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7 days december any advice? 7 days december any advice?
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Route Planning Where to go, when, what are the interesting places to see
Photo by Andy Miller, UK, Taking a rest, Jokulsarlon, Iceland

I haven't been everywhere...
but it's on my list!


Photo by Andy Miller, UK,
Taking a rest,
Jokulsarlon, Iceland



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  • 1 Post By GaryD12345
  • 2 Post By pheonix

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  #1  
Old 13 Oct 2013
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7 days december any advice?
i have a week off mid december and wanted to go on a bike tour. i'm based in the UK so something close to home doesn't really appeal due to the weather.
Any suggestions? i would prefer to take my bike but realise that the short time may be a limiting factor so would consider bike rental.

Advice and suggestions welcome

oops, i forgot to say my bike is cb500x so appropriate road surfaces needed
Last edited by GaryD12345; 13 Oct 2013 at 19:06.
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Old 13 Oct 2013
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Originally Posted by GaryD12345 View Post
but realise that the short time may be a limiting factor so would consider bike rental.
IMO, the worst factor at that time of year in the N hemis are the short hours of daylight for riding; riding at night in crap weather with juggernauts looming is not great fun, or to be recommended.

Go rent in Spain or Morocco would be my choice.
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Old 14 Oct 2013
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thanks for the reply. looking around at tour companies i think it would probably be better to put any money planed for december towards next years trip. rental places seem to charge a fortune
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Old 14 Oct 2013
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Well, a couple of possibilities come to mind:-

1. Throw a dart at a map of the UK and go where ever it lands.

2. Ride your local area on a daily basis, searching out all those local roads and tracks that you have never been on before; it is always possible to find somewhere new.

3. Keep an eye on the 5 day weather forecast much nearer the time and work out the best place to be in the UK over the time you have.
(for the last few days that would be the NW of Scotland!).

(Yeah, that came to 3 ideas).
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Old 31 Oct 2013
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Gary
Rather than renting, take the ferry from portsmouth to spain - in 24 hours you arrive relaxed and ready for a week of biking before returning on the same route
Rather than book online, call the booking office to ask for a shared single-sex cabin. It's much cheaper than paying for a whole cabin. In December, it's highly unlikely someone else will take the other bed. Alternatively, sleep in a lounge chair & save even more!
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Old 31 Oct 2013
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Originally Posted by pheonix View Post
Gary
Rather than renting, take the ferry from portsmouth to spain - in 24 hours you arrive relaxed and ready for a week of biking before returning on the same route
Rather than book online, call the booking office to ask for a shared single-sex cabin. It's much cheaper than paying for a whole cabin. In December, it's highly unlikely someone else will take the other bed. Alternatively, sleep in a lounge chair & save even more!
Just had a look at Brittany ferries, £208 return from Portsmouth to Santander, not a bad price at all
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Old 31 Oct 2013
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yes but add a cabin ( and you really do want one) it comes to £368!

How about adding another £150 and going to Bangkok? ! better food, hot weather, great beaches yadda yadda yadda!
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Old 1 Nov 2013
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If you've only got a week I'd have thought long haul flying would be off the agenda - too much time in airports, delays, jet lag etc.

Anything in Britain in Dec is going to be at the level of muck and bullets rallies - get blown off the road while riding 500 miles in constant rain at night and then fall asleep blind drunk in a ditch for a couple of days. That sort of thing is ok if you want to put the rest of your life in perspective but for a holiday it's a bit out on the edge.

My suggestion would be to leave the bike at home, grab a flight to southern Spain and hire a ..... car! You could spend four of five days touring around there in reasonable weather and unlike bike hire, cars are reasonably cheap.
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Old 1 Nov 2013
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[QUOTE=Bertrand;442118]yes but add a cabin ( and you really do want one) it comes to £368!

How about adding another £150 and going to Bangkok? ! better food, hot weather, great beaches yadda yadda yadda![/QUO

I think the idea of no cabin adds to the adventure

More than likely when someone sees you in all your bike gear and starts chatting with you, they might offer you a spare bed in their cabin, buy them some dinner and everyone is happy
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