Bike Ireland and beyond
 

Hi All,

I'm thinking of heading to Ireland to begin a European tour via train and bike.
I have a few questions for those that have done this.

1) Shipping the bike. Is it better to ship the bike ahead of me or should I bring it as checked baggage on the flight? I don't have an expensive bike, but it's mine, I'm use to it and would really like it to be with me on this trip, but I have to find the most economical way to get it there.

2) Best times to travel Ireland. I'm looking to spend a year in Europe so I'm going to be dealing with some bad weather, but hoping to try to hit the Med during the winter months. My plan is to start in Ireland and work my way east.

3) I see a lot of bike tour companies for Ireland, but anyone have suggestions to just finding the best bike friendly roads in Ireland or Europe in general?


4) Any tips, tricks or suggestions is much appreciated.

PS: So far, the bike and I have gone from Vermont to the Florida Keys, up to Gloucester, MA, then back to NYC, Chicago, and I'm now in San Francisco. Headed to Phoenix, AZ next before possibly working my way back east again. Traveling with my bike on Amtrak has been wonderful.

This thread's been around since May '17 but just spotted it now. I'm Irish and live in Ireland. I also regularly cycle tour in mainland Europe.
1. I'd bring it as checked baggage.
2. Best time is June or September. Not as busy as July & August but still hopefully decent weather.
3. There are official websites for Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland that cater for cycle tourists. Try Google.
4. I'n presuming you're an American citizen so if you want to spend a year in Europe you should first check out how long you will be allowed stay. Europeans visiting the U.S. are restricted to how long they can stay and the same goes for U.S. citizens visiting Europe.