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Choosing the best touring bicycle for your next cycling holiday is a crucial task. Like walking shoes, a good touring bicycle won’t be noticed too much. If you find yourself paying a lot of attention to your sport touring bikes while traveling, chances are it won’t be for good reasons!

For some (including me), a cross-country mountain bike is the best touring bicycle, so don’t overlook that possibility. But if you’re committed to buying a dedicated tourer, our advice and touring bicycle reviews will help make the decision an easier one.

Choosing the Best Touring Bike for You

Finding the right sports touring bike may not be as straightforward as you’d expect. Chances are then an off-the-shelf model won’t have all the features you need.

Fuji Tour: this bike has been a popular budget choice of touring bikes for years, due to its combination of good, sound design and reasonable price point. It’s well-equipped with mounts for storage and liquids.

Cannondale T800: Cannondale is one of the best-regarded touring bikes because it has a comfortable set-up, rugged frame, and some nice touches for long tours like gel handlebar pads. It’s built to last for years and is one of the best-rated touring bicycles among cycling groups.

Koga-Miyata Traveller: bicycle touring is much bigger in Europe than the US, and so the choices of touring bikes from Europe tend to be more sophisticated. You can bank on offsetting some of the higher initial purchase cost against the lesser need to customize a Koga-Miyata touring bike after you’ve bought it. Some of the extras you won’t find on cheaper models include a kickstand, built-in racks a rear bag, and lights front and rear.

Equipping the Best Touring Bikes

Other equipment considerations prevent choosing the best touring bicycle from a formality. For example, a regular saddle is fine for a day or weekend trip, but for a month in the hot seat, you will probably need to invest in something much more comfortable. Brooks are considered the world’s best saddle manufacturers, so choosing one of their specialist touring saddles would be a good idea.

If women are riding on the tour, be sure to pick them a woman’s saddle. Men and women have radically different physiology, and there’s no better way to be reminded of this than when your wife, quite literally, accuses you of being a pain in the ass halfway to Mexico!

Frame for the Best Touring Bicycle

The best touring bicycle is designed to bear heavy loads and has different stress points from other bikes. Usually, a frame is designed differently, too, so you have a more upright, comfortable posture for long rides, a longer wheelbase, and a lower center of gravity than standard road or mountain bikes. Frames should be rust-proof too!

Storage for Your Cycling Equipment

Storage for your gear is going to be a real issue. There are trailers you can add to bikes to give you extra space when you need it. Here are some storage solutions for your bicycling trip:

• Cycling backpack – the basic storage facility for both day-to-day use, as well as for a touring trip.
• Bicycle panniers – a must-have if you plan a bicycle touring trip longer than 2~3 days.
• Bicycle saddle bags for almost any bicycle touring trip.
• Bicycle handlebar bags – a great storage addition for quick access while on the bike.
• Bicycle trailers for the long trip.
• Bicycle rear rack – to hold your bicycle panniers and saddle bag.

Where to Buy Touring Bikes?

If you are interested in buying touring bikes, the best place to buy them is eBay. Take a look:

	RARE Condor Superbe touring bicycle 60cm (Used - 7899 USD)
	TITANIUM SOMA SAGA TOURING BICYCLE WITH CUSTOM PANNIER SET (New - 7000 USD)
	Titanium Road/Touring Bike (D'occasion - 7000 CAD)
	Riese & Muller Charger3 GT Touring HS - 49cm - Carribbean-matte (Used - 4500 USD)

More commuter and touring bicycles Online

Bicycle Touring Preparation

Prepare Your Bike

Once you've selected the right touring bike, it's time to set it up. The right cycling equipment is vital to enjoying your holiday as much as possible. Don't cut too many corners. The last thing you want to do is be in the middle of nowhere and wish you had access to a bike shop!

Be sure to spend time picking out the best bicycle panniers, as they can make or break your trip. Too small, too large, or imbalanced panniers will be more of a pain than an aid. You will have a lot of equipment to carry and the more straightforward it is to pack and unpack, the better time you'll have.

Be sure to carry with you a portable bicycle repair kit, and check and double-check its contents before you leave. You will need to have repaired at least one puncture "in the field" before undertaking a long bike tour.

Prepare Yourself

Check and triple-check everything on your touring bike before you depart. Load up your bike, and yourselves, with everything you plan to take on your journey (don't forget a day's food and liquids!) and attempt to ride around your local neighborhood to get used to the weight and balance. Fine-tune your touring kit. Ask yourself: "Do I need this item" and if the answer is no, discard it.

A bike tour is like running a marathon. You don't do little laps around the park and expect to be ready for a cross-continent tour. So prepare by taking at least one extended bike tour before your big trip. If your tour is two weeks, take a long three-day weekend tour nearer to home to test your equipment (and fitness!) before the big event. See much more advice on bicycle touring preparation here.

Books About Bicycle Touring

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