Touring via the eurostar or ferry with a 11/12 year old?

[yaxu]

We had a great time with our son touring up the LF1 coastal route in the Netherlands last year, and looking for something similar to do for a couple of weeks this August. He'll be 11, nearly 12.

We were camping, and found campsites in the Netherlands always found space for cyclists, including members of a 'cycle friendly' scheme that guaranteed this. So we could decide where to go the previous evening. That was great.

The cycle paths were more like roads really, very safe and very flat, so ideal for my son's first cycle tour.

We're stuck on where to go next, though. We live in Sheffield so my son is not completely averse to hills. We don't want to fly, or drive very much but it'd be nice to go abroad (if we still have free movement!), and are in Sheffield, so Eurostar is a good option, as is Ferry from e.g. Hull, Harwich, Holyhead or one of the southern ports (if they have real ferries..).

So I'm wondering if anyone has ideas/experiences to share around what we could do? Somewhere a bit more undulating than the Netherlands would be fine, but with easy access to campsites ideally without having to prebook by more than a day. We were thinking about Loire valley, but my son's at the age where he enjoys scenery more than castles etc. Given it'll be August, somewhere not too hot or busy would be great..

All thoughts much appreciated!

[foxyrider]

Hi Yaxu

How about North Germany?

Ride or get the train to Hull then ferry to Rotterdam then train to Bremen, Hamburg or Hannover. The Luneberg Heide is quiet, I didn't prebook any campsights when I went round and there are lots of quiet roads.

On top of that there's plenty to do to occupy a 12yo, Panzer Museum at Munster, windmill museum at Gifhorn _ there's an animal park near there too, some great old towns like Luneberg itself. The other side of the Elbe is more open, the coastal areas can be quite busy but there are steam railways, ferrys etc.

Of course, between the two there's Hamburg, worth a visit for a young chap, some great museums and of course the biggest model railway in the world!

Generally it's not too busy with tourists other than one or two 'honeypots'. I've done 3 bike tours and at least a dozen fly/train/drive trips and am constantly finding new stuff from North Sea island hopping, exploring the Baltic coast, visiting the Hanseatic cities, Schwerin, Lubeck, Rostock - something for everyone, every day.

All of this and more with none of our PD hills, its more like going out Worksop/Newark direction. I've always had good weather when i've been over the years.

If this appeals and you'd like to know more, just ask away.

[MrsHJ]

Central Brittany?

Denmark?

[Cyril Haearn]

Plus One for the ferry from Hull, it has two cinemas, restaurants, live music

I would get the train up the Rhein to Koblenz or Mainz and ride back to Rotterdam

[bretonbikes]

We had a great time with our son touring up the LF1 coastal route in the Netherlands last year, and looking for something similar to do for a couple of weeks this August. He'll be 11, nearly 12.

We were camping, and found campsites in the Netherlands always found space for cyclists, including members of a 'cycle friendly' scheme that guaranteed this. So we could decide where to go the previous evening. That was great.

The cycle paths were more like roads really, very safe and very flat, so ideal for my son's first cycle tour.

We're stuck on where to go next, though. We live in Sheffield so my son is not completely averse to hills. We don't want to fly, or drive very much but it'd be nice to go abroad (if we still have free movement!), and are in Sheffield, so Eurostar is a good option, as is Ferry from e.g. Hull, Harwich, Holyhead or one of the southern ports (if they have real ferries..).

So I'm wondering if anyone has ideas/experiences to share around what we could do? Somewhere a bit more undulating than the Netherlands would be fine, but with easy access to campsites ideally without having to prebook by more than a day. We were thinking about Loire valley, but my son's at the age where he enjoys scenery more than castles etc. Given it'll be August, somewhere not too hot or busy would be great..

All thoughts much appreciated!

Have a look at this route - it's a new one for our business, but it's free for anyone to use (the more of you out there the more leverage I get with the local council over facilities;-) - It's generally flat - obviously totally safe and covers quite a distance? There are campsites at each stop that tick your boxes - https://www.bretonbikes.com/camping/cam ... cyclepaths