Spain

Our favorite VBT trip to date. The cultural experience rivaled the well planned cycling routes. Time spent on and off the bicycle created lasting memories for joyful reflection.

I wasn't sure I would be able to do this ride. But I had no problem at all. I used an e-bike and kept up the group and had a ball! Everyone on the ride was wonderful and fun to be with. If you aren't sure you might be up for a ride thru Spain, think again. Anyone can do it using an e-bike. I can't wait to do my next trip!! Hum, where shall I go?

We loved this trip! Beautiful and varied biking routes; knowledgeable, competent and engaging guides, top-notch hotels, delicious food and interesting cultural activities. I wish I could do it all over again!

We thoroughly enjoyed our first VBT experience. The tour route was very well laid out and we cannot not say enough about how impressive our tour leaders, David and Frederico, both of whom are natives of Portugal. Kudos to VBT for the way they planned and conducted our tour!

As my wife and others have mentioned the routes, scenery and accommodations were all excellent, as were the bikes! We chose the carbon road bike option since that’s what we ride at home. After a couple of stops to get the seats adjusted to our liking we were off and found the bikes to be very comfortable and well geared for the hills. We’re in our mid sixties and trained over the summer working up to doing 3-4 rides per week with lengths of 20-40 miles and elevations from 900’-2,100’. That training was sufficient as we found none of the climbs too difficult (although we did choose the longer, less elevation route leaving Girona). While the bikes did have a bar end mirror and a clip on tail light I was glad we brought our own helmet mirrors and front and rear lights. They made the few short sections of high traffic roads much less nerve racking. The drivers were all very courteous however, passing with the required 1.5m clearance. At a rest break a car even stopped to see if we needed any assistance! In addition to the lights and mirrors we also brought wireless earbuds to better hear the excellent Ride with GPS route cues, only using the right ones so we could still easily hear traffic. I do wish we had brought our own phone mounts as the ones provided use rubber corner straps which makes accessing your phone for photos difficult and time consuming. In addition, if they’re not strapped properly the phone can fall out as my wife’s did. Luckily we found it and there was no damage. All in all a great trip even though the bike accessories could be improved.

Having done one guided VBT tour and one self-guided, I find that the self-guided option offers most of the benefits of the guided version, leaving out only the close supervision and support of excellent tour guides. We were familiar with the bikes and the tools--RideWithGPS--so we were prepared to go it on our own. Worked out great. Got the support we needed--hotels, baggage transfer, assistance with nightly charging etc.--and were free to make our own schedules and seek out our own stops along the way. The routes provided by VBT were enough to make us feel we knew where we were going and could manage on our own, and everything worked out okay. Highly recommended.

Simply marvelous trip! The guides were so much fun! The views were spectacular! All of the extras were so much fun! The wine, the olive, the meals, the picnic. This is my 3rd VBT trip and we planned next year's already!

This is a fabulous trip for road cyclists who love rolling hills and some challenging climbs. The island has a strong cycling culture and motorists are accustomed to sharing the road. The climate and temperature in the off-season is perfect - warm to hot with very little rain. Off the bike, the hotels are unique, very comfortable and the provided meals are just what you need after a day on the bike. Inexperienced cyclists and e-bikers can do it, too. But it may be a little dull for e-bikers -- there is no challenge here that someone who cycles regularly cannot meet. There are more difficult options offered if you haven't had enough. I might go back - it was that much fun.

Wonderful trip! Biking along the Douro and surrounding areas was amazing. We were able to go to some remote places and really experience the area without a lot of tourists around. The meals we had in the small towns were top notch! We had wonderful tours as well. Matyas and David were excellent guides. Riding an ebike on this tour enabled me to enjoy the multiple steep hills.

The guides and the boat and staff were great. However, the trip did not meet the usual VBT expectations. The trip itinerary lists a warm up ride in Porto. This does not exist. The "warm up" and bike fitting are in a small parking lot the next day where there is no space to adequately test the bike. So you're immediately out on a road with no shoulder in heavy traffic for 16 miles along the river. No doubt there are some nice views, but when you're only concerned about safety and figuring out the bike, there is no time for scenery. The next couple days riding were moderately uninteresting scenery. The best ride was the Rails to Trails - Safe, beautiful, interesting. We were looking forward to the final ride to the Atlantic Coast but got rained out. Because of being on the boat there are daily transfers by bus of up to an hour each way to get to the biking areas and back to the boat. Too much time on a bus!! While it was nice to only unpack once, the trade off of charming hotels and villages with our bikes on the property was not worth it.

Trip #2 with VBT and once again the entire tour exceeded my expectations. The towns of Spain via bike were breathless. The leaders were knowledgeable, friendly, fun and organized. Loved by Trip #2 and plan to do more......

This was the best VBT trip I've had. Great biking,and mix of culture. Excellent unique hotels,and our guides were extremely fun and happy to share their culture.

The tour was outstanding in every way. The two guides were excellent. My only complaint is with the travel arrangements which were resolved, I believe, only because I complained vociferously. .

The landscape is beautiful, the hikes encompass a variety of terrain and experiences, and the wines are delicious!

I was looking for a sunny getaway with moderately challenging walks, picture-perfect towns and taps. This walked delivered all that and more. The guides were outstanding and my fellow travelers were enthusiastic as well as kind and interesting to be with. The landscapes were surprisingly different but all gorgeous in different ways. Truly a trip to remember.

Mallorca is, of course, a spectacularly beautiful place to explore on foot. And when the explorers have the most personable and knowledgeable local guides ever, daily delights abound! We loved the gorgeous views, the satisfying and educational snack breaks (where we enjoyed fresh local fruits and treats, and even sampled the traditional mallorquin sausage, sobrasada, prepared and cured by our lead guide, Jaume!), the cultural and historical education shared by our two proud Mallorquin guides - everything!