Cycling the Baltics guided & self-guided cycle tours 2019 Lithuania Latvia Estonia Poland Russia Belarus www.balticbike.lt …more than 10 years with you! TABLE OF CONTENTS Tour Code CONTENT Page Tourist information and our bike tour services 4 Guided bike tours in the Baltics, Poland, Belarus and Russia (fixed departure dates) G1 Bestseller! Cycling the Baltics (Lithuania – Latvia – Estonia) with the Curonian Spit & Saaremaa Island (11 days, from Vilnius) 6 G1E New! E-bike tour in the Baltics (Lithuania – Latvia - Estonia): with the Curonian Spit & Saaremaa Island (11 days, from Vilnius) 7 G2 Bike tour in Lithuania & Latvia with the Curonian Spit & Gauja national park (8 days, from Vilnius) 8 G4 Bike tour in Latvia & Estonia with Tallinn, Saaremaa Island and Lahemaa National Park (9 days, from/to Riga) 9 G5 New! Bike tour in Lithuania, Poland & Belarus with National parks of Dzūkija, Wigry & Biebrza (11 days, from Vilnius) 10 G8 New! The four countries bike tour along the Baltic Coast: Latvia-Lithuania-Russia/Kaliningrad-Poland (11 days, from Riga) 11 Self-guided bike tours in the Baltics, Poland, Belarus and Russia (with luggage transport) SG7 Bestseller! Cycling the Baltics (Estonia – Latvia - Lithuania) with national parks Lahemaa, Gauja & Curonian Spit (11 days, 12 from Tallinn) SG11 Cycling the Baltics (Lithuania – Latvia – Estonia) with Saaremaa Island, Curonian Spit & Gauja national parks (11 13 days, from Vilnius) SG1 Bestseller! Bike tour along the Lithuanian seaside (Curonian Spit & Nemunas River Delta) (8 days , from/to Klaipėda) 14 SG15 New! Bike tour in Lithuania, Poland & Belarus with National parks of Dzūkija, Wigry & Biebrza (11 days, from Vilnius) 15 SG18x New! The three countries bike tour along the Baltic Coast: Lithuania-Russia/Kaliningrad-Poland (9 days, from Klaipėda) 16 Self-guided bike tours in the Baltic Countries and Russia SG2 Cycling in Lithuania: from the capital to the seaside (Litauen) (9 days, from Vilnius) 17 SG3 Bike tour in Lithuania and Latvia: along the Baltic Coast to Riga (8 days, from Klaipėda) 18 SG4 Bike tour in Latvia and West Estonia (9 days, from Riga) 19 SG9P Cycling in Estonia: the west seacoast & Islands of Hiiumaa, Saaremaa & Muhu (12 days, from/to Tallinn) 20 SG5 Cycling around the Curonian Lagoon through Kaliningrad District (Lithuania-Russia) (12 days, from Klaipėda) 21 Baltic Bike Travel General Terms and Conditions 22 Map of the Baltic States and neighboring regions of Poland, Belarus, Russia (M1:3 500 000) 23 Tallinn ESTONIA Baltic Sea BALTIC BIKE TRAVEL Naujoji Uosto Str. 3, RUSSIA Rīga LT-92120 Klaipėda, Lithuania LATVIA Tel.: +370 46 300 145 E-mail: [email protected] www.balticbike.lt Klaipėda LITHUANIA BALTIC BIKE TRAVEL services: Vilnius o Guaranteed departure escorted & self-guided cycling tours in the Baltic States RUSSIA o Tailor made cycling, kayaking, bird watching, nature and cultural tours; o Hotel/guesthouse/countryside inn bookings; POLAND BELARUS o Comfortable transport/transfer services; o Bus, train and ferry ticket reservations; o Experienced cycling tour leaders and city guides; o Rental of quality bicycles and tourist equipment of well known brands (VDV, KTM, Kalkhoff, Ghost, Merida, Ortlieb) Why BALTIC BIKE TRAVEL? o Experienced team - more than 10 years of specialist travel know-how and experience in cycle map and travel guide publishing, developing cycle routes! o Value - Quality trips at affordable prices! o Responsible Travel - Trips designed to protect the environment and help local people! o By travelling with us you support bicycle culture in the Baltic States! Partnership & membership: 2 www.Baltikum-Radreisen.euwww.balticbike.lt Dear Cycling Friends, We are pleased to introduce you to 2019 BALTIC BIKE TRAVEL catalogue offering a wide range of cycle trips in the Baltics (Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia) and neighbouring countries (Poland, Belarus, Russia). All tours are operated by BALTIC BIKE TRAVEL which is the only incoming tour operator in Lithuania specialising in cycling holidays and trips in the nature. We have been experts on cycling and various other active holidays in the Baltics since 2001. In this catalogue, we present our top product - GUIDED GROUP CYCLE TOURS with guaranteed departures! All tours cover two or three Baltic countries (pp. 6-9) and combine sightseeing in cities such as the capitals of the Baltics - Vilnius, Riga, and Tallinn - and exploring nature wonders like the Curonian Spit sand dunes and the Nemunas River Delta’s birdlife in Lithuania, deep valleys of the Gauja River in Latvia, stony seaside of Lahemaa National Park and impressive Saaremaa Island in Estonia, etc. New in 2019! Cycle the Baltics by E-bike/Pedelec – 11-day guided tour only for e-bikers (p.7)! Besides the Baltic countries, cycle routes of our newest tours cover Poland with Augustow Canal, Wigry and Biebrza National Parks as well as mysterious Grodno region in Belarus (visa free zone) – these tours available as guided & self-guided (pp. 10&15). Another new tour covers the Russian enclave of Kaliningrad, formerly German Königsberg, and Polish Baltic Seaside with the Elblag Canal, impressive Malbork Castle and Gdansk (Danzig) - Poland’s principal seaport and a city with over 1000 years of history (pp. 11&16). You are welcome to join our group tours where cyclists from different countries travel together. These groups are escorted by experienced local tour guides who speak the English and German languages. Furthermore, most of our tours are guaranteed with a minimum of two participants and trips are never cancelled at a short notice like many tour operators do; therefore after reserving the tour you can book your flights as early as possible in order to get the best deal available. Our maximum group size on tours with one guide is up to 21 people (on E-bike tours – up to 15 people!), with two guides – up to 25 people. This catalogue also contains a wide selection of SELF-GUIDED CYCLE TOURS. All bestseller and new tours include luggage transport (pp. 12-16) while on other tours the luggage transport is offered as optional extras (p. 17-21). The most popular self-guided routes connect the capital cities of the Baltic countries with our base town of Klaipėda located at the Lithuanian Seaside which is also known as the cyclists’ paradise. If you want to explore all three Baltic countries in a short time, the best choice would be 11-day half- guided supported tour from Tallinn to Vilnius via Lahemaa National Park (p.12), or another 11-day tour in opposite direction - from Vilnius to Tallinn via Saaremaa Island (p.13). A few long transfers by minibus are involved on these tours! If you wish to spend most of your holiday time cycling and less time sitting in a minibus, then the best deal would be an impressive 8-day tour along the Lithuanian Seaside (p.14) or 9-day tour along the Nemunas River from the capital Vilnius to Klaipėda (p.17). You can also combine a few tours, e.g., Vilnius to Klaipėda, then continue Klaipėda to Riga (p.18) and Riga to Tallinn (p.19), or go the other direction along the Baltic coast from Klaipėda to Gdansk via Kaliningrad, Russia (p.16).” On most self-guided tours you are welcome to take your own bicycles or to hire ours. A variety of more than 300 quality trekking bicycles equipped with flatless tires, modern E-bikes (Pedelec) with Bosch driving system, new road / cyclecross bikes, and many tourist equipment of well-known brands are waiting for our guests in our garage. For families with children we offer a wide range of tourist equipment from small bicycles to special 2-seat trailers and trailer-bikes. We’d like to thank all our loyal customers and invite to experience new adventures with us! Yours sincerely, Saulius Ružinskas & BALTIC BIKE TRAVEL Team www.Baltikum-Radreisen.euwww.balticbike.lt 3 Tourist information and our cycle tour services LEGEND Individual self-guided tour: You may plan your day as you like, but you have to follow a time schedule for minibus transfers on supported tours. Our maps, route descriptions and GPS tracks will show you the right way. Group guided tour: Travelling with the group and being accompanied by a minibus and cycling tour guide. Circular tour: Regular relocation from hotel to hotel, but finally returning to the starting point. E-bike/Pedelec On tours with this logo you can rent a pedal electric cycle (Pedelec) - a type of bicycle where the rider‘s pedalling is assisted by a small electric motor. Guaranteed departures: Plan your vacation in advance. We guarantee departures even on group tours with minimum 2 participants if you travel with us on fixed dates. We make it happen! Entry with passport: For travels to the Baltic Countries and Poland a valid identity card is enough for people from many countries. For trips to Russia most people need a passport with a valid visa. Grodno Region in Belarus is visa free zone! TOUR PLANNING We design bike tours to take you on the most appealing cycling routes, as much as possible away from major roads and along beautiful scenic trails where you can experience nature. You may book one or more of our ready made cycle tour packages, combining them into one longer route, for example, Klaipėda-Riga (p. 18) & Riga-Tallinn (p. 19), or ask for an individual tour program. Be patient to wait longer to get ready the tailored tour program with services as it takes time to receive all confirmations from our partner hotels and tour op- erators. Often smaller guesthouses and B&Bs which are the only option in certain areas have limited space, then we have to redesign the tour program or ask you to change the travel dates.