Hi everyone!
We are planning our first long bicycle tour from Turkey/Greece to Estonia and we are looking for some tips on our route. We would like to have a nice mix of coast and inland (countryside roads, mountains) and mainly paved roads (or hard packed gravel, wanting to avoid difficult gravel). One of us is not European, so for visa reasons we won't be able to go to Serbia, if someone is thinking of suggesting that. Here are the countries and some more specific points we would like to cover.
- Greece:
- Follow west or east coast?
- North-Macedonia:
- Ohrid lake
- Albania:
- Tirana
- Follow south-west side of Shkoder lake
- Montenegro:
- Cetinje (inland, mountains?) or Budva (coast)?
- Kotor
- Bosnia-Hertzegovina
- Dubrovnik – Mostar (Ciro trail)
- Mostar – ???
- Hungary:
- Budapest
- Follow Danube river
- Slovakia:
- ???
- Poland:
- Krakow
- Green velo route?
- Lithuania:
- Kaunas
- Latvia:
- Riga
- Estonia:
- Pärnu, Tallin
Currently we are mainly wondering whether to follow east or west coast of Greece and how to cross Bosnia-Hertzegovina. We have read that traffic in BH is mad and the inland seems to be quite mountainous. We are also wondering how to cross Slovakia, is there a good route from Budapest to Krakow? We could also omit Krakow if there is a good route from Slovakia to eastern Poland.
Also comment if you there are any gems we are missing nearby our route! We prefer nature over cities, but are not looking for big experiences, rather want to enjoy the journey and find out what's on the way. 🙂
Link to route: https://www.komoot.com/tour/2762171873?share_token=aC2I4rx6E8W6rGHaVYxCfXFd8E2KgCfobVB7SXXPtowNnUU98e&ref=wtd
by No-Power1439
1 Comment
hi, we (3 adults) biked from Edinburgh to Athens (Aug-Oct) through the alps then Slovenia, south through Croatia, Ciro in Bosnia, Montenegro, Albania and Greece. To address your proposed route:
Greece . We followed ev8, it was almost perfect, bit busier and less pleasant nearer Athens especially around Corinth but further north was a superb route along the coast and quiet.
Albania. continuing along the EV through the Albania riviera is excellent, and quiet. the road then becomes busy around Fiere / Vlora with some quiet roads up to Durres. from durres north via Tirana was our least favourite part of the journey.
Montenegro, ev 8 alongside lake skadar is superb, all the way to Cetinje and Kotor. Things will then get busy but you can cross into Bosnia well before Dubrovnik as traffic in that area is horrendous. Avoid the D8 highway. You can pick up the Ciro trail in trebinje and finish in Mostar.
Croatia. I’ve bike the length of Croatia twice, once trying to stay inland and once island hopping so I can suggest two routes. PM me if you want further info