Are you planning to travel with us soon on one of our many bike tours and walking tours we offer around the world? Wondering if you’re in the right shape?

First of all, we want to reassure you that we offer active trips for all fitness levels. Your Trip Leader will always be there to provide shorter or longer routes as you – and your body – desire. We also offer two vans on almost all of our trips to ensure that if you’re tired and ready to head back to the hotel, there’s a van to take you there and one to stay with the remaining bikers or walkers.

That said, we have a few tips to help you get in optimum shape for your upcoming bike trip or hiking trip.

In the weeks before your active vacation, try training like our Trip Leaders. They do a variety of exercises to “cross train” to ensure their bodies don’t just become expert at running, for example, but can handle many different physical activities. Try running, hiking, swimming or some type of aerobic activity for at least 20 minutes three times a week – and mix up the type of activity you do.

We also recommend training by time, not miles. On Backroads’ hiking trips or biking trips, you’ll spend most of the day on the road, but you can go at your own pace. So no need to become the world’s fastest cyclist! Just be sure you can be on a bike for several hours with breaks.

For biking, definitely just get out and ride – in all conditions (rain, wind, etc.) and on all types of roads (flat, winding, hilly, etc.). – several hours a day for several days in a row.

Also, be sure to incorporate some upper body exercises to help strengthen your neck and arms to avoid fatigue.

Overall, the key to getting more physically fit is to choose an exercise you’ll stick with, so pick something you enjoy. If you’ve chosen to bike or hike with us, we’re pretty sure you enjoy the great outdoors, so simply walking or biking gradually increasing distances is a perfect plan. We’ll also send you more specific training tips tailored to your particular trip.

Got tips for training for a Backroads trip? Please share! For more information or to book any of our award-winning tours, please call us 7 a.m.-5 p.m. Pacific daily at 800-462-2848.

Our bike trips and hiking trips are already tons of fun, but many of our travelers and families make the fun last even longer by extending their active vacation either before or after their tour. We’ve picked 5 of our amazing active trips and included suggestions of where to travel to extend your getaway.

1)      Party in Barcelona – Barcelona is the city where our Pyrenees to Costa Brava Biking starts and ends and it’s the perfect place to spend a few extra days. Barcelona is a vibrant Spanish city, formerly home to the summer Olympics, and the perfect place for a night out on the town. We recommend taking in a tapas bar or trying restaurant Mil921, featuring Catalan cuisine with a Japanese twist, owned by the brother of one of our Spanish Trip Leaders. After all, you deserve some delicious dinners after your Spain Biking Trip through some challenging mountain passes.

2)      Get some Culture in Florence – Get your fill of art and culture in this Italian Renaissance gem. As the gateway city for our Tuscany Biking tour, we highly recommend adding on a few days – or even a week! In addition to the history and sites, Florence is also a great city for sumptuous Italian cuisine. Why not take a wine appreciation or group cooking class at the Apicius International School of Hospitality after your Italian bike tour? You can come home, bragging about your new Italian cooking skills!

3)      Peruse Paris – You just can’t turn down an opportunity to see the City of Lights and its famous Eiffel Tower when you’re so close on our Loire Valley Biking trip. Stroll the city, stopping at cafes, sipping cappuccinos, and perhaps taking in some jazz at a lively club before or after your French bike tour. Here’s a site that offers the latest information about happenings in Paris.

4)      Savor San Francisco – One of our most popular tours is the Wine Country Biking Tour. We have to admit seeing rolling hills by bike and sampling wine after wine is pretty amazing. To continue your California tour by bike, consider the Streets of San Francisco Bike Tours, founded by former Backroads leaders. They’ll take you off the beaten path of San Francisco and they offer Backroads customers a 15% discount. Just use the code “backroads” when booking.

5)      Sight-see in Prague – Our Czech Republic & Austria Walking & Hiking Tour takes you from Prague to Salzburg, so consider a few additional days at the start to explore the wonderful city of Prague, the largest city in the Czech Republic. Did you know it’s the sixth most visited city in Europe after London, Paris, Rome, Madrid and Berlin? It’s known for its architecture and museums and if you have kids, be sure to check out the Prague Zoo, named one of the best in the world by Forbes.

Be sure to check with your Trip Planner if you have questions about extending your trip. We’re happy to provide suggestions and tips for making the most out of your extended vacation. For more information about any of our active tours, please call 800-462-2848 7 a.m.-5 p.m.

There’s no getting around it. When you travel, especially overseas, you’ve got to have a plan for your money: how much to bring, where to exchange it, where to stash it and more. Since we’ve been guiding travelers on our active vacations since the late 70’s, we’ve learned a thing or two about traveling with money. Here are 5 tips for preparing your finances before your active trip:

1)      Develop a ‘spending strategy.’ Do you want to use travelers’ checks, credit cards or your ATM with an international PIN? This will depend on how many countries you plan on visiting and how developed the region is. If you plan to use a credit card, be sure to alert them in advance that you’ll be traveling and spending in a foreign country so they don’t freeze your account.

2)      Stash $100 in your wallet so you have cash upon returning to your home airport. Also, take $20 in $1 US for emergency tip money.

3)      Get small bills and coins upon arriving in a foreign country. Familiarize yourself with the currency, noting any similarities between bills or coins. It’s no fun to mistake a $2 coin for a .25 coin!

4)      Before you leave for your biking trip or walking trip, make a conversion chart for yourself:  $1=  , $5=  , $20=    etc. or buy a conversion calculator.

5)      When heading out for the day or while traveling by plane, put your credit cards, passport and travelers’ checks in a money belt beneath your clothes, but put cash (try to estimate what you’ll be spending that day) in your pocket.

Of course, when you take a Backroads bike trip or hiking trip, our knowledgeable Trip Leaders will be there to guide you on all things, including money. Additionally, before you leave on your Backroads trip, you’ll be assigned a Trip Planner who can also help answer questions about financial preparation before you arrive.

Got any tips for traveling safely with money overseas? Anyone learned a lesson the hard way J? Let us know.

For more information about any of Backroads overseas bike trips or overseas hiking trips, please contact us 7 a.m.- 5 p.m. Pacific daily at 800-462-2848.

Are you thinking of traveling with us on an active vacation this year or next? Many people ask us: How far in advance should I reserve my trip with Backroads? That’s a great question and one for which you want to be sure you have the right information, as it would be disappointing to call to reserve your trip only to learn that it’s full.

Our best recommendation is to book as far an advance as your timing allows. The further ahead you reserve your spot, the more availability you’ll find. When you’re planning a major getaway like a European bike tour or hiking tour through the US National Parks, you’ll want to be sure the dates work best for your family’s schedule.

Many families travel with us during the summer months, for example, so those dates fill quickly, along with holidays. To make sure you can choose your top destination and date, try to contact us at least four to six months ahead of time.

There are also several tours that are very popular and tend to book quickly. They include Yellowstone & Tetons Walking Tour, San Juan Islands Biking, all of our Italy hiking tours and Italy biking tours as well as our France hiking tours and France biking tours. If any of those locales are on your list, call us early.

To reserve your active trip, please call us at 800-462-2848 7 a.m.- 5 p.m. Pacific daily or use our secure online reservation form by clicking Reserve This Trip! on any trip page on our website. We request a $600 deposit per person made by check or major credit card. The balance of your trip cost is due 95 days prior to departure in most instances. In a few Special Departure           cases we request the balance due 125 days prior to departure.

So pick your destination, choose your dates and give us a ring! Before you know it, you’ll be on your way to an active vacation of a lifetime…

On a Backroads walking trip or biking trip, everyone is anxious to get started on their adventure tour, but you have to get there first! Lots of our travelers want to know: How do I get to the start of a bike tour or walking tour? Well, it may seem complicated but it doesn’t need to be with help from your Backroads team.

We plan our trips so that they begin and end in towns or cities that are accessible by plane, train, bus or a Backroads shuttle for convenience. When you book your trip, we’ll provide you with a Travel Planner, which will include detailed information about starting and ending times and locations, as well as airport and hotel van transfer locations and other transportation options.

You may want to engage or Travel Desk or your travel agent to help support the planning of arrival and departure, including pre- and post-trip hotels, rental cars or rail tickets.

If you haven’t received your Travel Planner and you’re ready to go ahead and book airfare, a Backroads Trip Consultant can help you with all the trip details you’ll need by. Additionally, if you’d like to drive to the starting location, please check with your Trip Consultant about parking options.

Many of our guests like to extend their Backroads hiking tour or bike tour with a few extra days at a destination either before the adventure tour begins or after it concludes. Backroads has negotiated special hotel rates for our guests who want to extend their trip. Here you can find a list of these hotels grouped by location. Please note that you must book the rooms directly with the hotel (not via a third party website, for example) in order to receive the special rates.

What other questions do you have about beginning or ending your Backroads adventure trip? Please call us at 800-462-2848 daily from 7 a.m. – 5 p.m. Pacific and we’ll help!

Sometime in your life, you’ve got to see the American West whether it’s the canyons of Utah or the mountains and hot springs in Wyoming. We happen to think the best way to see this region is on a bike tour or hiking tour of the American West.

Backroads offers active tours to Montana, New Mexico, Utah, Wyoming and more, giving you the opportunity to see these glorious vistas in the open air as you pedal through each state or hike on your own two feet. Smell the wildflowers, see the mountains unobstructed and drink in the fresh alpine air.

Here are a few of our top Western vacations that we think you should consider this year:

New Mexico Biking: Santa Fe & Taos – This 6-day, 5-night New Mexico bike tour takes you through the land that inspired artist Georgia O’Keefe, across the fifth highest bridge in the US, a chance to bike the Enchanted Circle around Wheeler Peak and through Spanish and Indian ruins. Runs May, June, September & October.

Wyoming: Yellowstone and Tetons Multisport – This is your chance to see mud pots, spouting geysers and steaming vents, along with the beautiful peaks of the Tetons and the Snake River as you white-water raft  down it. This 6-day 5-night tour screams adventure! Get ready to bike Wyoming, hike Grand Teton National Park and kayak Yellowstone Lake. This Wyoming adventure is offered as a Classic Tour June-September, for Singles-Solos  in July, for families June-August and as a deluxe camping experience June-August.

Montana Biking – Right next door to Wyoming is beautiful Montana where you’ll get to bike the Going-to-the-Sun Road and take in the true alpine beauty of the American West. As you bike Montana, pedal past Lake McDonald, sparkling waterfalls, through glacier-carved valleys and even take a trek into Canada and visit a National Park. As the finale, raft down the Flathead River. This is a 6-day, 5-night trip that runs July-August as a classic tour and June and August for Singles-Solos.

Utah: Bryce & Zion Biking – Red rocks galore are what you’ll find on this bike trip through Utah. You’ll see rocks of all shapes and sizes from whimsically-shaped formations to towers and arches. Get ready to be amazed at what Mother Nature creates! On this Utah bike tour, you’ll also work your way through many canyons, bike through Zion National Park with its colored pinnacles, spires and hoodoos, as well as marvel at Mount Carmel’s white sandstone Elkhard Cliffs. This bike tour of Utah runs 6 days and 5 nights June-September and is also available for Singles and Solos in July.

Where have you always dreamed of heading out West? Don’t forget to bring your cowboy boots and cowboy hat – oh yeah, and your sense of adventure!

To book any of our active trips to the American West, please call us daily 7 a.m.-5 p.m. Pacific time at 800-462-2848.

Part of what makes Backroads so special is our emphasis on introducing our guests to the local culture of the region where they’re traveling. We often employ local guides who live in the area to give you an authentic look at what it’s like to live there and our Trip Leaders are also incredibly knowledgeable about the areas where they travel.

From the design of the trip to our Trip Leaders, we’ll guide you along the way to explore the local culture, but here are a few tips in advance to help you get the most out of your active trip.

• Stop – You are on a bike tour or walking tour, after all, so you have the option to stop and take in the world around you. Hop off the bike and browse the local food market or walk into a café and strike up a conversation. You’ll be amazed at the rich interactions you’ll remember for years to come.
• Know Your No-No’s – Following the proper etiquette in other countries can be an important way to demonstrate respect for another culture and increase the likelihood of engaging interactions.  For specific regional customs, ask your Trip Planner before you leave or check with your culturally-savvy Trip Leader as to the correct “do’s” and “don’ts.”
• Be Chatty – Learn a few basic phrases and practice them with the locals. Don’t be shy. Ask questions and share your excitement and you’ll be surprised by the enthusiastic response! Check with your Trip Planner for a list of commonly used words and phrases.
• Get Educated – Read up on the region before you get there. Backroads provides a list of travel-inspiring books for recommended reading for each of our bike trips and hiking trips.
• Take a Picture – Photographing new places is one of travel’s most rewarding gifts. Be sensitive when shooting local peoples and religious or ceremonial sites by asking permission first. Show your appreciation by thanking them. You could also ask for their name and address and sending them a copy of the photograph.

What tips do you have for immersing yourself in the local culture? How did you strike up a conversation with a local on an active vacation? We’d love to hear!

For more advice on how to enhance your cultural experience before you depart, check with our Trip Planners 7 a.m.-5 p.m. Pacific daily at 800-462-2848.

Here at Backroads, we believe we’re the best choice for an active vacation, be it a walking tour in Europe or a bike tour through southeast Asia. Sure, lots of active travel companies make claims about why their service is the best, but we can prove it! How? The Backroads’  Quality Index, a way to demonstrate to you the true differences that set Backroads’ active vacations apart from the rest.

In Part 1 of our Quality Index blog post, we’ll share with you 6 reasons we believe Backroads is the leader of the pack:

Never Subcontracted – We run all of our own active tours around the world, allowing us to control the quality. We never subcontract to other vendors.

Two Support Vans – On all of our bike trips, walking trips and multisport trips, we support you with two vans*. That way, if part of the group needs a break, they can head back to the hotel, while the other van supports those still walking or biking. It also allows us to provide snacks, fix bikes, etc. without sacrificing service to everyone else.

Three Trip Leaders – By sending three Trip Leaders on EVERY tour, we ensure that everyone is catered to. Our active trips have a 6:1 guest to leader ratio, and our travelers consistently score our Trip Leaders 9.7 out of 10, saying they “make all the difference.”

Local Expertise – On our international trips, we bring along local guides to pair with our Trip Leaders to give you an authentic experience of the region where you’re traveling.

The Right Bikes – Our bike fleet is the best in the active travel industry with more than 4000 expertly maintained bikes, including our custom titanium Backroads bike, our top-rated Specialized S-Works Roubaix and women’s Ruby Pro, and our Co-Motion Periscope Torpedo tandem.

Thoughtful Trip Design – We employ a team of nine trip designers, lead by our founder and CEO Tom Hale who brings three decades of experience, ensuring you truly get to see the “back roads” and the best of each area.

What is your favorite part of the Backroads experience? To experience our quality firsthand, call us today at 800-462-2848 7 a.m.- 5 p.m.  Pacific to get start selecting the perfect active tour for you.

*95% of Backroads guests travel with the support of two or more vans and three leaders. The remaining 5% are on trips with very few guests where only one van and two leaders are needed to maintain our high service standards.

Can you imagine going from never having changed a bike tire to leading a group of 60 on a bike tour to one of the country’s most popular regions? Meet Backroads Trip Leader Matt Sulkis! It’s not a challenge he shied away from!

In fact, Matt came to Backroads as a bit of a surprise. “I was not a cyclist, did not know how to change a tire and had never planned on traveling or guiding for a living,” says Matt. But he heard about Backroads’ adventure tours through a friend while he was still working for an environmental consulting firm in Vancouver. He decided to give it a go.

Fast forward three years and Matt is now leading Backroads’ annual Bikefest bike trip through Wine Country. On this sojourn, which we like to describe as deluxe camping, singles and solos bike through the rolling hills of northern California, sip wines from myriad wineries and enjoy rollicking campfires and live music every evening. It is a “fest” indeed!

Now, says Matt, “I now own a quiver of bikes and have been moving all over the world nonstop for three years. It has been quite a gift.”

“I think that seeing the world by bicycle is unique,” says Matt. “You are engaging so many of your senses, have complete control over where you go and what you see, and are being green in the process. I love that our guests choose to see the  world this way.”

If we haven’t convinced you to travel with Matt yet, well, then check out his tent set-up skills in this quick, fun video below. On a Backroads deluxe camping adventure tour, our Trip Leaders set up camp for you, so all you have to do is show up, relax and lay your head on the pillow. Take a look:

Interested in our Singles Bikefest? We’ve added a second date for 2013 due to its popularity last year. Party with us in either July or September. [Read our blog on Bikefest for more information] or call us at 800-462-2848 7 a.m.-5 p.m. daily to save your spot!

From India and Peru to Bhutan and Morocco, you submitted some fantastic photos of your Backroads journeys for our annual Backroads Photo Contest! You covered walking tours, biking tours, multisport tours, family adventure tours and more, and we must say, your photography skills aren’t too shabby!

Every year, Backroads invites our travelers to submit their best photos from their Backroads trip for a chance at a credit toward their next adventure tour with us! First place receives a $3000 trip credit; second place receives a $2000 trip credit; and third place receives a $1000 trip credit.

We’ve picked the best of the best from all of your submissions and have now opened voting. Anyone is welcome to vote for their favorite picture, and by voting, you’ll be entered to win a $200 Patagonia gift card. Not a bad prize for viewing some jaw-dropping photos!

Here’s just a sampling of the 2012 best Backroads adventure tour photo submissions:

Taken by C. Jennings on our Dalmatian Coast Family Multisport Tour:

Taken by C. Michel on our Bhutan Walking Tour:

Taken by K. Mills on our Loire Valley Biking Tour:

Taken by M. Sloane on our Canadian Rockies Multisport Tour:

Taken by D. Patton on our Death Valley Walking Tour:

This is just a handful of the beautiful and creative photos you submitted to Backroads for 2012! Take a look at all the adventure travel photos from our tours here and vote for your favorite.

Are you inspired yet? We are! We’re ready to strap on our hiking boots, oil up our bike and head to the nearest airport to experience a Backroads adventure.

If we can help you schedule your next Backroads tour please give us a call 7 a.m.-5 p.m. Pacific daily at 800-462-2848. And don’t forget your camera to enter the 2013 photo contest!