Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #10320 in Books
• Published on: 2009-07-01
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 380 pages

Amazon.co.uk Review
Lonely Planet's guides to Britain have long stirred up tabloid controversy for their outspoken opinions on the usual British tourist traps, but in this case they have produced something of a sporting diversion--Cycling Britain--part of a new series intended to help us "discover the world on two wheels".

This guide, like all other Lonely Planet guides, contains the essentials you need to know about Britain before travelling, as well as essential facts for cyclists, including many specialist cycling organisations and contacts. It is good also to see sections dealing with cycling specific health and safety issues, as well as a basic but thorough, and easy to understand, guide to bicycle selection and maintenance.

The bulk of the guide is dedicated to the multitude of routes that can be traversed in Britain's regions. It should be pointed out that these routes are mainly aimed at those seeking to do touring cycling and is mainly based on road and light trails. Those in search of more strenuous off-road biking might be disappointed, although advice on off-road cycling and mountain biking is given throughout the book and some off-road routes are included.

The maps and directions for the routes are clear, and advice is given as to which OS maps correspond to the routes. There is also information on places to stay, places to eat, natural history (always a bonus when you are spending too much time in the landscape), planning, and importantly, advice on how to get to and from the ride.

For the serious cyclist this will make a good addition to the library, a quick reference for the various rides, routes and accommodations available in an area. For the less experienced, perhaps holiday cyclist, this guide will be a essential packing for the pannier, providing, as it does, everything you should know before embarking on a ride. --Iain Robinson

Customer Reviews

A good idea poorly executed
Several times I considered throwing it out because of minor but extremely annoying inaccuracies. Eg a recommended hotel served me crisps for breakfast, parts of the sustrans network that the guide said may be rough were often muddy swamps (and this was in summer) and impossible to ride fully-loaded. If you want to do some touring and you've never cycled before, it might be helpful. But if you've got any clue at all about cycling, half of its (weighty) pages are a waste of valuable pannier room. And its routes, while good (though using too many main roads), feature stupidly-oriented maps and fail to link up with each other. Buying a road atlas (just rip out the relevant pages...) and scouring back copies of Cycling Plus or subscribing to the CTC would be a better investment.

Wonderful book, so many useful tips and good routes too
This book covers everything from where to go, how to get there and what to eat while you're doing it! Good maps, without contours but with profiles for hilly days. A good range of routes for all abilities both in urban and rural areas. It also contains plenty of tips on where to stay, what to see for lots of different price ranges. And even better it has tips on how to set up your bike for the ultimate riding position and also an idiots guide to fixing bit's when they break ;-) A book with just enough information on most of the things you might want to know about cycle touring.

Useful - BUT...
A really good selection of tours, well documented and very helpful.
BUT (and there always seems to be a but...), the route maps are almost impossible to use! North wanders all around the clock! Sure, there is a little arrow at the top of each map that shows you which direction North is, but the average person expects North at the top! I guess there is a certain publisher's logic to save space about the idea, but it ruins an otherwise excellent book.

Routes and text - 5 Stars
Maps - 1 Star