Hi All - what a great site and resource HU is - only been here a few weeks and already have learned heaps

I am seeking any advice (particularly from those who have done similar) on a couple of options that I'm looking at for a trip we're just starting to plan for two years time

The wife and I want to ride old Route 66, both riding

Figure we'll take 3 weeks or so

From Melbourne, Australia we're looking to fly into Chicago, couple days looking around; 2-3 weeks exploring the mother road; then a couple days with friends in LA and fly home again

Initial research has told me that to hire a couple Harleys will cost me around $7k US - pretty expensive

Another thought is to fly our bikes into the US, ride then sea freight home. The thought behind air there is to avoid any customs delays which are quite regular from what I'm told (customs delays in Melb when we're back aren't going to be a big issue); but from research it looks like air-freight bikes into the US is quite difficult these days

OR - buy bikes in the US and then sell at the end of the trip, or ship home. Initial thoughts are its lot of hassle for 3-4 weeks but may be an option....

Sea freighting home is not a worry as my mate in LA has freighted stuff to Melb when he was back and forth between countries so can help on that end. Also have a local contact in Colorado

So - to the questions:

Has anyone done the Route 66 road trip with hire bikes? Cost, companies to use, tips, tricks etc?
Has anyone from Australia flown their bike to the US? Cost, who did you use, tips etc?
Any things to be aware of when buying bikes in the US (apart from the obvious issues around bike condition etc) - transferring ownership, registration & insurance etc?

We've done a US trip with the family driving across multi-states a few years back so not stresses about the actual riding or trip location planning, its just the hire v ship v buy question that I'm mainly struggling with initially

Any help or advice gratefully accepted

pete

Welcome to the HUBB, and glad you're enjoying it!

If what you want is Harley Davidson and you're doing a one-way rental (presumably during approximately high season), it's going to be expensive. You'd do better with a less ostentatious bike--might find one for around $100/day, so closer to $4000. Still....

I'll let you make the comparison with shipping costs, but it's doubtful you can do better on a 3 week trip.

Also doubtful you'll want to search out, purchase, register, and insure a bike, then advertise and sell it at the end of your limited time in the US. You'd save money if you could do it, but the uncertainty and hassle might destroy your vacation. If your friend in LA is reliable, you could sign the bikes over and let him sell them--no time pressure, no hassle for you.

You'd still need to figure out how to make a purchase. There are several long threads on purchasing bikes in the US, and you should search them out (I tested the search box in the upper right corner using terms like "purchase in US," and turned up a bunch). Basically, certain states make it easy, others make it difficult, and the rest make it impossible. You'll still be eating up valuable time in Chicago looking for two suitable purchases, and of course you'd be taking some risks; what if one bike dies a thousand miles from anywhere in particular? Etc.

I'm trying my best not to bother pointing out that "The Mother Road" is partially obliterated, largely dead boring, and only intermittently fun, scenic, interesting, or entertaining. I hope you both know what you're signing on for.

Hope that's helpful.

Mark

Thanks Mark

Doesn't have to be HDs so will explore other, cheaper options

Yep, aware that its pretty much a crappy, long, straight road but we're doing it for the crappy roadside attractions and to see the country rather than for the riding - just ticking two boxes in one trip

Thanks for the tip on buying threads, I've done some scrolling but never even thought to use the search

I went through all of this four years ago and looked at exactly the same options - shipping vs renting vs buying. We were doing east coast to west coast but picking up 66 in Oklahoma. We were then going to ride back to the east coast. Because of the time needed to do that we needed a rental bike for quite some time and the costs were crazy - we were getting quotes around $8000 and I suspect when we actually came to pay there would a few taxes etc that would suddenly inflate that. So we bought instead. $10,000 got us a low mileage GoldWing (my wifes choice!) which we used for the trip, then a second trip in 2017 and there's a third one planned for early next year. So on a value for money basis buying has worked out to be by far the best. Even if I gave the bike away after that it would work out far cheaper than renting.

But - it was only possible because I have friends in the US who were willing to do the 'heavy lifting' (buying it, sorting out the paper work and keeping it in their barn between trips) Without that the logistics of buying would have been virtually impossible and having to sell it to a deadline would have added end of trip stress that we could have done without. One of the possibilities we looked at was buying from a dealer with some kind of buy back arrangement at the end but over the course of months we (+ our US friends) couldn't find anyone on the east coast who'd do that. They may exist but we couldn't find them. They'd all do the sell bit but re buying it was all 'bring it along and we'll have a look'. Having visited a few bike dealers I'm not surprised.

We met a lot of people riding (and driving) R66. Almost everybody was doing it on a tight schedule; two weeks on a rental bike (usually a Harley) wasn't unusual. As we only picked it up in Oklahoma I can't say much about the northern section but going west from there was worth doing. As Mark said much of it no longer exists so you're forced onto I-40 but for long stretches it's still there and (mostly) easy to follow. Often there's only a narrow grass verge between the two roads and you could easily swap from one to the other (cops notwithstanding). Mostly it gets interesting when you come to the towns, particularly some of the smaller ones that I-40 has bypassed. There's still (particularly out west) a kind of marketing led regard for 66 so if you've not been out there before it's worth doing.

There are R66 guidebooks and some of the people we met were slavishly following every turn and twist in their particular book. That way (IMHO) lies madness. We followed it when it was convenient but not slavishly. There's lots of other (more) interesting stuff to see / do that's off the route. We did do the end of the road picture in Santa Monica just to finish it off though. And then wrote our own book about it

Lots of interstate, very little in the way of attractions. Everyone's got their own opinions and desires, of course, but I see this as a very 'low quality' trip.

You can see so much more, experience so much more, by taking other state and federal highways (2 lane). You won't be disappointed by the small towns strung out along the way, the real heart of the country.

I've looked at parts of 66 and always ended up leaving it behind.

Obviously, just my opinion

...........shu

@backofbeyond - fantastic feedback, exactly the kind of advice I'm looking for

@shu thanks for the reply but you're answering questions not asked. We're happy with our plans on where & what to see

Have fun!

..........shu

My wife and I did it in 2016. We went with a company that booked the bike and motels and gave us guide books and maps. The last is important as most modern maps do not feature Route 66 at all. It was often a case of riding 20kms along an interstate then turning off to find where the 66 picks up. That’s why a dedicated map is essential. We did it on an Indian, which is vastly superior to the Harley and got even more looks. It was good on gas and comfy. Taking your own bike as I did recently on a RTW trip gives you the familiarity and knowing how your stuff will fit. Got insurance while I was there with no problem. Would always use airfreight as by type time you take into consideration the costs of receiving the bike with port fees there was not a huge saving, having tried both. We loved Route 66 but you have to take time out to see what’s left, as its easily bypassed.

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Tim & Sue Angus