Taste of Italy, Emilia-Romagna Culinary Cycling - Classic Self Guided 8day

Traveler Reviews

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  Carrie

  May 1st, 2025
  We took this 5 day self-guided tour with another couple from Bologna to Parma in early April. It was absolutely...
  We took this 5 day self-guided tour with another couple from Bologna to Parma in early April. It was absolutely fantastic! (Gorgeous countryside, Parmigiano Reggiano & balsamic vinegar tours so interesting, food & activity recommendations spot on). Cycle Europe staff was incredibly organized, responsive, consistent and kind. The hotels they booked for us were wonderful - their locations with great walking access to the best of each city. The bikes were in perfect condition, GPS directions clear, and luggage transport was smooth. I highly recommend this company and would book them again in a heartbeat!Show more
  Traveled in April 2025
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  Maurianne

  November 6th, 2023
  Our self-guided trip with Cycle Europe through Emilio-Romagna was a delight. Well designed routes provided variety...
  Our self-guided trip with Cycle Europe through Emilio-Romagna was a delight. Well designed routes provided variety and the autonomy that we sought. The hybrid bikes were ideal for the routes, which varied from small back roads in agricultural areas to a coastal nature reserve, to the hills of Brisighella, to the amazing bike lane infrastructure that led to the heart of Bologna. Lovely hotels with great breakfasts. Helpful staff at Cycle Europe before and during our trip. Take the opportunity for a guided tour in Ravenna to learn more about the Byzantine mosaics. The olive oil tasting and lunch in Brisighella are another highlight!Show more
  Traveled in October 2023
  

  Reply from: BikesPlus Travel

  Thank you Marianne for your review, we are so happy you enjoyed your tour!!

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  David

  October 20th, 2023
  Despite requesting a road bike, I ended up with a gravel bike. Not a huge disappointment but illustrates Tour...
  Despite requesting a road bike, I ended up with a gravel bike. Not a huge disappointment but illustrates Tour Radar's poor communication with the independent bike tour operator (a company called Cycle Europe). Hotels were great. I ride more than 5000 Km per year, and was generally impressed with the flat, uninteresting terrain we rode through in Emilia Romagna. The cities we stayed in were the highlight of the trip. Wife's rented bike front derailleur was poorly adjusted, and had chain suck twice which I had to fix resulting in filthy hands for that day's riding. The first night, they couldn't accommodate us at the hotel closest to the starting point making navigation out of Bologna, from the outlying hotel more difficult and stressful. Really didn't enjoy first day of riding because of difficulty finding the course. The two culinary highlights weren't programmed into the bike computer so we ended up riding past these and missing these. My wife didn't enjoy the cycling part of the trip. I will likely not book another trip through Tour Radar. because they are a middleman, not the tour operator. I would advise potential touring cyclists to deal directly with Cycle Europe who was the operator of our tour, if you want to ride through Emilia Romagna. The 3 stars I have given are because the hotels chosen were just exquisite places to stay, so you could explore Modena, Reggio and Parma. The small towns were the highlight of the trip, not the cycling, and not the hassle of ineffective communication with Tour Radar.Show more
  Traveled in October 2023
  

  Reply from: BikesPlus Travel

  Hello David, this is Javier replying from the Cycle Europe office in Faenza, Italy. We did read your review when it first arrived, sorry couldn't reply sooner. We are sorry about the miscommunication problems you had prior to your travels. We as a tour operator, as well as Tourradar, do our best to make the entire reservation process the best possible. Luckily the many customers on our Taste of Italy self-guided tour are generally quite pleased with the itinerary, hotels, experiences and cycling routes, and the reviews on our website and on this platform are evidence of this. We thank you for your helpful evaluation, and we are very happy that even if you had some hiccups along the way, your experience was generally positive. We'd love to have the chance to serve you again in the future, in the meantime, happy cycling to you!

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  Anonymous

  September 16th, 2023
  The countryside riding was a joyful experience. There were some not so easy loops for those who are not experienced...
  The countryside riding was a joyful experience. There were some not so easy loops for those who are not experienced riders. (Heads up!) There were always good places to stop along the way for lunch/drinks. We did sometimes find the traffic tricky getting out of bigger cities. A must-do to escape the touristy places of Italy.Show more
  Traveled in September 2023
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  Sarah

  September 12th, 2023
  I was curious that I might have to use the ebike if I chose it but you can cycle comfortably with it turned off. It...
  I was curious that I might have to use the ebike if I chose it but you can cycle comfortably with it turned off. It was good to have the support of ebike on hand if needed eg: on roads with traffic or a hot afternoon. Hotels were all good. Overall would recommend t try his tour. The balsamic and cheese tours were excellent.Show more
  Traveled in September 2023
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  Nick

  August 12th, 2023
  My wife and I did this tour solo with no others booked on our week. This was the first time riding multiple days in a...
  My wife and I did this tour solo with no others booked on our week. This was the first time riding multiple days in a foreign country so we were a little nervous about navigating our way through. We can say with great confidence that anyone can do this (navigate) with ease, so don't let that stop you. We loved so much about this trip that detailing all of it would require much time and space here. We toured Italy for five weeks and this 6 day bike trip was definitely a highlight.Show more
  Traveled in July 2023
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  Leslie

  July 1st, 2023
  First the good: hotels were all great, excellent bike and gear provided. Paper maps were vital too. What can be...
  First the good: hotels were all great, excellent bike and gear provided. Paper maps were vital too. What can be improved: tell participants exactly what you provide so they don’t bring: bike lock, bike pump, flat repair kit with tube, bike bag, garmin gps. Tell customers if they bring their own garmin to have European maps pre loaded. Make sure all gps routes are up to date on the garmin you provide. This was not the case in Reggio Emila. The garmin did not direct us to the Parm experience so we missed it. Teach customers how to get back on the garmin route after lunch stops. This was a challenge for us. Overall a very good experience though. I hope you can use our feedback to make it even better for others!Show more
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  Traveled in June 2023
  

  Reply from: BikesPlus Travel

  Thank you Leslie for your detailed reply and constructive feedback. This information is very helpful for future travelers. Each tour webpage does have a "what's included" part, with a section called "additional services", which details the navigation options - we can provide a GPS device as well as printed material, in addition to our very practical and easy to use Ride with GPS app, with all the routes and tour information. We are also improving the tourradar page so that it's easier to find the bike rental accessories included. Thanks again for your feedback!

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  Gregory

  October 18th, 2019
  Tour was fantastic from beginning to end. It was self-guided but we had all the support we needed - every hotel and...
  Tour was fantastic from beginning to end. It was self-guided but we had all the support we needed - every hotel and add-on location expected us, luggage transport went off without a hitch, and we had plenty of guidance towards bike shops and repair help (although we never needed it). The route was easy to follow and manageable from a car traffic perspective and the cities we were in were just as fantastic as advertised. I couldn't recommend a bike tour enough as a way to travel Emilia Romagna and, if you do, it must be with Cycle Europe!Show more
  Traveled in September 2019
  

  Reply from: BikesPlus Travel

  Thank you Gregory for the detailed feedback, it was a pleasure to have you! Until next time! The Cycle Europe team

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  SandraPecis

  May 13th, 2019
  We have gone on the amazing Taste of Italy tour this spring and the experience was awesome. The staff was friendly...
  We have gone on the amazing Taste of Italy tour this spring and the experience was awesome. The staff was friendly and very helpful all time. The quality of the bikes are excellent, perfect for the long rides from Bologna to Parma. The restaurants, the cooking class, the visits to the gelato factory, the acetaia and the cheese makes allow us to dive in the italian culture and gastronomy. Great company!! Thanks Cycle Europe for the great vacation!!Show more
  Traveled in May 2019
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  JohnCorso

  January 17th, 2019
  We have been on two self guided trips with Cycle Europe and are planning our third. This latest was through Tuscany...
  We have been on two self guided trips with Cycle Europe and are planning our third. This latest was through Tuscany and as usual we were delighted with the planning process (they are very responsive and helpful by email) as well as the first-day greet and bike fit with Javier, who was waiting for us ahead of schedule and who got us all well-fit to great bikes and educated us on everything we needed to know. The staff (and the really nice hybrid bikes) are what make this company a keeper for us.Show more
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  Traveled in August 2018