Italy Bike Tour Reviews page 2
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★★★★★ JPeter
History seen
Venice to Florence: From Rialto Across the Sea to Ponte Vecchio
The accommodations were satisfactory to good (hotel in Choggia was wonderful). The trip was as expected and explained in the brochure. For the most part the directions and markers were decent except in Florence. Little to no markers seen and the directions to the parking garage given were incorrect for Florence, frustrating.
- What was the date of your tour?
- 09/17 to 09/23
- How many tours have you completed?
- 2 including this one
- Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
- Much easier
- Who is this tour suitable for?
- Solo travelers, First-time bike tourists
- Do you recommend this tour?
- Yes
- Countries included in this tour?
- Italy
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★★★★★ Cathy
Puglia bike tour
Cycling in the Heart of Puglia
We enjoyed this tour but some of the roads were very rough and we were in traffic more than expected. The last two days were very rough roads with a lot of trash on both sides of the roads. Loved Ostuni and Lecce!
- Countries included in this tour?
- Italy
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★★★★★ Larry Cady
Great route but TERRIBLE directions
Innsbruck to Lake Garda Across the Southern Slopes of the Alps
The good things about the Euro Cycle tour were:
1. Very nice route through the Italian Tyrol
2. Generally very nice hotels.
3. Bike were adequate but so-so quality. On other tours I have had better quality bikes.The BAD thing - Directions were very poor. The main problem was there were no turn by turn directions to the hotels. This is standard on other tours. The printed directions routed you into the center of a town and then stopped. You were given the address of the hotel, but not directions on how to get there. Sometimes we were given a map of the town, but not always. We ended up using Google Maps on our phones to get the hotels. In one town (Maran), the hotel was well away from the town center and difficult to find. We spent a lot of time tracking it down.
I would not take a Euro Cycle tour again. Other tour companies you represent are fine and I intend to take more tours - but not with Euro Cycle.
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★★★★★ Rudy Paulich
Italian coast Adventure
Venice to Trieste and Istria
Study maps and cue sheet as early on as possible for a smooth tour.
I was unable to down load gps files as it said my device was to new.
Files and info should be updated so all can download files and pertinent info on trip.
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★★★★★ Ellen Brown
Poor route info
Lake Garda (Based in One Hotel)
While the company rep was great, the app and route map only worked the middle 3 days. First day we had a transfer to Trento, a rather rushed fitting of bikes, then told to just follow the bike path to Riva de Garda, “ it’s easy, you won’t get lost”. Well, we were lost, and we experienced with self guided bike tours. There was no meeting to discuss the use of the app before we took off riding, but then there was no GPS either. Lucky we paid for an international phone plan, I used it to get us to the town. Others on this same tour ended up MILES away from where they should have been.
They gave us a booklet with written directions that were totally useless as there was no starting point. One direction said start over the bridge, there was no bridge anywhere near our hotel.
The riding was basically on bike path, so very easy. Lots of dirt and rocks and stones as well.
The bikes were “ok” but seemed older. I had to switch out my e-bike as the battery wouldn’t detach. The replacement bike I was given had a slow leak in the back tire, so we had to pump it up during the ride.
While the scenery is beautiful, and the riding enjoyable, I don’t recommend the tour company used in Italy- What was the date of your tour?
- September 2023
- How many tours have you completed?
- 10
- Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
- Much easier
- Do you recommend this tour?
- No
- Countries included in this tour?
- Italy
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★★★★★ Skipper
Nice trip- some days better than others.
Bolzano to Verona: Orchards, Mountains & Timeless Culture
The trip was nice. The first three days had pretty scenery and nice riding. The fourth day was mostly on roads and some areas not very exciting. The last day retraced some of the fourth day and seemed like it wasn’t really necessary. The signage at certain points was unclear (e.g., the bike path ended and it was unclear what to do next) and there was an actual mistake in directions arriving at the hotel in Verona. The GPS was not particularly helpful. The bike was a good quality, but one of the bikes didn’t have working lights.
- What was the date of your tour?
- July 2019
- How many tours have you completed?
- Two
- Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
- As expected
- Who is this tour suitable for?
- Families with teens
- Do you recommend this tour?
- Yes
- Countries included in this tour?
- Italy
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BikeTours.com staff reply from Chloe
We appreciate you letting us know that this wasn't your ideal trip. Based on other reviews and more tour details the last two days are overall more countryside riding when compared with the first few. We understand how this could seem less exciting. Thanks again for submitting a review; we hope we can book something better suited to your tastes next time!
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★★★★★ Morgan Baumann
Excellent Trails on which to explore a lovely part of Europe
Venice to Trieste and Istria
Traveling by bike is a wonderful way to enjoy a new place. Our accommodations were Excellent. Our guide, Tony, (with us for the first days), was first rate!- so helpful. A couple of concerns: I would not rate this as a 2 for regular bikes - even with variants, it was a lot of biking and I was disappointed not to arrive in towns sooner. Everyone in our group was similarly disappointed including those on e-bikes. I would have liked a more leisurely pace and instead the days felt rushed. The directions however were my biggest problem. For the most part they were poor. We lost so much time just trying to figure out where to go! Our last stage, into Porec was by far the easiest and so even though the ride itself was more challenging, we arrived in Porec in good time to enjoy the town. This last stage was easier because the red arrows were frequent and well placed all along the route. You only needed to glance at the map and the written directions and then just keep following the arrows. In contrast, on many of the other stages, the arrows were few and far between and often were Not where we needed to make a turn! We spent far too much time studying the map and having to reverse direction to get back on the route. It would also help if the directions noted if we were generally following a set route that was already mapped out by those small brown signs. Those signs were well placed and easy to follow.
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★★★★★ Raff
Wonderful itinerary, average biking
Bolzano – Verona – Venice
Great towns, but not enough time to see them. The biking scenery was ok. Really poor cue sheets in English.
- What was the date of your tour?
- 9-16-17-8-22-17
- How many tours have you completed?
- 3
- Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
- As expected
- Who is this tour suitable for?
- Solo travelers, First-time bike tourists
- Do you recommend this tour?
- No
- Countries included in this tour?
- Italy
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★★★★★ Osmo S
Beautiful Garda landscapes, but some discomforts
Lake Garda (Based in One Hotel)
Having had many tours with daily changing hotels, I liked this time this one based on one hotel. The daily tours were mostly beautiful landscapes, and also some very attractive human creations, especially Verona. Some problems still: the quality of bike lanes varied from very well made and clearly marked to muddy dirt roads and at some places within hard traffic. On the first day there was a mess on returning from Riva del Garda, most of the group missing the boat because of problems with bike transportation.
The EuroBike app was really good and showed clearly the way and its quick turns.- Countries included in this tour?
- Italy
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★★★★★ Ana outsubo
Needs improvement
Tuscany and Umbria: Cycling in the Heart of Italy
They need to improve. We were three... but we only had 1 map, I had to ask for at least one more.... the full package like odometer.... bike tray to put the map... direction booklet... they did not have it all, although we paid 3 packages. They forgot our greeting meeting. Good points: they tried to provide everything we had asked... they were helpful. But definitely they were overwhelmed with the amount of tours and needed help.
- What was the date of your tour?
- July 4 th- 11
- How many tours have you completed?
- 5
- Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
- Much harder
- Do you recommend this tour?
- No
- Countries included in this tour?
- Italy
-
★★★★★ JackieDog
Confusing directions
Apulia - Heel of Italy
Wonderful way to see the countryside but frustrating as the directions were often vague or inadequate.
- What was the date of your tour?
- Sept 16-23
- How many tours have you completed?
- 3
- Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
- As expected
- Who is this tour suitable for?
- Families with teens
- Do you recommend this tour?
- Yes
- Countries included in this tour?
- Italy
-
★★★★★ Susan Radtke
First time with a company organized bike trip
Dolomites to Trieste via Lake Bled at the Foot of the Julian Alps
My husband and I have done a fair amount of biking in the U.S. and in Europe and this was the first time we used a company to plan and support the trip. The good: Some of the hotels that were booked were terrific - especially in the more rural places. The navigation app when it worked was really useful and when it didn't work it seemed to be more of an issue with our phones than the app itself. There was confusion over the timing of our bus transfer over a mountain pass and the woman at the help center worked really hard to sort it out. Also, the luggage transfer was always efficient. The not so good: The bikes were pretty beat and heavy. We had to have one replaced. Although the directions said we would have at least one handlebar bag per room, we had none. Also, we understood that we would have a handlebar mount for a phone and would have brought one from home had it been more clear that we would not. The worst thing was our final day biking into Trieste. The route put us on a road that was absolutely harrowing - no shoulder at times, fast moving traffic including busses and trucks. It felt decidedly unsafe and I would never have put cyclists on such a route. So all in all, we had a good time and saw some beautiful country but moving forward we decided we would go back to planning our own trips where we have more control over the quality of the bikes and the route, plus obviously it's cheaper to do the planning yourself.
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★★★★★ Chris MacMillan
Hot in Italy in August
A Taste of Italy: Emilia-Romagna
Enjoyable cities and food. Bike routes a bit bumpy but easy. Unfortunately very hot ? this year in Italy. Tour operator helpful with flat tires.
- Countries included in this tour?
- Italy
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★★★★★ Terez Maniatis
First trip in the dolomites
Dolomites to Venice Along the Old Dolomites Railway Track
The scenery was amazing! The local tour company was not.
By the time we got our bikes they had run out of repair kits. We had to but two tire tubes at different times because of this. Would not recommend this company!- How many tours have you completed?
- Many
- Who is this tour suitable for?
- First-time bike tourists, Solo travelers, Families with teens
- Countries included in this tour?
- Italy
-
★★★★★ Tom Jones
Memorable bike tour
Dolomites to Trieste via Lake Bled at the Foot of the Julian Alps
Just wrapped up a memorable bike tour from the Dolomites to Trieste — and wanted to share a few highlights and lessons learned.
First, a big shoutout to Taylor at BikeTours.com, who was a fantastic Tour Advisor. When our bikes didn’t show up at the first hotel as expected, we gave her a call — and she jumped in right away. Thanks to her help, the bikes arrived in time for us to start riding the next morning without delay.
What I learned:
• Expect the unexpected. Our first day brought heavy rain — and we got soaked. If you’re doing a similar trip, pack good rain gear!
• Bring biking tools. While the bikes were in excellent shape, having a small tool kit (for tightening loose seats or making minor adjustments) came in handy.
• Stay connected. I recommend buying an eSIM for mobile data before the trip. Just don’t forget to turn on data roaming!
• Be prepared for little expenses. Public WCs often cost 1€, so keep some coins handy. And at hotels, you’ll need to pay a local tax (around 3€) — some places only accept cash for that.
• Illness can happen. I haven’t been sick in years, but picked up a cough midway through the trip. I ended up skipping the last day of riding — and that meant a taxi ride to the next hotel, which cost about $100 USD.
• Extra hotel nights aren’t cheap. If you decide to extend your stay somewhere, budget about $200 USD per night, especially if you want breakfast included.The ride itself:
The scenery was absolutely beautiful (except for the rainy day), and the routes between hotels didn’t have too many steep climbs. That said, for me, it was still a challenging ride — definitely pushed my limits, but in a good way.
All in all, a wonderful trip with a few good reminders: plan ahead, be flexible, and enjoy the ride
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★★★★★ Richard Sany
Nice Scenery
Dolomites to Trieste via Lake Bled at the Foot of the Julian Alps
We have been on a previous biketours.com offered ride in Austria and had certain expectations. The scenery was great but the navigation maps (especially digital) were lacking. The app for navigation and it was not responsive enough for making correct turns. I downloaded the digital files and tried to load them onto a ride app, Ride With GPS, but the files were so disorganized I had to completely re-trace the route for the 3 of the days we rode. Unlike a previous reviewer, I think the last day route from Gradisca d'Isonzo to Treiste was not that treacherous, probably because we took the more hilly alternate route through the countryside. Not very many cars and the rest were respectful of bikes on the road. I was very glad I had a triple front chain ring though because I was in the lowest gear on many hills (my wife had an ebike and met me at the top of every hill :-) ).
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★★★★★ Sagan
More challenging than leisurely
Sardinia: A Mine of Memories
Unfortunately not the experience we expected and we were a bit disappointed given how much we enjoyed our previous tours.
The very hot weather and humidity may have been a factor but the route was much more challenging than expected and there were a lack of places to stop off that did not involve adding on extra KMs to the route.
We noticed many other self guided opted for e-bikes probably with good reason.- What was the date of your tour?
- 14th sept 2019
- How many tours have you completed?
- 5
- Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
- Much harder
- Who is this tour suitable for?
- Solo travelers
- Do you recommend this tour?
- No
- Countries included in this tour?
- Italy
-
★★★★★ US cyclist
Difficult to navigate
Bolzano – Verona – Venice
I chose this tour because I was finishing up a week of hiking in the Dolomites in Balzano, and though that riding a bike back to Venice to catch my plane would be more interesting than taking the train. I saw that there were several reviewers who noted that they had difficulty navigating but thought, "I can just check Google Maps if I have a problem. How bad could it be?"
Well, it was bad. I found the step by step directions to be indecipherable. The maps made it look easy, but there was not enough detail to actually use them to follow the route. Google maps did not pick up the bike paths, so could not provide a cycling route. I spent a significant part of each day lost and frustrated, in addition to inadvertently ending up on roads with heavy traffic and adding extra miles to the trip. Towards the end of the week I discovered that there were several people from Belgium who were riding the same route I was, but had booked directly with the tour company rather than going through a third party. They were emailed the routes in digital format, and were able to download them to their Garmin. This was not offered to me.
The area is beautiful, bike paths nice, and local folks very friendly and helpful.- What was the date of your tour?
- Ended July 28, 2019
- How many tours have you completed?
- 20+
- Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
- Somewhat harder
- Who is this tour suitable for?
- Solo travelers, Families with teens
- Do you recommend this tour?
- No
- Countries included in this tour?
- Italy
-
★★★★★ Two Michiganders
Lost in Translation
Venice to Trieste and Istria
This was our fourth tour with Bike Tours and the first with an Italian outfitter. Maybe that's where the trouble started.
We're not novices to this kind of travel and expect to spend some time lost and wandering--that's okay--to some extent. The directions for this trip were oddly and sometimes poorly translated, and there were occasions that though we'd asked for the English version, the notes were in German. The sticker signage was missing and incorrect at several critical junctures--crossing into Croatia from Slovenia, for instance. I know we weren't the only people who missed it--others at the hotel mentioned the same confusion.
I think that this part of Italy isn't quite as used to cycling (fewer cycle paths) and there were long stretches where we were riding with heavy traffic on 50-70k speed roads. The last day was very hilly (we were aware of this) and included some long slogs through unmarked Croatian campgrounds/resorts which were not mentioned in the directions. Despite the directions, knowing that you needed to be near the sea for most of the trip was helpful.
Navigation being my only caution, this was a lovely and fun trip. The towns and sites along the way were quaint and it was relaxing when we were off the main roads. I appreciated the towns we stayed in, Sagittaria Concordia, Trieste and Piran were especially memorable for the sites and ambiance of each place. The ruins in Aguilia were amazing. The hotels were all excellent, breakfasts hearty and our bags were moved as promised.
I'd recommend this to someone, but with caution regarding navigation.- How many tours have you completed?
- Four
- Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
- As expected
- Do you recommend this tour?
- Yes
- Countries included in this tour?
- Croatia, Italy, Slovenia
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BikeTours.com staff reply from Richie
Hi!
Thank you for bringing the issues with tour documents and signage to our attention. I was on a tour with this operator in August and did not have these issues. However, I was on a different tour.
Part of the tour I was on overlapped with this tour in Trieste. There is quite a bit of traffic getting in and out of Trieste and that is worth being aware of.
I have passed your comments about the tour documents and signage on to the tour operator. It is important that they are aware of the sticker situation so that they can go through the route and fix the stickers where they are missing or incorrect. It is also important that they are aware of the translation issues with the documents themselves. I do know that they go over their documents and make improvements every off season. This information will be useful to them as they are going through this process.
Thank you again for taking the time to provide feedback (and the beautiful photos!)! We are looking forward to helping you arrange your next trip.
—Richie
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★★★★★ Richard Bushnell
Good ride second time around.
Bicycle Paths of the Dolomites (based in one hotel)
Redid this ride as we wanted to include a few places we missed the first time. Our day hiking around Lago de Braies was not a stage, but worth the extra day. Also rode all the way out to Santa Magdalena. A very beautiful ride. Bikes were top line. Only difficulties were with transfer days due to mis-information & drivers who were not aware of meeting points. In all some great rides.
- What was the date of your tour?
- September, 2025
- How many tours have you completed?
- Over 20
- Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
- As expected
- Who is this tour suitable for?
- Solo travelers, Families with teens
- Do you recommend this tour?
- Yes
- Countries included in this tour?
- Italy
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