When the world with its highly developed modern technologies can offer you all the luxuries of the best cars, nice and cheap hotels with comfortable accommodations, and cozy restaurants with exotic food, why would you choose to go to a bicycle tour? Carrying a heavy load of necessary camping gear, fighting the insects, adjusting to weather forecasts, sleeping in the dark and scary woods – a doubtful pleasure, isn’t it?

Yet, thousands of bicycle tourers and bikepackers find bicycle touring one of the most wonderful ways to spend a weekend or even holidays.

Accommodations

What can be better than running away from the daily routine, from the polluted city to a long-distance bicycle camping trip? People suffering of insomnia in their luxurious beds and comfortable hotel accommodations immediately fall asleep after a long day of bicycle touring. They a lulled to sleep by the sounds of woods, streams and rivers. The doubtful comfort of a sleeping bag and a tent brings more relaxation and rest than any modern technologies in nice hotels could.

Of course if you find sleeping in wild little too extreme, this is always possible to find nice and cheap hotel somewhere on your way when it starts getting darker.

Bicycle camping gear

Some people are scared of carrying lots of camping gear with them on a bike. However, these fears are groundless. A tent, air mattress, and sleeping bag along with other necessary stuff do not really take too much space. Moreover, experienced bikepackers find that they barely notice this weight, because the loaded bike is more stable than an empty one. You can learn more about camping gear you will need on a bike tour in our article Tips on how to get ready for a bicycle tour

Meals on wheels

The other concern that people new to bicycle camping have is what to do with meals? If you go to a long distance trip this is very convenient to stop at small grocery stores and get yourself some sandwich ingredient, which you can use at the next stop on the blooming meadow, on the bank of the river, or near the majestic waterfall. In the evening you can enjoy making fire and cooking a real camping dinner on it: boil rice, bake potatoes and roast some beacon.

Again, if you get too tired of camping life, the number of cozy restaurants will welcome tired tourists for a dinner.

The question where to go on holidays is constantly raised among people of all ages and family status. For all of them the following option will be true: spending your free time on the fresh air is probably the best alternative for a successful weekend and holidays. One of the ways to rest and at the same time take care of health is to go to the bicycle tour.

Bicycle touring is an excellent way to keep fit and tanned without exhausting workouts in a small gym. Besides, bicycle traveling allows making lots of stops for landscape viewing, small picnics, swimming and simply breathing fresh air, which most of us, city dwellers are deprived of. This is impossible to underestimate the effect that nature has on one’s mental and physical health.

Decide upon your holiday goals

Once you are decided to start this little adventure and go to the bike journey, you’ll find lots of questions arising. Planning a bike trip is not so difficult. Simply decided for yourself what you enjoy most and what do you think the perfect holiday on the bike should be like.

Some people enjoy staying on their own, so that they do not depend on physical strength of their company and can plan expenditures according to own income. Others enjoy the company of the close ones and are eager to share all the hardships and pleasures of bicycle touring with them.

This is better to decide whether you are planning to take a tent with you and sleep somewhere in the woods, or you prefer to stay at some nice inexpensive motel that will definitely happen on your way. This is also desirable to plan your meals. Some people enjoy cooking for themselves; others prefer having a dinner in some hostel or neat restaurant. However, this is not necessary to plan all your bicycle tour day by day. This is nice if you can take both: camping gear and some money with you so that you can vary your journey upon your own mood. Don’t deprive yourself of some flexibility.

What kind of bicycle to choose for journey?

Depending on your type of the bicycle this is necessary to think of all the stuff you are planning to take with you and decide upon your nightly accommodation.

Traveling by mountain bike will allow you going off road on the rough grounds. This means that you will need a tent and a sleeping bag, because motels might not be available in such areas. You have to consider though that this type of the bike is usually little heavy, so long-distance races are probably not your choice.

Racing bikes are much lighter, so you can manage a long distance bike tour. However, you won’t be able to take lots of stuff with you, so plan some expenditures on hotels. You have to consider though that rough grounds are not really suitable for this type of the bike, so most of the landscapes will probably be missed on the way.

Hybrid bike, which is also often called a multi-purpose bike is probably the best choice for the bike touring. Having this type of bike you can carry some stuff with you and be more flexible about where your sleep and eat.

What kind of gear should I take on a bike tour?

If you plan to stay in motels or hostels, then you definitely do not need to take much gear with you. However, if you are intended to do some camping, this is necessary to consider taking:

• a tent
• light sleeping pad or air mattress
• light sleeping bag
• a stove
• a bottle of fuel
• one large pot
• matches
• can opener, knife and spoon

This is the necessary minimum using which you can cook your own food and sleep comfortably on the bank of the river or in the woods.

Enjoy your holidays!

The most important thing though is to be as flexible in your journey as you can. Even if you planned to ride 60 miles this certain day this does not necessarily mean that you have to sacrifice enjoying the best of landscapes for the sake of your schedule. Enjoy every minute and then you will be able to say that you’ve just had the best holidays of your life once you get back home.