Great trip with a wonderful group and just sooo much to see plus lots of great food! Fides Schwartz, 2017 See more reviews
Good trip overall for both culture and cycling. You learn a lot about the Baltic countries and... Lyn Wales, 2017 See more reviews
The itinerary is accurate. This was my first experience with a group cycling tour and I was a... Jay Bordoloi, 2017 See more reviews
It was a fantastic trip, every day was a new adventure. The cycling was varied, and there was a... Susan Bigmore, 2017 See more reviews
Excellent trip with brilliant tour leader, with surprisingly good weather for the time of year. Peter Pattison, 2016 See more reviews
Just as explained in the brochure enhanced by our wonderful tour leader, Simon. From the fairy... Ruth Tobey, 2016 See more reviews
A very enjoyable trip with great weather - we had sunshine every day. The cycling (for a... Colin McCabe, 2016 See more reviews
Cycled and toured with a great group of travelers. Despite the occasional rain and cold, we... Neil Neumann, 2016 See more reviews
A great trip, blending cultural aspects, great sightseeing, exploring the 3 capital cities as... Kevin Griffin, 2016 See more reviews
Itinerary Include flights Expand all Day 1 Fly to Tallinn; transfer to hotel. Fly to Tallinn; transfer to start hotel. On arrival there should be some time to explore Tallinn. Tallinn is a fascinating historical city with many sites to explore. We recommend strolling through the streets of the Old Town to Raekoja Plats (Town Hall Square), the square is surrounded by elaborate merchant houses and is the perfect setting to enjoy a coffee. Historically it served as a market and meeting place. If you find the round stone with a compass rose in the middle of the square you will be able to see the 5 church spires of the old town. The Cathedral of Saint Mary, St. Alexander Nevsky and St. Olav's Church have long characterised the skyline of the old town and are well worth a visit, as are the old town walls. Day 2 Explore Tallinn; transfer to the Lahemaa N.P. for a scenic ride. After a bus transfer out of the city, we will begin our first ride through National Park Lahemaa. The park, one of the last unspoilt regions of the Baltic Coast, extends over 700 square kilometres. Its nature is rich and unique. Here you will cycle through thick woods, marshes and lakes. Above all, the coastline is what makes this area so distinctive. It is also a rich environment for wildlife with moose and wild boar, although difficult to spot, and over 220 species of bird – keep your eyes open! Our accommodation for the evening is situated in the national park itself and is in a spectacular setting in the grounds of an old distillery. Meals included: Breakfast Day 3 Full day riding through Lahemma N.P. Today we have a full day to explore the largest national park in Estonia and one of the biggest in Europe. We will embark on a circular route taking in as many of the parks wonderful attractions as possible. Starting from Palmse Hotel (the former park manor house), we will pass Sagadi manor, the 400 year old fisherman’s village of Altja, the popular seaside resort of Vosu, and Kasmu village which is home to the fisherman’s museum. We finish the loop cycling back through Estonian forests and meadows until we arrive at the hotel.Park Hotel Palmse Meals included: Breakfast Day 4 Transfer to Peipsi and cycle along the shore of the lake; transfer to Tartu. We start the day with a bus transfer to the shore of Peipsi Lake, then start cycling from the 17th Century fisherman’s village of Mustvee. From here we pass through ancient towns and churches. Following an old Russian tradition, villages in Peipsi only have one street. Because of this, the shore of Peipsi Lake is one long street with lots of small settlements dotted along it. We continue cycling into Varnja and then transfer to Tartu. Tartu Hotel Meals included: Breakfast Day 5 Cycle through 'Estonian Switzerland' to Otepaa; transfer to Riga. After breakfast, we have a 40km transfer to Otepaa. This area is known as ‘Estonian Switzerland’ because of its stunning scenery and pine forests. As you would expect, there are a few hills on today’s ride, though nothing too steep and challenging with the gradient not going above 7%. Once over the hills, we cycle through beautiful forest and meadows and past Lake Puhajarve on our way to Sangaste town. We will visit the park and castle in Sangaste – walking up the castle tower gives us a great view over Otepaa and the surrounding green natural areas. After visiting the castle we continue cycling to Valga city, and from here we transfer by bus to Riga, our base for the next two nights. Ibis Centre Riga Meals included: Breakfast Day 6 Cycle to Jurmala; transfer to Riga for the night. Our journey today will start in the bustling town Riga, Latvia’s largest town and capital city. The city has a mediaeval old town which is famous for its wooden buildings and art nouveau architecture. We will then follow the cycle paths to the beautiful town of Jurmala, which is famous for its incredible wooden buildings and 19th Century Russian villas. Jurmala is also one of Latvia’s largest seaside resorts – it has a 33km stretch of white sandy beach for us to explore on our bikes. There will be plenty of time to have a swim in the sea before we transfer back to Riga for the night. Ibis Centre Riga Meals included: Breakfast Day 7 Transfer to Sventoji; cycle to Klaipeda. After breakfast, we leave Latvia and transfer directly to Lithuania. We begin our ride in Sventoji on a beautiful cycle route to Klaipeda, which lies along the Baltic Coast. On the way we pass Palanga, a traditional bucket and spade seaside town with a long stretch of sandy beach. It's a really fun place to stop, have a wander around, a dip in the sea, and see one of the most favoured seaside towns among Lithuanians. We will visit the Palanga Botanical Gardens and manor house which is now home to the amber museum. There are numerous cafes to sit and enjoy the atmosphere and have some lunch before we set off again for our final destination of Klaipeda, our base for two nights. Our hotel is close to the Old Town, so a good spot from which to explore.Amberton Hotel Klaipeda Meals included: Breakfast Day 8 Transfer to the Curonian Spit N.P; explore by bike. We transfer to Nida, known as the town of retreat, and an artist’s resort. It was home and inspiration for two summers to the author Thomas Mann and its affluent feel and tranquillity encourages the feeling that you are on a holiday within a holiday. From here we explore the 68km long Curonian Spit. The high dunes (up to 60m) running along the spit have encouraged the local people to refer to the area as the 'Lithuanian Sahara'. During our ride we will make a stop in Juodkrante and admire the bizarre wooden carvings on what is known as Witch Hill. The sculpture park was started in 1979 and now has more than 70 wooden carvings representing characters of Lithuanian folktale and legend. We will then continue along the spit with the Baltic Sea extending far into the distance. We finish the ride at the ferry port, and from here we take the ferry across the lagoon then transfer back to the hotel in Klaipeda for the night. Amberton Hotel Klaipeda Meals included: Breakfast Day 9 Transfer to Kintai village; cycle to Vente Cape and Silute; transfer to Vilnius. We start the day with a bus transfer to Kintai village, and from here we cycle through dense green forests and beautiful meadows to Vente Cape. There is a lot of wildlife at Vente Cape as it is a popular resting place for birds on their migration, and it's home to one of the first bird ringing stations in Europe. We will visit the 11m high lighthouse which offers breathtaking views of the lagoon and golden sand dunes of the Curonian Split; the lighthouse is a fascinating place, built in 1863 when the cape was still part of Germany. We continue cycling to the town of Silute where we get on the bus and transfer to Vilnius. Panorama Hotel Meals included: Breakfast Day 10 Transfer to Trakai; cycle around town and visit Trakai Castle; return to Vilnius. After breakfast, we transfer by bus to the small village of Semeliskes. From here we have a picturesque ride over undulating terrain to Galve Lake. Here the magical and famous Trakai Castle sits, as if floating on its own island in the middle of the lake – it’s a truly magical place. We will explore the surrounding areas of the lake and visit the Castle before transferring back to Vilnius for the night. Panorama Hotel Meals included: Breakfast Day 11 Explore Vilnius; fly to London. Transfer to Vilnius airport; fly to London. Meals included: Breakfast
Hotels 10 nights in 3-star hotels, all with en suite facilities in good locations. There are some fantastic hotels on this trip, including two nights in a converted distillery set in the magnificent grounds of the Lahemaa National Park.
Charlotte Newman Operational Quality Executive (Health & Safety) Cycling Holidays, Self-guided, Belize, Eastern Europe, Italy, Mexico
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Reviewed June 2018 Leslie Edlington Trip: Cycle the Baltics Longer days than expected. The days were much longer than we expected as the ride was graded at 2 which is about right for the type of cycling we experienced. On past trips we have arrived at the hotels between 3 and 5 giving time to shower, wash kit and get out to see around around the city before eating. With some of the transfers being long we often had little time to see the place we were staying in. This resulted in eating late and consequently not getting to bed until late. Much of the cycling is on the flat and on narrow cycling lanes which was a bit boring at times. What was the most inspirational moment of your trip? With me it was eating smoked perch for my lunch on the beach. A first. Seeing a pied wagtail that was just about all white. Meeting a large primary school party of various ages that were celebrating the end of term with a three day cycling trip. All really enjoying them selves. Meeting the Danish Ambassador to Estonia with her official transport a bike. What did you think of your group leader? Vaida was a very good leader. Gave us excellent information especially about the lengths of each day and each leg of cycling. She took us to excellent restaurants and all the food was good to excellent. I particularly liked receiving the maps each day and finding out where we were cycling from and too. Do you have any advice for potential travellers? If you can, practice a few 20 milers on flat land. Is there anything else you would like to add? This is meant as constructive criticism. Try to shorten the days on the road to give more time in the towns.
Reviewed September 2017 Fides Schwartz Trip: Cycle the Baltics Beautiful autumn cycling Great trip with a wonderful group and just sooo much to see plus lots of great food! What was the most inspirational moment of your trip? Waving to Kaliningrad (Russia) from the lithuanian part of the curonian spit. What did you think of your group leader? Very professional, knowledgeable and fun! Do you have any advice for potential travellers? Book an extra day in Tallinn and Vilnius at the beginning and end of the trip. Is there anything else you would like to add? It would be wonderful, if there was a possibility to extend the trip a little bit to include an extra day in Riga.
Reviewed September 2017 Lyn Wales Trip: Cycle the Baltics Baltics Cycling Good trip overall for both culture and cycling. You learn a lot about the Baltic countries and their uneasy relationship with Russia. The cycling was mostly flat, which is hard in the legs especially in a head wind. At times their were unavoidable long flat straight stretches on roads which were dull. What was the most inspirational moment of your trip? Visiting the farmhouse with museum on the Gulf of Finland. The location, lunch, and history provided by the owners were all great. What did you think of your group leader? Vaida was excellent. Knowledgable, helpful, personable and always 'ready, ready'. Even though she was suffering with a sore throat. Do you have any advice for potential travellers? It's colder than you think. Layers! Is there anything else you would like to add? The food was brilliant. Had expected heavy dishes, but the restaurants chosen by Vaida gave us an excellent taste of all that the Baltics had to offer.
Reviewed September 2017 Jay Bordoloi Trip: Cycle the Baltics Wonderful first group cycling trip experience! The itinerary is accurate. This was my first experience with a group cycling tour and I was a solo traveler. I would say the trip exceeded my expectations because I saw local towns/areas that I would not have normally visited on my own in the country-side, the travel group was a great set of people from all over the world, and the places we visited for food were very tasty and a great sampling of local cuisine. During the visits to capital cities, I learned a lot about the history of various Baltic countries from the medieval to modern era. Overall, I enjoyed the routes we cycled (generally minimal car traffic) as they were in scenic areas. What was the most inspirational moment of your trip? Cycling through a small town and the tour guide striking up a conversation with an old lady sitting with her cat. Hearing about the lady's history in the town was fascinating and was something I would not have been able to do, had I been traveling on my own. What did you think of your group leader? Our trip leader was a wonderful tour guide. She worked very hard to make sure everyone was having a good time and was clear in her directions for what the itinerary for the day would be. She worked well with our driver to coordinate van support and our safe transportation. In addition, her friendly personality helped facilitate the group getting to know each other. Do you have any advice for potential travellers? While the route is very flat, I would say 'leisurely' is not so accurate. As generally the group needs to cover 20-30mi/day and have time for van transfers, there is not so much time for frequent breaks. While the pace is certainly comfortable and doable, 'leisurely' to me implies more frequent stops for photo opportunities or small snacks/picnics during the route. I would rate the trip as a 3 or 4, as 10 days of riding in a row on mostly flat terrain does require some level of effort. Is there anything else you would like to add? Overall wonderful trip with comfortable hotels, great restaurant selection, safe and scenic cycling routes, and a very friendly local tour guide!
Reviewed June 2017 Susan Bigmore Trip: Cycle the Baltics Cycle the Baltics It was a fantastic trip, every day was a new adventure. The cycling was varied, and there was a lot of custom made cycle paths, e.g. on the Coronian Spit which consisted of just miles of cycle paths. The hotels were great, the best being the one in the National Park called Palmse Manor, with a stunning lake. The Hotel Braavo in Tallin was probably one not to return to, as they were obviously doing some refurbishments and it was a bit like a "work in progress". What was the most inspirational moment of your trip? Finding out we'd cycled 403 kilometres over 9 days! It was tough sometimes, but it was a challenge and I was glad I did it. Another inspirational moment was going into a Russian Orthodox church in Vilnius and there was some chanting going on, and it really was very unique and special. The food we had during the whole trip was excellent, I couldn't fault it. What did you think of your group leader? Minda was a really nice guy and was very encouraging. I was always at the end of the line (out of a group of 16) and sometimes I'd see them disappear into the distance on rides but he would wait for me. I feel that maybe a back-marker might have been useful. When we talked to us in the bus, I was at the back and couldn't hear him that well, a microphone might have been useful. Do you have any advice for potential travellers? Don't take too much luggage and because you're moving on, you never get to unpack your case! Is there anything else you would like to add? I think maybe a non-cycling day in the middle of this holiday would have been nice to just recuperate from the relentless schedule - sometimes we'd have barely half an hour to get ready to go out to dinner. It was all so well organised - it was my first Exodus trip and I'd definitely go on another one.
Reviewed September 2016 Peter Pattison Trip: Cycle the Baltics Cycle the Baltics Excellent trip with brilliant tour leader, with surprisingly good weather for the time of year. What was the most inspirational moment of your trip? Visiting Tallin, and the pretty villages as we cycled down the coast around Klaipeda. The Castle at Trakai was lovely as much of the architecture in all the many "Old Towns" that we visited. What did you think of your group leader? Vaida Jusaite was just the best in everyway possible,she has lead this trip many times,so knew all about everything and everywhere in detail. Vaida also selected the very best restaurants everywhere that we went, all were excellent and we would have never found them had we travelled independently. Do you have any advice for potential travellers? For an easy cycling trip without challenging conditions as the roads are very quiet,do try this trip as if you enjoyed it as much as we did, you will be very pleased that you went,especially if you are lucky enought to have Vaida as your tour leader. Is there anything else you would like to add? Try it,you will like it.
Reviewed September 2016 Ruth Tobey Trip: Cycle the Baltics Cycle the Baltics Just as explained in the brochure enhanced by our wonderful tour leader, Simon. From the fairy-tale castles, westernised beauty of Talinn we cycled through lush forested paths to Riga and the wonderful Old Town of Vilnius. It was eerie actually being in a spot where the Iron Curtain once was and having it brought to mind how close the Russian bear actually lurks. Our guide was able to explain to us the sad history of the Baltic nations on one hand and the resilience of a most beautiful wonderful people on the other. A great group of fellow cyclists led to the enjoyment of delicious food, eclectic B&B s and an amazing culture. What was the most inspirational moment of your trip? Feeling the resilience and hope of such wonderful people in countries historically neglected by the Western democracies. The passion of our tour leader Simon and our wonderful guide, Ira. What did you think of your group leader? Our leader, Simon, was extraordinary. In all instances he went beyond the call of duty to make everyone feel like a valuable member of our group and as such our group's convivial nature was enhanced. Simon told us wonderful tales of Lithuanian folklore and he even sang for us in his rich voice. Simon took in consideration the weather etc and was ready to alter situations as per daily requirements, if necessary. He went out of his way to find us local tour guides in Riga and Vilnius who passionately (especially in Riga) recounted the history of their country as we toured each country's respective Old Town. Simon was probably the greatest reason the trip was such a success. Do you have any advice for potential travellers? Even though terrain was definitely leisurely- moderate, the most proficient cyclist of our group admitted the history and positives of the cycle far our weighed the lack of challenge. Nevertheless, we had great fun enjoying the fun a flat our fun cycle on a relatively flat terrain. Go - enjoy the culture, food and history of the Baltic Nations. Is there anything else you would like to add? One of my best trips ever.
Reviewed September 2016 Colin McCabe Trip: Cycle the Baltics Cycle the Baltics, August 2016 A very enjoyable trip with great weather - we had sunshine every day. The cycling (for a reasonably fit non-cyclist) was manageable and we arrived in towns and cities in time to see some/most of the major sites. What was the most inspirational moment of your trip? The Baltics themselves - each country and their towns and cities are full of history and culture. I'm definitely going back to see more. What did you think of your group leader? Vaida was brilliant - I arrived a day early and she was there to greet me and some other travellers, and she contacted me a couple of days after the tour ended with my transfer arrangements. She really did go the extra mile to ensure we were all happy and sorted. Do you have any advice for potential travellers? Bring bug spray - I was murdered by mozzies. It makes sense to arrive a day early to see Tallinn as there is not enough time on the trip to properly enjoy it. Is there anything else you would like to add? The food and hotels were better than I expected.
Reviewed August 2016 Neil Neumann Trip: Cycle the Baltics Cycle the Baltics Cycled and toured with a great group of travelers. Despite the occasional rain and cold, we managed to see quite a bit and explore new places. The accommodations were conveniently located to important places of interest and restaurants; liked the fact that we stayed in almost all the hotels for at least two consecutive nights. What was the most inspirational moment of your trip? Visiting the Vilnius Jewish ghetto and synagogue and imagining how life was during the war. What did you think of your group leader? Lukas was attentive to all our needs and very knowledgeable about the places we visited. He always addressed our concerns promptly and appropriately. He just needs to relax more! Do you have any advice for potential travellers? Keep a close eye on the weather reports and pack accordingly.
Reviewed August 2016 Kevin Griffin Trip: Cycle the Baltics Cycle the Baltics A great trip, blending cultural aspects, great sightseeing, exploring the 3 capital cities as well as some nice cycling. Terrain was nice and flat and was within the capability of everyone in our group. Distances were very manageable and there was a minimum of waiting around. Lukas, our guide and the driver were simply outstanding in getting us up on our bikes each day with a minimum of fuss. Fast turnaround time between finishing our cycling and being back on the move again on the bus. What was the most inspirational moment of your trip? I really enjoyed the Riga and Vilnius walking tours.... It was great to get local insight into the history and the people. As for the cycling... the scenery everywhere was pretty good... cycling by the sea, through Forest, rolling country-side, stopping for lunches in very scenic settings (castles), great seafood and sampling the many potato dishes on offer! What did you think of your group leader? Lukas was outstanding. He handled the group very well, was very attentive to everyone's needs and couldnt' do enough to help. Very knowledgeable about all 3 countries and clearly passionate about his beloved Lithuania! Do you have any advice for potential travellers? Bring rain gear. We were very fortunate to only have experience a small amount of rain while cycling, but the weather is changeable and you could be unlucky and hit a few rain-showers... so be prepared. Is there anything else you would like to add? I'm happy to recommend the trip. A great balance of health exercise, sightseeing and immersion in different cultures.