CYCLING HOLIDAYS...

  Quiet roads are still easy to find, accommodation and food can also be easily found in all but the most remote areas.
Marked cycle routes like the Coast to Coast ride (part of the Sustrans National Cycle Route Network) make route finding easy and have attracted cyclist friendly facilities along the way. These can form a good basis for a cycling holiday.

  Supported cycling holidays have become very popular; the level of support can range from simply maps, advice and accommodation right up to full vehicle support, carrying luggage and tired bodies if neccessary!

 

The UK The UK has a great variety of beautiful countryside and is just the right scale for cycling holidays; villages, cafes, pubs, quaint oddities and ruined castles seem to arrive every few miles! More remote areas like Scotland, Wales, the Pennines and the Lake District have dramatic, breathtaking scenery and challenging climbs to test your fitness. The flatlands of East Anglia and the Vale of York make for pleasant, less strenuous cycling holidays.   ABROAD Further afield, France, Belgium, Holland and the rest of Europe are just a ferry ride away. Cycling holidays in Europe will open your eyes to how cyclists should be treated! France and Italy are the spiritual homes of recreational cycling. The French Alps are a very popular holiday destination for road cyclists and mountain bike riders but maybe best appreciated by those fit enough to enjoy the uphill scenery.   Travelling by car you are separated from the environment. On a cycling holiday the sights, sounds and smells of the countryside are right there with you (the smells bit can be a problem!).  You can cycle lightweight or load up the bike with tent and panniers. If you have not tried cycle touring before, a weekend away is the perfect way to try it out before taking the plunge with a longer cycling holiday!

  WHAT TO WEAR...CYCLE CLOTHING

   HOW TO CARRY YOUR STUFF...CYCLING BAGS

   THE BENEFITS OF CYCLE TOURISM
A cycling holiday is not only beneficial to the rider, it also benefits the economy of local communities.
A survey in the UK's Peak District National Park found that those cycling while on holiday in the Park spent an average of £25 per person per day. The average spend of a car-borne (or other) day visitor was just £7.30 a day. This is because cyclists have to shop locally, whereas drivers can buy in a lot of their provisions before leaving home and carry them in the car.

CYCLE TOURING CHECKLIST
For those riders planning their first cycling holiday, here is a an idea of some of the stuff that you might want to pack.
All of it is optional; some cycle-tourists carry only a toothbrush and a credit card!
Some of the items listed are only for cycle-campers, some can be considered luxuries but some could save you pushing your bike for miles
in search of a bike shop when you should be enjoying your cycling holiday!

Pack it all and you could stay away for months. You decide...