nickw

Would love to get the collective opinion of the group on this topic, I've been struggling a bit with.

I've done a number of tours domestically, WA State, Oregon and CA. I am planning an extended 2-3 week tour this summer and thought about trying for something in Europe, N Italy / France / Spain.

The grass is always greener, most of my travels here domestically I always meet Europeans traveling, go figure.

With 2-3 weeks available I have several options but wanted to get group input on if Europe and the accompanying jet lag/travel time/effort is worth it over doing something out West like Sierra Cascades, national parks or maybe taking advantage of generous offer from out brothers up N and their free Canadian national park initiative for 2017.

Gravel / dirt / road are all options. Would probably limit travel to Western States.

The seed was planted for me in Europe after backpacking back in my 20's, specifically Lake Como and Switzerland. Saw many a bike tourer. With that said, givin the time I have, not sure it's worth the effort.

Thanks guys

bikemig 

I've toured extensively in Europe and the States. They are both awesome. Personally with 2-3 weeks to spend, I'd do it in the states. I'd like a longer time period if going to Europe. YMMV.

FBinNY 

It depends on hat you're looking for. The USA is about wide open spaces and scenery, plus some history, especially in the east.

Europe is about history and civilization, food and culture.

Obviously there are very broad brush generalizations, but the point is the same. Decide on the kind of vacation you want, what kinds of experience you want, and that'll give you the answer.

On another note, having done a number of tours in the USA, you might be in the mood to go to Europe.

thumpism 

I've done two multi-month tours in Europe and only a few short ones here at home. What you would spend for air transport might pay for a full trip here so I'd say it mostly depends on what you expect for your time and money. Jet lag never seemed to be an issue. Having ridden on the continent twice I'd probably try some portion of the British Isles. Good luck with whatever you eventually choose.

raybo

If you haven't ridden from Glacier NP up to Jasper, Alberta, you should do that next.

gauvins

Just wanted to add that the biking infrastructure is much more developed in Europe. It is easy to find a 3-week route that will be almost entirely on dedicated bike paths. You may want to take a look at the Eurovelo network

jefnvk

Last year, I did Belgium and the Netherlands. This year, I am doing Iceland.

Both were/are 10 day trips, as were most of my Euro ventures. I didn't regret the first, doubt I'll regret the second, despite the short time. I wouldn't let 2-3 weeks constrain me to America, especially if you are already spending a day getting to and coming back from your destination. All comes down to how you want to spend your cash, tho.

2 Piece

What about the east coast of USA? Many rail to trail rides, Erie canal, Great Allegheny Passage which hook directly to the C&O canal trail which takes you right to the center of Washington, DC. From there you can pickup up the Eastcoast Greenway Trail which runs fro Maine to Florida (it' s under construction and you way have to ride with car traffic in some areas). You can also incorporate an Amtrak train ride in most areas if you prefer. Something to think about before heading to Europe.

DropBarFan

You've toured in western US scenic spots so I'd lean to Euro option for the summer tour. I agree with 2 Piece that east coast US has some great routes but they're a bit low-key & still require hassle of taking bike on plane.

Doug64

Nick,

There is a direct flight on Icelandair from PDX that goes to Schiphol Airport near Amsterdam. From there you can make some great 3 week loops.

Raybo's suggestion of riding from Glacier NP to Jasper, via of the Icefield Parkway is also a good suggestion. However, I'd do it the other way, Jasper to Whitefish. That way you get all the places where there is the most potential for travel glitches out of the way at the start. You can catch the Amtrak back to Portland from Whitefish, MT. Getting to Jasper is a bit of a challenge.

The Icefield Parkway has some of the most spectacular scenery that I have seen anywhere.


One of our favorite rides is the Selkirk Loop in Idaho and British Columbia. Call some of the motels along the route, and see if they will let you leave your car there for 2-3 weeks. You might have to stay there at the start and the finish, but that is cheap for car parking and lodging. We have good experiences doing this.

FBinNY 

One more reason to consider going overseas this year is that the Dollar is enjoying a high (God knows why) and foreign countries are all at discounts of 20-40% vs. historic costs. If you put off going overseas a year or two, this may no longer be true.

saddlesores

or you could try something completely different....

with airfare costs down, and the dollar upsized, how about a 3-week tour
of the phillipines, or bali, or pago pago.

Stadjer

Agree. It depends on where in Europe, but there are parts where you can see an awful lot of man made beauty and experience a lot of different cultures for every 100 km's of cycling. But in northern Norway you have to bike a 100 km to spot more than one Norvegian, or any proof of civilization other than the road.

indyfabz

I can see why you are torn. 2-3 weeks is sort of on the cusp of being worth it. I went to the Veneto region of Italy for two weeks a few years ago, but I was at a "camp" and did day rides. Since then I have thought about going to Europe again to tour for a couple of weeks but always decide that that would not be enough time for me.

BTW...I spent 7 weeks touring southern Spain. You don't want to go there in the summer unless you like extreme heat. Temps can easily reach triple digits.

fietsbob

One big difference, Europe pushed for Paid time off 4 weeks*, a year.

they have more facilities for touring each others countries.

*often that is August, so the crowds swell..

Bosses elect the US politicians, so even unpaid 2 weeks is begrudgingly allowed..




southern hemisphere may be an option if the jobs are around serving others
in the northern summers.



....

nickw

Thanks for all the opinions guys - really do appreciate the insight.

nickw

How did you find Belgium?

nickw

Yeah, fair point, was looking into how much this would save as well.

nickw

Thanks Doug. Was eyeing those flights, less than $900 round trip.

Selkirk looks interesting, I'll bookmark that one.

jefnvk

Awesome. Flanders (north half) has amazing routes through the country, well marked and mapped. I didn't go south, I'm told the infrastructure isn't as good down there. I'd go back in a heartbeat. Brussels isn't the best for cycling (although hardly bad), we actually left from Leuven and had perfect bike routes all the way to Amsterdam. Food was good, and the beer is top notch, if you are into that! English is fairly prevalent. If you aren't camping, the Dutch Vrindedn op de Fiets network is available in Flanders, it is a network of guesthouses near the biking and hiking routes available to human powered voyageurs for a flat 19EUR a night. People are also very friendly and welcoming.

nickw

Had considered Ireland as an option as well.

nickw

Nice, great info. How far did you travel?

Well versed in common Belgium lingo, Cyclocross and Beer

Stadjer

It is the country that houses an annual bike race that goes through a pub.

jefnvk

I think actual touring distance was somewhere around 230 miles from Leuven to Amsterdam, plus a bit on each end in the start and finish cities. It got cut from a longer route when I crashed in Leuven the night before we were supposed to leave and ended up embedding shards of a beer bottle in my thigh.

We headed north to Malle for the first night, but after that more or less followed the LF2 City Route to Rotterdam. From Rotterdam, we more or less followed the LF1 Coastal Route to Haarlem, and then a straight shot across to Amsterdam.

It was pretty easy biking, but my fiancee didn't enjoy leaving any earlier than we were kicked out of the guesthouses and hostels, and we were doing a lot of touristy things as well. An aggressive biker could have likely done it in 2 days, flat lands once you get to Holland and nice wide clean paths (except where I didn't read the map and spent many miles on dirt tracks...). Two to three weeks could easily cover Flanders and most of Holland for a speedier rider.

If I were to do it again, I'd have kept myself in Flanders longer. Much more interesting landscapes, and much better beer

dbg

My biking and drinking buddy neighbor and I have talked about doing the LandsEnd-to-John O'Groats tour -figuring two to three weeks ish. It appears to be a fairly popular route -which would be a negative for me in domestic US tours but might be cool for a couple of beer drinking retired geezers from America doing a popular UK tour.

The domestic trip I've wanted to figure out is Erie Canal based --where we would have some sort of water craft (pontoon or such) powered entirely by bicycle (drive mechanism to be determined). We'd stop at interesting spots and do bicycle side trips to discover the surrounding countryside. Could be two to three weeks ish.