Photo credit: Tourisme Monteregie
What Does It Cost?
So... what’s all of this spectacularness going to cost?
Why, I’m so glad you asked!
Please keep in mind:
INCLUDED
AND...
Discount! When you registor for the ride we request a $500 deposit by credit card. We welcome credit cards for the remaining balance, OR pay your balance (all at once or in pieces) by check, Zelle, or Venmo and save $100 per person!
PAYMENT SCHEDULE
You don’t have to pay for the entire trip all at once if you don’t want to.
As noted, when you register for the ride we will ask for a $500 deposit by credit card to save your space in the ride.
An additional $1,000 per person is due 30 days after you register.
The final balance is due no later than April 2nd, 2027.
We'll send you an invoice as a friendly reminder when payments are due.
CANCELLATION POLICY
Need to Cancel Right Away?
Not to worry -- you have 14 days from the time you register to cancel without penalty. You get back your entire $500 deposit.
After that:
• No bicycle disassembly or packing required -- hand us your bike as-is. There will be one spot in each city for bike pick up and drop off.
By the way, I live in the Catskill Mountains near the town of Monticello, NY. It is quite common for folks to drop off their stuff with me before the ride (sometimes long before!) and pick it up after the ride at a later date. We have plenty of safe free storage. Just contact me if this is your preference. Please note that if you send your gear back with me after the ride there's no rush to retrieve it, but we can not deliver your gear -- you have to get here at some point and pick it up.
• Six nights of lodging. Price is based on two people per room. Single rooms available for an additional fee.
• Shuttle to move your bike and you ahead if you don't want to ride the entire distance each day. Pedaling and had enough? Call us and we'll be happy to come pick you up.
• Full breakfast every morning. Full dinner every evening.
• Professional bike mechanic available free every day.
• Each day we'll have one or two official rest stops at a great food location and enjoy a terrific local snack -- included in your ride fee.
Otherwise you pay your own tab when you visit any of the hundred snack stops. Trust me -- this plan is better for you.
Why?
This way you only pay for the things that you actually want -- Do you prefer bakeries? Wineries? A sit-down meal or a quick snack? Want to wander into town? Prefer to stay only on the bike route?
Can't decide? If you wish you can pedal with one of our cycling guides for the day and we'll show you some cool spots.
• Carefully designed routes each day from door to door.
• Digital route files
• All transportation during the ride, whenever we're not traveling by bike.
• All gratuities. No tipping please. (We tip well -- we just include it in the price of the ride so you don't have to worry about it later!)
NOT INCLUDED
• Getting to and from Montreal. Are you flying? Driving? Train? Renting a car? Our van? Bus? Other? Lots of good choices -- details here.
• Uber or Lyft to and from the airport, train station, etc.
• Your entry fee for the Tour de L'île no-car bike ride. Last year prices ranged from about $32 - $37 per person (that's U.S. dollars), and I imagine we could see a small price increase this year. We will help you all along the way to register for the event. (It's easy -- the same online registration as you do for any bike ride... Yes, the registration forms are in English!)
Note that prices on their registration website are in Canadian dollars. You can pay with your U.S. credit or debit card. So for example, if the Tour de L'île website states 45$ (Canadian) your credit card statement will show about $32 U.S.
Registration for the Tour de L'île is not open yet -- we'll let you know. It does not sell out, although there is a modest discount for signing up earlier.
Why don't we register you for the Tour de L'île? Simple! Because it all comes out a lot better for everyone when you type in your own name and address instead of us getting it... mostly right.
• Bike rental. We assume that you are bringing your own bike. We can help you arrange bike rental if you wish, which costs extra.
• Dinners include wine and beer for those who wish to imbibe. If you want to drink beyond that you pay for it yourself.
• Spa services such as massage or beauty treatments. Available at some of our overnight stops.
• As mentioned, we are transporting the bikes for free from eight different cities to Montreal and back. If you want to ship your bike using a different method we are happy to help. WE won't charge you anything to assist, but the shippers probably will!
• Souvenirs
• Each day a pro bike mechanic will be available to tweak anything that needs tweaking. This is free. If your bike needs parts or major surgery it will cost extra.
• Inner tubes. Bring them. We will not provide them for free, and EVERY bike gets a flat sometime. I have a really whiny philosophy about WHY we don’t provide tubes, and if you’re extra good I promise to never bore you with it.
TOTAL PRICE: $4550 per person.
Prices are based on two people per room. If you want a private room for yourself it is an additional $675. (We don't earn anything from that extra suplement -- we just give that money to the hotel).
SO... we strongly recommend that you consider buying trip insurance here. That way if something happens where you can’t attend the trip, you’re covered.
This insurance has paid out many times to our cycling friends over the years. Every trip we do we get a last-minute plea from a cyclist with a real emergency. Trip insurance covers you and gets you a refund. No matter how ill your mother/cat/ficus tree is, we can not issue ANY refunds -- that's why we recommend trip insurance.
Prices for the insurance? Depend on the options you pick. Feel free to go to the insurance site and play around -- no commitment or credit card required. No sales pitches or phone calls.
We do not earn anything if you choose to buy trip insurance.
Hey, our much more famous competitor charges:
• $700 - $1,100 MORE for a similar trip... except their trip is six days and ours is seven days.
• We transport your bike and luggage to and from the trip for free. They do not.
• Prices are based on two people per room. If you want a private room during the trip, we charge $675. Those guys charge $1,700. (We don't mark up the price for a private room -- we just give the extra money to the hotels).
• Gratuities are not included in their price... and they are already included in ours. (We tip generously -- we just include it in the price of the trip so you don't have to pay more later).
But are we going to brag or gloat?
We are not.
