Cycling Holiday Recommendations

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JamieL
Posts: 380
Joined: Tue Jun 21, 2011 1:05 pm

by JamieL

The last 3 years we've been to Club La Santa in Lanzarote at Christmas as a family. For those who want to cycle it is perfect, for those who want a bit of winter sun it's perfect too.
The problem is that it isn't really that big an island and i'm a bit bored of the same roads.
Does anyone have any recommendations of somewhere similar? It doesn't necessarily need to be a sports camp, just somewhere warm, sunny and with hills.
We're looking at some of the other Canary Islands and maybe South Africa but if we've overlooked somewhere please let me know.

Cheers

by Weenie


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Routier
Posts: 290
Joined: Sat Aug 13, 2011 9:21 am
Location: UK

by Routier

Spain's Costa Blanca is an obvious one -

warm weather (16-18C is typical in winter)
everything from rolling parcours to full-on mountains
deserted and smooth roads
considerate motorists
lots of potential routes
nice towns to stay in and visit
lots of training camps if you want them

The pro teams use it for a good reason!

tommyh
Posts: 1
Joined: Tue Oct 09, 2012 2:08 am

by tommyh

JamieL wrote:The last 3 years we've been to Club La Santa in Lanzarote at Christmas as a family. For those who want to cycle it is perfect, for those who want a bit of winter sun it's perfect too.
The problem is that it isn't really that big an island and i'm a bit bored of the same roads.
Does anyone have any recommendations of somewhere similar? It doesn't necessarily need to be a sports camp, just somewhere warm, sunny and with hills.
We're looking at some of the other Canary Islands and maybe South Africa but if we've overlooked somewhere please let me know.

Cheers

Hi, I will be going to Lanzarote for the first time with my family this winter and I am wondering if you have any fun suggestions for good rides that I can go on with the family. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Also, I will be taking a trip to New York, staying at The Michelangelo Hotel NYC, so if anyone has any suggestions for good rides in that area please share them with me. Thanks a lot!
Last edited by tommyh on Wed Oct 17, 2012 10:03 pm, edited 1 time in total.

CimaCoppi
Posts: 11
Joined: Fri Oct 05, 2012 3:51 am

by CimaCoppi

Cuba was really nice for us in the late winter. But as amazing as Cuba is for a vacation, doing a bike trip like we did comes with many "conditions".... such as citizenship, desire to ride rough roads, vacation "stars" preferences.

Cuba is best in a "1 star" exploratory mindset. The less deluxe you need, the more deluxe your experience will be.

We had an amazing time.

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AttacknowAttackoften
Posts: 125
Joined: Tue Jul 03, 2012 6:20 pm

by AttacknowAttackoften

I hear Israel has a strong cycling community, and it never really gets "blisteringly" cold. Plus, beaches for those who don't want to ride.

Try Eilat or Tel Aviv.
I only train on days that end with "y".

Eli

oysters
Posts: 59
Joined: Tue Mar 20, 2012 1:19 am

by oysters

To be honest I wouldn't totally recommend South Africa. I've cycled toured there on the west coast (Cape Town heading north into Namibia), and the drivers are insane, 130kph is slow, little consideration for cyclists.

How old are your kids? If they are young, you could get a decent trailer like a Chariot or Burley to tow them in on a tour. Great training and might allow your partner to keep up if she doesn't ride as much as you. Plenty of great cycle touring routes across Europe...

Edit...more thoughts...

If you are keen on a bit of Africa, and your family want's to ride around with you, Malawi and Zambia are two of the places I'd recommend. Both countries the traffic isn't heavy (outside of Lusaka Zambia, but its bearable there), its really slow on the highway and considerate. Plenty of hills and mountains, especially in Malawi. Not so many sealed roads so you are following the highway, but that doesn't mean its boring by any means. People are really friendly in both countries, we loved it. Food is good and healthy for you, great Nshima (pap/Uagali, its a stodgy maize porridge) is the staple and its filling and healthy, usually served with a bit of meat (mostly chicken) and veggies. Lots of Bananas and Mangos for sale on the roadside-no need for energy bars and gels! Both very cheap countries to travel. Lots of people cycle in Malawi, though they are all on african one speeders running 26 inch wheels. You could fly into Livingstone (Vic Falls) and ride out after a couple of days of acclimatisation. The highway out from there to near Lusaka is one of the best roads I've ever ridden as a cyclist (actually, better than any road I've ridden in Australia...)...silky smooth with a huge sealed shoulder. Near Lusaka the road, still sealed, but turns to sh*t. Totally rideable of course. Once you get out of Lusaka the road improves again though not as good as before, just a chip seal bitumen road in good nick, into Malawi. In Malawi the roads are fine. Keep riding to the lake. Plenty of big mountain climbs to be had along the way. Good trip for a couple of weeks or so.

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ChristianB
Posts: 145
Joined: Sat Jun 16, 2007 9:09 am
Location: DK/Slovenia

by ChristianB

German tour magazin sometimes has travel guides to more exotic locations. There are free pdf downloads with routes and general description. All in German though...
Mauritius
Cuba
Thailand

And a list of all their guides
List of all guides

toride
Posts: 153
Joined: Fri Sep 02, 2011 6:19 pm
Location: Lincolnshire

by toride

ive visited Portugal twice now and find it pretty darn good for cycling,some very good mountains to climb..motorists are bike friendly to,thats if you see any one on those mountain roads.

the best wheels might want to stay at home though...some roads are slightly rough.

Northoceanbeach
Posts: 136
Joined: Thu Jul 12, 2012 11:12 pm

by Northoceanbeach

Israel's sounds terrile because you had to dodge rockets and worry about your safety, nobody wants to worry their family will be blown up while they are riding.

In NYC I would bike around Manhattan. I love beautiful road rides in the mountains but biking around manhattan is a real thrill and you get to see so much. It's fun to to pretend ou are a bike courier an doge traffic

shadwell
Posts: 575
Joined: Fri Oct 16, 2009 1:25 am
Location: Gold Coast Australia

by shadwell

Gold coast, Queensland, Australia.
Sunny, hot, decent roads (run 23 or 25 mm tyres for the chip seal...)
Great accommodation and entertainment options especially for the family.
And likely cheaper than club la Santa..... Except for,the flights...

Dalai
Posts: 1491
Joined: Wed Dec 15, 2004 10:54 am
Location: Melbourne, Australia

by Dalai

Queensland in summer!!?? Winter maybe if you are coming from down south to escape the cold, wouldn't suggest it in December/January or as a destination for someone from Europe. Still crazy hot but if coming down under to Australia I'll head to Adelaide around TDU time and ride the hills there...

If travelling OS - the riding around San Francisco, LA and San Diego sounds good even this time of year. The bigger climbs may be out of bounds with snow but the lower climbs sound great!

lilbeefer
Posts: 1
Joined: Tue Jan 01, 2013 1:57 pm

by lilbeefer

I just came back from a week in Queenstown, New Zealand and couldn't reccomend it enough. Summer temperatres are mild, the scenerey is spectacular and there are some punishing climbs. Probably more practical for those in Oceania...

Super_fast
Posts: 337
Joined: Tue Nov 01, 2005 9:36 am

by Super_fast

Northoceanbeach wrote:Israel's sounds terrile because you had to dodge rockets and worry about your safety, nobody wants to worry their family will be blown up while they are riding.

In NYC I would bike around Manhattan. I love beautiful road rides in the mountains but biking around manhattan is a real thrill and you get to see so much. It's fun to to pretend ou are a bike courier an doge traffic


Israel is a safe country to visit when you stay away from the problem area's. And the danger in certain area's is also limited.

heathhandsome
Posts: 14
Joined: Wed Apr 13, 2011 12:11 pm

by heathhandsome

Colombia! You can literally pick whatever temperature you want, by elevation, fantastic riding, all the climbing you could ever want, tons of riders, friendly people, amazing food...

I live in Bogota, which is considered the coldest place, temps around 15-17C every day. Medellin is generally considered the 'perfect' place, temps in the low 20s, probably the best riding and most riders. Many other places too. Can't recommend Colombia enough.

russianbear
Posts: 683
Joined: Wed Apr 11, 2012 3:40 am

by russianbear

Northoceanbeach wrote:Israel's sounds terrile because you had to dodge rockets and worry about your safety, nobody wants to worry their family will be blown up while they are riding.

In NYC I would bike around Manhattan. I love beautiful road rides in the mountains but biking around manhattan is a real thrill and you get to see so much. It's fun to to pretend ou are a bike courier an doge traffic


This kind of attitude from Americans is really annoying. Israel is perfectly safe as long as you're not an idiot.

by Weenie


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