Anyone been on an Edelweiss motorcycle tour?

**companyman** · 03-17-2009, 03:58 PM

I've been thinking about taking a trip to Europe and found these motorcycle tours:

http://www.edelweissbike.com/

Has anyone been on any of them? Any comments? Thanks.

**Duster929** · 03-19-2009, 04:02 PM

I've never been on any of their tours, but I have travelled by motorbike in Europe (Spain, Germany/Austria/Italy).

My recommendation, first and foremost, would be that before you die, you must ride a motorcyle in the European Alps.

As for these tours, it depends on the kind of person you are. If you like having some company, don't want to plan the thing yourself, and like the idea of a set itinerary, then these tours can be great. If you prefer to do your own thing, at your own pace, and leave a lot of things up to chance, then you can usually just rent a bike from agencies like this much more cheaply, and wing it yourself.

Europe is not a hard place to travel - most people speak English, and if they don't, you can usually figure it out. Hotels, restaurants, stores, gas stations... it's not that different from travelling here. Outside of the big cities, it's usually very safe and you don't have to worry too much about theft or assault.

The trips I've taken, I've just rented the bike, bought some travel books, and set off exploring. Maybe I've missed some things along the way without an experienced guide, but I've also had the benefit of finding things my own way at my own pace.

Edelweiss is a major tour operator, I think they're legit and should be pretty good. Check out advrider.com or sport-touring.net, you'll get more recommendations there.

--- D

Edit: Sorry, I hadn't noticed that Edelweiss has expanded to cover different parts of the world... I just assumed you meant Europe...

**Brian P** · 03-19-2009, 04:19 PM

I've booked a tour through a different agency ... the trip is longer than Edelweiss (2 full weeks) but costs more. If the original poster wants to join the same trip (in the interest of having a fellow GTA'er?) send me a PM.

**Andreas** · 03-20-2009, 10:11 AM

I'm living in Switzerland right now and regret not getting my full M or card renewed before I left (the job I was offered was kinda shotgun and I had other things to worry about with the visa, school and health card etc) .... but I have to say the roads here are awesome.

Almost every OTHER motorcycle dealership here rents bikes for roughly 250-300 a day (200 kms or so) for supersport/superbike ... it's not cheap but it's not ultra expensive as the tours are..

The roads here are to die for.. Im just along the northern alps south of Zürich and have to say even the 80 kph highways from village to village are quite sweet

**FOG** · 03-22-2009, 12:50 AM

Beaches Motorcycle Adventures, longer, more freedom, better accommodations.

Oldest Alps tour company and local (Home base is Grand Island NY)

I have met several people that have done both Edelweiss and Beach, and everyone of them said Beach was far superior.

BTW, will be the best $$ you ever spent on motorcycling, if you like corners that is.

**172Driver** · 03-22-2009, 10:20 AM

I've been talking with some of the guys I ride with about shipping our own bikes to Europe and doing a tour that way. Has anyone ever looked into that? I find that these tours to be really expensive, especially if you consider that your still paying for fuel-tolls-food and your incidentals, never mind you still have to get your flight to the start of the tour. Would shipping your own ride there equal the cost of the tour?

**Brian P** · 03-22-2009, 10:50 AM

The problem that you will encounter, is that shipping a bike there and back will cost more than renting one over there unless it is for a rather long term - plus the aggravation factor.

**FOG** · 03-22-2009, 10:55 AM

Originally Posted by 172Driver

I've been talking with some of the guys I ride with about shipping our own bikes to Europe and doing a tour that way. Has anyone ever looked into that? I find that these tours to be really expensive, especially if you consider that your still paying for fuel-tolls-food and your incidentals, never mind you still have to get your flight to the start of the tour. Would shipping your own ride there equal the cost of the tour?

Shipping is very costly and a hassle with all the paperwork, maybe if you were going for a month or two, but for a couple of weeks, not worth it.

As for the expenses, Beach includes most Dinners (full course meals at nice establishments) and all Breakfasts and very few of the roads you ride will have tolls. Fuel can be expensive, but you will average only about 200-300 kM/day, and that is a long day. 400-500 kM in the mountains is a 12 hour ride. So a tank a day is average. I spend more on Beer than Fuel

Lunch can be had pretty cheap, but I usually opt for soup which is served with bread, which is 2-3 Euro, or some real Gelato. In 2001 I had a four course steak dinner for $3.50 US!!!

Organized tours are more expensive than doing it yourself, but they DO offer value. You just have to decide how much their services are worth to you. If you have never been there, I think their services are a great value and can add a lot to the enjoyment. Plus you WILL make new friends.

**Lightcycle** · 03-22-2009, 11:02 AM

Originally Posted by 172Driver

...shipping our own bikes to Europe and doing a tour that way. Has anyone ever looked into that?

A couple of years ago we shipped our bikes to Europe and back for a 32-day tour. The cost of renting vs. shipping just about broke even for that amount of time. For 1-2 weeks, it is definitely not worth it. Here is a breakdown of our costs:

http://ridedot.com/faq/