bccycleguy

As retirement begins to creep over the horizon, I find myself more and more day-dreaming about the ultimate bike holiday, where I can ride all day on picturesque paved roads with little traffic (or at least traffic that doesn't try to run me over). Some place where the people are friendly, food is good, and the weather is warm and sunny (sounds like Heaven, as I watch the snow fall outside). Realistically, some place where I can do 100 - 200 km rides, and don't have to carry lots of gear, food or water. If it was someplace far away, I'd want to be able to do a number rides out of the same location to justify the time and expense of getting there.

I'm sure that there's people on the forum that can point me in the right direction, maybe even fine-tune my spec list for the best place to ride in the world.

patentcad

I'd recommend the Brooklyn Queens Expressway (The BQE), but wait until 3AM on a weeknight to avoid traffic. And watch for drunk drivers going 110mph.

Az B

Alpha Centauri.

I've been all over Europe and I think that southern Spain has the best overall weather, food, roads, and people.

And you can easily travel to southern France, Italy, Switzerland, etc from there.

Az

furiousferret

It's not too hard to narrow things down, you got either USA, Canada, or Europe. It's all based on opinions but obviously you'd want something with beautiful surroundings and not alot of population. In the US I would have to go with the Colorado/Utah area, Central California, Sonoma (Wine Country) California, Northern California/Oregon.

You want to ride year round, go with California.

For the parts of Europe I've been to I'd say you can't go wrong with either France or Wales.

Russ9000

The middle of Australia is the place your looking for...Just a bit warm in summer but lots of very long flat roads with little or no trafic and us Aussies are always friendly

Litespeed35

French Alps - tons of cyclists, and the people are (relatively) friendly. Better, the local drivers actually understand the concept of sharing the road, and the climb to Col du Glandon is amazingly pretty.

climbo

Wales ain't in Europe !!

Basically, you forgot Australia and New Zealand as 2 of the best places on Earth to ride and to visit.

fogrider

if you're thinking about now, the san francisco bay area is a great place to ride, but weather is touch and go...it rained on wednesday and saturday. but in addition to great places to ride, there is lots of great food, lots of things to do, and lots of great places to visit.

baj32161

Not from a few of the younger members I have seen in here

AppStateEvan

Blue Ridge Mountains in North Carolina. I'm a little biased but come here in the spring, summer, or fall and the beauty will amaze you.

55/Rad

When I lived in L.A., I always wanted to cycle the Northwest. Now that I live here, I can say I'm glad I did.

55/Rad

formula4

Bike the world!

CardiacKid

The area around Jackson Hole is one of the most beautiful places in the world in July. Unfortunately, it has gotten pretty crowded and very expensive.

cyclezealot

We did an early retirement.. had thought California to be tremendous cycling. and it is. But now we are in Roussillon department of France. hills , plains, valleys, mountains, coastal rides. rural roads through vineyards, orchards. total respect by motorists, even a little awe. Roussillon. a cyclists heaven.

CycleFreakLS

I'd say here ...

jimblairo

The Lake District of Chile. It is a very large plain between the two mountain ranges. Mostly paved roads with very little traffic. You can rent a nice home for about 400$ a month. Temp is never over 27C and it does not drop below freezing.

adxm

Maui is totally awesome (and the go cycling maui folks are great..).. but they do have some horrendous winds, and the ride possibilities are limited (although having a 10k ft climb in your backyard is pretty cool). You gotta go with California for the year around excellent cycling. Bay Area or North Bay specifically. Not so stellar down here in San Diego..

sbornia

A decade ago, I lived in Italy for a few years (working for Ritchey, can you say "dream job"?) so will recommend a few great places there. What I really love about cycling in Italy is that just about every town has a fountain or two, so you can fill up your bottles easily. Drivers are respectful, and people are cyclist-friendly so you won't get harassed when you stop for a coffee mid-ride.

Here are some places to consider:

1. Lake Como. Stay along the eastern shore (Varenna is a nice town) and you'll have your choice of flat rides around the lake, or more mountain loops than you dreamed possible. The Madonna del Ghisallo cycling monument is nearby in Bellagio. You can also hit some of the great passes into Switzerland from here.

2. Tuscany. Pick a smaller town, say near Siena, and ride a different route every day for a week or two. Lots of rollers. Mid-April through May, then September-October are best times of year there. June-August is brutally humid, and packed with tourists. (Also consider doing Andy Hampsten's Cinghiale tour if you want terrific rides and one-of-a-kind Tour stories.)

3. The Veneto. My most recent trip was to the area near Bassano del Grappa, and I have to say, it's pretty spectacular. Flat valley rides, wine country routes, and, best of all, mountain climbs with hardly any traffic. Classic rides include climbing Monte Grappa (27km up), and the Croce d'Aune pass where Tulio Campagnolo brainstormed the quick release. Learn more on this excellent site: https://www.biciveneto.it/intro.htm

Beyond Italy I'd highly recommend the Basque Country in Spain -- stay in the captial of Vittoria, ride really quiet roads, and eat tapas every night.

Enjoy!
Steven

Pontyboy

Wales was in Europe the last time I was there!!!

USAZorro

So will the kudzu. You do have a point though, very pretty country.

EURO

What?

Anyway - I'd recommend the French Alps and Provence. Good mix of flat and hilly.

maximum01

[QUOTE=climbo]Wales ain't in Europe !!

QUOTE]

Really? Did it suddenly float away from the UK and end up in the tropics?

Europe is not just the continent...Rep of Ireland, UK, Iceland, Greenland to name a few are all in Europe.

msheron

The best place..............excuse me ladies. The best place would be where beautiful naked women would line the road and hand me refreshments and towel me off when done. Back to reality!

rjtokyo

Hey bccycleguy- Cycling paradise daydreams- I like that . Here's one of my favorite places to ride:



Mt. Fuji and the surrounding mountains. The pic is of White Thread Falls on a 117 km route encircling Mt. Fuji. Then all the mountain rides in the Japan Alps just to the west and you can do lots of 100 - 200 km rides with good places to eat, hot springs, etc. What do you think???

- RJ

cyclezealot

curiosity point about Maui.. we are Maui lovers. considered living there, if possible. but, sort of a circular repeat of one repeat ride over and over? but, the scenery! my question. how about the ride to Hana. pretty narrow and twisty in the car? noticed the Maui tour group did not go all the way to Hana.