So many different kinds!
 

*head explodes*

I am a car-less university student from Australia and the past year I have survived solely on walking, public transportation and mooching rides. But, I've decided I want a little more independence and to be able to travel at times other than the bus timetable allows :P

And so I've decided to buy a bike with my Christmas/birthday (xmas eve) money.

But I've been researching and I have no idea what I want/need!

My needs:
- I reeeeally dislike straight handlebars (or those racing ones that fold under)
- Fairly short distance riding (maybe 2-3kms at a time but i really have no idea)
- It has to look good :P I want a cute bike, I want it to be the kind of bike that you could put a pink basket and tassels on haha

So, I was thinking about a cruiser. But are there any other bikes that have a similar frame shape? Because that's pretty much the exact look that I want.

Thanks so much :)

Hi, welcome to the forums.

A single speed cruiser seems like the bike for you because I can't think of the word cute to be normally descriptive of any other bike type.

Just FYI, those straight bars are "flat bars" and those racing bars that fold under are "drop bars".

Good luck and have fun.

Ah thank you very much for the terminology!

In general, about how much are cruisers? :)

It depends. I recently saw a "Ferrari" branded cruiser for a lot of money that these forums had fun making fun of.

But a decent cruiser can be had to cheap - less than $300USD I imagine, though I haven't have much experiences with cruisers in terms of selling and buying.

youwontknow;

Are you in the U.S. or Australia? Makes a difference in what would be available I suspect. Also how flat is the city that you are in? Makes a big difference as far as whether a single speed or multi gear bike is needed. Also how much maximum can you spend?

Virtually all manufacturers offer cruiser type bikes with various features. Stop by a couple of bike shops to get an idea of what is available.

For a bike for transportation, i wouldn't go with a SS cruiser. Several Brands make bikes with sloping top tubes, and put you in an upright position for riding. Many are "cute".

This is what i mean... http://www.raleighusa.com/bikes/women/roadster/
That one might be a little pricey for what it is, but there's others on that site that are cheaper.
At any rate, i wouldn't go SS since you want to use this bike for transportation. I know they're perfectly good bikes (I ride a fixie half the time) but I'd get some bike legs before going SS if it's hilly at all.

i am all about the cruisers. i own 7 cruisers, rangeing from single speed to 5 speed, from vintage to new and of all the dofferent bikes i've riden, i love cruisers the most. at least here in america, you can get ALL TYPES of cruisers from a basic single speed classic, very elaberate and with all the "cute" colors and accesories you'd want to add, and even multispeed cruisers. these are good if you ride long distances and live in a hilly area. from 3speed internally geared hubbed bikes to 7 or 8 speed conventional derailleur types. if you go this route, id recommend the 3speed variations, personally. most of what i ride are single speed with coasterbrakes, fenders, chainguard and white walls. there are alot of different sites, like beachbikes.com that will show you alot of cruisers and a nice variety of woman's "cute" cruisers (check out the soul cruiser). these bikes with their fat stylish whitwall tires offer a smooth, gentle ride with timeless style. and single speed bikes are so simple and easy to maintain.

can't beat the comfort of a good cruiser and i commute to work on any of my 7 that i have and can ride moderate hills with no problem. hope this helps you and if you got any more questions, just shoot me a PM.

Get something with a few speeds, three or so. That way you'll have the opportunity to have a little more room for the hills.

Do a search for Chubby's Cruisers. Some are really groovy.

Interesting, thank you very much everyone for your help!

I went to a bike shop this afternoon and I found a really cute one that I like, but I'm not really sure what kind it was. It had bendy handlebars and it looked cruiser style but I'm not sure. I just ducked in quickly to get an idea of prices. I can't remember if it was single speed, but I think it was.

I guess after Christmas/New Year, I'll start to get a little more serious with my looking. Might even wait until I get back to university so I'm in a bigger town.

I'm really interested by the whole thing though, and can certainly see myself getting addicted to this whole bike thing haha!

Thank you to everybody, once again. :)

sounds like a plan. do your lookin around and be it from a shop or off line, pick something that is you. and if from a shop, definatly test ride. i just picked up a used murray westport cruiser from my LBS a few months ago. don't forget ebay and cl either. good luck.

I was wondering if these cruisers are really comfortable on a 1-2 hour ride including some short stops... someone mention here beachbikes.net and it seems they have some nice cruisers in stock, but what about sizes ? is it one size fits all kind of thing ?
Thanks,
TC

OP: I'd check out bikes made by the company Electra

http://www.electrabike.com

They do a great job of having highly functional bikes that are extremely cute. Total babe (and guy) magnets. I say this because I have a Townie 3 and adore it.