anything while we were there. My DH had it harder because he didn't sleep at all during travel.

We were only in Italy for 5 days. Returning to the States was MUCH HARDER. Upon return we both slept like rocks for umpteen hours straight. I had one full day to recuperate and then back to work. That whole week I felt like I'd been run over by a Mac truck -- felt like I had the flu or something. I wanted to crawl under my desk and fall into a coma.

If I had to do it again, I would have taken the week after off of work to rest and reacclimate.

Exactly why it's important to plan the extra time. It's not particularly good to fly long distances after you've been doing a lot of hard riding. Makes you ripe for dvts. That's why I will be lying on a beach and playing tourist in Malaga after my tour in Spain this May.

So 2 days on either end wouldn't be unheard of.

I've got a large concern over the type of components that they use. The older style 10 speed Shimano parts causes a lot of wrist and hand pain for me, and did no matter what position I had them in. Supposedly the 6 series Madones use the new Dura Ace (better ergonomics,) but exactly how anal retentive are they with their fitting? And are they able to adjust things throughout the week if problems crop up?

Thanks for all the information everyone, it's very helpful.

They used 5.2 Madones when we went. They were only slightly used and in excellent condition. I believe they were current year, and they turn them over every year or every other year - I forget. Sizing is better then most bike shops. The first day they have lunch and a bike fit. Before the trip you gave them your frame size, so your bike is ready to go the first day. They have about every stem size available, and set you up on a trainer to get a rough fit. I wanted a bigger frame the second day and they were able to get to the warehouse and swap it out for me no problem. I'm guessing your bikes will be Ultegra.