Did you know that visitors on bicycles bring tourism to rural communities?
Tourists that ride bicycles spend money, and they prefer destinations in rural locations. You may have seen them in your community, but not recognized them when they dine in restaurants, stay in your hotels, and shop in your stores. As we like to say, they “clean up real good” — and don’t tend to advertise their presence.
Studies have shown that a small regional area can receive a substantial positive economic impact and support jobs with bicycle tourism dollars.
For example, the Economic Impact of Bicycling in the Central Shenandoah Valley of Virginia explained how cycling tourists led $8.6 million in sales activity in 2015. The total economic impact of bicycle tourism, including multiplier effects, is estimated to have been $13.6 million that supported 184 jobs in the region in 2015.
One key to attracting bicycling tourists is to help them find somewhere enjoyable to ride.
These riders are used to learning about the potential for cycling routes at a potential vacation destination by searching the Internet. What will they see when they search on your community: Where will they ride? Where will they stay?
Custom Cycling Guides for Cities & Regional Websites
That’s where we come in. With more than 20 years of route-making experience, we know how to identify, illuminate, and describe beautiful, fun and challenging cycling experiences.
We will develop a custom bicycle guide for your community. Your guide is then featured on your website, and word spreads about the beautiful cycling routes your community offers to visiting riders.
Your custom guide will be an interactive map of your area, with color-coded cycling routes and points-of-interest highlighted — food, drink, lodging, history, and whatever information is relevant to a visiting cyclist.
Visiting cyclists can use your interactive map to plan their trip, and then when they arrive to ride… they download the routes they want to try into their phones. As they ride, they simply follow the directions on their phone to follow the route, and to visit restaurants, hotels and various attractions.
How Does This Work?
We’ve been planning trips, leading bike tours, running cycling events, and designing bike routes for more than 20 years. We visit your area and ride the routes ourselves, and dig into what makes your community special.
We also partner with an online mapping company that specializes in bicycle routes, and we combine their online tool with our knowledge to create your custom online guide. Some of our clients already have a collection of popular cycling routes, while others need to start from scratch. Our clients usually know what the points-of-interest should be (consider the member listing for your chamber of commerce), and we help them sort through which ones will attract a visiting cyclist.
To see an example, check out the custom guide we created for the Asheville, North Carolina region:
Learn More
Sometimes all that’s needed is the time and expertise to pull all the data together into an attractive presentation.
Let us help you reach your goals of promoting your region as a cycling vacation destination.