Have you ever taken a vacation cruise? Aren’t cruises wonderful? The planning is done for you, no thinking required, once you write that check to pay for it. Your days are filled with expansive views of fabulous scenery, almost around-the-clock activities, side tours of interesting landmarks, scrumptious meals, and the ever-present gym to burn those not-so-scrumptious calories off. What a grand way to relax after 50 weeks of slaving at the office, and you’re only set back a few thousand.
But that’s not the type of cruise I’m writing about. I prefer a “backpedaler’s” cruise, a bicycle to view the scenery and landmarks. The landmarks don’t require a side tour; they come with the scenery. The gym comes with the bicycle; the bicycle is the gym. Scrumptious meals are ever-present wherever you happen to stop since after bicycling you’re probably starving and whatever you eat is delicious. And eat as much as you wish since bicycling has already taken care of caloric excess. And at night, whether in a campground or a motel, you will be very relaxed, if not exhausted.
You will have to think, however, since you are the cruise planner And you’ll also have to think about your route ─ can’t bicycle from Miami through the Panama Canal to Los Angeles with Disney cruise’s Mickey Mouse. That’s not too difficult, however, provided you avoid large expanses of water. Plus, you’ll have to arrange accommodations. The internet and a cell phone with unlimited long distance calling makes that an easy, inexpensive task.
Bicycle panniers can hold enough gear for a week provided you’ve arranged for bedding and meals at each day’s destination.
A problem is getting your bicycle to the start of your cruise. We’ve transported two bicycles and enough gear for a week inside a Toyota Camry. Granted, the wheels and seats had to be removed, but they were quickly replaced once we reached our starting point.
We’ve also flown to our starting point to save a few days of travel time. Bicycles can be shipped ahead to friendly bike shops, but that costs about as much as renting. This past summer, we rented two nice hybrids for about $150 for three days, including a bike rack for our rental car.
Although our first and last night’s accommodations were free at a borrowed home, which included a borrowed car, our one week bicycle, boating, and camping “cruise” of the Central California coast cost $1,000, and we did not spend conservatively. I estimate $1,500 tops if two additional motel nights and a rental car were included. Remember to not pack your Tux and Ball gown. They’ll not be needed.
