Thinking of organising a mountain biking holiday for a small group

Can anyone recommend a decent company to use

Was thinking of somewhere in Europe and easily accesable from one of the main airports. And that also combines guiding, accommodation and food

I have already checked Trailaddictions web-site (from STW January calendar page) 🙂

I’ve used Cycle Active and stayed with Endless Ride in their chalet in Morzine.Excellent staff food facilities accomodation.Tea n cake after a days XC in the Alps superb!!!

a quick release in Luchon. Excellent in every department!
Hopefully doing my 3rd year running with them this summer

It will really depends on what you want to do when not riding
Some of the bases that the companies use are miles from any lively bars etc.
We tend to like a good drink & a meal at different places each night so tend to choose places near touristy towns.
MBMB in Chamonix is good
Joyriders in Southern Spain is another one to look at
Another similar one in Southern Spain is Sierra Cycling but their prices have really rocketed this year compared to Joyriders.

A Quick Release in Luchon, Pyrenees (fly to Toulouse).
Freeride Spain in Sierra Nevada, Southern Spain (fly to Malaga or Granada).
Bike Verbier, Verbier, Switzerland (fly to Geneva)

All excellent, good food, great riding and more or less tailor made to what you want. AQR have a hire fleet of Cotic Hemlocks too if you fancy something different or don’t want to take your own bike.

In the eveinings would prefer to drink in local bars not just in the chalet, so somewhere near a town/village would be perfect.

Is it normal to take your own bikes or hire out there??

Sierra Cycling maybe what you are after as it is in a good location and will have a lot of varied rides – Mijas, El Chorro and Montes de Malaga

http://www.sierracycling.com

Joyriders are in Estepona which is local to me and is a more chilled town for clubbing etc

http://www.joy-riders.com/estepona/

I’ve always taken my own bike out there on the grounds that I know how it handles, I don’t really want to be getting used to a new bike on much steeper more hardcore terrain than I’m used to all at the same time!

Having said that I used a Hemlock for a day when I was out with AQR back in September 08 and it was nice to ride something different.

Hiring a bike out there does mean that you avoid the £18 each way fee that Ryanair/EasyJet charge for bikes now and it’s a lot less hassle at the airport. But having your own bike out there means one less thing to worry about, you know it’s set up just right for you and you know how it rides/handles.

Thinking that Spain might be a bit too hot around July time for cycling, has anyone been around this time

Think you’re right about that.

Been for holiday and wouldn’t have wanted to be riding. April was good in Southern Spain last year, May would have been perfect probably.

Yeah – I live here and last year it was between 30 and 33c in July. I hadnt seen a date on your first post.

So yeah, the guiding companies here tend to go for early starts, but then you have half a day of sun tanning and chilling afterwards.

To be honest based on experience September – November were absolutely banging last year. In April you still have the chance of rain although its not as bad as between Jan – March. But then if it is sunny and dry then yeah, winters here are amazing and t shirt weather.

Luchon (AQR) has some nice bars 2 mins from the hotel

Funny how the mind turns to holidays at this time of year.

Will be reading this thread with interest!

I go on holiday in Turkey (Fethiye) every year as family have a appartment out there

In July last year it was 40+ most days

I bought a bike (German Corratec thingy) whilst out there to keep my legs spinning, but to be honest it was way to hot during the day. I only tended to do a few miles to the shops first thing in the morning.

Looking for somewhere that’s a milder temperature i think, maybe France??

Another place to look is the Maritime Alps (above the Cote d’Azur & italain Riviera)

Excellent weather and very diverse trails from spanish rocky, wooded and high alpine. Guiding uplifts and Italian food 🙂

try here

You could try pliesure holidays in Courchevel’s French Alpes,here you will have a vast choice of mostly natural trails and a few man made ones. There will be little or no queing at the lifts and also the use of the local free bus service. You will be based at 1550 level in a reasonable hotel, with breakfast, lunch and dinner all provided except for one day (chalet free day). I may be working for them this summer so you will also have some one to show you around. There is quite a number of bars at 1650 and 1850 levels to quench your thirst at, although the hotel has a bar too. The company is run by a family from Coventry (but don’t hold that against them) who know what your there for and will do all they can to ensure you achieve that.
Try http://www.pleisure.co.uk tell them Dave sent you.

Have a look at these guys, their hospitality is second to none probably the best riding hol I’ve had.

AltitudeAdventures

Check the pic’s out here

For the cycling and general ambience iÂ¥d recommend http://www.seasonallyunadjusted.com – its in a small, typical Spanish town, there are a few bars and restaurants, maybe not enough for you, but all other things considered its spot on. Its about 30 mins from Malaga airport. Its on the train line so A night out in Malaga is doable (and recommended).

Theres a new (at least to me) company thats started in Hondarribia in the Basque country, dont know about the company, but the place and landscape are perfect and it¥ll be a bit cooler than down south. Lots of great bars and restaurants, the Basques take drinking and eating seriously (I live in the Basque country BTW). Do a search for Basquemtb or something like that.

Mackem, that’s us! Whereabouts in the Basque country are you? (Sorry for the slight hijack!)

Doug, I live near Gernika.

Ahh, you’re about an hour from us then. Maybe hook up for a ride sometime if you’re about. We’re opening in March but I’ll be back out there in a couple of weeks.

Yes, definitely.

For great all round riding, great guiding truly fantastic food, and a great location in Luchon, AQR, as mentioned above takes some beating.

Trail Addiction also get a thumbs up though, especially if you don’t want to do much pedaling.

null

Second bikeverbier, my best ever mtb holiday. Bit of a hike back up from town after a few jars tho

Also second sierra cycling and seasonallyunadjusted. With seasonnaly you are only a 1/2hr train ride from Malaga.

Doug @ Basque…is it really a 9hr flight to your place or have I been looking at the wrong place? Anything for non cycling wives to do? Bikes to hire? hate the hassle and thought of it getting lost/bent

The null should be http://www.aeadventure.com/

I would very strongly recommend RiveiraBike in Northern Italy, near the French border. Cheap flights to Nice. Accommodation in a great little hotel with 6 course dinners most nights – we made the mistake of camping but those staying in the hotel told us, every morning, in great detail, about how great last night’s dinner was!

The guides are really great and know the trails perfectly, mainly because they have had to make and cut most of them themselves. In a week, we didn’t see a single other mountain biker. just 2 german walkers and a few old men tending to their vineyards.

The best thing of all is the trails. 10-15km descents without another peson around. No carved up trail with braking bumps, like you get in over-used alpine resorts. Street riding through ancient villages. Italian mountain scenery and smells. All the technical and steep stuff you can handle. Uplifts all day if you want them , or 15km climbs up to 2300m if you’d prefer. Being inland from the coast and a lot higher up, the temperature isn’t as bad as you might expect. when we were there (early Sept), in the mountains it was probably mid-20s but mid-30s at Finale on the coast.

I can’t wait to go back.

My photos are here.

If you want to avoid the expense of heading to Europe, check out our holidays at

Scottish Mountain Bike Guides

We can even guarantee crackin’ weather like this*

Cheers,

Phil

* not entirely true 😉

Check us out in the French Alps: The White Room MTB Holidays

We’re based in Sainte Foy in the Tarentaise Valley (near Les Arcs). Sweet local singletrack riding on unspoilt trails where you’ll never see another rider. Chairlift days at Les Arcs, Tignes or La Thuile. Epic alpine backcountry trails with a van for uplift. Beautiful chalet, good food, free beer!

i would also be very happy to recommend joyriders mtb, but not in july 🙂

Im off with trailaddiction this year to Les Arcs but just for the guiding as have mega cheap accomodation at arcs 1800, two spaces going spare for 11-18th july 09 if anyones interested, accomo £100 ea/week guiding about Ä40/day, train from Newark to Arcs about £100ea.

A big second vote for http://www.Rivierabike.co.uk.

We went in the second week of July this year and the weather was perfect. Warm enough for t-shirts but not sweaty hot on the climbs.

They’ll taylor the week to suit the group and wherever they take you its awesome, flat out no holds barred singletrack descending, rocky sections, exposed sections, steps and alley ways through quaint little villages, switchbacks, van up lifts or xc climbs, hour long descents, Italian coffee…..second everything Gingerflash said, deserted untouched trails…

6 course meals back at the hotel, with a bar across the road. Based in a proper countryside Italian village with friendly locals even if you can’t manage any more than ‘ciao’.

Brilliant!

Trailaddiction are also good, but more ski lift orientated and the weather in Les Arc can be variable (snow in July…). Would also recommend Freeridespain if you want some serious rocky xc, up, down, along but it might be a bit hot in July.

Trekster, no, we’re not 9hrs away. It’s about a 1.5hr flight from London. All the details are on http://www.basqueMTB.com if you’re interested. (There’s a cooler version arriving next week!) For other activities we’ve got brilliant surfing around us. There’s also all the usual activities which are on the website. We’re also just outside San Sebastian and not far from Biarritz and Bilbo so there’s loads to do there.

I was out with Joyriders last July and we had earlish starts (about 8:30 / 9 am) which meant the heat wasn’t a problem. Also meant sitting by the private pool in the evening was great for getting a tan 🙂

a highly recommended week

Ridethealps are a good bunch, with some great trips. Did the Chamonix –> Zermatt ride with them, awesome!

Thanks for all the recommendations, or maybe not!!! even more choice and difficulty to decide 😕

Rivierabike looks good and I love Italian food

Still not sure about Spain as am thinking the heat might be too much in July, what d’ya think??

No reason why the heat should be too much of a problem, take plenty of liquids. I freeze it the night before so I have a steady flow of cold water.

Wear appropriate clothing, carry sun cream, drink lots.

Most of the guiding companies will go out during the cooler parts of the day and should be well used to dealing with people in the heat. So unless you are one of these people who doesn’t like hot weather, I wouldn’t worry.

That is said by someone who’ll ride in the 30∫c-35∫C of a Madrid summer. 😉

We just rented a chalet back in early October & drove to the Zermatt valley – endless XC singletrack & lift assisted DH, cost under £400 including spends!
Details & pictures HERE

check out bikevillage. excellent accommodation, excellent food, excellent riding.

I second the Whiteroom

We were skiing with them over Xmas, Stevo and Iona could not do enough for us and Sainte Foy seems a real gem.

No body suggesting a DIY hol in Les Gets?

We did that last year and had a great time.