England

VBT provided us with an outstanding biking experience in Northern England and Scotland! They really mapped out an exceptional route, covering incredible countryside, variety and experience. This rates as one of our topmost biking experiences. And we've done many! It was an all inclusive spectacular trip. Many thanks! Biff & Mimi

Being my first trip with VBT, I was apprehensive about traveling with 19 strangers and biking the terrain. Needless to say, my trip was awesome. The guides (Mick, Hattie, Paul) were very attentive, organized, and supportive. They also were knowledgeable about the history, geology and culture of the areas we toured through. As we covered a lot of miles over very steep terrain, it was necessary to use e-Bikes (thankfully). The bikes were in excellent condition, and any issues were addressed quickly by the guides. Using Ride with GPS for directions was easy to use, and the added benefit of both visual and audial directions helped when a turn was missed. The most surprising thing of the trip was how many other riders were repeat customers, many logging between 10-22 previous trips with VBT. Now, having been on my first one, I can understand why and will certainly schedule more. My only concern was the disparity in hotels--most were excellent with fabulous food/services, but a few were not up to standard mostly due to age and/or lack of ventilation. Otherwise, it was among the best overseas adventures I've experienced.

We thoroughly enjoyed the tour. Nice combination of pedaling in pastoral settings and activities that included a day-and-a-half in Oxford, lovely Burford (the meat pies at The Royal Oak are a must!), Blenheim Palace, cream tea in Bourton-on-the-Water, the Hidcote Manor Gardens, and a tour of the Roman Baths. We stayed the extra day in Bath and explored - it was very nice! The undulating hills of the Cotswolds were a nice challenge on road bikes. Residents and (car) drivers were pleasant and courteous. The bonus is we had amazing weather - mid to high 60°s, sun, clouds, and no rain (okay, a very slight shower one afternoon for 20 mins.!) Our tour leaders - Conor and Mick - terrific guys that really made the tour so pleasant!

Thoroughly enjoyed the tour leaders Lucy, Dan and Jago. They did a wonderful job of herding us around, anticipating and working within and outside of our schedule. Our fellow travelers were the best group we've had the fortune to meet. Good lodgings with character and spectacular food everyplace we ate. Loved the scenery and historic sites I got to visit. My only reason for fewer than 5 stars is that I would not rate this ride Easy/Moderate. It had more than just rolling hills and lots of traffic on narrow roads. I really appreciated that the leaders did modify our routes on the fly to help mitigate the traffic, and kept our bikes tuned in tip top shape.

My husband and I did this self-guided tour in early September and absolutely loved it. Country Walkers did an impeccable job taking care of every detail--booking hotels, moving our suitcases between hotels, and, best of all, the "route notes" book was so detailed and had everything we needed from step-by-step directions and restaurant suggestions to history and ideas for things to do. It felt like a wonderful adventure following the famous paths through sheep pastures and little forest thickets, past gardens and ancient churches, and climbing over or around all the different gates. It was often overcast and misty in the mornings, but the mid-day sun burned it all away. Our highlights are choosing to stop for an hour to check out the Hailes Abbey Museum and rubbing elbows with some locals at the only pub in a tiny village. So many great memories! We liked the intimate experience of doing a self-guided trip and the independence (without the planning!) that it provided. We spent some extra days in London at the end of our trip...that was just icing on the cake.

What a fantastic trip this was. This was my 6th time going to England, but my first for the Cotswold region and what an extraordinary time it was. The food was fantastic, everywhere you looked the views were spectacular. It was fantastic trip which I would do again in a heart beat.