7 questions answered for your first cycling holiday

As with any group holiday everyone is different, so it’s impossible to tell, but an ‘average’ group consists of roughly half couples and half solo cyclists. There's usually a real mix of ages, from people in their 20s to their 70s, and typically half male and half female.

If you’d prefer to cycle by yourself, or with a partner or friend, we also offer self-guided cycling trips. On these holidays we organise the essentials for you including the bike, routes and accommodation. Rather than Explore guide you’ll get a detailed guide with maps to follow so you can explore your destination at your own pace.

When packing for a cycling holiday, you’ll need to bring your own bike helmet, as these are not supplied. We also highly recommend packing some padded shorts, as you’ll appreciate these after several days of cycling! Cycle gloves are always a good idea as they protect the hands from the sun and give some extra padding to add comfort. Other than that, it’s up to you whether you wear clothing designed especially for cycling. Some people prefer to wear cycling clothing, others don’t - it’s not essential for our trips.

Also we suggest bringing at least one water bottle – many of our bikes have bottle holders where you can store them. Most of our bikes also have handlebar bags, panniers or saddle-bags to store extra water and snacks – check the trip page to find out more. If it only has a small handlebar bag we recommend bringing a small rucksack to wear on your back while you cycle, for a waterproof jacket, camera, food and drinks. All of your large luggage will be transported for you.

Enjoying the local food is a highlight of any trip and on a cycle tour you'll burn more calories and can indulge or reward yourself along the way. The number of meals included will vary by trip – check the trip page for details. On the majority of our tours we will include most breakfasts, which will set you up for the day. We don’t include all lunches and dinners so that you can decide what you eat - your Explore Leader will be happy to recommend places to eat and local food to try. You may want to join your group for meals or do your own thing, the choice is yours.

While you’re cycling, we’d recommend having some nutritious snacks packed, like fruit, cereal bars and energy gels. Generally speaking we don’t include these on the holidays but occasionally the leader may organise an optional kitty to supply snacks for the rides. Depending on where you go, you’ll likely be able to buy food along the way too.