Low-Cost Bike Vacations in the U.S.

Adventure Cycling Association

This association is dedicated to promoting cycling across North America. The organization provides maps and suggested routes for biking trips in the United States, covering more than 38,000 miles. It also offers more than 40 guided trips and supported excursions. Supported trips are usually camping-based and include meals, camping fees, guides and support vehicles. Choose from trips such as: Blue Ridge Bliss, a six-day tour along the Blue Ridge Parkway ($1,049 in 2010); Oregon Coastal Odyssey ($1,099 in 2010); the Tetons-Yellowstone Loop ($1,399 in 2010); Texas Hill Country ($1,049 in 2010) and more. If you'd like to go it on your own, check out the ACA's cycling map sets, available online. Each set details a specific bike trip. For example, the Adirondack Park Loop map set shows a suggested 394-mile route in the Adirondacks. The Association has more than 20 cycling map sets detailing trips throughout the country. Maps include symbols pinpointing campgrounds, restaurants and bike shops, turn-by-turn instructions and elevation and distance markers. The cost of each map set varies, from under $15 to about $100, depending on length and complexity of the trip.

Adventure Cycling Association
150 E. Pine St.
Missoula, MT 59807
(800) 755-2453
adventurecycling.org

Cycle America

This company has been around for more than two decades and offers competitive prices. There are national park tours, coast-to-coast cycling tours, cross-state tours and specialty tours--like the seven-day Northwest Sampler through Washington, Idaho and Montana and the six-day New England tour from Lake Placid, New York, through Vermont and New Hampshire to the Massachusetts coastline. Most tours are $800 to $1,000 and include camping fees, meals, support staff and luggage transport.

Cycle America
PO Box 485
Cannon Falls, MN 55009
(800) 245-3263
cycleamerica.com

VBT

VBT has been around since 1971 and was called one of the "best adventure travel companies on earth" by "National Geographic Traveler" magazine. Bike trips in the United States include ones through the Tucson Basin in Arizona, the California wine country and the Pacific Coast, and Cape Cod and Martha's Vineyard. Other routes are Charleston, South Carolina to Savannah, Georgia, a trek along the Maine coast that includes Acadia National Park and a classic Vermont biking trip through the state's rolling heartland. Trips are six to seven days and include lodging at local hotels and country inns, food, guides, equipment and support, and free time to explore local attractions along the way. Prices in 2010 start at under $1,400.

VBT
614 Monkton Rd.
Bristol, VT 05443
(800) 245-3868
vbt.com