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Bicycling in Italy ... with children??

Posted by (Anchorage, USA) on

We are visiting Rome, Tuscany and the Cinqueterra over the course of a month this summer (late June - late July). I admit to a fantasy about renting 2 adult bikes for us grownups, a tag-along and a bike trailer for the 2 boys (7 and 3), and casually riding around Tuscany ... and I also will admit to feeling that I may be incredibly naive to even consider such a thing. Whether the equipment is even for rent there, first off; but secondly whether it will be just way too hot that time of year; thirdly, whether bike routes are common there, or navigable, even by someone with GPS in their iPhone; fourthly, whether, bike routes or not, we would not simply immediately be run over by the prototypical crazy Italian driver (or a few of them in a row).

Thanks for any words of advice or caution!

Posted by
805 posts

I would say this as answers:

  1. No problem, bikes are easy to rent.
  2. It might be hot but I'd be more concerned with whether you'd be able to climb as many hills as there are in Tuscany with what essentially amounts to a trailer on the back.
  3. Routes are very common in Tuscany and easy to navigate.
  4. Bikes are common in that region so I don't think it's too much of a risk.
Posted by
606 posts

You might try this "fantasy" once, on a cool morning in an area without a lot of traffic, to see how it goes. You'll either get it out of your system and move on to more conventional traveling, or you'll discover it goes OK and do it some more.

In other words, have a Plan B ready in case you decide the cycling is not going to work for you.

Posted by
12313 posts

Two good places for bike rides are the Appian Way in Rome and the wall around Lucca. Both are traffic free and relatively easy riding.

If it's really hot, plan this as a first thing in the morning activity rather than suffering in the heat and humidity.

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