Bringing Your Own Bike

How To Do It

Moving Your Own Bike Around During the Course of Our Trip
Getting Our Help With Intra-Europe Shipping
Credit Available if you Bring Your Own Bike
Summary Table of Shipping Costs, Credits


How To Bring Your Own Bike

Keep in mind that wrapped bikes are heavy. There is a degree of athletic effort implied by what follows. But then, that is one of the reasons you chose to go on a bike trip, right?


Getting Your Bike Through the Flights (if any)

Packing The Bike for the Plane, and Perhaps for the Connecting Train
If you are travelling by plane, your will first need a container of some sort to pack the thing into. This container serves at least one purpose: getting the bike on the plane. In some cases, that is all you need it for, since bikes can sometimes be shipped around within Europe without any protective wrapping.

But you may also need the container for one or more of the following:

Whether you can get by with airline cartons (purchased at the airport as you check in to your flight), or will need some more substantial container, is determined by what uses you are going to make of the container. Read on for details.


Cardboard Cartons Sold at the Airport
Airlines require that cycles be in containers, but most have no very strict definition of what the container should be. Perhaps a plastic garbage bag would do. Consult with your airline to understand its requirements, and be careful: if your ticket is on a “code share” flight (a plane operated by a different airline than the one that sold you the ticket), the operating carrier’s rules apply, not the rules of the carrier that sold you the ticket.

The airlines themselves sell cardboard boxes (generally one carrier, or an airport service company, is designated to sell the cartons for each airport), but if they run out you’re stuck - call and check availability before you head for the plane. Price per box is often in the neighborhood of 20€, or the equivalent in your currency. Airline cartons require that you remove the pedals and turn the handlebars. No other dismantling is necessary, so there is no need to get a bike shop involved in this. Just carry a couple of very basic wrenches and a cycle pump with you.

In the U.S., Amtrak sells better (and cheaper) cartons at major train stations. Amtrak’s cartons are sturdier, and wide enough to let you leave the pedals on the bike. But they sometimes ask to see a train ticket to sell you one.

While buying a cardboard carton for each flight would get you through the air trips, cartons will not help you with ground movement in Europe. Their dimensions are such that they are not generally allowed into the body of a bus or a railway car, nor can you take the bike out and wheel it while carrying the awkward if now light-weight carton through the station. The cartons won’t even fit into most taxi trunks. So you will generally find it best to discard the carton when you land, and get a new one for the trip home.

In sum, airline cartons are a viable option if the following four conditions are fulfilled:

  1. Upon arrival at your continental european airport...
    ...shipment from on to the start of your cycle trip can reliably be handled by the railroad via its normal baggage system...
    or
    ...you can take your bike aboard the necessary train(s) with you, without wrapping or boxing (this allows you to discard the airline carton at your arrival airport, and wheel the thing through the rest of its trip).
    or
    ... you do not have to move your bike beyond the city in which you land, because your trip cycles from there...
    or
    ...you are landing in Paris, and having us ship your bike from there to your trip.
  2. When you finish your trip, and return to a European airport for a flight home...
    ...shipment of unwrapped / unboxed cycles from your cycle trip’s end point to your departure airport city can reliably be handled by the railroad...
    or
    ...no shipment is necessary because your trip cycles into the city from which you fly...
    or
    ...you are having us ship your bike to Paris, where you are reclaiming it, for your flight home or for other ongoing travel.
  3. Concerning bike shipment within your cycle trip...
    ...your trip does not involve any intra-trip “Exceptional Shipments” (see below for more about these)...
    or
    ...you are hiring us to handle any intra-trip “Exceptional Shipment(s)”.
  4. Concerning travel between your airport city and the airport itself...
    ...you don’t mind taking a taxi between the city center and the airport...
    or
    ...the airport train is equipped to handle unboxed cycles. Of course, you may prefer to taxi even if the airport shuttle train option is available. Carrying bikes through turnstiles, even when legal, is not simple.
    Or...
    ...your airport(s) are directly served by mainline trains authorized to carry unboxed / unwrapped bikes.

Hard-Sided Cycle Cases, Sold at Cycle Shops
The alternative to cartons, and the only choice if the above four conditions are not satisfied (and you are thus going to have to get the cycle onto vehicles not designed to carry it), is to have a container of smaller dimensions which can fit your bike, stripped of its wheels, pedals, and sometimes baggage racks or mudguards. You may wish to consider a hard-sided case for this.

Many bike shops sell hard-sided containers with foam padding, which afford excellent protection to the cycle. These are expensive, and typically heavy, but they work well. You can use our “One-Way Baggage Shipping” service to ship your hard container from the start of your trip to the end, where you will meet up with it again to re-pack your bike. But you must have enough mechanical knowledge to re-assemble the bike when you reach your trip start (if you are landing in Paris, you can pay our shop to put it back together, or to pack it). More on this below.

Making the Flight
Regardless of what you have put your bike into, partially deflate the tires before you check in to your flight. Otherwise they may explode in the depressurized hold.

Liability note: a few airlines will still carry your bike for free trans-Atlantic, as one of your pieces of checked luggage (most charge for domestic carriage). Others charge a fee, generally 50 - 100€, or the equivalent in the currency of the country from which the flight is departing. However, most accept only LIMITED LIABILITY for bicycles. That means: if they lose it, they pay, but if they damage it, tough luck. Check your line's policy, and insure the thing if it's good.


Moving the Bike Between Airports and Downtown Rail Stations (when necessary)

When we know how this happens in a given city, we will tell you. This consulting service, when available, is free to riders on our cycle trips (we otherwise charge for it, as detailed here).

If you intend to make a trip by taxi, be sure to have a bungie cord with you to tie down the car’s trunk in case it cannot close over the cycle, and in case your driver is not so equipped.


Putting Your Bike on the Eurostar from London

You may send your bicycle on Eurostar from London to Paris, Brussels or Lille as registered luggage. Eurostar says that they will “do their utmost” to send your bike on the next available service. However, they only guarantee that your bike will be available to collect at your Eurostar destination station within 24 hours of registration, potentially a problem if you are connecting immediately beyond Paris or London. Try calling 0870 5 186 186 (+870 5 186 186 from outside the UK) to see if you can get anything more reassuring from the Baggage department, should this be an issue. Our experience is that the cycle always travels quickly, if not on your train, at least within a couple of hours.

This service also allows you to send your bike in advance of your journey, to ensure that the cycle be ready to collect when you arrive.

Cost is 25€, and it’s necessary to show your Eurostar ticket or booking reference when you register the cycle.

Eurostar also accepts bagged bikes without charge (wheels, mudguards, baggage rack, saddle and pedals removed, handlebars turned).


Getting Your Bike Between Paris, or Another Airport City, and Your Trip

Having us Ship Your Bike Between Paris and Your Trip.
If you are arriving in Paris, a bit in advance of your trip start, we can ship it for you. The cost is shown by trip in a table at the end of this document. This service must be reserved in advance (e.mail our Paris office, paris@bluemarble.org to do so), and is subject to availability. Please do not rely on it until it has been confirmed to you by our Paris office. Once ordered, the service is subject to our usual cancellation terms (see “Cancellations and Refunds”).

Note: in order to have us ship your cycle, you must also buy your rail tickets for the same trip through us. Cycle shipment cannot be organized separately from travel, by anybody, including us.

Taking the Bike to or from Your Trip Yourself
Our Access Package sheets offer suggestions on travelling between our trips and regional airports. If you wish, we offer a consulting service to help you get your bike through the same trip. Details of this service are here, cost is 20€ per trip.

This is not a profit center for us. The charge is a reflection of what it costs us to keep current in a complex domain. We are perfectly happy (delighted, in fact) if you want to scope it out yourself. Knowledge is power! Here are a couple of (free) hints.

Bagged or boxed bikes on trains are allowed by the rule book in countries other than Spain and Denmark. However, the container must be of a smaller dimension than the typical airline carton: think of a cycle frame with seat dropped to the cross bar, wheels removed and handlebars turned, and you have it. Even then, wrapped bikes are often challenged by uninformed railway personnel. Who, unfortunately, are the captains of their landlocked ships, and have absolute authority over what happens aboard.

We suggest that you act at all times with the furtiveness of a hardened criminal. If you are boarding a train with a boxed or bagged bike, get the bike on board as discretely as you can, and get it somehow out of the way so that it does not arouse railway personnel curiosity. On most European trains, spaces for oversized luggage are provided at one end of every 2nd railway car / carriage. Once you have it stowed, lock it to a piece of the train, and sit far enough away from it that you are not easily identified as its owner. And, for Heaven's sake, take off that goofy helmet! In Denmark and Spain, we recommend prayer, or crystals, or whatever works for you.

A general rule for countries other than Spain and Denmark, and based on our considerable past experience: if your bike is completely wrapped, is not blocking any doors or passageways, is not occupying a seat, and is not otherwise inconveniencing other passengers, the train people will leave it (and you) alone, or at worst charge you the baggage shipping charge that would have applied had the train offered a luggage service. If your bike is blocking an aisle, or occupying the seat next to you (even if the train is empty), you are likely to be fined, yelled at in several languages, and possibly “escorted” off.


“What do I do With My Cycle Container Once I Reach My Trip?”

You probably don’t want to carry it on your bike with you. So you ship it to where you will need it next. This will probably be at the end of your cycle trip. If an intermediate train trip requires that your bike be illicitly stuffed into your sleeper berth with you, then you will send the container to the starting point of that intermediate train trip, instead. (We call such shipments “Exceptional Shipments.” More on them below.)

As a practical matter, we must help you with cycle container shipments, since they require special travel documents, special knowledge, or the intervention of one of our stevedores.... We will ship empty cycle containers via our “One-Way Baggage Shipping” service. And you can fill your cycle sack or container to a weight of up to 20 kilos / 44 lbs., with the suit you were wearing when you left work, for instance.


Moving Your Own Bike Around During the Course of Our Trip

Normal Shipments

Our trip prices include routine bike shipment within the trip. That is, shipments where the bike is loaded onto the train with us (and without any special packaging), and moves to where we go next. This is true whether you have rented one of our cycles, or brought your own. It includes our expertise, any special arrangements we make, and money that must be paid to the railroad to put the cycle on the train.

Exception: on longer trips (of over a week) there may also “Exceptional Shipments,” and these are not good news.


“Exceptional Shipments”

“Exceptional Shipments” are shipments that cannot normally be made at passenger speed. The express train that whisks you across Europe does not accept bicycles, and we don’t want to hold you up at the start of your next ride while the bikes wander about the European railways. So, if you are using one of our cycles... we replace it. We send a second cycle to the second portion of your trip, in advance, and send your first cycle back to Paris.

Of course, this won’t do if you are riding your own bike (unless you bring two). Exceptional measures must be taken to move your bike with you, or at least at the same rough speed, to the next portion of your trip. You may either do this yourself, or pay us to do it.

To do it yourself...
...you will need a container of some sort to pack the thing into. Presumably the one that carried the bike to the trip. We can ship the container to where you need it to pack the bike for the “Exceptional Shipment,” and then onwards to the end of your trip, via our “One-Way Baggage Shipping” service (“What do I do With My Cycle Sack / Hard-Sided Container Once I Reach My Trip?” above). The rest is just brute strength, provided by you. But remember, you have your baggage to move, too....

As a practical matter, you cannot handle your own shipment on trips (B1) or (B3), Northern Transcontinental. See the chart below to understand why, or take it on faith. And we advise against it within Spain or Denmark, where even bagged / boxed bikes are prohibited. But you may do it at your own risk. This will often imply that you travel via a different (slower) train than others in your group.

If you pay us to handle your “Exceptional Shipments”...
...we will figure out a way to do so.

You may still be involved in the shipment. But the bike will not need to be bagged (or, if it does need to be bagged, we will provide the bag). We will coach you through the process, and help you with your bike, your luggage, or both.

We use a great variety of methods to move bikes during “Exceptional Shipments.” Simple ones include having our Trip Coordinator put it in one of our cycle sacks; or buy the train’s conductor a beer; or ride (himself) a slower, bike-friendly train with your cycle for company, while you and your fellow travellers take the fast train to destination, and do something fun when you get there. Don’t feel bad — you’re paying for the service, and we are being paid to provide it.

Or we may obtain special authorization for your bike to ride a fast train with you.

In extreme cases, we may hire a van and driver to move the thing.

How we handle the shipment is our affair. And the method varies with the number of bikes we need to move and the personnel we have available to move them. We promise only an end result, not the means.

Do not be surprised if we use your “Exceptional Shipment” to move all the other cycles, too. Once we go to the trouble of putting a special arrangement in place for you, be it a road vehicle or a train authorization, we often use it for our cycles, as well.

See column 2 of the table, below, for the cost (and, in parentheses, the number) of of “Exceptional Shipments,” trip by trip.


Still Have Questions?

Contact us by e.mail (so that your note can be forwarded appropriately), and our logistics guy will do his best to answer. It is a complex topic, as you can see.



Want Our Help Shipping Your Bike Within Europe?

The table below gives the prices of the three services we routinely provide.

A 4th column lists the discount you receive by not using one of our bikes, and allows you to compare the figures.

Our shipping service to and from Paris is subject to availability. It is only available if you also purchase your rail tickets through us, and it requires advance reservation. Contact our Paris Office, paris@bluemarble.org to ask whether the service is available. Please do not rely on the service (for booking planes and trains, for instance) until its availability has been confirmed. Once ordered, these services are subject to our usual cancellation terms (see “Cancellations and Refunds”).


Column (I), Shipping Your Bike from Paris to Your Trip
Column I gives our price for shipping your bike from our Paris office to your trip start. The figure in parentheses is the number of days prior to your trip’s assembly date that the cycle must be in our Paris office for us to handle the shipment. We must have the cycle in our office by 5p in order to ship it.

For example, a (1) would mean: if your trip meets on the 10th of June, we must have the cycle in our Paris office by 5p on the 9th to get it to the trip’s start.

We can often arrange to have your bike travel to with you, on your train to the trip, provided you bring it to the station yourself. Trips for which this is possible are so identified.


Column (II), Our Price for Handling “Exceptional Shipments.”
These are intra-trip shipments necessary to keep your bike with you, when we would normally switch bikes for our other riders. The number in parentheses refers to the number of “Exceptional Shipments” during the course of that trip. Details regarding the nature and the handling of “Exceptional Shipments” are above.


Column (III), Shipping Your Bike Back to Paris at the End of the Trip
Column (III) shows the price to have us ship your cycle from the end of your trip back to our Paris office (or to the Paris rail station at which you arrive, if we arrange to put the bike on the train with you). The number in parentheses is the number of days that it will take to reliably get there, beyond the fastest rail travel time available to you.

For example, a (1) would mean: if your trip disbands on the 10th of June in Como, and the fastest train to Paris gets you there on the evening of the 10th, your cycle will reliably be in our Paris office by 10:30a on the morning of the 11th. However, if your trip disbands on the 10th of June in Vienna, and the fastest train to Paris would get you there on the morning of the 11th, a (1) indicates that the cycle will arrive by 10:30a on the 12th.

A (0) indicates that we can generally arrange for your bike to travel on a train with you, though some flexibility regarding travel schedule will be necessary on your part. If the prospect of moving both your bike and your luggage on the train is daunting, ask us about shipping your bike back to Paris for you. The cost is at least 30€ higher, and a delivery time of a day or two is required, however.

Note: in order to have us ship your cycle, you must also buy your rail tickets for the same trip through us. Cycle shipment cannot be organized separately from passenger travel, by anybody, including us.


Credit for Bringing Your Own Bike

The amount in column (IV) of the table below is the discount you receive on the trip price if you bring your own bike.

Those of you with a talent for math will quickly spot cases where the shipping costs exceed the rental plus shipping for our bikes. How unfair is that?!

Well, actually, not so much. First, not all of our bikes are shipped from the garage. Some go from trip to trip, or are kept in satellite garages and don’t need to be shipped at all, while yours always does. Second, our bikes don't (normally) make the trips designated “exceptional shipments.” They travel by cheaper means, or we use a second set of bikes. So there is an extra cost to making sometimes-elaborate arrangements to keep your bike with you. Finally, we don't take the same care of our bikes that we have to take with yours. We will have only ourselves to blame if one of our bikes gets damaged or lost in shipment, and we’re used to being disappointed in ourselves. With you, we're trying to put our best foot forward....

Follow this link to the general discussion on the pros and cons of bringing your own bike.

Trip Name / Details (long trips, 3 or more weeks)

All prices in this table are in €uros.
To convert a given price to another currency, go here.
Paris-to-Trip
Column (I)
“Exceptional Shipments”
Column (II)
Trip-Back-to-Paris
Column (III)
“Own Bike” Discount
Column (IV)
(A) Biking Transcontinental
• We can arrange same-day shipping to the trip for 30€ if you are willing to take your own bike to the station and handle it on the train.
• Two of these three “Exceptional Shipments” are back-to-back, Como-to-Venice-to-Salzburg. Though you would need to carry your bike three times, you would thus only need to ship your cycle container three times: from the trip start to Dijon, from Le Sentier to Como, and from Salzburg to Vienna.
55 € (1)
120 € (3)
95 € (1)
270 €
(B1) Northern Transcon
This trip involves mountain biking in Norway. It is assumed that, even if you bring your own road bike for the bulk of the trip, you will not additionally bring a mountain bike for this section. The mountain bike is thus included even if you bring your own road bike, and the prices quoted above for us to handle “Exceptional Shipments” include shipment of your road bike to the end of your trip in Norway, to Voss or Oslo as appropriate. As a practical matter, you are our prisoner here, since there is no other way for you to carry your road bike through the Norway section of your trip. If you instead pay us to send your bike back to Paris, the cost of the “Exceptional Shipments” drops from 145 € to 50 €, since we no longer have to ship it to Norway.
N/A
145 € (2)
65 € (0)
 240 €
(B2) Northern Transcon
N/A
40 € (1)
75 € (2)
 240 €
(B3) Northern Transcon
•We can arrange same-day shipping to the trip for 40€ if you are willing to take your own bike to the central Paris station and handle it on the train. You must also travel via Lille (not Brussels), and not all trains can handle your cycle, though choices are spread throughout the day.
• This trip involves mountain biking in Norway. It is assumed that, even if you bring your own road bike for the bulk of the trip, you will not additionally bring a mountain bike for this section. The mountain bike is thus included even if you bring your own road bike, and the prices quoted above for us to handle “Exceptional Shipments” include shipment of your road bike to the end of your trip in Norway, to Voss or Oslo as appropriate. As a practical matter, you are our prisoner here, since there is no other way for you to carry your road bike through the Norway section of your trip. If you instead pay us to send your bike back to Paris, the cost of the “Exceptional Shipments” drops from 145 € to 50 €, since we no longer have to ship it to Norway.
65 € (1)
145 € (2)
65 € (0)
 220 €
(C) Roman Roads of France & Italy
• We can arrange same-day shipping to the trip for 40€ if you are willing to take your own bike to the central Paris station and handle it on the train. However, trip time is 5 hours instead of the usual 3....
• The cost of returning your bike to Paris drops to 80 € if you give us 2 days to do it, or if you accompany it on a circuitous routing (20 hours instead of the usual 12).
75 € (1)
40 € (1)
125 € (1)
 240 €
(D) Southern Cross
• We can tell you how to make the trip from Paris to Blois on your own, without charge for the bike, if you are willing to take it to the station yourself, and handle it on the train.
0 - 35 € (1)
65 € (2)
85 € (0)
 230 €
(E) Mozart & the Matterhorn
• We can arrange same-day shipping to the trip for 40€ if you are willing to take your own bike to the station and handle it on the train.
• The two “Exceptional Shipments” are back-to-back, Como-to-Venice-to-Salzburg. If you handled these yourself, you would only need to ship your cycle container twice, from trip start to Como, and from Salzburg to Vienna.
65 € (1)
65 € (2)
95 € (1)
 220 €
(F) Tour de France
To calculate shipment costs to and from Paris, refer to the shipment costs of sending a cycle to the one-week trip corresponding to the first week of your ride, and back from the one-week trip corresponding to the third week of your ride. Once you have selected a specific departure, ask for a quote if you are interested in the cost of having us handle “Exceptional Shipments” within the ride.
Max. =
75 € (1)
Max. =
135 € (2)
Max =
65 € (2)
 210 €
(G) Giro d’Italia
Spring departures, starting in Spoleto and ending in Como.
• We set up the return to Paris so that you carry the bike back yourself without boxing or bagging.
75 € (2)
65 € (1)
75 € (0)
 230 €
(G) Giro d’Italia
Fall departures, starting in Brig and ending in Terontola.
• The cost of returning your bike to Paris drops to 80 € if you give us 2 days to do it, or if you accompany it on a circuitous routing (20 hours instead of the usual 12).
65 € (1)
25 € (1)
125 € (1)
 230 €
(H) Atlantic Coasting
85 € (2)
N/A
85 € (1)
 210 €
Trip Name / Details (2-week trips)
All prices in this table are in €uros.
To convert a given price to another currency, go here.
Paris-to-Trip
Column (I)
“Exceptional Shipments”
Column (II)
Trip-Back-to-Paris
Column (III)
 “Own Bike” Discount
Column (IV)
(J) Portuguese Explorer
195 € (2)
N/A
85 € (1)
 180 €
(K) Austrian Alps & the Danube
65 € (2)
N/A
95 € (1)
 180 €
(L) Green Spain (with France & Portugal)
• We can arrange passenger-speed shipping to the trip for 30€ if you are willing to take your own bike to the central Paris station and travel on the overnight train. We can also arrange this on the 1p train to Hendaye direct from Charles de Gaulle Airport, but you must allow ample time for plane - train connections, as this is the only train of the day on which this arrangement can be made.
60 € (1)
40 € (1)
85 € (0)
 195 €
(M) Cyclist’s Paradise (Northern Europe + Denmark)
We can arrange same-day shipping to the trip for 40€ if you are willing to take your own bike to the central Paris station and handle it on the train. You must also travel via Lille (not Brussels), and not all trains can handle your cycle, though good choices are spread throughout the day.
65 € (1)
40 € (1)
75 € (2)
 210 €
(N) Scandinavian Sampler (Denmark & Norway)
This trip involves mountain biking in Norway. It is assumed that, even if you bring your own road bike for the Danish portion of the trip, you will not additionally bring a mountain bike for the Norway section. The mountain bike is thus included even if you bring your own road bike. The price quoted for us to handle the “Exceptional Shipment” is the cost of shipping your road bike to the end of your trip in Norway, in Voss. As a practical matter, you are our prisoner here, since there is no other way for you to carry your road bike through the Norway section of your trip. Shipping it to Paris, instead, is cheaper, if you are headed back that way.
65 € (2)
85 € (1)
65 € (0)
 160 €
(O) Alpine Lakes (France, Switzerland & Italy)
• We can arrange same-day shipping to the trip for 40€ if you are willing to take your own bike to the station and handle it on the train. • We arrange “passenger speed” shipping back to Paris at the end of the trip. You handle your own bike on the train.
65 € (1)
N/A
55 € (0)
 160 €
(P) Mousse Head (France, Belgium, Germany)
• We arrange “passenger speed” shipping back to Paris at the end of the trip. You handle your own bike on the train.
N/A
40 € (1)
55 € (0)
 175 €
(Q) White Wine Roads (France, Switzerland)
June departure, starting in Strasbourg and ending in Brig
• We can arrange same-day shipping to the trip for 30€, from either downtown Paris or direct from Charles de Gaulle Airport, if you are willing to take your own bike to the station and handle it on the train.
• We arrange “passenger speed” shipping back to Paris at the end of the trip. You handle your own bike on the train.
55 € (1)
25 € (1)
55 € (0)
 180 €
(Q) White Wine Roads (France, Switzerland)
August departure, starting on the Lac de Joux, ending in Mulhouse
• We can arrange same-day shipping to the trip for 40€ if you are willing to take your own bike to the station and handle it on the train.
• We arrange “passenger speed” shipping back to Paris at the end of the trip. You handle your own bike on the train.
65 € (1)
25 € (1)
25 € (0)
 180 €
(R) C’est Cheese (France & Switzerland)
• We can arrange same-day shipping to the trip for 30€ if you are willing to take your own bike to the station and handle it on the train.
• We arrange “passenger speed” shipping back to Paris at the end of the trip. You handle your own bike on the train.
55 € (1)
65 € (1)
55 € (0)
 160 €
(S) Tapestries & Tapas (France & Spain)
• We can tell you how to make the trip from Paris to Blois on your own, without charge for the bike, if you are willing to take it to the station yourself, and handle it on the train.
• For rapid shipment back to Paris at the end of the trip, we can only use the overnight train. You must travel on the same train as your bike (there is one connection), and be prepared to load and unload it on your own. Regular shipment is available for 60 €, but it takes a full week.
0 - 35 € (1)
50 € (1)
85 € (0)
 175 €
(T1) Rivers and Canyons
• We can arrange same-day shipping to the trip for 40€ if you are willing to take your own bike to the central Paris station and handle it on the train. However, trip time is 5 hours instead of the usual 3....
• We can also set it up so that you can carry it back yourself without boxing or bagging for 55€. Train choice is restricted, however.
75 € (1)
N/A
65 € (2)
 180 €
(T2) Roman Souvenirs
• We can arrange same-day shipping to the trip for 30€ if you are willing to take your own bike to the central Paris station and handle it on the train.
• We can also provide one-day delivery back to Paris for 75 €, or “passenger speed” delivery for 100 €. Or, we can set it up so that you carry your bike back yourself, without boxing or bagging, for 45€. However, the trains you will be required to take add 3 hours to the otherwise 4-hour trip (7 hours, total).
55 € (1)
N/A
65 € (2)
 150 €
(T3) Red Wine Roads
May departure, starting in Libourne and ending in Dijon.
• We arrange “passenger speed” shipping back to Paris at the end of the trip. You handle your own bike on the train.
75 € (1)
80 € (1)
25 € (0)
 180 €
(T3) Red Wine Roads
Other departures, starting in Dijon and ending in Souillac.
• We can arrange same-day shipping to the trip for 30€ if you are willing to take your own bike to the central Paris station and handle it on the train.
• A less expensive (70€) “Exceptional Shipment” is possible, but involves an all-day journey on Saturday, with long connections (10 hours instead of the usual 6).
• We arrange “passenger speed” shipping back to Paris at the end of the trip. You handle your own bike on the train.
55 € (1)
120 € (1)
25 € (0)
 180 €
(T4) Burgundy Biking
• We can arrange same-day shipping to the trip for 20€ if you are willing to take your own bike to the station.
• We arrange “passenger speed” shipping back to Paris at the end of the trip. You handle your own bike on the train.
45 € (1)
N/A
25 € (0)
 130 €
Other 2-Week France Trips
To calculate shipment costs to and from Paris, refer to the shipment costs of sending a cycle to the one-week trip corresponding to the first week of your ride, and back from the one-week trip corresponding to the second week of your ride. Once you have signed up for a specific departure, ask for a quote if you are interested in the cost of having us handle “Exceptional Shipments” within the ride.
Max =
65 € (1)
Max. =
85 € (1)
Max =
65 € (2)
 170 €
(U1) Etruscan Trails
• The cost of returning your bike to Paris drops to 80 € if you give us 2 days to do it, or if you accompany it on a circuitous routing (20 hours instead of the usual 12).
75 € (2)
N/A
125 € (1)
 160 €
(U2) Essential Italia
Spring departures, starting in Pisa and ending in Como.
• We arrange “passenger speed” shipping back to Paris at the end of the trip. You handle your own bike on the train.
75 € (2)
45 € (1)
75 € (0)
 150 €
(U2) Essential Italia
Autumn departures, starting in Brig and ending in Florence.
• The cost of returning your bike to Paris drops to 80 € if you give us 2 days to do it, or if you accompany it on a circuitous routing (20 hours instead of the usual 12).
65 € (1)
25 € (1)
125 € (1)
 150 €
(V1) Lavender & Olive
• We can arrange same-day shipping to the trip for 30€ if you are willing to take your own bike to the central Paris station and handle it on the train. Only available on 2 trains per day: verify availability of a suitable schedule before counting on this.
• The cost of returning your bike to Paris drops to 80 € if you give us 2 days to do it, or if you accompany it on a circuitous routing (20 hours instead of the usual 12).
55 € (1)
35 € (1)
125 € (1)
 190 €
Other 2-Week France & Italy Trips
To calculate shipment costs to and from Paris, refer to the cost of sending a cycle to the one-week trip corresponding to the first week of your ride, and back from the one-week trip corresponding to the second week of your ride.
Once you have selected a specific departure, ask for a quote on the inevitable “Exceptional Shipment” within the trip. A warning: the baggage-carrying abilities of trains operating between France and Italy mean that this service can be quite expensive, or involve a significant lengthening of your own trip between your two regions.		 220 €
Trip Name / Details (1-week trips outside France)
All prices in this table are in €uros.
To convert a given price to another currency, go here.
Paris-to-Trip
Column (I)
“Exceptional Shipments”
Column (II)
Trip-Back-to-Paris
Column (III)
 “Own Bike” Discount
Column (IV)
(Bg) Northern Star (Belgium to Germany)
• We can arrange same-day shipping to the trip for 40€ if you are willing to take your own bike to the central Paris station and handle it on the train. You must also travel via Lille (not Brussels), and not all trains can handle your cycle, though good choices are spread throughout the day.
• We arrange “passenger speed” shipping back to Paris at the end of the trip. You handle your own bike on the train.
65 € (1)
N/A
55 € (0)
 120 €
(Bq) Basque Biking
• We can arrange Friday night shipping to the trip for 30€ if you are willing to take your own bike to the central Paris station and travel on the overnight train. We can also arrange this on the 1p train to Hendaye direct from Charles de Gaulle Airport, but you must allow ample time for plane - train connections, as this is the only train of the day on which this arrangement can be made.
• For rapid shipment back to Paris at the end of the trip, we can only use the overnight train. You must travel on the same train as your bike (there is one connection), and be prepared to load and unload it on your own. Regular shipment is available for the same price, but takes a full week.
60 € (1)
N/A
75 € (0)
 130 €
(Dk) Danish Biking
65 € (2)
N/A
75 € (2)
 160 €
(It) Italian Lakes
• We can arrange same-day shipping to the trip for 40€ if you are willing to take your own bike to the central Paris station and handle it on the train.
• We arrange “passenger speed” shipping back to Paris at the end of the trip. You handle your own bike on the train.
65 € (1)
N/A
55 € (0)
 125 €
(Nr) Norway Fjords & Glaciers
If helpful, we can ship your cycle from Oslo to the trip start, and then back to Oslo, for 75 €, total. The cycle must be delivered to us at the Oslo station on the Monday morning of the trip’s start date, by 9:30a. It will travel with you on your train back to Oslo.
125 € (2)
N/A
125 € (3)
 100 €
(Sp) Celtic Spain
85 € (1)
N/A
85 € (0)
 150 €
(Sw) Swiss Cycling
• We can arrange same-day shipping to the trip for 40€ if you are willing to take your own bike to the station and handle it on the train. • We arrange “passenger speed” shipping back to Paris at the end of the trip. You handle your own bike on the train.
65 € (1)
N/A
55 € (0)
 110 €
(Ts) Pure Tuscany
• The cost of returning your bike to Paris drops to 80 € if you give us 2 days to do it, or if you accompany it on a circuitous routing (20 hours instead of the usual 12).
75 € (2)
N/A
125 € (1)
 160 €
(Um) Umbria Unravelled
• The cost of returning your bike to Paris drops to 80 € if you give us 2 days to do it, or if you accompany it on a circuitous routing (20 hours instead of the usual 12).
75 € (2)
N/A
125 € (1)
 160 €
Trip Name / Details (1-week trips within France)
All prices in this table are in €uros.
To convert a given price to another currency, go here.
Paris-to-Trip
Column (I)
“Exceptional Shipments”
Column (II)
Trip-Back-to-Paris
Column (III)
 “Own Bike” Discount
Column (IV)
(Fr1) Chardonnay Burgundy
• We can arrange same-day shipping to the trip for 20€ if you are willing to take your own bike to the central Paris station and handle it on the train.
• We arrange “passenger speed” shipping back to Paris at the end of the trip. You handle your own bike on the train.
45 € (1)
N/A
25 € (0)
 100 €
(Fr2) Pinot Noir Burgundy
• We can arrange same-day shipping to the trip for 30€ if you are willing to take your own bike to the central Paris station and handle it on the train.
• We arrange “passenger speed” shipping back to Paris at the end of the trip. You handle your own bike on the train.
55 € (1)
N/A
25 € (0)
 110 €
(Fr3) Bordeaux & the Dordogne
• We can arrange same-day shipping to the trip for 40€ if you are willing to take your own bike to the central Paris station and handle it on the train. However, trip time is 5 hours instead of the usual 3....
• We arrange “passenger speed” shipping back to Paris at the end of the trip. You handle your own bike on the train.
75 € (1)
N/A
25 € (0)
 140 €
(Fr4) Gorges of the Cévennes
• We can arrange same-day shipping to the trip for 30€ if you are willing to take your own bike to the central Paris station and handle it on the train.
• We can also set it up so that you can carry it back yourself without boxing or bagging for 55€. Train choice is restricted, however.
55 € (1)
N/A
65 € (2)
 100 €
(Fr5) A Week in Provence
• We can arrange same-day shipping to the trip for 30€ if you are willing to take your own bike to the central Paris station and handle it on the train. Only available on 2 trains per day: verify availability of a suitable schedule before counting on this.
• We can also provide one-day delivery back to Paris for 75 €, or “passenger speed” delivery for 100 €. Or, we can set it up so that you carry your bike back yourself, without boxing or bagging, for 45€. However, the trains you will be required to take add 3 hours to the otherwise 4-hour trip (7 hours, total).
55 € (1)
N/A
65 € (2)
 120 €
(Fr6) Champagne Pedal
• We arrange “passenger speed” shipping back to Paris at the end of the trip. You handle your own bike on the train.
N/A
N/A
25 € (0)
 90 €
(Fr7) Loire Valley Cycle
• We can tell you how to make the trip from Paris to Blois on your own, without charge for the bike, if you are willing to take it to the station yourself, and handle it on the train.
• At the end of the trip, we can tell you how to make the trip from Tours to Paris on your own, without charge for the bike, if you are willing to take it to the station yourself, and handle it on the train. However, trip time to Paris is 3 hours instead of 1 via TGV.
0 - 35 € (1)
N/A
0 - 45 € (0)
 110 €
(Fr8) Adventures in Alsace
• We can arrange same-day shipping to the trip for 30€, from either downtown Paris or direct from Charles de Gaulle Airport, if you are willing to take your own bike to the station and handle it on the train.
• We arrange “passenger speed” shipping back to Paris at the end of the trip. You handle your own bike on the train.
55 € (1)
N/A
25 € (0)
 120 €
Trip Name / Details (“Day Trips Out From Paris”)
All prices in this table are in €uros.
To convert a given price to another currency, go here.
Paris-to-Trip
Column (I)
“Exceptional Shipments”
Column (II)
Trip-Back-to-Paris
Column (III)
 “Own Bike” Discount
Column (IV)
Loire Valley, Day Trip from Paris
Included
N/A
Included
40 €

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