Who are we?
We are a small company owned and operated by Carolyn and Pieter Maessen. BikePlusTours was born out of a desire to share our love for cycling on the great mountain roads of Europe with our guests. We have been organizing group cycling trips since 2002 and we feel very lucky that our hobby has become our profession. We are on every trip with you along with our experienced staff and we know the areas we travel to extremely well. We have lived all over Europe and by travelling with us, you are getting knowledge of fabulous cycling roads, beautiful towns and tried and tested hotels from our many years of experience.
Pieter has been a cyclist all his life. He has competed in junior and elite races in his native Netherlands as well as in Belgium, Germany and the USA. Although more of a classics rider than a climber, Pieter has had a passion for cycling in the mountains ever since riding up Passo dello Stelvio at age 16. Australian-born Carolyn has had a lot of success as a triathlete. She was a sponsored athlete for seven years and has won races in every distance from sprint to Ironman. She has competed in World Championships in Ironman in Kona (Hawaii), Ironman 70.3 in Las Vegas (Nevada) and Sprint Triathlon in London (UK). Having both retired from the race circuit we love nothing more than sharing the delights of European cycling with our guests of all ages and abilities.
BikePlusTours LLC is based in Fort Collins, Colorado.
What’s included in the price of the trip?
We have tried very hard to keep our prices reasonable and affordable whilst providing outstanding service and hope you feel that we offer value for money on our trips. We are very proud that we have clients who were on our very first trip in 2002 and are still travelling with us today so we must be doing something right! On every trip the following things are included;
- Group private bus transfers from/to the destination airport for you, your luggage and your bike
- Support vehicles, experienced tour guides on bikes and Carolyn and Pieter on every trip
- Hotel accommodation on the basis of a shared double/twin room (single rooms available with a surcharge)
- All breakfasts and dinners
- Water, soft drinks, homemade snacks made by Carolyn and fruit on the rides
- Laminated stage sheets with ride details and altitude profiles
- GPS files of all rides, including longer and shorter options
- 15+ years of experience and passion from Carolyn and Pieter for cycling holidays
- Lots of spectacular scenery and the opportunity to have the vacation of a lifetime!
Excluded items:
- Your flights
- Travel and medical insurance
- Lunches, drinks, gratuities and personal expenses
Can I bring my non riding friend or partner along?
Yes! We offer a guided partner program on most of our trips and partners are most welcome to join us. Partner activities are flexible to suit you. Carolyn will talk through with you what you are interested in and put together a tailored program. In the past we have had keen hikers so we have organised trips up into the Dolomites via cable car and hikes from the top followed by lunch in a mountain hut. We have had keen cooks so we had a cooking class learning how to make local cuisine. We do beautiful routes so we have had partners join us on ebikes so they get a taste of what their loved one is doing on our trips. We also stay in beautiful hotels so relaxing by the pool with a good book is also possible! Check the brochure for the trip you are interested in for some of the suggested partner activities.
The partner program sounds pretty good, can I do some riding and some other activities?
Of course. We have people on our trips who want to have a day off the bike and they can pick and choose what other activities they want to take part in. Talk to Carolyn and we will get it figured out for you. We have a flexible approach to our trips and we want you to have a great time and enjoy your vacation.
Who is leading the rides?
Carolyn and Pieter are on every trip with you. We limit our group size so you get the attention you deserve, after all, this is a trip of a lifetime! We will be there supporting you with our experienced team and riding with you every day. We have been on every single trip we have ever organised since 2002 and we like to think we are pretty good at what we do! We understand doing a trip with us is spending your precious vacation time and money and we want you to feel special, build lasting memories and most of all have fun!
What level of fitness and skills is required?
Our trips cater for the cyclist who is used to day-long rides and enjoys challenging terrain. You don’t need to be an elite athlete to enjoy our trips, we understand that not everyone wants to ride flat out every day all the time! We pride ourselves on our extensive knowledge of the roads we cycle on so we are able to offer alternate routes to make things shorter and easier for those days you want to relax a little. We stay in great places so we don’t want you too tired to enjoy the beautiful towns and villages we visit. We also stay in hotels for multiple nights so you don’t even have to ride every day if you don’t want to.
In terms of skills, you need to be confident but you don’t need previous experience of riding in the mountains to enjoy our trips. Carolyn and Pieter are both very experienced cyclists and happily provide skill sessions at the beginning of each trip for those who want it for skills such as descending, cornering and anything else you would like to know more about. Your safety is important to us and we will never put you in a situation where you are not comfortable.
What kind of bike will I need and do you have rental bikes available?
You will need a well-maintained road bike with good brakes and tires and low gears for the mountains. We have lots of experience riding in the mountains so we can help guide you on what gearing is suitable for the trip you are interested in. We highly recommend that you have your bicycle serviced by a professional mechanic before the trip. Unexpected mechanicals happen so we always try and stay in towns that have bike shops so any issues can be quickly resolved and you can be back riding ASAP!
On some of our trips we provide rental bikes at an additional cost. If you are interested in renting a bike for one of our other trips, we can put you in touch with companies who do bike rentals in the areas we travel to.
I’m not confident putting my bike together, can you help me?
Pieter and our experienced staff can assist you putting your bike together and making the necessary safety checks. Most bike shops will pack your bike into a travel case for you for a fee. Some will even rent you a travel case.
What does a typical group look like?
We firmly believe in limiting the size of our groups to ensure everyone gets the attention they deserve. Our groups include men and women between 30 and 70 years old with a mix of couples and singles. Speed and skill levels vary but we all share a passion for long bike rides in scenic surroundings. This is a great opportunity to make new cycling friends from all over the world!
Does everybody ride together in a group?
Carolyn and Pieter do a morning briefing and riders tend to depart after the briefing. We find that smaller groups are often formed of riders with similar fitness and skill levels. Some riders prefer to ride alone, others with their partners or new friends made on the trip. It’s your vacation so you choose what you would like to do. There is no pressure to ride at a particular speed and we encourage you to stop and take pictures, enjoy a coffee in a local village and stop for lunch. We never leave anyone behind so no matter how fast or slow you are, we will be there to support you.
What kind of support is provided during the rides?
There will be ride leaders on bicycles and one or two support vehicles depending on the group size. The support vehicles will wait for all riders at strategic points (bottom and top of major climbs, difficult turns etc.) and will carry water, soft drinks as well as snacks and fruit. Carolyn is an avid cook and has been perfecting cyclist friendly snacks over the years that she prepares and stocks the support vehicles with. Our customers love the homemade touch, especially those with specific dietary requirements.
The van contains your baggage that we move on our transfer days between hotels so you don’t need to worry about a thing other than turning the pedals over and enjoying the scenery. We don’t offer a SAG wagon that can take multiple riders, it’s part of the reason we can keep our prices reasonable, but in case of emergency we can take a few riders and bikes in the van.
How do I know where I’m going and what’s happening that day?
Pieter and Carolyn do a briefing for the group each morning to go over the route, where you will see the support vehicles, a suggested lunch spot and any other pertinent information. We also ask who is doing the long or short routes to ensure we have adequate support in place for everyone riding.
We ask each guest to have a GPS bike computer (Garmin, Wahoo etc) and we will provide you with route files for each day and ride available. We give the files to you in advance of the trip and Pieter is on hand to help you load the files if you are not sure how to.
We also give you a small laminated card to keep in your pocket for each ride that includes our phone number, emergency phone number for the country we are in, contact and address details for our hotel, a profile of the route, distances and elevation gain, key turns or landmarks and planned support stops.
I don’t speak a foreign language, how will I get what I need?
Don’t worry, we speak six European languages fluently and we also hire native speakers to help us with support. We think it is important that your guides are able to help you get that local experience and speaking the language is obviously key. Because Carolyn and Pieter are on every trip, you will be in good hands.
What happens in case of bad weather?
We ride rain or shine, as long as it is safe. We stay in hotels for consecutive days so if you don’t want to ride on the day we do a loop from the hotel, you don’t have to. We do ask that everyone rides on the days we change hotels but we always try and have a shorter route alternative in case of adverse weather conditions or tired legs!