The concept of self-guided bicycle tours is well known in Europe but a rarity in the United States. If you are an experienced bicyclist you either pay a lot of money for a guided tour while moving at the pace of the weakest member of the group, or you attempt to chart the unknown yourself, sleep in a tent and, perhaps, haul your belongings in panniers up steep climbs. Not much fun either way. After years of self-guided bicycling in Europe, we became frustrated when attempting to do the same in our home country, so we established Virginia Bicycling Adventures to bring self-guided road bicycle tours to the USA.

As a family business we hope to share our local knowledge of the most interesting and breathtaking parts of the Shenandoah Valley, surrounding mountains and the Piedmont while making people feel welcome to our corner of the world. We take care of all accommodations, all breakfasts, some lunches and dinners, and we provide local information, route maps and descriptions to guide you, taking away all of the hassles, but none of the adventure. The lodging accommodations are very comfortable and representative of the region because most are family run and have the charm and atmosphere our customers want to experience. We are accessible by email, phone, and web. We will respond with a real person to answer questions and to work with you on all aspects of your trip. We, or others for us, have bicycled our routes, and we have stayed in or visited all the B&Bs, country inns, motels and hotels on our tours. We chose to focus on Virginia for several reasons. It is a leading destination for bicyclists; we believe the topography to be quite similar to our favorite European biking destinations-the foothills of the Alps, the Massif Central, Lanquedoc and Provence; the back roads are endless and virtually free of vehicles and those that you encounter have drivers that are very bicycle friendly; lots of historical sites and wineries; and, awesome vistas. All of which fits our philosophy of creating cycling trips along rural back roads that bring the bicyclist into the magnificence of an area and its local cultures and history.

All you have to do is enjoy the over-the-top breakfasts and accumulate long-lasting memories. Our responsibility is to set the stage so that each day you can escape from everything, except your own musings, while experiencing your adventure in your own unique way.