PortugalBike

Additional Information

Frequently Asked Questions

PORTUGALBIKE TOURS DIVIDED BY TYPE:

1. ROAD BIKE TOURS:

• The Ancient Medieval Villages7 days / 6 nights / 5 days cycling – Intermediate
Region of Portugal: Alentejo (inland)

• The Charming Pousadas in Alentejo 7 days / 6 nights / 5 days cycling – Beginners / Intermediate
Region of Portugal: Alentejo (inland)

• Towards Algarve 7 days / 6 nights / 5 days cycling (+ beach) – Intermediate
Regions of Portugal: Alentejo and Algarve (coast)

2. HYBRID BIKE TOURS:

• Along the Silver Coast 7 days / 6 nights / 3 days cycling / 1 day walking / 1 day rest (+ beach) – Intermediate
Region of Portugal: North coast of Lisbon Region

• The Beautiful Alentejo Beaches7 days / 6 nights / 4 days cycling / 1 day rest (+ beach) – Intermediate
Regions of Portugal: Alentejo and Algarve (coast)

• Cycling Alentejo Wineries 7 days / 6 nights / 5 days cycling – Beginner
Region of Portugal: Alentejo (inland)

• The Megalithic Heritage in Alentejo 7 days / 6 nights / 4 days cycling / 1 day rest – Intermediate
Region of Portugal: Alentejo (inland)

• Riding Down to the Historical Villages 7 days / 6 nights / 5 days cycling (+ fluvial beach) – Intermediate
Region of Portugal: Centre of Portugal

3. MOUNTAIN BIKE TOURS:

• The Beautiful Alentejo Beaches7 days / 6 nights / 4 days cycling / 1 day rest (+ beach) – Advanced
Regions of Portugal: Alentejo and Algarve (coast)

• Crossing the Algarve7 days / 6 nights / 5 days cycling – Advanced
Region of Portugal: Algarve

• The Granitic Villages on the Mountains7 days / 6 nights / 5 days cycling – Expert
Region of Portugal: North of Portugal

• Serra da Estrela …Sheer Down! 7 days / 6 nights / 5 days cycling (+ fluvial beach) – Beginners / Intermediate
Region of Portugal: Centre of Portugal

PORTUGALBIKE TOURS DIVIDED BY CLASS:

1. HISTORIC TOURS:

• The Ancient Medieval Villages (Road Bike Tour)
The castles and the land of ancient fights and battles

• The Charming Pousadas in Alentejo (Road Bike Tour)
Romantic environment and Heritage show Portugal History

• Cycling Alentejo Wineries (Hybrid Bike Tour)
Visit to 5 wineries and taste the famous Alentejo wine

• The Megalithic Heritage in Alentejo (Hybrid Bike Tour)
The land of wine, cork oak trees, and pre-historical monuments

• Riding Down to the Historical Villages (Hybrid Bike Tour)
An amazing mixture of Adventure and Culture

2. LANDSCAPE TOURS:

• Towards Algarve (Road Bike Tour)
The long Atlantic coast from south of Lisbon to the Algarve

• Along the Silver Coast (Hybrid Bike Tour)
The most preserved medieval town and the coast north of Lisbon

• The Beautiful Alentejo Beaches (Hybrid Bike Tour)
The vast landscapes and the paradisiacal beaches

• The Beautiful Alentejo Beaches (Mountain Bike Tour)
The vast landscapes and the paradisiacal beaches

• Crossing the Algarve (Mountain Bike Tour)
The inland side of the famous Algarve

• The Granitic Villages on the Mountains (Mountain Bike Tour)
Ancient granitic houses and old people in a green environment

• Serra da Estrela …Sheer Down! (Mountain Bike Tour)
The slopes of the highest mountain in Continental Portugal

DIFFICULTY LEVELS:

Each PortugalBike Tour is classified according to its difficulty level, from 1 to 5. Level 1 is the easiest and level 5 is the most difficult.

Levels 1 and 2 are for Beginners (You are not in good shape)
Level 3 is for Intermediate Bikers (You must be in good shape)
Level 4 is for Advanced Bikers (You are fit and in good shape)
Level 5 is for Expert Bikers (You are in very good shape! You are a winner!)

Besides the classification for overall difficulty level of each PortugalBike Tour, each day is also classified from 1 to 5. Usually when the trails are difficult, we ride less km/day and when the trails are easy, we ride more km/day. Please note that the purpose of PortugalBike Tours is not to train, but only to enjoy your bicycle, nature and environment. …Your are on vacations!

WHAT CAN WE EXPECT ON A PORTUGALBIKE TOUR?

PortugalBike Tours are designed so that we begin at a certain point and we end elsewhere. You do not start and end at the same place. We think that is the best way to discover Portugal …riding a bicycle! Read the specific information about each ride to learn more details.

PortugalBike Tours can be Guided (with a Guide) or Self-Guided (with a GPS device with all tracks recorded). The big difference between the prices for Guided and Self-Guided Tours is that the Self-Guided Tours do not include dinners, picnics, energy bars and water during the day. There is always a backup car to provide any assistance you may need.

PortugalBike Tours have a maximum of 16 participants, and a minimum of two. Larger groups are also possible upon request and according to our availability. Our Bike Tours are prepared for one week (7 days / Saturday to Friday).

The dates of PortugalBike Tours are according to our calendar, or on request, according to our availability. The prices below are for the scheduled PortugalBike Tours. If you wish a different date, ask us for prices and availability.

»»» WE ARE PROUD TO OFFER YOU A GOOD PRODUCT AND A QUALITY SERVICE «««

SOME TESTIMONIALS:

About “The Ancient Medieval Villages” Tour (Road Bike Tour):

»»»» I would like to thank Jose and Cristina for operating a “first class” bike tour. I truly enjoyed the variety of scenery throughout the small villages . The road bikes that were provided were of excellent standard which helped in the challenging experience on each hill travelled!! I would highly recommend the guided tour since Jose provides valuable insight on the Portuguese landscapes that are visited. Cristina also provides superior service with the support van. From our picnic lunches, to our dinner’s out in the various towns, everything was well taken care. We especially enjoyed the wonderful meals, which were accompanied with a well deserved glass of red wine in the evening to celebrate our riding accomplishments. I truly enjoyed the experience, and I definitely plan to come again in 2010! = Laura Allpress – Age: 45 (Ontario – Canada), 2009 =

»»»» I had the most fabulous bike adventure trip with the PortugalBike tour company. I have participated in other adventure holidays in the past but this was my favourite and definitely exceeded my expectations. The hotels that we stayed at were amazing, all very quaint, interesting and one night we even stayed in castle! The food, and I love to eat; complete breakfasts to begin or day, picnic lunches that were nutritious and represented local foods and cheeses and finally our dinners – they were so wonderful (all of them) complete with an excellent choice of wine selected by Jose (who is very knowledgeable about the local wines). Another key factor was I always felt in good hands in a foreign country …Safety first; the route was well planned to consider traffic volumes and road conditions, top of line equipment and very knowledgeable guides. I would highly recommend this bike tour to anybody interested in truly seeing this beautiful country; from the cork trees, vineyards, storks, black pigs, hilly terrain to the fabulous medieval towns we visited. I can’t wait to come back and do the Algarve bike trip. Thanks so much Jose and Cristina for leaving me with such a memorable experience, you run a top class tour! = Terry Nason – Age: 43 (Orangeville – Canada), 2009 =

»»»» Just wanted to write and thank you for an amazing, thoroughly enjoyable tour. It was a great experience, terrific fun and exceeded my expectations in just about every way. You put together a terrific package and deliver it in a highly professional, but at the same time personal way that I truly appreciated. I will recommend PortugalBike to all my friends interested in cycle touring and have begun to do so already. Hopefully, I will get to return with one or more members of my family before too long. That would be great fun! = Neil Reiner, Age: 62 (Vancouver, BC – Canada), 2009 =

»»»» A little personal word just to thank you so much for this very beautiful tour with PortugalBike where we enjoyed (again) your country, the nice people, the fooooood!, the weather It was so cool! I think we just fall in love with Portugal! This was our second stay here in Portugal but certainly not the last! We will be back in a near future. “Prometemos e fazemos!!”
= Marlène Bouchard and Raymond Gauthier, Ages: 53 (Sorel-Tracy, Québec – Canada), 2009 =

About “Towards Algarve” Tour (Road Bike Tour):

»»»» My experiences with PortugalBike left me behind with a big concern: Where on earth can I experience a cycling trip as excellent as in Portugal? I guess that nowhere I will experience such a warm and generous hospitality, top notch material, professional guidance, delicious food and wine, bright sunshine and a refreshing sea breeze as on the way to the Portuguese Algarve. There is only one option left to me: I definitely have to return next year for another Portuguese cycling holidays with PortugalBike! = Werner Peerters, Age: 34 (Gent – Belgium), 2009 =

»»»» In recent years, we have bicycled in France, Holland, Belgium, Germany, Greece, Poland, Slovakia, and the Czech Republic. On several of these trips, we took our own bicycles and made lodging arrangements ourselves. I guess you can say that we enjoy learning about European countries from pedaling a bicycle. No trip that we have taken has been better planned and executed than the two we did through PortugalBike. We are thrilled we used this fabulous company. Owned and operated by a Portuguese husband and wife team, the care they take before and during the trip is exemplary. The routes are very well chosen, providing a variety of landscapes and terrain. Although Portugal doesn’t have dedicated bike lanes like Holland, every effort was made to choose roads friendly to bicycles. The lodging was very special, and each night we stayed in a hotel different from the evening before, always special in its own way. We especially miss the breakfasts! PortugalBike was never far from us, and if we had a question or a problem, it was resolved before the day was over. We are especially glad that we chose two different trips – The Ancient Medieval Villages and Towards Algarve – in two very different areas of the country, as it gave us two contrasting views of the country. We are grateful to PortugalBike for making all this happen, and even more grateful that we now have more of an appreciation for Portuguese life, food, culture, history, and wine! = Gary Kate, Lynne & Susan Diamond, Ages: 57, 56 & 55 (Claremont, California – U.S.A.), 2009 =

»»»» We wish to thank you so much Cristina and José for these great moments we had here in Portugal. We appreciated your kindness and professionalism. We’ ll be back next year! = Marlène Bouchard and Raymond Gauthier, Ages: 52 (Québec – Canada), 2008 =

About “Along the Silver Coast” Tour (Hybrid Bike Tour):

»»»» Thank you for the best vacation ever. I can honestly say it was custom made for me!! (...) «Along the Silver Coast» tour have shown me that Portugal is a diverse country. I feel like I saw it all in 7 days, without any travel stress. (...) PortugalBike is a complete destination management company. I am so impressed with your company and I am telling everyone; you were «tour guides», personal trainers, translators, concierge, taxi, caterers, historians, friends and professional business operators. PortugalBike takes care of everything, all you need to do is ride and enjoy!! Great home made lunches, excellent local restaurants, transportation and translation services you will be thrilled with your vacation. The time I spent off the bicycle was as interesting and diverse as during the ride. PortugalBike is priceless and you (Jose & Cristina) are a pleasure. Spending a week with 2 total strangers and trusting their judgement was a concern of mine before selecting my trip. I recommend you both on your character and integrity; you are both excellent people (personally and as business owners). I HIGHLY recommend this trip to everyone and anyone who has a pulse and a desire to see a beautiful country. By bike, boat, foot, land, sea and van, we covered ocean coast, cliffs, beach, islands, caves 60m under, castles, desert, farms, countryside villages, vacation hot spots, nature preserves and island, fancy hotels, manor houses, sheep herds and my favourite – Obidos, the city inside the castle walls, it’s amazing. Thank you again for everything! = Kristine Lederman (Florida – U.S.A.), 2006 =

About “The Beautiful Alentejo Beaches” Tour (Hybrid Bike Tour):

»»»» Our bike tour, the Beautiful Alentejo Beaches, was outstanding, and the second we arrived our tour guides informative demeanor made this trip very comfortable. Beginning with port wine and raspberry cake at reception we immediately hit it off with our riding mates. The charming hotels with champagne breakfast started every day off on the right track. On each days ride our guides encompassing insights of Portuguese culture bound with historical references absorbed our spirit. The lunch stops with fresh farmers cheese and fruits ensured us that one more hill wasn’t so bad and the afternoon beer stops motivated everyone of us to never stop smiling. Each nights hotel welcomed the end of a days ride as the beginning of a wonderful evening. The restaurants were a delightful mix of local food, wine and culture including a private tour of a port wine cellar. Starting out each day without expectations Jose and Christina exceeded them all. We would love to do this trip again. Thank You Very Much. = Ed & Sue Seaman – Ages 51 (Streamwood, Illinois – U.S.A.), 2009 =

»»»» First and foremost, let me thank you once again for a wonderful vacation along The Beautiful Alentejo Beaches. As you are aware, I have travelled with several bicycle tour companies throughout Europe. I found PortugalBike to exceed the more expensive companies in personality, equipment, and feel for the local culture. The accommodations and food matched that of the more expensive tours. In general, Portugal was a beautiful country with some of the friendliest people I have met throughout Europe. I will enthusiastically recommend both this trip and your company. = Eric Schott – Age: 39 (Tolland, CT – U.S.A.), 2009 =

»»»» Many thanks for a wonderful trip. Although the cycling was challenging at times, the coastal views made it all worthwhile! I felt truly pampered by the accommodations and there was certainly no excuse to lack energy for the next day’s ride when we ate such wonderful meals! You and Jose seem to have thought of everything to make this a very special trip: excellent bicycles, well-designed handlebar bags, bicycle pedals of our choice, snack bars, plenty of water, and a comfortable sag wagon! With Jose as our enthusiastic guide, we did, indeed, discover Portugal. What a beautiful and friendly country! I look forward to my next trip. = Catherine Kotanchik – Age: 62 (Bath, Pennsylvania – U.S.A.), 2009 =

»»»» I just want to thank you for the best cycling tours I have ever done. It is an adventure I will remember for a life time. I don’t know what I enjoyed more the beautiful scenery, awesome cycling, delicious food or the great guide and wonderful hostess. You are truly a top notch cycling tour Company. I recommend anyone that wants to see the best countryside that Portugal has to offer to do it with your Company. It far exceeded my expectations and was worth every cent. Thanks Again for a Wonderful Cycling Vacation! = Jerry LeVault – Age: 47 (Addison, ILLinois – U.S.A.), 2009 =

»»»» Thank you again for a wonderful adventure! You two did everything possible to make the bike tour a terrific experience and you have spoiled me. I have taken several other bike tours and now I know just what a really excellent tour should be like. The bikes, van, accommodations (I never expected the 4 star hotels), food, and all your extra services were first class. The scenery on the trip with the cliffs, beaches, long coastal views, and villages in a natural park setting was truly memorable. I was very comfortable and happy throughout the tour. I hope to return soon to join you on another tour. I am afraid that another company would disappoint me.
= Philip Laris – Age: 76 (Santa Barbara, California – U.S.A.), 2008 =

»»»» We have recently returned from a memorable bicycle tour of the Alentejo arranged by PortugalBike Tours. The west coast of Portugal is extraordinarily beautiful and unspoiled. PortugalBike Tours knows the area intimately and gave huge advantages over “outside tours”. Owner and guide Jose and his charming wife Cristina are the ultimate hosts. They know the best local inns, restaurants, picnic spots, secluded beaches and scenic views. Their stated goal is to give the best possible holiday and they “deliver” to the highest standard. = Rebecca & Donald Munnings, Ages: 58 (Mississauga, Ontario – Canada), 2008 =

»»»» Just have to thank you both for setting up the bike trip of a lifetime. The equipment was excellent, the route & GPS took us to places we could NEVER have found ourselves and of course Jose was like an angel, gently guiding and always there to catch us when we fell. We will highly recommend your company to anyone interested in discovering the heart of Portugal. = Mary Pat, Age: 54 (Toronto, Ontario – Canada), 2008 =

About “The Megalithic Heritage in Alentejo” Tour (Hybrid Bike Tour):

»»»» Our cycling trip with you was the highlight of our holiday!!! This was our first cycling trip in another country and we will definitely do it again. I would like to thank you again for such a wonderful trip. The route was very interesting with a lot of variety in the itinerary. Jose has put a lot of thought and time into discovering and planning it. I particularly enjoyed the off road areas — through farmers lands. The fun and challenge off rolling hills, uneven ground and not knowing what was around the next corner. I loved the bike I was riding, and in fact my own bike without disc brakes seems very inferior now. Not only was the route varied and interesting, but the choice of accommodations was as well. Each place had its own unique charm, and the meals were superb. We felt very pampered at the end of the day (and after 50 kms I was tired!!). I also enjoyed the opportunity to just chat, and learn about your interesting country —- its politics, its history — both past and present. Cristina and Jose, you are wonderful hosts and new friends. We thoroughly enjoyed our time with you and I will be raving about this holiday with all my cycling friends. I wish you much success in your business. = Karen Clarke – Age: 56 (Edmonton, Alberta – Canada), 2009 =

»»»» We really felt like saw the authentic Portugal. Going through the cork forests, seeing the marble quarry, and staying in the small towns gave us a unique experience for the true countryside. We loved the history of Evora, Terena and all the places in-between. It was great to enjoy the local foods and we enjoyed learning and tasting the true “Port”. Your hospitality and care and attention to our needs was excellent! Thank you so much for this amazing experience. = Lincoln and Susan Browning, Ages: 54 & 52 (Calgary, Alberta – Canada), 2008 =

»»»» The Megalithic Heritage in Alentejo tour was an excellent adventure for a family of 4 (including 2 teenage boys). We truly wished that we could have extended our journey. The hybrid cycling exceeded our expectations… great landscape, quiet roads and paths, charming villages, peaceful vineyards… all which allowed us to explore remote areas of Portugal that would normally be inaccessible. The accommodation, meals, and travel route were superb. Combining this with the hospitality and personal touch of our guide and host from PortugalBike Tours, I’d strongly recommend this tour for anybody interested in cycling within Portugal. = Tom Trottier (Toronto – Canada), 2008 =

About “Serra da Estrela …Sheer Down!” Tour (Mountain Bike Tour):

»»»» (…) Thanks again for such a nice week in the Portugal. The mountain biking trails were great fun with very fast and technical down-hills and the setting was fantastic. = Stephen Corkery (Ireland), 2007 =