TradNatura Sport: Bicycle tours in Hungary

:· GENERAL INFORMATION

HOW TO GET THERE

Hungary is in the middle of Europe, so whether you fly, take a train or a bus, or drive a car, it is easy to get here. It has become rather popular to come by low cost airlines that come to Budapest from several places of Europe. (Some websites, where you can find tickets: www.easyjet.com; www.wizzair.com; www.skyeurope.com; www.malev.hu; www.cheapflights.co.uk; www.flightnetwork.com; etc.) Should you come by car, there are motorways to get to Budapest, where the hotel we use has a closed and free parking place. We can give you detailed directions on how to find your Hotel, when you come.

WHAT'S INCLUDED IN THE TOUR PRICES

Our tour prices include practically everything to make your cycling holidays in Hungary most enjoyable, and comfortable.
Exact information according to the tour itineraries please find at the Tour Details.
The only elements not included are:

• those that are easier to arrange from your home country: health and travel insurance, your travel between your home and the starting/finishing place of the tours, Budapest;
• some optional possibilities: additional nights in Budapest, or massages.

WHAT'S INCLUDED:

• Superb accommodation mainly in small but very nice 4 or 3 star castles, mansions, or historic buildings.
• Delicious local food, every day buffet breakfasts, and 3 course dinners with some drinks and excellent wines.
• Excellent picnic lunches in beautiful spots in the nature, and drinks during cycling.
• Wine tastings in historic wine regions.
• Most beautiful sights and routes mainly in nature reserves or woods, with low or no car traffic.
• Full English speaking guiding throughout all the trips with 1st class service of 2 experienced & kind leaders, one cycling with you, and one driving the support van.
• Full technical support, and special trailer to transport all the luggage and the bikes.
• Back-up van available for the whole group at any time and all the bustransfers during the tours.
• All the guided sightseeings, boat trips, train/ferry tickets, museum, castle, church and bath visits according to the Tour Details.
• Very good quality hybrid bikes with 24 gears, front suspension, handbrakes, and panniers.
• Souvenir water-bottle, TNS T-shirt, a Hungary-map and information brochures on the regions we visit.
• Transfers in Budapest between your hotel and the airport or stations.

OPTIONAL (not included):

• Extra nights in Budapest before and after the tour.
• Relaxing massage possibilities.

NOT INCLUDED:

• Your travel between your home and the starting/finishing place of the tours, Budapest.
• Your travel and health insurance.

ACCOMMODATION

A great feature of our tours is the nice accommodation. We often stay in castles, mansions, historic buildings, and all our hotels are selected because of their antique or unique atmosphere, quiet and beautiful location, lovely wellness possibilities, kind hospitality, and rather high standards. We mostly use small intimate 3 or 4 star hotels, or sometimes 2 star if we have found something special like a castle in wonderful surroundings. We stay one or two nights at the hotels in order to discover more sights of the regions. Needless to say, all have en-suite facilities.

Budapest-our Hotel

Castle Hotel-Hédervár

Misefa-Castle Hotel

Pallavicini Castle

FOOD

Hungarian cuisine and wines reflect our traditions and culture, and form an important part of our tours. We have buffet breakfasts, and every night a 3 course gourmet dinner with drinks, either in the hotels, or in some of Hungary's best small restaurants or old wine cellars, where you can taste masterpieces of artists of the Hungarian cuisine, and top quality wines of our historic wine regions.
To make your holiday even more delightful, we offer drinks during cycling, and fantastic picnic lunches featuring typical home made Hungarian meals always at very beautiful spots.
If you have any special diet requirements, please let us know when you book, and we will be happy to help you!

Excellent wine+titbits

Pike-perch

Vargabéles-Hungarian dessert

Wine tasting+cold specialities

SIGHTS AND ROUTES

We have spent a lot of time to find the most beautiful and quiet routes of the regions. Our cycling tours combine visits to lovely historic towns, castles, museums, churches, thermal spas, with cycling through unspoilt woods and nature reserves with picturesque landscapes of Hungary. We ride along quiet country lanes, cycle and forest paths, or river embankments, mainly on tarmac or good quality gravel, with very low or no car traffic. For every day we have selected a basic route, but there are always more scenic options to allow for different fittness levels or weather conditions. All our tours start and finish in Budapest.

Chestnut tree tunnel

Cycling out of tunnel

Through nice woods

Along charming vineyards

GUIDING

All of our tours are led personally by the two of us, offering you a very friendly service and hoping to make your cycling holiday the nicest you can get in Hungary. We have detailed local knowledge of not only the most famous sights of the regions, but also of hidden places which would be very hard for visitors to find alone. We will guide you during the sightseeings, in the museums, making you thoroughly acquainted with our history, life, flora and fauna. One of us will always cycle with the group, showing the way and the sights, and helping you if you have any kind of trouble. The other will drive the support minibus, providing full technical background and catering service en route. Both of us have mechanical and first aid equipments and mobile phones.
Of course we both speak fluent English and Hungarian.

Marietta and Peter

BACK-UP VAN

Our comfortable, air conditioned minibus, available for the whole group (up to 15 guests) at any time, also reflects our high level of service. It provides the opportunity to cycle only along the nicest areas of the routes, avoiding unpleasant conditions such as car traffic, rain, steep hills. The minibus also ensures that you can be flexible with your cycling distances every day offering an alternative if you want to rest. Of course we transport your luggage as well in our special trailer from hotel to hotel. Our bus is always somewhere nearby, giving full support as needed, and it often meets the group for the drinking and lunch breaks.

Back up van

BIKES & EQUIPMENTS

The use of our very good quality and well maintained Merida Crossway 8500 hybrid bikes in different sizes is included in the tourprice. They are well suited to the terrain of our cycling tours, and the roads of Hungary, having light frames, comfortable suspension seats, 24 gears, high quality Shimano elements, V-brakes, mudguards, front suspension, rear rack, panniers, and water-bottle. We will adjust everything on your bike for you at the start of the tours. Helmets are not obligatory for cycling in Hungary, but for your safety it is advisable to use one. We would like to recommend that you bring your own comfortable one, as unfortunately we can't rent any for hygienic reasons.
If you prefer to bring your own bike, a reduction of € 3 per cycling day is given. But in this case please don't forget to bring adequate spare parts and tools, and a bag to carry things that you need during cycling.

Our Bikes

GROUP SIZE

Our groups range from 6 to 15 people. These small groups can use charming small hotels, intimate restaurants, secret places where the crowd can't get in. This small size also makes it possible for everybody to get on the bus whenever it is necessary. The atmosphere is more friendly so, and we can give you more personal attention.

LEVEL OF DIFFICULTY

Cycling in Hungary is quite easy, as this is a rather flat country with some hilly areas. The highest point is ~1000m. Hills higher than ~200m, are usually called mountains here. We have selected mainly flat and sometimes slightly undulating routes where longer downhills outnumber short uphills. When we rarely have some hard uphills, we take our bus. Our tours are designed for everybody who can cycle 10-40 miles/16-65 kms a day at a leisure pace. With a suitable fittness level you will not have difficulties, but if you never do any sport activities at home, some regular training in advance is recommended in order to make your tour more enjoyable. However, if you get exhausted at any time, our support bus is always available for the whole group, so you can cycle as much of the daily distances as you wish. If you are uncertain, please feel free to ask us for any further advice.
Non cyclists are also welcome on our holidays!

TAILOR MADE TOURS FOR GROUPS

If you have a group of 6 or more people, and none of the fixed dates or cycle tours would fit your timetable or needs, please contact us as early as possible before your planned holiday, and we will be very pleased to create a suitable option or programme for you. We can modify many details of our tours to suit your requirements. Please contact us for further details.

DISCOUNTS

We are happy to offer 5% discount either for groups from 6 people, or for our returning guests.

CHILDREN

We always welcome families with children on our cycling tours. We think that you as a parent know best your cildren's capabilities, so you can decide what is suitable for them. We can provide various small bikes, and offer child discounts depending on their age, the size of the room needed, and the other services of the tour required for them. So please let's have a talk about all these details when you book, to find an optimal solution and price for you.

WEATHER & TIME

In Hungary we have continental weather. Our usually warm summers with quite a lot of sunshine provide rather pleasant conditions for cycling. About 25-30 °C daytime temperature can be expected from June to August, and around 20-25 °C in May or in September. These days -as everywhere- sometimes weather may be unpredictable, so it is better to be prepared for cooler or rainy circumstances too. Local time is CET here, GMT+1 hour, or BST +1 hour in summer.

PASSPORT OR VISA

You must have a valid passport to enter and leave Hungary. If you are a national of any countries of the European Union or Switzerland, your identity card is enough, but only if your nationality is in your ID card.
So, British, Irish, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish and Icelandic nationals need to have a passport, as well as citizens from the USA, Canada or Australia.(A Visa is required only for stays longer than 90 days.) If you are from any other countries please check with the local Hungarian Embassy or Consulate, or we can also help.

HEALTH AND INSURANCE

Cycling tours require people to be in good health. When you book you must inform us of any medical condition that may effect your ability on the tour (allergy, asthma, heart problems, etc.). In such cases, it is highly recommended that you obtain your doctor's advice before booking. European residents should have a European Health Insurance Card (EHIC) when they travel, but it is not a substitute for medical and travel insurance. So we strongly recommend that you obtain comprehensive and adequate travel and medical insurance in your home country, to cover unexpected costs due to illness, accident, lost luggage, tour interruption or cancellation, etc., and ensure that your policy covers you for the sport activities you will do. (Useful info at www.fco.gov.uk )

Please find below a leading UK Travel Insurance, Airport Parking and Hotel provider, a useful help to make your travel safe and easy.

Travel Insurance

Gatwick Parking

Gatwick Hotels

MONEY

Though Hungary is a member of the E.U., the local currency here is still Hungarian Forint (HUF). You can change cash in Exchange offices or in Banks at the Airport, at the Stations and around the shopping or tourist areas of Budapest and in the bigger Towns or Hotels. Travellers cheques are accepted only in Banks. Credit cards are accepted in most of the shops, restaurants or hotels. There are many ATM-s in Budapest and you can find them in other settlements or at petrol stations too.
But it is recommended that you have some cash for the small hotels, local restaurants, pubs or shops of the hidden villages and areas where we mainly cycle.

PRICES

Please find our prices at the Tour Details, quoted in EUROS.
If you would like to pay in any other currency, please contact us in advance. We are always pleased to calculate the appropriate price for you.

TRANSFERS IN BUDAPEST

For your convenience we are happy to arrange transfers in Budapest between your hotel and the airport or stations. If you would like to take this free service, please tell us the exact details of your arrival/departure at least 30 days before your tour start.

EXTRA NIGHTS IN BUDAPEST

Should you like to spend additional nights in Budapest before or after your tour, please notify us when you book. We can reserve accommodation for you in the hotel we use for the following roomprices per night incl. breakfast:

HOW TO BOOK

Please read the the Tour Details, the General Information and the Terms & Conditions carefully.
If you have decided which tour / date you would like to take, please first Contact us or fill out and send us our Enquiry form to check availability.
We will reply by e-mail (or fax or phone if you prefer) as soon as we can.
If we have confirmed that we have free places available, you need to send us our completed and signed booking form together with the deposit (10% of the tour price), or with the full cost of your cycle tour (if you book within 60 days of departure), to make your reservation secured.
You can use our Online booking form, or you may download and return by fax/post our Pdf booking form.
We are able to accept bank money transfer. Please find details of our bank on the booking forms.
We will contact you to confirm your booking and return confirmation / invoice upon receipt of deposit or full payment.
The balance of the cost of your holiday must be paid no later than 60 days before your cycling tour starts.
After we have received your final payment, we will send you a voucher / invoice, and all the useful travel, arrival and local information that you may need for your trip.
Please make your bookings early, because we need to finalise our bookings with the hotels at the latest 60 days prior to the start of the tours. After this time we may not be able to find rooms in the small hotels we use!
Should you have any further questions connected with your holiday, please never hesitate to ask for any help!