The following article is a guest post by Oscar Waterworth. If you love exploring new cities in your travels, you’ll appreciate the following perspective about doing it on a bicycle.
When visiting a new city you want to cover lots of ground and (ideally) get to know it like a local. What’s one way to do this? Cycle touring. Get on your bike and try to meet your exciting new environment on wheels or by foot (you know, like the retro travelers used to do). This kind of tourism brings with it numerous advantages and here are the top five.
Feel Like a Kid Again
Who doesn’t remember getting their new bicycle for the very first time and learning how to ride it? This brings up fond thoughts, so why not relive it on your travels? While the feeling of riding your bike into the unknown may remain the same, having this experience as an adult will recall that same feeling of wonder and joy into your travels.
Bike Right Past Traffic
One of the benefits of going on a journey on your favorite bike is slipping past any traffic jams. If you find yourself in a street jam, you can just slide through or even hop off your bike and walk it. Another win with a bicycle is that you can always find a parking spot. Most metro cities have ample bicycle racks and just in case you can’t seem to find them, just tie your ride to a fence or a tree that you come across. Just make sure that you locked your bike properly, and you should have no worries.
Part-Time Cycling Options
Cycle touring is a great way to really see a city from the street-level, but sometimes your vacation may take you to multiple cities. In these cases a travel by car is recommended, but that doesn’t necessarily exclude bike rides. Simply mount a bike on your car, with a little help of a bike rack and you are ready to go. Travel to a distant city with your car, and then simply leave it secured and mount your bike in order for you to have the ultimate cycle tour.
Enjoy the Weather
Another advantage of going on a bike tour is fully enjoying the pleasant weather of your destination. Driving a car, even while you can do it with the windows down, is not nearly the same as riding through the countryside or through an exciting new city on your bike, wind rushing through your hair. For the best experience, look out for weather reports and plan your cycle trip according to the calendar.
Indulge Guilt-Free
Food travel is a thing. Many people plan their vacations around enjoying the local cuisine. Unfortunately, not all of the local cuisine is low-calorie, so you will have to be careful about what you eat. Cycle touring to the rescue! If you are riding your bicycle from restaurant to restaurant around the city, you can feel a lot better about taking some gastronomic liberties on your travel tour.
If you’ve never considered doing a travel tour astride two wheels, these are five good reasons to put it on your list. Apart from being completely eco-friendly, a bicycle travel tour is also extremely friendly to your budget and your health; a win-win-win scenario if there ever was one.
Oscar Waterworth is a travel enthusiast and a freelance writer from Sydney who occasionally contributes to High Style Life. He started traveling because he didn’t want to spend his whole life in one city. He has explored many parts of the world already, including Tahiti, Thailand, Spain, France, Italy, Romania, Greece etc. Hopefully, he will inspire you with his travel advice.
