We like car-light hub-and-spoke style tours and have done a lot of them.
A hub-and-spoke tour is one where you base yourself in a particular location and spend several day cycling out in various directions to explore the area.
You could cycle to that central location, and then do a hub-and-spoke thing for a few days, and then continue cycling (we've done that as a part of longer tours), or you can use other transportation (i.e. car, bus, train) to get to the central location. When we've driven, we usually park the car and may not touch it again for the duration of the tour. In fact, on one occasion last year we converted our van into sleeping accommodation when we arrived at the campground.
It's a great way to get to know a location rather than just cycling through a location. You also don't have to worry about finding accommodation each night. And you can adjust the length of your daily rides to whatever you want to do ... if you feel like going out and riding a century or if you feel like riding to the beach and spending the day enjoying the water. It's also a good option for those with family who don't cycle or don't cycle much.
I grew up doing hub-and-spoke tours with my family in the Canadian Rockies.
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Some stories from 2009, 2010, and 2011 ... these short stories include both long rides and hub-and-spoke tours ...
Charlene Barach (Machka) - Miscellaneous Meanderings 2009
Charlene Barach (Machka) - Miscellaneous Meanderings 2010
Charlene Barach (Machka) - Miscellaneous Meanderings 2011
Some photos from some of those tours ...
The Grampians:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/machka...7622606387971/
Easter 2010 - northern Victoria:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/machka...7623759790260/
South Australia, near and in Adelaide:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/machka...7626551829330/
Port Fairy ... we went there many times!
https://www.flickr.com/photos/machka...7623312198466/
