October 8-9
Travel from IAD to Pisa; train to Florence
October 10-12: Pre-tour
Florence Sightseeing
October 12: Embark
Board the Belle de L’Adriatique in the port at Livorno
October 13: Italian Riveria
Ride off from Genoa to meet the relocated ship at Santa Margherita with a ride to Portofino and back.
October 14: “Classic Options”
Start in Nice, France, ride through Monaco (passing the front door of Casino de Monte-Carlo), and meet the ship back in Italy at San Remo. We will not take the other “classic option” above and around Monaco to the French town of La Turbie, nor will we climb the Col du Madone (the name of the famous Trek bike model).
October 15: Cinque Terre
No riding today from the port of La Spezia so that we can enjoy the five villages on foot or by train.
October 16: “Tuscany’s Best Bike Ride”
From the Port of Piombino, we will ride to the walled medieval villages of Suvareto and Sasseta. Lunch at the birthplace of Super Tuscan wines near Castagnetto Carducci, then through San Vincenzo to return to Piombino.
October 17: Better Than Tuscany?????
From the port of Gaeta, we will get bused/bikes trucked up to the Aurunci Mountains Natural Preserve to save some climbing miles and also enjoy a guided tour of caves and the underground river at Pastena.
October 18: The Amalfi Coast
We’ll ride from Castellammare along the Amalfi Coast to Salerno.
October 19
Ship moves back to Castellammare during the night, from where we can bike to Sorrento or bus to Herculaneum, a more recent site than Pompei of ruins from the Mt. Vesuvius eruption.
October 20-21: Rome Post/Pre-tour
The first leg of the trip ends here, with most participants leaving from Rome, while a new group joins those of us doing both trips in Rome
October 22: Embark and departure from Rome
October 23: Corsica’s Southern Cape
Ride from Porto Vecchio, ending in Bonifacio, a yacht and small ferry port, where no cruise ship has ever previously been welcomed.
October 24-27: Corsica
Exact rides are yet to be determined, but we will spend four days riding in Corsica, while the ship ties up in small bays without docks, so bikes will stay on shore and we will be ferried back and forth to the ship for the night on tenders.
October 28: The French Riviera
We’ll ride from Cannes to meet the ship in Nice, including the wide Promenade, the site of the tragedy this year on Bastille Day. After some deliberation about changing the route, Jan and Bill “decided to stand by this route choice, and the citizens of France, as a gesture of respect for the French people and in defiance of our mutual enemies.”
October 29-30: Post Tour in Nice
October 31-November 1: Travel Home
We’ll change planes in London, Heathrow.
Travel from IAD to Pisa; train to Florence
October 10-12: Pre-tour
Florence Sightseeing
October 12: Embark
Board the Belle de L’Adriatique in the port at Livorno
October 13: Italian Riveria
Ride off from Genoa to meet the relocated ship at Santa Margherita with a ride to Portofino and back.
October 14: “Classic Options”
Start in Nice, France, ride through Monaco (passing the front door of Casino de Monte-Carlo), and meet the ship back in Italy at San Remo. We will not take the other “classic option” above and around Monaco to the French town of La Turbie, nor will we climb the Col du Madone (the name of the famous Trek bike model).
October 15: Cinque Terre
No riding today from the port of La Spezia so that we can enjoy the five villages on foot or by train.
October 16: “Tuscany’s Best Bike Ride”
From the Port of Piombino, we will ride to the walled medieval villages of Suvareto and Sasseta. Lunch at the birthplace of Super Tuscan wines near Castagnetto Carducci, then through San Vincenzo to return to Piombino.
October 17: Better Than Tuscany?????
From the port of Gaeta, we will get bused/bikes trucked up to the Aurunci Mountains Natural Preserve to save some climbing miles and also enjoy a guided tour of caves and the underground river at Pastena.
October 18: The Amalfi Coast
We’ll ride from Castellammare along the Amalfi Coast to Salerno.
October 19
Ship moves back to Castellammare during the night, from where we can bike to Sorrento or bus to Herculaneum, a more recent site than Pompei of ruins from the Mt. Vesuvius eruption.
October 20-21: Rome Post/Pre-tour
The first leg of the trip ends here, with most participants leaving from Rome, while a new group joins those of us doing both trips in Rome
October 22: Embark and departure from Rome
October 23: Corsica’s Southern Cape
Ride from Porto Vecchio, ending in Bonifacio, a yacht and small ferry port, where no cruise ship has ever previously been welcomed.
October 24-27: Corsica
Exact rides are yet to be determined, but we will spend four days riding in Corsica, while the ship ties up in small bays without docks, so bikes will stay on shore and we will be ferried back and forth to the ship for the night on tenders.
October 28: The French Riviera
We’ll ride from Cannes to meet the ship in Nice, including the wide Promenade, the site of the tragedy this year on Bastille Day. After some deliberation about changing the route, Jan and Bill “decided to stand by this route choice, and the citizens of France, as a gesture of respect for the French people and in defiance of our mutual enemies.”
October 29-30: Post Tour in Nice
October 31-November 1: Travel Home
We’ll change planes in London, Heathrow.