Boomer Cycling Tours – from Alaska to Portugal

Boomer cycle tours?  Well…firstly we haven’t cycled in Portugal yet but it’s on the 2020 itinerary! Wherever we travel cycling tours suitable for Boomers are on the agenda, because you have fun, get a broad overview of where you are and most are suitable for boomer aged people

As one wise old person said (I forget who though):

“Learn to ride a bicycle

You’ll never regret it – if you live!”

Organised bike tours have mainly been half-day outings, with one being for 8 days in the Loire Valley, France.  Other times we hire a bike and set off on our own – usually to get lost and enjoy the challenge of the return trip to our digs!

Here are a few we’ve enjoyed and can recommend for boomer cycle people who still enjoy throwing their leg over a bike! (These are in alphabetical order of country.)

(NB – follow the links in this post for detailed information on companies used, items to take on the ride and costs involved).

Alaska – Skagway

Without a doubt the “Cycling Klondike Summit to the Sea” has been the most exciting bike ride on our travels.  We were on a tour of the “Last Frontier” and booked a “Summit to the Sea” 3-hour bike ride with Sockeye Cycle Company. The downhill ride would let us retrace the historic Klondike Gold Rush.

First up we drove to the starting point at the White Pass Summit (3,292 ft) high up on Yukon Pass. On the way up our guide filled us in on the gold rush days and many funny stories of past and present life in Scagway.

Then it was simply a matter of being issued a bike, staying on it and literally flying down from the White Pass Summit!

Plenty of photo stops on the way gives a chance to check that your false teeth are still there!

Alaska – Juneau

This was another exciting boomer cycle tour – there’s something about being in Alaska…always on the lookout for bears!

First up we drove to the Mendenhall Valley where we then rode bikes on trails through the lush Tongass National Forest.

The shores of Mendenhall Lake was our first stop where we had a view of the mighty glacier.  I was fascinated to see canoeists on the lake literally disappear into the mist …pretty sure they came out the other side though.

We were always on the lookout for Black Bear and Bald Eagles.  Well, right at a road sign that said “Bears Cross here” – they did.  A mother and three cubs!  Sad to say but by the time we had cameras organised the bear family had disappeared into the forest.

Again, our guide was a wealth of knowledge on everything to do with Juneau – history, culture and local wildlife.

The last boomer cycle stop of the tour was at the Flight Deck, in the Merchants Wharf.  Here we spent a relaxing time tasting award-winning beers from micro-breweries across Alaska.  Nice way to finish a tour.

Boomer Cycling in Paris.

Paris by night is always special, but more so on two wheels dodging the peak hour traffic! (Actually, the cars were moving very slowly at this time of the day).

Our tour was with Fat Tire Bikes

At their headquarters you’re issued with a suitable bike, a hi-vis vest and helmet if you want one – they aren’t compulsory in Paris for adults.

The variety of bikes is huge and range in sizes from young children to very tall adults. There’s definitely a comfortable bike for everyone.

Sights you see:

• The Latin Quarter
• Notre Dame
• The Louvre – cycling around the Louvre at night is surreal.

• Arch de Triomphe – you cycle under this incredible icon (well hopefully again when the turmoil in Paris is over).
• Pont de Arts (the bridge that nearly collapsed because of the “love lock” weight!
• Berthillon Ice Cream shop for a taste of this famous delight. (Go the salted-caramel I say!)

A river Seine Cruise is the grand finale of the tour – past the truly amazing architecture of Paris, along with a couple of complimentary glasses of decent red!

Boomer Cycling – Loire Valley, France

The eight day Loire Valley bike and barge trip has been the pinnacle of our overseas riding so far. The trip was booked with Utracks (www.utracks.com) and the trip arrangements were perfect.

Meeting at the Gare du Nord in Paris, we met up with the other 16 riders and were whisked off to Cours-les-Barres to settle into our cabins on the “Anna Maria IV” for 8 incredible days.

Each morning we’d head off to see the lush green vineyards of the Loire, riding a lot beside canals and farmlands.  Villages visited included:

Apremont, Nevers, Sancerre (where we savoured the grape!), Chatillon-sur-Loire, Briare and Rogny-le-Sept Ecluses.

Of course, it’s all about the food for me and our host was a magnificent cook with Chicken au Poulet being my favourite meal.

Oh, there was a small bar on board as well with all of us enjoying a coldie (or two) at the end of day’s ride.

Rome on Two Wheels

After spending five intense, but exciting, days in Rome and seeing the traditional icons, we decided it was time for a bike ride – one that would take us on a boomer cycle through the Ancient Appian Way.

The bike company was Top Bike Rental and Tours.

This was the first time we’d used e-bikes, and they proved very handy when going up some inclines and bouncing along over the massive stone sections of road!  (There go the false teeth again!)

We’d pre-booked before leaving Australia even though some people just walk in on the day.

Australians, New Zealanders, Canadians, English and Spanish made up the group plus our English-speaking guide. Very multicultural!

City traffic had to be battled to get to the Appian Way and staying in the middle of other boomer cycle riders was a good option!

Sights we stopped at were:

• Ancient Arch of Drufus
• Catacombs of St Sebastian – here we had a guided tour with a priest who came from Queensland!
• Tomb of Caecilia Metella
• Park of the Aqueducts – built in AD52, they still feed water into the Trevi Fountain

With Europe still enjoying long twilight days (September) our last stop was at the Fattoria della Vaccareccia sheep farm – inside the Caffarella Park on the Appian Way.

Picture this – an ancient farmhouse, baby lambs leaping around and long tables spread with home-made wine, bread and cheese for us to enjoy.  AND ENJOY WE DID!

Italy – Lucca

We were on a Back Roads Touring small group holiday (in August) and a trip to Pisa was on the day’s agenda from Lucca.  As we’d popped into to see the leaning tower the summer before – mainly to give advice on how to prop it back up – a decision was made not to go with the group but hire bikes instead.

Medieval City Wall

Lucca is the only town in Tuscany that has a continuous medieval city wall and moat (now empty) that is so well preserved. So, first stop was a cycle around the wall – nice and easy for boomer cycle peeps.

The wall is a bit more than 4km from one end to the other so we did a quick lap on the bikes and then another much slower to fully appreciate these ancient walls.

The bonus is – there are no cars inside the walled city.

After the walls we cycled past St Michael’s Church, St Martins Cathedral, the Basilica of San Frediano and through the Piazza Arfiteatro, or Amphitheatre Square.

Standing inside the square, you can clearly see buildings that were built around the original Roman amphitheatre, that doesn’t exist now, but the “square” still has the original oval shape.

Parking our bikes, we sat in the Square, surrounded by many local cafes, restaurants and shops for a relaxing dose of people watching.

Word of warning – when cycling through the alleyways of Lucca, be sure to have a map of the city.  This will make sure you find your accommodation on the same day because the alleys are narrow and criss-cross many times!

Singapore – Boomer Cycling Tours

Discover Singapore the Ride Way!

You’ll find this clean and green city an ideal stopover for boomer cycle action when travelling from OZ to far flung destinations on the other side of the world.

With only 2 boomer age people in our group (that was us) and one younger person we followed our guide from Lets Go Bikes to the following icons.

• Speakers Corner – where the locals can get up on their soapbox and avoid ending up in jail.
• The Buddha Tooth Relic (temple) and Museum – built in 2007 and quite opulent.
• Chinatown
• The Helix Bridge for incredible views of the Singapore River.
• Marina Bay Sands and the famous “Boat”

• Gardens by the Bay.
• ArtScience Museum – built to look like a Lotus flower.

• The Old Colonial Area
• Old Malaysian Town
• Beach Road
• Boat, Clarke and Robertson Quays,
• Raffles
• The Merlion

You can see the benefit of boomer cycling tours – visiting so many attractions that you wouldn’t see on foot.

With our trio starting to get both thirsty and hungry we stopped for coffee and oh so tasty coconut bread, also known as Kaya toast, in an authentic local café – included in the tour price.

Links with Information

There are many links throughout this post that will give information on the bike tour companies used.  Please contact me if I could offer any more information on these rides.  Oh, and maybe my Gypsy A-Z Travel Tips may be useful.

Join the Boomer Cycling life!