• Looking at mini tours from London that are train and or ferry. 3-4 days riding, not mega distances, credit card touring - so light loaded. Did the Isle of Wight recently and that went well, so maybe try further afield.

    So far, have come up with..

    1. Cherbourg to St Malo - about 250km, mostly greenways
      https://en.tourdemanche.com has some interesting routes, could use the ferry into Portsmouth from the start and finish in France - but the schedule is very seasonal.

    2. Amsterdam > Utrecht and then where ever time allows.
      Direct train to Amsterdam then heading into the countryside, see some friends in Utrecht. The new train service is ££££. Need to wait for a sale!

    Open to other ideas!

  • I did a quick blast to visit family in Utrecht this summer: London - Harwich; overnight ferry to Hook; Hook - Utrecht; then back in reverse. Hook- Utrecht is ~100-110km; If I were touring in a more leisurely fashion I'd have broken the journey halfway near Alphen a/d Rijn. Stena Line are having a sale on their ticket prices until Sunday - 20% off crossings and cabin bookings IIRC. Dunno whether this makes it competitive with the Eurostar, but if I were going again I'd be thinking about getting the train to Harwich after work in time for the evening sailing.

    I love touring in NL - I know the cycle paths aren't everyone's cup of tea, but I find cycling there incredibly calming. The infrastructure removes the psychic weight of having to be subconsciously on the lookout for traffic that I don't even realise I'm carrying when I'm out for a ride in the UK. The landscape is flat, but not devoid of interest; IMO the big skies make up for the lack of hills, and the quality of the built environment is streets ahead of the UK. The only drawbacks are the occasional headwinds, and the lack of rises to get out of the saddle on (apart from the odd overpass/bridge...).

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