Bike Tour Reviews  Venice To Trieste And Istria


Venice to Trieste and Istria

COUNTRY: Croatia, Italy, Slovenia

7 nights
4.3/5 (28)
Rider Level: Recreational Electric bike tours
Rider Level: Recreational Electric bike tours

4.3/5 (28)
7 nights

Self guided from EUR € 699

Self-guided:
Wednesdays and Saturdays: Apr 17 - Jul 27 and Aug 28 - Sep 28, 2024 | Apr 16 - Jul 30 and Aug 26 - Sep 27, 2025 (additional dates available for groups of 5 or more)

Description:
Your tour will begin at "la Serenissima," Venice, the lagoon city on the shores of the Adriatic Sea. Cycling past the beaches of the classical holiday resorts of Jesolo and Caorle on the Italian Adriatic, you will have an opportunity to take a refreshing…

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  • (5/5) Unnur Fridthjofsdootir 1 month ago

    Very nice trip

    Very nice trip easy to follow the app 😄Great to see italy, Slovenia and Croatia on bike

  • Venice to Trieste & Istria
    (4/5) Jay Penner 2 months ago

    Good ride for e bikes.

    This was the best electronic navigation we had ever seen. A phone holder for the bike made the navigation very easy. The weather was extremely hot the week we rode, but there were usually towns at good intervals to stop and hydrate. The local operator was responsive to any needs along the way and gave a good briefing the night before we started riding. The towns we stayed in offered great local flavor to the trip. The hotels were near the beaches so it was nice to swim in the Adriatic Sea at the end of the day. There were several stretches of road with considerable traffic but also a lot of bike paths and back roads with no traffic. The sights along the way were great and made for a memorable trip.

    The last day had several hills that would have been challenging without the e-bike assistance. The bikes were in good shape and rode well. Wouldn’t recommend this for a first time cycle trip.

    What was the date of your tour?
    August 2024
    How many tours have you completed?
    9
    Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
    Somewhat harder
    Do you recommend this tour?
    Yes
    •  (photo by Jay Penner)
    •  (photo by Jay Penner)
    • More than one town in Italy has a tower that leans. (photo by Jay Penner)
    • 5/5 Value
    • 5/5 Included meals
    • 5/5 Bikes + equipment
    • 5/5 Hotels or boat
    • 5/5 Scenery
    • 5/5 Ease of navigation
    • 4/5 Tour documents
    • 5/5 Local tour company services
    • 5/5 Route selection
  • (5/5) Jennifer Dattke 5 months ago

    Incredible Journey!!💕

    Such a great experience! Yes challenging both the riding and navigating but rewarded with great food and gelato! The hotels were all good and comfortable with great breakfasts. Every community was so cute. Would recommend a lay over night to recoup, enjoy the community and give time for your chamois to dry!? Great experience. I was impressed by how bike friendly the route was on bike paths, along canals and use of rails to trails. Also I felt drivers were very aware of cyclists. The tour company (Anthony) was very accommodating when we had an issue with shifting and brought another bike to us.

    What was the date of your tour?
    May 2024
    Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
    Somewhat harder
    Who is this tour suitable for?
    First-time bike tourists
    Do you recommend this tour?
    Yes
    • Bell tower views of Porec (photo by Jennifer Dattke)
    • Another gelato  earned! (photo by Jennifer Dattke)
    • Trieste to Piran (photo by Jennifer Dattke)
    • Poppies! (photo by Jennifer Dattke)
    • Caorle (photo by Jennifer Dattke)
    • 5/5 Value
    • 5/5 Included meals
    • 4/5 Bikes + equipment
    • 4/5 Hotels or boat
    • 5/5 Scenery
    • 3/5 Ease of navigation
    • 4/5 Tour documents
    • 5/5 Local tour company services
    • 5/5 Route selection
  • (4/5) Todd Kadas October 2, 2023

    Italian countryside, Slovenian coast, Croatian beaches. What more could you want?!

    This trip offered a nice mix of countryside and coastal routes with plenty of options to shorten or lengthen each day's itinerary. We were lucky enough to arrive in the second town on the same night as their annual grape harvest parade. So much fun! Tractors pulling floats, free wine, marching bands, and views from the restaurants on the street.
    We chose the self-guided option for this tour and met up with at least a dozen other cyclists who were doing the same. We were never alone, had amazing weather, and every day except for one (when we cycled too fast and didn't stop frequently enough), our bags were waiting for us on arrival at the hotel.

    How many tours have you completed?
    2
    Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
    Somewhat harder
    Who is this tour suitable for?
    First-time bike tourists, Solo travelers, Families with teens
    Do you recommend this tour?
    Yes
    • 5/5 Value
    • 4/5 Bikes + equipment
    • 4/5 Hotels or boat
    • 5/5 Scenery
    • 4/5 Ease of navigation
    • 4/5 Tour documents
    • 4/5 Route selection
  • (4/5) Suzanne Skinner September 29, 2023

    Good but bikes poor

    The hotels were great. The app worked intermittently which meant we got lost with some frequency. The bikes were heavy, with crazy bad seats, and in generally poor condition (worn chains). We were lucky we did not have break downs.

  • (5/5) Thomas Carr September 24, 2023

    Wonderful Trip

    We did this trip with two other couples who had never done a European bike tour before. We were so impressed with the efficiency of the staff, the accommodations and of course the beautiful route.

    What was the date of your tour?
    September 2023
    How many tours have you completed?
    6
    Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
    Somewhat harder
    Who is this tour suitable for?
    First-time bike tourists, Solo travelers, Families with teens
    Do you recommend this tour?
    Yes
    • 5/5 Value
    • 5/5 Included meals
    • 3/5 Bikes + equipment
    • 5/5 Hotels or boat
    • 5/5 Scenery
    • 4/5 Ease of navigation
    • 4/5 Tour documents
    • 4/5 Local tour company services
    • 4/5 Route selection
  • (3/5) Rudy Paulich September 20, 2023

    Italian coast Adventure

    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.

    What was the date of your tour?
    September 2023
    How many tours have you completed?
    3
    Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
    As expected
    Who is this tour suitable for?
    Solo travelers
    Do you recommend this tour?
    Yes
    • 3/5 Value
    • 3/5 Included meals
    • 4/5 Bikes + equipment
    • 2/5 Hotels or boat
    • 5/5 Scenery
    • 4/5 Ease of navigation
    • 3/5 Tour documents
    • 3/5 Local tour company services
    • 3/5 Route selection
  • (4/5) TF and DD NYC June 24, 2023

    Great destinations!

    A highlight of the trip was seeing all the different towns and cities along the way. The route varied from day to day – coastal paths, farmland and former border crossings. We stayed in modern seaside towns, ancient inland towns and cities. We even saw flamingos in the lagoon!

    The biking was challenging at times, with strong headwinds the first couple of days. We rode on roads, bike paths, dirt farm roads and raised dike walls. The navigation, directions and app were easy to follow, but many of the arrow stickers should be replaced. Bikes were standard hybrids, but note: step through bikes do not have water bottle cages!

    We opted for trains and boats when available. This allowed us to have more time to explore the towns, while still having plenty of biking. Each place we stayed was unique and a couple of the hotels were better than expected. It was nice visit the towns just before the summer season. There were many tourists, but not big crowds.

    We would recommend this trip to those who are confident riders. Plan to stay a couple of extra days in Venice and/or Porec if you can, as there is plenty to see and do!

    What was the date of your tour?
    May 2023
    How many tours have you completed?
    5
    Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
    As expected
    Do you recommend this tour?
    Yes
    • Piran sunset (photo by TF and DD NYC)
    • Piran (photo by TF and DD NYC)
    • Exploring (photo by TF and DD NYC)
    • Dog cafe (photo by TF and DD NYC)
    • Boat from Trieste (photo by TF and DD NYC)
    • Along the way (photo by TF and DD NYC)
    • 5/5 Value
    • 4/5 Bikes + equipment
    • 4/5 Hotels or boat
    • 5/5 Scenery
    • 4/5 Ease of navigation
    • 5/5 Tour documents
    • 5/5 Local tour company services
    • 4/5 Route selection
  • (4/5) ELHoo May 31, 2023

    A good first bike tour experience

    This was my first bike tour with a bike tour company, so I have nothing to compare it to. That said, it was pretty good. The person who presented the tour at our intro meeting was very nice and honest about what each day's route had in store for us. Bikes were OK, they suited the varied surfaces we rode on. The hotels varied from fine to nice. Luggage delivery was great. The towns we stayed at along the way all had something interesting about them. We were given an app, maps and cue sheets for navigation as well as arrow stickers along the route. We did not get lost, but I would suggest refreshing the faded arrows along the way. I would do another BikeTours.com tour.

    What was the date of your tour?
    May 2023
    How many tours have you completed?
    0
    Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
    Somewhat harder
    Do you recommend this tour?
    Yes
    • 4/5 Value
    • 3/5 Included meals
    • 3/5 Bikes + equipment
    • 4/5 Hotels or boat
    • 5/5 Scenery
    • 3/5 Ease of navigation
    • 5/5 Tour documents
    • 4/5 Local tour company services
    • 4/5 Route selection
  • (3/5) Morgan Baumann May 18, 2023

    Excellent Trails on which to explore a lovely part of Europe

    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.

    • BikeTours.com staff reply from JV May 19, 2023

      Morgan,
      Thank you for your detailed feedback. We're delighted you enjoyed your accommodations and the guidance from Tony, but we deeply regret the difficulties you faced with the directions and pace of the tour. Your suggestions are invaluable, and we'll ensure improvements are made in our tour planning and signage to create a more relaxing and user-friendly experience for future tours.
      Regards,
      Jan

  • (4/5) Steve Srebnik November 7, 2022

    Great experience

    This was a great adventure for my wife and I taking us to small and not so small great beach towns as well as a pretty big city , Trieste, all in the Adriatic. Jasolo was a rocking town with a very nice beach. Most of the included breakfasts were very good and all were very acceptable. The hotels were also good, nothing special but certainly comfortable. Most of the hotel rooms were very small. Only reason I took off a star was I think I would have enjoyed it more if we were able to spend a stop over or two without a ride the next day. Since we typically arrived after 1 and sometimes closer to 2 or 3 we didn’t get to spend any significant relax time at the beaches. Overall I’d go again or do another trip. All was very well organized.

    How many tours have you completed?
    1
    Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
    As expected
    Who is this tour suitable for?
    First-time bike tourists, Families with teens
    Do you recommend this tour?
    Yes
    • 5/5 Value
    • 4/5 Included meals
    • 4/5 Bikes + equipment
    • 4/5 Hotels or boat
    • 5/5 Scenery
    • 4/5 Ease of navigation
    • 5/5 Tour documents
    • 5/5 Local tour company services
    • 5/5 Route selection
  • (5/5) carol friefeld October 21, 2022

    Great trip!

    Loved this trip! The route was fun and scenic, the accommodations were great, no logistical problems. The local tour agency was very helpful, and the GPS app worked well. Would work with this group again!

  • (5/5) Stradiotti July 28, 2019

    Superb Trip!

    A splendid way to see the world! This bike tour was our first but certainly not our last. We were a group of 10 friends ranging in age from 49-56. The ride was challenging at times but absolutely spectacular. We are not avid cyclists and some of the group used the electric bikes; this was a great option especially on the hills. The hotels were great, for the most part the food was good too, and the luggage transfers were seamless. This tour is very well organized and the local tour company is always reachable.

    What was the date of your tour?
    July 4-10
    How many tours have you completed?
    This was the first
    Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
    Somewhat harder
    Who is this tour suitable for?
    First-time bike tourists, Families with teens
    Do you recommend this tour?
    Yes
    • 5/5 Value
    • 3/5 Included meals
    • 5/5 Bikes + equipment
    • 5/5 Hotels or boat
    • 5/5 Scenery
    • 5/5 Ease of navigation
    • 5/5 Tour documents
    • 5/5 Local tour company services
    • 5/5 Route selection
  • (5/5) Petty July 26, 2019

    Was great!!

    I have already written to you about tour - really enjoyed every moment! Hotels were great and personnel very friendly

    What was the date of your tour?
    9-16 july
    Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
    Much easier
    Who is this tour suitable for?
    Solo travelers, Families with teens
    Do you recommend this tour?
    Yes
    • Wonderful routes (photo by Petty)
    • 5/5 Value
    • 2/5 Included meals
    • 5/5 Bikes + equipment
    • 5/5 Hotels or boat
    • 4/5 Scenery
    • 4/5 Ease of navigation
    • 3/5 Tour documents
    • 3/5 Local tour company services
    • 5/5 Route selection
    • 1/5 Guides (if applicable)
  • (4/5) Visitor42 July 4, 2019

    Unexperienced rider review

    That was nice and fun tour for me, however my girlfriend struggled a bit. It is not completely 2 stars. For example, last day is not plain at all and could be challenging for newbies without some experience (like myself).

    It would be nice to have shortcuts for every day of this tour.

    What was the date of your tour?
    Late june
    How many tours have you completed?
    1
    Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
    Somewhat harder
    Do you recommend this tour?
    Yes
    • 4/5 Value
    • 4/5 Included meals
    • 4/5 Bikes + equipment
    • 4/5 Hotels or boat
    • 4/5 Scenery
    • 3/5 Ease of navigation
    • 3/5 Tour documents
    • 4/5 Local tour company services
    • 4/5 Route selection
  • (5/5) J and S June 14, 2019

    Perfect way to see the Country

    My Wife and I had a great Self-Guided trip. The people were super kind, hotels were good, food good, sites were the best. The maps were good, we used GPS points on our phones which did help a lot. So all in all, a can't miss trip.
    We especially liked starting the trip in Mestre, the train over to Venice was a 5 minute walk from the Hotel Elite, cost was minimal. We explored Venice as well as old town Mestre, which was a extra treat.
    Your first leg is to either Jesolo or Carole, we stayed in Jesolo and on the next day we stopped for a snack in Carole. If we were able, we would do the extra miles and stay in Carole the first night, town is really cute.
    We did take two layover or extra days, one in Piran the other in Porec, both well worth it, so ask when you book if that option is available. The Ferry Ride from Porec to Venice was great but a a little of a challenge to schedule until we found there are two ferry companies, they run on opposite dates. After that, was super simple.
    Hard trip to pass up, this was our third Self Guided trip, and already starting to plan for 2020. This has been our main way to see Europe and Loving Every Trip!!

    What was the date of your tour?
    May 2019
    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, Families with young kids, Families with teens
    Do you recommend this tour?
    Yes
    • 5/5 Value
    • 5/5 Included meals
    • 5/5 Bikes + equipment
    • 5/5 Hotels or boat
    • 5/5 Scenery
    • 5/5 Ease of navigation
    • 5/5 Tour documents
    • 5/5 Local tour company services
    • 5/5 Route selection
    • 5/5 Guides (if applicable)
  • (5/5) OR bikers June 12, 2019

    Couldn't ask for a better 1st bike tour experience

    We did the self guided tour with another couple friend of ours. We all had ebikes which made it very enjoyable and easy to do the distances and the hills on the last 2 days. The stickers on street poles pointing the way along the routes were really helpful. The scenery along the routes were so pretty, many red poppy fields. The towns we passed through were fun to explore. We really enjoyed the routes along the water (sea, river, canals), which were many. We had one and a half days of rain, and there were some muddy dirt road we had to go through. We enjoyed the towns we stayed in overnight, pleased with the accommodations and the bountiful breakfast buffets. I would recommend staying an extra night in Porec (end of tour), just to get a little more time to explore, enjoy and relax before heading back to Venice on the early ferry

    What was the date of your tour?
    May 25-June 1, 2019
    How many tours have you completed?
    this is our first one
    Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
    As expected
    Who is this tour suitable for?
    First-time bike tourists, Families with teens
    Do you recommend this tour?
    Yes
    • On the way to Aquileia, stage 3 (photo by OR bikers)
    • End of 1st stage in Lido di Jesolo (photo by OR bikers)
    • Caorle, our rainy day (photo by OR bikers)
    • Grado (photo by OR bikers)
    • Grado (photo by OR bikers)
    • Novigrad (photo by OR bikers)
    • 5/5 Value
    • 5/5 Included meals
    • 5/5 Bikes + equipment
    • 5/5 Hotels or boat
    • 5/5 Scenery
    • 4/5 Ease of navigation
    • 5/5 Tour documents
    • 5/5 Local tour company services
    • 5/5 Route selection
  • (4/5) Juiti September 29, 2018

    Unforgettable!!! The hidden beauty of the Venetian region and Croatian Adriatic:

    I love this route. It combined beautiful nature landscapes with historic spot and charmy littles towns.
    We had great experience sharing time with fun bikers around the world.
    Even if the hotels were in general ok we would have preferred to pay a bit more for better quality and location.

    What was the date of your tour?
    8 september
    How many tours have you completed?
    now 3
    Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
    Somewhat harder
    Who is this tour suitable for?
    Solo travelers, First-time bike tourists, Families with teens
    Do you recommend this tour?
    Yes
    • Photo 1 (photo by Juiti)
    • Photo 2 (photo by Juiti)
    • Photo 3 (photo by Juiti)
    • Photo 4 (photo by Juiti)
    • Photo 5 (photo by Juiti)
    • Photo 6 (photo by Juiti)
    • 5/5 Value
    • 3/5 Bikes + equipment
    • 3/5 Hotels or boat
    • 4/5 Scenery
    • 4/5 Ease of navigation
    • 3/5 Tour documents
    • 3/5 Local tour company services
    • 4/5 Route selection
  • (4/5) Karl57 September 12, 2018

    Great trip

    Great trip. Would highly recommend. Every stopover destination was well worth exploring. If we did it again we would customize the tour with an extra day to explore each stopover destination.

    What was the date of your tour?
    September 2018
    How many tours have you completed?
    2
    Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
    As expected
    Who is this tour suitable for?
    Solo travelers, First-time bike tourists, Families with teens
    Do you recommend this tour?
    Yes
    • 4/5 Value
    • 4/5 Included meals
    • 4/5 Bikes + equipment
    • 3/5 Hotels or boat
    • 4/5 Scenery
    • 4/5 Ease of navigation
    • 4/5 Tour documents
    • 4/5 Local tour company services
    • 4/5 Route selection