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Cycling makes for a healthy and eco-friendly holiday with a different perspective. Gillian Thomas has tried it both here in the UK and on the Continent.
The joys of cycling have stayed with me since the day I became the proud owner of a tricycle at the age of four. Now I endeavour to do all my local travelling around Ealing in West London by bike and have also, together with my husband, moved on to cycling holidays.
In the UK, Sustrans - the charity that promotes sustainable transport - is developing the National Cycle Network. Already 12,000 miles of signposted routes, one-third traffic-free, have been created including quiet roads and disused railway lines. On the Continent too, more and more routes are being created. Furthermore bike hire is widespread, particularly in cycle-friendly countries like Holland and Germany.
There is also a growing choice of package cycling holidays. Planning your own journey is flexible and fun, but an organised holiday takes the hassle out of transporting/hiring a bike, deciding on the best route and finding accommodation. Best of all, several companies arrange to transport your luggage from hotel to hotel each day.
Whichever way you do it, you do not need to be super-fit, though hilly areas and long distances are definitely best avoided unless you are a real enthusiast. I reckon a leisurely 20-25 miles per day is best as it leaves plenty of time for sightseeing as well as riding.
If you are carrying your own luggage all the way, it needs to be pared down to a minimum. By way of clothing, I find wearing several layers provides the most flexibility and I have Hotter shoes which are comfortable on or off the bike. Other essentials include waterproof jacket and trousers that are effective in wind as well as rain. Add a helmet, water bottle, energy-boosting chocolate bar, travel-size toiletries and mobile phone for emergencies and you're all set to go. Devon in four daysOn Sustrans' Devon Coast-to-Coast route, we had a very enjoyable four-day, 102-mile north-south trip. It started along the coast from Ilfracombe, where we left our car, then followed a disused railway line through Bideford, part of the Tarka Trail, and finally took us into Plymouth where we caught a train back.
Another attractive ride we have done follows the glorious Pembrokeshire coast south from Fishguard, part of the Celtic Trail. Also in South Wales, several circular day rides have been mapped out around Saundersfoot and Newport.
Suffolk is another welcoming area for cyclists. Circular trails with a theme include Painters (Constable, Gainsborough and Munnings) and Jockeys (starting from Newmarket). The long-distance Hull-Harwich route crosses the county, too.
 A designated cycle route on the lle de Re, off France's Atlantic coast.
On the continent, you are likely to feel less like a second-class citizen on a bike because an impressive number of cycle paths exist in town centres, beside rivers, through woods and even on mountainsides (not to be recommended!). These help make cycling a safe as well as a scenic pursuit.
Recently my husband and I packed our folding bikes into our car and drove to Lake Constance (500 miles from the Eurotunnel exit in Calais) for a five-day, three-country ride along its shores. Or we could have flown from Stansted to Friedrichshafen and hired bikes there.
Starting and finishing at the Waldhaus Jacob hotel overlooking the lake in Konstanz in Germany, where we had arranged to leave our car, we followed a clearly-signposted route along country lanes and waterside promenades which took us into both Austria and Switzerland at the foot of the Alps. It proved to be a delightful ride all the way, taking us past vineyards and castles and through villages of half-timbered houses. It was also flat, a feature we look for when planning any trip.
On the first day, before taking one of the lake's many ferries across to Meersburg, we made a short detour to Mainau, a delightful little island of botanical gardens that blaze with colour throughout the year.
In Meersburg, we stayed at the Seepromenade Hotel by the lake from which steep, narrow streets lead up past ancient half-timbered houses to two castles and the town centre. On the other nights we stayed at Kressbronn, Bregenz in Austria and Rorsach in Switzerland.
In Friedrichshafen we visited the recently-opened Zeppelin museum which displays a replica of part of the massive Hindenberg airship which disastrously caught fire in 1937. At Bregenz we took a cable car up the Pfander Mountain where we enjoyed glorious views over the Alps and the lake. And at Altenrhein we admired the extraordinary Market Hall Gallery, the last building created by the eccentric architect Friedensreich Hundertwasser. Completed in 2001, it is a fantastic mixture of materials, shapes and colours, topped by four golden onion domes.
The reward for travelling by bike is discovering all kinds of gems like these and having time to observe details, which are easily missed when you are in a car - plus of course unlimited fresh air!
Overall we find that river or lakesides, being flat, are particularly suitable for holiday rides. Another scenic route is the cycle track beside the River Moselle in Germany, which twists downstream from Trier to Koblenz through a succession of pretty wine villages at the foot of steep vineyards. Similarly in France a network of cycle routes has been plotted around the Loire valley, often alongside the river, enabling you to ride from chateau to chateau as well as pause at its famous vineyards. Sampling the local vintages is always a bonus.
 Cycling holiday fact file
Pull QuotesSeveral companies arrange to transport your luggage from hotel to hotel each day
We find that river- or lakesides, being flat, are particularly suitable for holiday rides
The reward for travelling by bike is having time to observe details that are easily missed when you are in a car |
