Voise vertes. Travelling away :)

[Bexon30]

Voise vertes.

I am not sure if anyone knows about these but I hope I'm wrong. My family are taking a year off to cycle/travel around Europe starting in France then Spain, Portugal, Italy,Croatia and Greece. I was hoping that some members may have info on some bike paths suited to a family including children aged 5/9. Any help would be grateful Bexon.

 

[rhubroma]

Voise vertes.

I am not sure if anyone knows about these but I hope I'm wrong. My family are taking a year off to cycle/travel around Europe starting in France then Spain, Portugal, Italy,Croatia and Greece. I was hoping that some members may have info on some bike paths suited to a family including children aged 5/9. Any help would be grateful Bexon.

Austria apparently has an excellent system of bike paths. I'd look into Insbruck.

 

[Bexon30]

Austria apparently has an excellent system of bike paths. I'd look into Insbruck.

Cheers that's far South right? Which would be good for us. From what little I know France, Germany and Austria are great for cycle paths. I'm just trying to get some knowledge of regions that are worth looking at and why., many thanks again.

 

[L'arriviste]

Sounds like you're already familiar with the French voies vertes but here's the detailed website for reference anyway: http://www.af3v.org

In Portugal, check out http://www.ciclovia.pt for dedicated routes.

Spain has the equivalent http://www.viasverdes.com. Not particularly comprehensive.

In Italy, you'll want to try Bicitalia: http://www.bicitalia.org and you can also take a look at http://www.piste-ciclabili.com.

The best guide to Croatia I've seen is http://www.pedala.hr but dedicated cycle paths are not common. Perhaps the last part of http://www.eurovelo6.org could help.

Greece is notably poor and still mostly at the planning stage. Not much traffic though.

See also the ambitious but still incomplete http://www.eurovelo.org network.

France, Netherlands, Belgium, Germany and Austria lead the way on this. Several of the countries you've selected there have a lot of work to do.

 

[Bexon30]

Sounds like you're already familiar with the French voies vertes but here's the detailed website for reference anyway: http://www.af3v.org

In Portugal, check out http://www.ciclovia.pt for dedicated routes.

Spain has the equivalent http://www.viasverdes.com. Not particularly comprehensive.

In Italy, you'll want to try Bicitalia: http://www.bicitalia.org and you can also take a look at http://www.piste-ciclabili.com.

The best guide to Croatia I've seen is http://www.pedala.hr but dedicated cycle paths are not common. Perhaps the last part of http://www.eurovelo6.org could help.

Greece is notably poor and still mostly at the planning stage. Not much traffic though.

See also the ambitious but still incomplete http://www.eurovelo.org network.

France, Netherlands, Belgium, Germany and Austria lead the way on this. Several of the countries you've selected there have a lot of work to do.

Fabulous help. If anyone knows of useful books or tips on places they cycle with children on bike paths across Europe any info would be most grateful. Bexon.

 

[L'arriviste]

Fabulous help. If anyone knows of useful books or tips on places they cycle with children on bike paths across Europe any info would be most grateful. Bexon.

I was under the impression that you'd fixed your list of countries but if not, it's a good idea to look beyond that and target particular regions instead.

For example, you wouldn't take a little kid out here in many parts of Belgium but I see a lot of that in the foresty parts of Limburg and on the excellent RaVEL network in Wallonie, where I often see kids learning to ride a bike.

Equally, the French Mediterranean coast can be a bit patchy on the whole but the beachy bits of Hérault in particular make for lovely riding and are full of stimulating sights for little kids (kite flying, dune birds, rollerbladers, boats, etc).

Don't forget that StreetView is your friend:

http://goo.gl/maps/eptNv

http://goo.gl/maps/v905s

http://goo.gl/maps/zTCEC

Also visit http://www.openstreetmap.org/ and select the "Cycle Map" layer: that's an excellent resource.

If you're a two-parent family, ride two abreast and fill both sides of the path, letting the kid(s) ride up front. It might seem a bit selfish but it will alert faster moving cyclists that they need to slow down and when they get close enough to find out why, they'll be cool about it.

People know and expect this stuff, so you shouldn't worry too much about encountering an angry peloton or some marauding triathlete fool.

It is ironic that, whilst the ubiquity of cars on roads enables us somewhat to ride passively despite their sometimes irritating presence, people on cycle paths tend to be a very alert and careful of others despite fewer obvious dangers.