Tag: Italy

Where To Cycle In Sicily With Friends And Family

It’s common to see cyclists gathering along Sicily’s coastal roads early in the morning, just before the day’s heat begins to build. Some are heading towards fishing villages where market stalls are being set up for the day, while others are climbing inland through vineyards and olive groves. Part of Sicily’s appeal for cyclists is how quickly the scenery changes. A ride that begins beside the sea can end among Baroque towns, rolling countryside, or volcanic landscapes. Families, groups of friends, and cycling clubs will find plenty of variety here. Between rides, there are historic centres to explore, beaches to enjoy, and villages where daily life still revolves around local squares and bustling markets.

The Cycling Europe Podcast: Episode 099 – Gerald Huber – The North Cape 4000

Gerald Huber is an Austrian living in Paris. He commutes to work every day by bicycle. Lots of people do. In 2025, however, he decided to go a little further on two wheels and he signed up for his first ultra-long-distance cycling event, the North Cape 4000 from Italy to the most northerly point of Europe at Nordkapp in Norway. 8 countries, 4000 km. According to the organsiers, it’s “a journey that will change your life”. He spoke to The Cycling Europe Podcast about his experiences and his plans to go one step further in 2026.

Europe’s Best Cycling Routes For 2026 – Selected By Cycling Thread

There are hundreds of long-distance cycle routes in Europe, but not all offer the same level of experience, comfort and consistency. This selection was prepared by Cycling Thread – a platform focused on cycling tourism across Europe and based on first-hand riding experience. Instead of rankings or trends, we chose routes that feel rewarding to ride over longer distances. Some are well-known classics, others remain surprisingly uncrowded despite excellent quality. Together, they show different faces of European cycling – from alpine crossings to river valleys and coastal landscapes.

Guide To Cycling Tours In The Wine Regions of Europe

Renowned for an extensive portfolio of diverse historic and wine regions, the European continent is synonymous with winery culture and expertise. For a winery adventure that’s also active, consider combining the beloved European tradition of wine-sipping, with an active cycling retreat. Cascading greenery to roll down on two wheels, whilst learning the significance of wine production and culture. Blend the fun of culinary delights and movement magic, with a cycling tour amidst a wine region in Europe. Here is a guide to everything you need to know about this vacation, pre-departure. 

Best Cycling Places In Europe

There are many great places to cycle in Europe. It depends on what you prefer, but it varies depending on the landscape and route. Whether you are an experienced cyclist or simply enjoy cycling as a recreational activity, there are many great places in Europe. In this article, you will find the best cycling routes in Europe that will surely give you the most unforgettable memories.

Exploring Emilia-Romagna By Bike: Top Cycling Routes

In publishing Le Grand Tour at the start of the month, I was required to get to grips with producing a properly formatted ePUB document. Nothing to do with drinking in your local; everything to do with eBooks. It’s the format that is required by the online distributors. Earlier today I spent a bit of time going back over my first book – Crossing Europe on a Bike Called Reggie – and reformatting it as an ePUB document. It means that it is easier to navigate. I took the opportunity of re-reading the prologue to that book. It was interesting reading what I wrote at the time, especially my comments regarding the development of the Italian section of the EuroVelo 5 back in 2008 (when I was beginning to plan the trip).

The Alpe Adria Cycle Path

A while ago – back in November 2023 – I published an episode of The Cycling Europe Podcast (number 076) that consisted of an interview with a friend of mine, Tim Sanders. I know him through the Cycle Touring Festival and the podcast was actually recorded at last year’s event. (This year’s event is at the start of May by the way – see the recent post here on CyclingEurope.org.) Tim talked about cycling from Venice to Munich via Innsbruck in Austria on a route called, err… münchen venezia. It needs a better name than that but there you go. When I received an email a few days ago from ‘freewheeling’ David I thought he was writing about the route that Tim had discussed in the podcast. But he wasn’t…

The Cycling Europe Podcast: Episode 076 – Tim Sanders – The Parenzana Trail / Venice to Munich

Tim Sanders holds the accolade of being one of only two people to have attended every single Cycle Touring Festival since the event first appeared on the calendar in 2015. During this year’s event in Clitheroe he spoke to The Cycling Europe Podcast not only about the joys of the festival but also about a recent cycling journey that took him from the Istrian Peninsula on the Adriatic coast along the Parenzana Trail to Trieste and onwards over the Alps to Munich in southern Germany.

The Cycling Europe Podcast: Episode 075 – Craig Fee – Cycling Into The Unknown

In 2017, novice long-distance cyclist Craig Fee set off on a continental odyssey to cycle from London to his friend’s wedding in Florence, Italy. But had he bitten off more than he could chew? In his new book, Cycling Into The Unknown, he tells the story of the journey and in this episode of the podcast, he reflects upon the experience of setting off on a make-it-up-as-you-go cycle across Europe…

L’Arte Dell’Eroica

A while back – some years ago – I was in the habit of posting about the Italian L’Eroica sportive event on a semi-regular basis as the artwork was just so beautiful. Perhaps it’s time for a catch-up as I have just received an email about this year’s main event which takes place later in September.

The Cycling Europe Podcast: Episode 070 – Crossing Europe On A Bike Called Reggie – Part 1

“The academic year must have been a difficult one as when the summer holidays arrived, secondary school teacher Andrew Sykes was happy to do as little as possible. But while sitting on his sofa watching the exploits of the cyclists at the Great Wall of China at the Beijing Olympics, he realised the error of his ways and resolved to put a bit more adventure into his life. Two years later, accompanied by his faithful companion Reggie (his bike) but only a rudimentary plan, Andrew set off for a trans-continental cycling adventure that would take him along the route of the Via Francigena and the Eurovelo 5 all the way from his home in southern England to Brindisi in the south of Italy. There were highs and lows, rain and shine, joy and despair and they are all recounted here in a light-hearted, brisk style.”

The Cycling Europe Podcast: Episode 069 – Susan and Ron Crump – Cycling Amsterdam to Athens

In the autumn of 2022, Susan and Ron Crump, a retired couple from Kentucky in the USA set off on their first cycle tour. Instead of dipping their toes in the shallow end of the cycle touring pool, they plunged into the deep end by embarking upon a 3,500km cycle from Amsterdam to Athens. Along with two more experienced cycle touring friends – Pam and Ralph – this is the story of their trip; the preparation, the execution and the aftermath. They may have been jumping for joy upon arrival in Athens but were they jumping for joy throughout the cycle? And has the trip been a springboard for future rides or will their next visit to Europe be on a cruise ship? 

The Cycling Europe Podcast: Episode 068 – Tony Lenihan – Cycling Bilbao To Athens

Tony Lenihan, a retired policeman, works for his local council in the English Midlands as their ‘Sustainable Travel and Wellbeing Coordinator’. He’s also a keen cyclist and, in the early autumn of 2022, after more than 40 years of work, he decided to take a career break and head off on a solo cycling adventure from Bilbao to Athens. It would be a 7-week ferry-hopping Greek odyssey that took him through northern Spain, to the islands of Sardinia and Scilly, across the heel of Italy to Brindisi before sailing the Adriatic to his final destination of Greece. He talked to The Cycling Europe Podcast about his continental experiences… but also about ‘active travel’ in the UK and how the country measures up (or not) to its European neighbours. 

YOUTUBE EXCLUSIVE: Episode 068 Of The Cycling Europe Podcast

Tony Lenihan, a retired policeman, works for his local council in the English Midlands as their ‘Sustainable Travel and Wellbeing Coordinator’. He’s also a keen cyclist and, in the early autumn of 2022, after more than 40 years of work, he decided to take a career break and head off on a solo cycling adventure from Bilbao to Athens. It would be a 7-week ferry-hopping Greek odyssey that took him through northern Spain, to the islands of Sardinia and Scilly, across the heel of Italy to Brindisi before sailing the Adriatic to his final destination of Greece.  He talked to The Cycling Europe Podcast about his continental experiences… but also about ‘active travel’ in the UK and how the country measures up (or not) to its European neighbours. 

EuroVelo 8 – Mediterranean Route: (My) Once-In-A-lifetime Experience

It will soon be 10 years that I set off to cycle along the Mediterranean coast from Cape Sounio in southern Greece to Cape St. Vincent in southern Portugal. My route was inspired by the EuroVelo 8, although it was much less developed back then than it is today. I saw some EuroVelo 8 signs in Catalonia but aside from that, I’m not quite sure I saw any elsewhere. And after Valencia, when I was beginning to run short of time – I needed to be back at work at the beginning of September – I headed inland, away from the coast in order to complete the journey without resorting to jumping on the train.

The Cycling Europe Podcast: Episode 046 – Tim Moore, Travel Writer

Tim Moore has been referred to as ‘Bill Bryson on two wheels’. Any reader of his adventures – both on and off a bike – will  appreciate why the comparison is justified. In his first cycling travelogue, he set off on the route of that year’s Tour de France just weeks before the professionals. He went on to recreate ‘the most appalling bike race of all time’ – the 1914 Giro d’Italia – on a vintage bike. More recently he embarked upon a brutal cycle following the stages of the 1941 Vuelta a España. Ever the glutton for punishment, he’s also ‘The Cyclist Who Went Out In The Cold’ who set off on an East German shopping bike along the route of EuroVelo 13, the Iron Curtain Trail… The Cycling Europe Podcast chatted to him in a Tube carriage at the London Transport Museum.

From Japan… To Trentino, Italy

Just been watching Tom Pidcock win the mountain biking gold medal at Tokyo 2021. The urban triathlon route earlier today wasn’t very inspiring but the mountain biking route – in the hills outside of Tokyo – was much better. I should of course have been there; not competing(!!) but cycling through Japan… But there you go. Or rather, there I didn’t go. An email arrives from Italy to lift my spirits. It’s about two new cycling routes in the Trentino area of northern Italy. Trentino is basically the hilly bit to the north-west of Venice, and much more cycle-friendly than the nearby iconic coastal resort.

Eroica 2021

I’ve never entered a cycling sportive in my life… but I’m a sucker for a good poster and these posters from the people who organise the Eroica events have featured several times in the past on CyclingEurope.org. They’ve just sent through the complete set for 2021 – yes, it appears that they are starting again… – and the first of their cycles is actually today in South Africa.

BBC World Service: Cycling Across Europe In The Pandemic

The countries of continental Europe and the European Union itself have been much criticised in the (right-wing) British media in recent weeks on matters relating to the distribution of the COVID vaccines. In those criticisms there is, of course, a non-too-subtle dollop of British smugness. To at least 48% of the British population (of which I am part), these are sentiments that make us squirm. They are predictable and fail to take into account the ‘bigger picture’ of a continent which, in terms of the quality of people’s lives, is light years ahead of most parts of backward, squalid Britain.

A Look Back At The Last Five Winners Of The Giro d’Italia

Usually the first of the three Grand Tours, the 2020 Giro d’Italia gets underway this month after being rescheduled amidst the coronavirus pandemic. While the startlist is still yet to be confirmed, we do know that last year’s winner Richard Carapaz won’t be defending his title, as the Ineos Grenadiers’ cyclist rode at the recent Tour de France and instead, the British team will be pinning their hopes on Geraint Thomas.

Top Tips For Cycling In Italy

By Aaron King Italy is a beautiful country, full of striking scenery, historic sights, and famously passionate locals. Cycling is a great way to see Italy for tourists and locals alike. Whether you’re visiting the Italian Alps or Dolomites, or taking a trip to the famous Italian lakes, […]

Emily Chappell: Where There’s A Will…

In 2015 Emily Chappell embarked on a formidable new bike race: The Transcontinental. 4,000km across Europe, unassisted, in the shortest time possible. On her first attempt she made it only halfway where she found herself suddenly on her back in a field, floored by the physical and mental […]

To Be A Pilgrim… (Or Not)

In the last couple of days I’ve been catching up with the new series of ‘Pilgrimage‘ on BBC Two. The programmes document the journey of a small group of celebrities as they walk some of the stretches of the ancient path from Canterbury to Rome, the Via Francigena. […]

The Artwork Of L’Eroica

“L’Eroica could only have been born in Tuscany. It’s a matter of soul,  land, white roads, landscapes, of genuine food and wine, of culture and passions, of history and of Bartali. Now world-renowned for the special people it involves and for the values it upholds, Eroica encapsulates the very essence […]

Eroica Montalcino: 25th – 27th May

I love the artwork for this. I’m sure the event is quite good too… “Montalcino’s long weekend will begin on Friday 25 and finish with the heroic ride on Sunday 27 May. Cyclists, enthusiasts and collectors of wonderful experiences from the Val d’Orcia and all over Europe will participate in […]

The Cycling Europe Podcast: Episode 003

It’s the first of the month (white rabbits etc…), which means just one thing; the next episode of The Cycling Europe Podcast is available to download from your preferred podcast purveyor or direct from this website! It’s episode 003 already (I’ll stop when I get to 999) and […]

Cycling Up Everest… In Sicily?

Yes, it’s true, kind of… The story of a cyclist from London who became the first person to ‘Everest’ Mount Etna in Sicily. On 16th September 2017, Harry Bunnell took on the volcano multiple times until he reached the same elevation as the world’s highest peak, 8848 metres. […]

Wolf Pack: Geneva – San Remo

This isn’t quite my style – too fast by far… – but it is quite an adventure and may be of interest to some. Over to the organisers: “Wolf Pack is a dare. To ride from Geneva to San Remo, over Telegraphé, Galibier, Vars and Cime de la […]

Along The Med: Three Years Ago Today

It was August 28th 2013 when I completed my cycle from southern Greece to southern Portugal. The full story here or the even fuller story here… And here are a few photographic memories. Full marks to anyone who can identify where they were taken; Greece, Albania, Montenegro, Croatia, […]

Cycling Day 69: Oslo (South) To Langset

Click here to see the detailed statistics of today’s cycle. Data is still an issue so just one picture tonight but I will update with others later in the week once my 10gb monthly allowance is replenished, hopefully on Wednesday.  Let’s start back at midnight last night. Earlier […]

Cycling In France (Review)

I did promise to write one of the reviews after each country (here’s the one about Spain) but I am only now sitting down to write the review about cycling in France. As before, it may make more sense if you go back and read the post I […]

Cycling Day 4: Dos Hermanas To Sevilla

Click here to see the detailed statistics of today’s cycle I had to wait until nearly halfway through the Eurovelo 8 trip along the Mediterranean to intersect with my previous continental crossing – my take on the Eurovelo 5 – in Piacenza, Italy. I even posted a video […]

Ditching The Rough Guides In Favour Of… 

I would happily class myself as an enthusiastic early adopter of technology, especially when it comes to cycling. Back in 2009 when I cycled along the Pennine Cycleway as a shakedown of my skills as a first time touring cyclist I blogged as I travelled having moved on from writing […]

The BBC Radio Interview: What You Didn’t Hear

Being interviewed in almost all situations (I’m excluding being interviewed by the police here which I imagine is not a particularly pleasant experience) does, despite the often stressful nature of such encounters (job interview, other people listening…) have one very nice aspect. In life we don’t often have the […]

Cycling In France

So, after Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Germany and Belgium I arrive in France on my pre-Eurovelo 1/3 quest to have put at the very least a bit of thought into the planning of the route. Only one country to go – Spain – which will be the first of […]

The Mountain Equipment Firefox Jacket

After pondering over whether to buy some new Ortlieb panniers (see previous post), my mind remained focussed on the general theme of ‘equipment’. I really need to set some kind of budget for getting hold of what I need to buy. After having cycled across Europe twice already, I […]

Cycling In Belgium

My journey across the continent continues… I have already posted planning notes on cycling through Norway, Sweden, Denmark and Germany. Here are my planning notes for Belgium after which only France and Spain need to be considered before I set off from Tarifa in Spain shortly after Easter. […]

Cycling The Eurovelo 1/3: The Maps

While maps are on my mind (see previous post)… I have a newly discovered love for Marco Polo maps. But before I get on to them, let’s back track a little. I can’t imagine there will ever be a day when I ditch paper maps altogether; when I cycled […]

In Praise Of… Warmshowers

Alberto, Jenna, Martin, David, Marengo, Diego, Wade, Robert, Matthew, Ross, Kate, Sean, Alain, Carla, Eddy, John, Jane, and Ross all have something in common: I’ve met them through the accommodation sharing website for travelling cyclists called Warmshowers. Some have stayed with me, others have accommodated me on my […]

Two Alberti Of Vicenza

An interesting coincidence last night. On the left of the photo is Alberto, my weekday lodger who is originally from near Vicenza in northern Italy. On the right is Alberto ( you can see where this is going…), my latest visiting Warm Showers touring cyclist who is from […]

2015: Time For A (Big) Change

When it comes to writing pieces for this website, September is always a lean month. I’ve just been looking back at the number of posts made every month and since 2009 when CyclingEurope.org burst into life on the world wide web (albeit under the much less catchy soubriquet […]

Three Kings, From London To Barcelona

Here are three guys who cycled along a similar route to me but from London Barcelona taking in large chunks of my 2010 journey from England to Italy and then my 2013 across southern France and into Spain. I wrote books about my adventures; these chaps have made […]

Giro Cycling Hotels, Italy

One of my students at school this week was writing in French on the subject of health and fitness. As part of the text she expressed her dislike for pasta. I couldn’t believe it and (kindly) lambasted her for her culinary preferences. I asked her if she had […]

Cycling Day 30: Nice To Castellane

Now in Castellane. This may not get sent tonight as 3G doesn’t seem to actually be 3G in this corner of the Alps of high Provence (that’s what the French call this department or county). Split infinitive there, sorry but moving the ‘actually’ elsewhere seems to change the […]

Cycling Day 29: Limone-Piemonte to Nice

I can’t say for sure but it wouldn’t surprise me if great works of travel literature have been penned whilst sitting in laundrettes worldwide. If they haven’t, this short piece describing my cycle from the Italian Alps to the French Riviera may be a first. But I doubt […]

Cycling Day 24: Venice To Verona

So where are you tonight? Who said that? It’s Ivan, Ivan iPad. Oh my… Haven’t we taken this too far? As I was saying, where are you tonight? Ask me for a Shakespearean quote Err… OK. Andrew, can you give me a quote from Shakespeare? Yes, I’d be […]

Cycling Across Italy – The Plan

My plans as they stand for the upcoming week are below. As always they will evolve, change, be scrubbed etc… as circumstances & events dictate. My arrival in France will miss the self-imposed deadline of the 1st August (quite considerably) but… If you have any comments or suggestions […]

Cycling Day 23: Caorle To Venice

I started writing this last night but eventually gave in to the weight of my eyelids shutting… How could I not take a day off in Venice? That’s the plan for today but before that, I need to catch up on yesterday’s events, cycling day 23. I have […]

Cycling Day 22: Trieste To Caorle

So I find myself back by the Adriatic coast but this time in Italy. Just to the north of Venice in a place called Caorle. Or is it Porto Santa Marhgerita? I’m certainly staying at the (very busy) municipal campsite in the latter but I have cycled back […]

Rest Day 5: Novi Vinodolski

When I normally say ‘rest day’ it is no such thing. It’s a ‘day off the bike day’ but today really is a ‘rest day’. I won’t go into detail but I wasn’t particularly well yesterday evening. The symptoms were more associated with a bug of some sort […]

The End Of Croatia Is Nigh

It’s not imminent – I will still be staying here tonight at some point along the coast – but I can see the end and finally another country. It seems such a long time since I crossed from Montenegro into Croatia. It’s actually only a week but it’s […]

Cycling Day 16: Dubrovnik To Podaca

The plan over the next week or so is to cycle a minimum of 100km and find a campsite to stay in overnight. Today was day one of the plan, and it worked a treat! Leaving Dubrovnik and all the other tourists who had flocked there wasn’t difficult. […]

Cycling Day 7: Mitikas To Kanali

It was indeed a shorter day in the end and nothing untoward happened. Following coffee in Mitikas it was a relatively short cycle to the much nicer Paleros where I had planned to meet Ed Cox. Ed is cycling from Bristol to Brisbane and he had contacted me […]

Rest Day 2: Olympia, Greece

The reason for trekking all that way across the Peloponnese was, of course, to visit the ancient ruins of Olympia. I don’t want to make this to be too big of a thing but if you read my book about cycling to Italy you may remember that I […]

The Plan For Cycling Day 2

Slight change of plan for tomorrow. The original one had been to cycle from Athens all the way to visit a WarmShowers contact in the eastern Peloponnese near a town called Astros. Before setting off at the weekend I plugged a few of my initial cycling routes into […]