If you choose to do an international cycling trip in Europe (or somewhere else), you probably have specific reasons for doing so. It may be because you are a dedicated road cyclist and you want to ride in the countries where cycling first became important, such as Italy, France, or Spain. But maybe it’s because you have an interest in the history of certain areas and you’d rather explore it on a bike versus a tour bus.
But planning any kind of international adventure, be it in Europe or somewhere else in the world, requires time, dedication, and if historical sites and locations are your motivation, the logistics of how to reach them on your bike. It turns out Ride and Seek Bicycle Adventures specializes in exactly that by bringing cycling adventures together with cultural immersion and history through its trips.
About Ride and Seek Bicycle Adventures
Ride & Seek Bicycle Adventures opened its doors in 2011. It was founded by Dylan Reynolds and Sam Wood. The two founders got the idea for the company while riding from Spain to Rome and following Hannibal’s exploits. This adventure became a BBC 4 documentary called On Hannibal’s Trail.
Reynolds, along with Sam and Ben Wood, decided to make historical and cultural adventure the focus of their new company. But the trips Ride & Seek creates are not for the tourist who wants to just ride across a town to spend their days in group tours of historical sites or spending hours in museums.
Ride & Seek Bicycle Adventure is about epic cycling mixed with total engagement with history and the culture surrounding it. Its trips are for true cyclists who love long rides. In fact, the tour operator states explicitly that “Our Epic tours are geared towards riding longer distances and taking on more challenging terrain. The frequent changing of hotels and the ‘expedition’ focus of these tours makes them less suited to the novice cyclist.”
To make this last point even clearer, the company uses a grading system expressed in espresso cups. It explains this system in this way. “Our logic is that the harder the tour the more coffee shots you will need to complete it and thus by design our easiest tours are denoted by a single cup.” See the infographic below.
Destinations and a Typical Trip From Ride & Seek Bicycle Adventures
Currently, Ride & Seek Bicycle Adventures lists around 20 trips on its website. With those trips, it covers several European destinations but also places like Colombia, New Zealand, Australia, Scotland, Ireland, and Japan. One such trip is “Caesar – London to Rome,” so called because it traces the path of Caesar across the continent.
This trip is over a month long (39 days, specifically) and traverses 6 countries: the U.K., France, Belgium, Switzerland, San Marino, and Italy. The ride is broken into two parts. The first part goes for 19 days with a rating of three espresso cups (daily distance 43-71 miles with 1,000 to 2,000 meters of elevation gain). The second part is 21 days with a rating of four espresso cups (daily distance 60 – 100 miles and an elevation gain of 1500-4000m).
Cost for this trip (I hope you’re sitting down when you read this): €19,300 ($22,078). See a map of the route below.
Inclusions and Exclusions for a Trip with Ride & Seek Bicycle Adventures
The inclusions for a trip with the company are pretty typical of what most bicycle travel companies give a guest. The hotel occupancy is based on a twin/ double but a single supplement is available if you are traveling solo. Ride & Seek Bicycle Adventures asks that travelers make a €1,000 deposit on the trip. Here’s what’s included.
- Accommodation in our carefully selected hotels
- Meals – hotel breakfasts, snacks en route and pre/post-ride nutrition, lunches including the famed Ride and Seek picnics, multi-course group dinners with a focus on the local cuisine.*NB we include occasional independent lunches & dinners to break up the week
- Ride and Seek jersey
- Garmin 1030 use with all routes preloaded
- Ride and Seek water bottle
- Kit laundry service once a week
- Passionate, experienced and knowledgeable guides always on hand to help
What’s not included for a trip is a much shorter list: alcoholic beverages, bike hire (of course, you probably can bring your own bike if you wish), and pre & post tour accommodation.
Last Thoughts
If you like history but you want to skip the throng of tourists, crowded cities, boring hotels, and tour buses, and you are a cyclist who loves long and challenging rides, you are the exact clientele Ride & Seek Bicycle Adventures wants.
You will experience scenery, culture, and viewpoints most European tourists will never see. Not only that, you’ll be an active participant in history and not just a bystander looking on from the side of the road. These trips are not for those where money is a roadblock. Organizing trips like the ones Ride & Seek Bicycle Adventures offers requires a lot of time and effort to plan.
The company designs its trips so you don’t have to do anything but show up, ride your bike, and have fun. If money is no object and your time is open, I wouldn’t hesitate to book a trip as soon as possible. It seems like any trip with Ride & Seek Bicycle Adventures will be a trip you’ll always remember.
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