Frequently Asked Questions

How far can I expect to ride each day?
How should I prepare myself for a bike tour?
What should I do about eating?
What should I do about drinking?
Should I worry about dangerous drivers?
Should I worry about bad weather?
Should I worry about dogs?
Should I worry about hills?
What happens if I have an accident/ my bike has a problem?
What kind of bike do I need?
Should I book accommodation?

How far can I expect to ride each day?

Everyone is different. How far you can ride each day will depend on how much you typically ride, your age, and fitness. There are bike tourers in their 20s who think nothing of riding 150km a day fully loaded with tent, stove, a guitar and a stuffed koala called Mr Guffy…

It will also depend on:

How much you are carrying on the bike and how efficient the bike is;
How much climbing you have to do. 50km along a river will feel very different to 50km up the side of a mountain…
The weather. 50km in 35C+ heat will feel much more tiring than 50km in 20C. Equally rain and above all wind, can make riding harder.
What you are riding on: 50km on a beautifully surfaced road or bike path will be very different from 50km along gravel or a mud path

You get the picture. And remember that unless you are staying in the back arse of beyond, you will want to have legs for seeing the town you are staying in and finding a restaurant.

I am not a sports scientist but based on my own experience, assuming that:

you are reasonably fit and have done some riding beforehand;
you are carrying pannier bags;
are riding moderate hills, by which I would mean that for every km, you are averaging about 10m of climbing;
are riding in the 15 – 30C range with little wind and not too much rain; and
that you have pretty decent road or path.

A safe place to start would be to ride between 40 to 60km a day. Ideally, starting at around 40 for the first couple of days and having the odd day off after every three or four days.

If you are really worried, either trying out a long weekend tour as I suggest here or booking an organised tour would be a good idea. On the latter, most organisers will grade their tours in order of difficulty, and if you are really, really worried, paying for the option of being able to climb in the van if it is too much would be worth it.

But honestly, as long as you are not pushing yourself to do 80km+ rides every day, you should be fine. I have found on my own tours that provided that you have already done rides of above 30km, your body will adjust pretty quickly. The first two days will feel a bit hard and you will be sore and stiff the next morning but that is nothing that a quick warm up and gentle start won’t fix. Book ahead so that you don’t need to rush, take your own sweet time, hydrate properly, and do some warm up and warm down stretches and you will be just fine. In the end, it is just more hours in the saddle.

How should I prepare myself for a bike tour?

Providing that you are not going on a super tough tour, you don’t need to overdo it. If you are reasonably fit, and have done a few weekend rides of 40-60 km, you will be fine. I recommend that you go on a bike tour that starts with a few easy days.

What should I do about eating?

This will depend on how far you are going to be riding and how much time you expect to take over it.

If you are leaving in the morning and expect to be back/ at your destination by lunch – even if it is a late lunch –a decent breakfast should be all you need. You could pack some snacks like chocolate bars, cereal bars, waffles or biscuits/cookies, or if you want to be boringly healthy, dried fruits and nuts. I once worked with a fitness-mad colleague who swore by the healthful properties of almonds. British riders have a big tradition of stopping for coffee and cake on rides.

When I am touring and covering bigger distances (and more slowly), I often discreetly raid the hotel breakfast buffet for a lunchtime sandwich, pastry and maybe a banana or other piece of fruit. I also pack some nice Haribo sweets – the fuel of champions. I tend to limit myself to small snacks along the road so that it is easier for my stomach to digest.

Sometimes I have a picnic lunch or stop in a town. That can be fun too, especially indulgent food like chips.

This is not the Tour de France: you don’t need energy gels or bars.

What should I do about drinking?

It depends on the weather and how strenuous your ride. As a rule of thumb, for a moderate day with moderate amounts of climbing, I drink about 500 ml of water per 10-15km.

Always take more than you think that you will need, even on cooler days. Heading out on a ride and realising that you are running out of water with nowhere to refill can be a horrible experience.

When touring, I often set out with about 4 litres of water and possibly some fruit juice and/or energy drink for midpoint in the ride/lunch.

Don’t be afraid to knock on a door/ head into a café and ask for help if you run out.

Should I worry about dangerous drivers?

Do you worry about dangerous drivers on the rides you do already? No? Then don’t worry about dangerous drivers on holiday. Yes, there can always be an inattentive idiot on his mobile phone, but that can happen anywhere, including just outside your own home…

From time to time, you are likely to have to ride along a stretch of busy road. It is rarely pleasant, but drivers do not go out to dent their precious Mercs by slamming into bikes. If you want to make yourself visible, a hi-vis or reflective jacket or covering will help, as will a flashing rear light, especially in overcast or dark conditions. In many countries, a bell is mandatory, but I use one even where it is not.

Some tourers swear by side mirrors. Personally, I would find them a bit of a distraction as my focus is on keeping my eyes on the road ahead, and using my ears to tell me the rest. My feeling is that the best way to be safe is to be visible, be predictable, and be prudent. On a long and fast descent, I leave drivers to work it out for themselves.

Should I worry about bad weather?

Bad weather can really wreck a ride. And its true: I have been on tours where a spell of bad weather has lasted for a few days or even a week, and when it is cold as well, it can be miserable.

But looking back over the nearly 30 tours that I have done over the years, I can name only about three or four which were badly affected by rain. For most of the others, the odd day or few days of rain were more than outnumbered by decent weather.

Most people focus on rain. And it can be unpleasant, but in the end, it is only water. It will not kill you. It will not give you rheumatism or an infection. You will just get wet. Often you can try to avoid it, either by waiting it out for a few hours or running ahead of it, but when you don’t, focus on the warm and dry hotel room waiting for you. Get in, strip off, and get straight into a hot shower. And then go and treat yourself to a nice meal. Because you deserve it.

Wind can also be tough and in my view even worse than rain. I can remember a long day riding out of Latvia and most of it into a headwind. It was sapping and I didn’t enjoy it, but I kept calm and plugged away, had a nice dinner and next day, the wind had dropped and back to normal.

Thunderstorms? Find a safe place to shelter and sit them out or if need be, take a train or a bus.

In these modern days, weather apps make it much easier to predict and avoid. But above all, don’t let weather put you off. It comes with the territory and makes for a great story to tell your friends later.

Should I worry about dogs?

In some parts of Europe, mainly South East Europe – though oddly, I had very few bad experiences in Bulgaria or Albania – unchained dogs can be a hazard, and are a regular discussion feature of bike touring groups.

I have had some tough experiences: six or seven farm dogs chasing after me on the outskirts of Belgrade and some aggressive dogs in Greece near the border with Albania. In the rest of Europe, with the odd exception of one minor incident in Latvia, I have never had a single incident.

If you are worried about this, Google for advice, but the general advice seems to be:

Get off the bike and put the bike between you and the dog;
Judge what the dog is trying to do: if it is a sheepdog or guard dog, it will want you to stay away from the sheep/ clear off its territory, whereas a stray might be after food;
Shout at the dog;
If that doesn’t work, threaten it with violence: some carry a stick or some stones in their back pocket. I used to carry a stick but found that I never even had to threaten it.

99% of times this will work. If it doesn’t, wait for a car, hail it, and get the driver to help. Locals are very used to it and are often happy to create a distraction while you get past.

Again, don’t worry. I have never been bitten and few travellers experience any serious problem. If you are heading to these areas, my advice would be to get a rabies vaccination for peace of mind. I did, and don’t regret.

Should I worry about hills?

No. Learning to love hills is part of touring and biking in general and will give you the greatest of rewards. The views can be fantastic, as can the descents.

Providing that you have a bike with low enough gears, even a moderately fit person can get up long hills. You just have to take your time. I remember being worried about going over a 600m pass in central Bulgaria only to find that it was relatively easy. Since then, I have ridden over 1400m passes and up hills with 10% inclines. But if the hill gets too steep or the path too narrow or difficult to ride, I am not too proud to get off my bike and push.

A few tips:

Take it slow and steady and don’t be embarrassed to sit in a super low gear and go amazingly slowly. No one cares.
On quiet and wide roads where you can hear cars coming, you can ‘scissor’ your way up, spreading out the climb but keep alert;
On longer hills, you can treat it as a meditation, not looking too far ahead of you and focusing on your breathing and the steadiness of the pedal stroke
On really long hills, it can help to give yourself breaks every now and then, either every ten to fifteen minutes or so, or if you have a GPS, every 100-200m of climbing depending on the gradient. I tend to do the latter, counting off the metres climbed and finding a flat spot where I can pull the bike in without worrying about getting going again… and if I can’t find one, I just keep pedalling;
Keep drinking water
If you have to get off and walk, get off and walk. There is no shame in it and it is better than wrecking your calves. You are awesome for bike touring and getting up the hill at all.

What happens if I have an accident/ my bike has a problem?

You will work it out!

You have a mild graze possibly with a small amount of blood – “road rash” as the pros call it – clean yourself up, disinfect the wound and if necessary/possible cover it with a bandage, and get to your destination.

You hurt your muscles/ legs/ arms? Do you feel well enough to ride? Yes, ride gently and if it still hurts at your destination, see a doctor. No, call an ambulance or ask a local to do it. You would be amazed at how kind and helpful people are.

Be ready to adjust your plans rather than do anything stupid. In 2017 on the outskirts of the Bulgarian city of Varna, I came a cropper on some old train tracks, was able to get to my hotel but felt poorly. I went to ER, had it looked at and was told that it was just a bruise. Rest up for four days then good to go. I had to alter my plans slightly but in the end, everything was fine.

Your bike has a mechanical? See whether you can fix it on the spot. If not, see whether you can get it to your destination for the day and get a bike or car mechanic to take a look. If you can’t, flag down a car and ask for a lift.

Over the years, I have had:

Flat tires – fixed on the road
A broken chain – luckily walkable to my accommodation so I spent the evening watching YouTube videos on how to fix it, did my best and got the next bike shop I came across to inspect my handiwork
A broken seat – luckily on the outskirts of town, so I took the bike to a mechanic who installed a temporary bolt
A broken spoke – replaced at the nearest bike shop
Worn brake pads – replaced at the nearest bike shop

You will work it out and you will usually find that locals will go out of their way to help, and bike mechanics especially will help tourers out of kindred spirit. I always leave a glowing Google review.

What kind of bike do I need?

When I first started touring in 1993, I had a second-hand racing bike with thin wheels. I wouldn’t recommend it or do it again – I had to end one trip early with broken spokes and learnt the hard way to repair a punctured tyre – but it still got me in stages from Ostend to past Innsbruck. In the end, what gave in was my gut – another story for another day – not the bike.

So you can tour with pretty much any bike apart from a delicate road bike. The only difference is how easy it will make life for you. A mountain bike or hybrid will be just fine and many people tour with them.

If you decide that touring really is for you and want to take a bike with you rather than renting, I would go with either a dedicated touring bike or a gravel.

I am not very techy about these things, so here is an explanation from someone who is. And if you can understand all that, you know a lot more than I do. And here is a post that is much easier to understand.

I have spent years with touring bikes, but when replacing my trusty old tourer Randy recently, I was talked into buying a Genesis Croix de Fer gravel bike. I am yet to take it touring – thanks, Achilles tendinitis – but on day rides, I love it. It feels a bit lower down and the tires are indeed softer, but linked to that, it is much more forgiving on dirt track and the other nasty paths that my friend Olivier tries to take me on for fun… I would feel a lot more confident riding along a muddy or stoned path with it than I do with Randy.

Go with what suits you but be sure to try it out and be honest with yourself and the shop and be ready to walk away. Five years ago, I bought a Kona Sutra touring bike, having done all the research and gone for a test ride. Absolutely nothing wrong with the bike, and I have done several thousand kilometres on it but it just hasn’t worked for me: a bit too heavy and clunky.

Should I book accommodation?

Many tourers like to chance it on their tours, seeing how far they get on a day or stopping in a town that they find interesting and then finding a hotel, hostel or campsite for the night.

There is much to be said for this approach in terms of greater flexibility and being able to respond to events such as illness, fatigue, weather, or suggestions from other tourers or locals. For those with a flexible schedule such as those taking a few months, it can be ideal.

I book ahead. My tours last from a week to four weeks and I have to be back in the office at the end of it, so have a transport connection to make. That means calculating how I can get from my chosen starting point to my end point (or if a loop, back to the starting point). I explain in [my guide to planning your tour] how to do this.

A key factor in plotting it all out is availability of reasonably priced and nice accommodation. I check where possible towns to stay are and before committing to the trip and buying travel tickets, check that I can get accommodation for a fair price on the dates that I am thinking of. This is especially important in less-touristed or sparser destinations such as Bulgaria, Montenegro and Norway. Even where I am sure that accommodation is available, I don’t want to be fleeced.

If you are unsure, it can make sense to get fully cancellable hotel rooms.

What if I have to change my plans after the cancellation date? I have had to do this three times, the first two because of injury and the third because my bike seat broke on the edge of a public holiday. In each case, I explained to the hotel what had happened, apologised and they let me cancel without charge. Most hotels have that policy to prevent unscrupulous no-shows. Those working with booking sites such as Airbnb and Booking will be able to get information about your reliability and honesty.

Interested in reading more about other aspects of bike touring? Check out these other pages: