Umbria’s Green Valleys From the Pilgrimage Town of Assisi Bike Tour Reviews (page 2)

★★★★★ (5/5) Dotty October 12, 2019

Beautiful bike trip through the Umbrian countryside

Beautiful tour through the countryside. Lots of old mountaintop towns to explore (Assisi, Montefalco), beautiful scenery, and lots of agriculture (olive trees, vineyards, vegetables, tobacco). Food prepared by Carla at Countryhouse Casco dell'Acqua was the best we had in Italy.

What was the date of your tour?: 9/26/19 - 10/1/19
How many tours have you completed?: 6
Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?: As expected
Who is this tour suitable for?: Solo travelers, First-time bike tourists, Families with teens
Do you recommend this tour?: Yes

5/5 Value
4/5 Included meals
5/5 Bikes + equipment
5/5 Hotels or boat
5/5 Scenery
5/5 Ease of navigation
5/5 Tour documents
5/5 Local tour company services
5/5 Route selection

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★★★★★ (4/5) DrFerro October 20, 2019

Magical Umbria

The first couple days in the Umbria region were almost magical. Riding through the olive groves and vineyards, passing by the fig trees that were offering their ripe luscious fruits brought special significance to this region of great spirituality. (These fruits are all mentioned in the Bible.) Experiencing the places where Francis of Assisi had his illumination, along with countless others who are nameless, reminds the visitor that all these churches, chapels, and basilicas are there because of the Italian people's expressions.
This was our sixth European bike tour. It was our first tour in Italy, and also the first tour we had done that was almost completely on roads (as opposed to dedicated bike trails). That said, we felt somewhat vulnerable, especially in heavily populated areas. Italian drivers are not overly aggressive or careless, but they do like to drive fast. Pavement conditions on several roads were pretty bad, especially near the edges where one would ride. Distances on the daily rides were about right given the riding conditions, there were interesting things to see and the written directions were excellent. The accommodations on this tour were outstanding, the food remarkable, and the hospitality of the Italian people warmed our hearts. Of the six tours we have taken, this is the first one where we gained weight after five days of riding!

What was the date of your tour?: Sept. 18, 2019
How many tours have you completed?: 6
Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?: As expected
Who is this tour suitable for?: Families with teens
Do you recommend this tour?: Yes

4/5 Value
4/5 Included meals
5/5 Bikes + equipment
5/5 Hotels or boat
4/5 Scenery
4/5 Ease of navigation
3/5 Tour documents
5/5 Local tour company services
3/5 Route selection

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★★★★★ (5/5) Bill Allured September 20, 2023

A beautiful experience, well-organized and planned out.

We received detailed trip information the night before our ride, along with GPS tracks, which made navigation fairly easy. Because we were primarily on back roads, there were many turns so we occasionally went a short distance out of the way. We highly recommend using a bicycle navigation app. Each hotel was a wonderful oasis along the way.

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★★★★★ (5/5) Mark eisenberg September 22, 2023

Self guided bike trip in Umbria

This was the perfect self guided bike trip. The roads were quiet or on dedicated bike trails. The directions on GPS were easy to follow. The hill towns were magnificent. We chose the hotel upgrade and were very happy with the accommodations. It is in fact true that one can't find a bad meal in Umbria

What was the date of your tour?: September 2023
How many tours have you completed?: 6
Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?: As expected
Who is this tour suitable for?: First-time bike tourists, Solo travelers, Families with teens
Do you recommend this tour?: Yes

5/5 Value
5/5 Bikes + equipment
5/5 Hotels or boat
5/5 Scenery
5/5 Ease of navigation
5/5 Tour documents
5/5 Local tour company services
5/5 Route selection

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★★★★★ (5/5) max breedon November 4, 2023

Exceeded expectations

This was a brilliant way to experience and explore Umbria. The instructions were clear and the route design was really thoughtful. The tour operator has done a great job planning this route. There were so many highlights, riding through olive groves, exploring towns like Spoleto. We loved staying at Casco dell'Acqua, Ms Carla's cooking was magnificent.

What was the date of your tour?: Late October 2023
How many tours have you completed?: 1
Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?: Somewhat easier
Who is this tour suitable for?: First-time bike tourists, Solo travelers, Families with teens
Do you recommend this tour?: Yes

5/5 Value
5/5 Included meals
5/5 Bikes + equipment
4/5 Hotels or boat
5/5 Scenery
5/5 Ease of navigation
5/5 Tour documents
5/5 Local tour company services
5/5 Route selection

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★★★★★ (5/5) Michele Wittels 9 months ago

Fabulous trip and experience!

Everything about this bike trip was perfect. The communication creating our trip, the bike route, the accommodations, the GPS provided - it could not have been better. We look forward to doing another similar trip with BikeTours.com in the near future.

What was the date of your tour?: October, 2025
How many tours have you completed?: 1
Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?: As expected
Who is this tour suitable for?: First-time bike tourists, Solo travelers, Families with teens
Do you recommend this tour?: Yes

5/5 Value
5/5 Included meals
5/5 Bikes + equipment
5/5 Hotels or boat
5/5 Scenery
5/5 Ease of navigation
5/5 Tour documents
5/5 Local tour company services
5/5 Route selection

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★★★★★ (4/5) Henry Furlott 1 month ago

Excellent organization, hotels and bikes provided.

The Ride with GPS instructions were excellent and so well done. Some roads are close together and bike paths with are right next to roads. All was clear where we had to go. Paolo was terrific to work with, initially when he delivered the bikes, assisting with the routes, etc. He had to follow up as my wife's bike had shifting problems. This was dealt with immediately the next morning (she could still continue the first day, she was concerned that it might damage the bike).
It would have been good to have greater detail of what to expect on the routes we selected. For example, we took the ride only loop on day 5, rather than to Perugia. It was a hot day and the route did NOT go through towns with water available. (fountains particularly to cool off). We had enough drinking water with us, but no extra to pour over ourselves. Also, this route has a lot of loose gravel, even a long, scary, treacherous, winding descent on gravel. I was fine as I'm an experienced mountain biker, but my wife was quite upset with this. People should know ahead of time that you need much greater cycling skills than casual riders on simple bike paths.
I would also HIGHLY recommend that you take the eBikes. I am a strong road rider, but there were many steeper climbs that I expected, not to mention going up those narrow lanes in the hilltop towns. I sure was grateful for this extra power assist, esp. as I carried both panniers (and Paola gave us two extra huge heavy chain locks!!!) If you had your own light (empty) road bike, then you would be okay, but not in such heat. I really didn't want to take an eBike, but I admit it was an excellent decision (pushed by my wife, so that I wouldn't be cooked at the end of each day, even though the distances were quite short). I then had plenty of energy to enjoy the evenings after dinner.

What was the date of your tour?: May 2026
How many tours have you completed?: 2 with companies, but many on my own or with a friend.
Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?: Somewhat harder
Who is this tour suitable for?: Solo travelers
Do you recommend this tour?: Yes