Away from the Crowds

Reviews

they absolutely nailed it! From start to finish, everything was well-organised and seamless.

I cannot recommend "Away from the Crowds" enough!

This Alicante - Costa Blanca bicycle tour was our third adventure with them, and once again, they absolutely nailed it! From start to finish, everything was well-organised and seamless.

One of the things that impressed us the most was their excellent communication. They were prompt and helpful in answering all our queries, ensuring that we had all the information we needed before embarking on our tour.

Their attention to detail was evident in the personalised book of routes and recommendations they provided. It made each stop along the way even more enjoyable and allowed us to discover hidden gems we would have otherwise missed.

But what really blew us away was the newly added GPS routes via Ride with GPS. It made navigating the routes a breeze! We found the GPS system incredibly user-friendly, and it added an extra level of convenience to our cycling experience. Kudos to "Away from the Crowds" for incorporating this fantastic addition.

Overall, we had an amazing time exploring Alicante & Valencia on our bicycles with "Away from the Crowds." Their tours are consistently top-notch, and they have never disappointed us.

If you're looking for a well-organised tour with great communication, detailed route guidance, and a user-friendly GPS system, look no further. You won't be disappointed!

Andy Liao, London, UK

¡Muchas gracias, amigos! Thank you so much for your kind words. We're 'blown away' with your wonderful feedback! Come back soon!

Aftc team

We have done lots of cycles in Europe and found this one to be really enjoyable.

We did enjoy the cycle. We have done lots of cycles in Europe and found this one to be really enjoyable.

We really appreciated all your help. Your support team did a great job.

Bags were always on site when we finished our days ride. Shuttles were on time. So no you couldn’t have done more for us so thanks.

Bruce and Sarah Burton, Aukland, Australia

Thanks Bruce and Sarah, we hope to see you again soon!

Aftc

We really did feel ‘away from the crowds’ and experienced real Spanish life

We had a fabulous time on our holiday thank you. It all went very smoothly from booking to handing back the bikes at the end.

The contact from the company over email to bespoke our start and finish times to fit in with our flights was excellent. There were some amendments needed and the company was quick to update us and make all the agreed changes required.

The cycle routes were excellent. The GPS guide worked really well alongside the road book. The tips and ideas in the road book were useful too.

The holiday itself exceeded our expectations. The choice of hotels and locations were perfect for us. We really did feel ‘away from the crowds’ and experienced real Spanish life.

The locations and hotels were all brilliant and so friendly and welcoming. We had plenty of time each day to explore around the locations on foot.

We really enjoyed the Spanish food during our holiday. We stopped at many bars and restaurants on route and locally where we stayed, soaking in the atmosphere and enjoying some lovely red wines and delicious tapas.

We were also really lucky to stumble across a street fiesta. St Trinidad street in Denia, a quiet, residential back street held a parade with drinks and food to celebrate the street. The street was celebrating its 150th year of this fiesta. The locals welcomed us to stay and insisted we had some food with them after the parade. It was a brilliant experience.

David and Alyson West, Hampshire, UK

We're delighted that you enjoyed your first cycling adventure with us! You were very lucky to encounter that local street fiesta!

Gaynor, Aftc

This was my introduction to Spain and I feel I experienced the real culture and countryside.

We had an amazing adventure cycling the Costa Blanca tour. This was my introduction to Spain and I feel I experienced the real culture and countryside.

The route lead us through varied landscapes from mountains, forests, orchards to beaches. The scenery was stunning and the directions were very comprehensive and interesting!

We enjoyed leisurely rides between towns which allowed us to explore the historic and natural areas attractions as suggested in the Road Book. We appreciated having this information and found the recommendations most helpful.

The accommodations exceeded our expectations and the staff at each location were friendly and extremely helpful. We were able to check in immediately and our bags were always there!

The bikes and all the equipment provided were in great condition; the bike staff ensured we were comfortable with the bikes before leaving.

This holiday was a great experience and I hope to do another trip with Senderos y Pueblos.

Dianne Murray, Victoria, Canada

Thanks Dianne, we hope you and Wendy will come back and travel with us again soon!

Aftc

We were impressed by the fabulous view from our balcony and the wonderful breakfasts.

We loved all of the small towns along our cycle route.

Our hotels were even better that we had anticipated, comfortable beds and welcoming hosts.

My bike wasn’t shifting properly and as soon as I brought it to Vanesa’s attention she made arrangements with a bike shop the next day to have my bike repaired along the route.

The ride from Alcoi to Villalonga had some rough sections that we really didn't enjoy. We were wishing that our bikes had lights when we went through the longer tunnels!

We arrived in Villalonga in good time, enjoyed the comforts of the Casa Babel and a delicious dinner in their restaurant. The following day we rode mostly downhill to Denia arriving with lots of time to explore.

The ride up to the village of Jesus Pobre was the highlight of our ride from Denia to Javea.

We booked an extra night in Javea at the 4* Parador. We were impressed by the fabulous view from our balcony and the wonderful breakfasts. What a great way to end our tour!

Patricia Glen, British Colombia, Canada

Thanks Pat and Lauchlan. Sorry to hear that you had problems with the bikes but glad to hear that it was soon fixed! Yes, there is a rough section of track that some people love and others don't! Unfortunately, there isn't an alternative route there! We're delighted to hear that you had a great time and look forward to hosting you again!

Aftc team

The road book is great! SO much detailed and helpful information about the route plus recommended cafés and restaurants and lots of local history

Many thanks once again for a fantastic bike trip. We absolutely loved it! Such a beautiful area.

As with our previous experience, all the pre trip correspondence and information was extremely comprehensive, friendly and efficient.

As well as the actual cycling, what we appreciate most is arriving at the first hotel (Biar) and getting the road book, the maps and our hotel itinerary.

The road book is great! SO much detailed and helpful information about the route plus recommended cafés and restaurants and lots of local history (some updates needed)We really like the paper maps. Please never stop providing these

For navigation we used all 3 methods provided: Road book, paper maps and the phone app (Ride with GPS). The routes were really well chosen on beautiful quiet back roads and tracks that we’d never have found on our own. Sometimes this made navigation tricky and occasionally I found myself cycling one handed with my phone in the other hand following the route on GPS . Not recommended!

The route along the Serpis river gorge was stunningly beautiful- but we found it a tough and rough surface, quite hard to cycle. While we wouldn’t have wanted to miss this, perhaps you could include an alternative route (if there is one?) for less experienced cyclists.

Overall we had the most amazing time! We’re already recommending this route and your company to all our cycling friends.

We thought the distances would be too short but they were perfect- allowing plenty of time for refreshment stops so we could arrive at our destination in time to relax and explore the town.

Once again all the hotels were well chosen and fantastic. Personally I loved the hotel Façana in Biar but they were all excellent. The dinner (and breakfast) in Casa Babel in Villalonga was especially delicious and memorable!

We’re really looking forward to our next trip with you! Many thanks again to you and all the staff at Senderos y Pueblos.

Stephanie Downey and Jim McGivney, Brighton, UK

Thanks so much for your valuable feedback, Stephanie and Jim. We now provide phone holders for the bikes to avoid the juggling effect! And yes, the Serpis route is stunning but a bit rough and deteriorated by the rain. We're hoping that the local authorities will fix it soon as there's no alternative route! We're delighted that you loved this route and thanks so much for your recommendations!

The small hotels were perfect choices

We had an excellent holiday, thanks!

The small hotels were perfect choices, the towns of Biar, Bocairent and Villalonga so beautiful, and the routes mostly peaceful and car-free.

We stayed three nights in the Parador, which we would definitely recommend for total relaxation at the end!

The holiday was the same top quality experience that we expected after our trip from Segovia that we did with you a few years back.

A special mention for Joán from the Agora in Bocairent, who took such good care of us and prepared exquisite dinners.

Joanna Goyder & Paul Styles, Bruxelles, Belgium

Thanks for your lovely review and all the wonderful photos that you sent us too! We hope to see you again soon!

Aftc

I must say we were very impressed

I must say we were very impressed and we both had the BEST holiday.

The bikes were great. Big heavy things but comfortable and well suited to the course. They certainly coped with the rough parts.

The hotels were well beyond what we expected. If we could single out a favourite, it would be Casa Babel in Villalonga. What a beautiful old building and lovely people as well. This was also the only place where we ate dinner at the hotel and it was superb.

The course itself was very thoughtfully planned and we both appreciated seeing parts of the country where few tourists go, although it did test our limited Spanish!

The road book is very detailed, although a bit inaccurate in places. Therefore the GPS is essential. I think you should strongly recommend it, or the downloadable course, to all travellers.

By the way, one of the bikes had a poorly calibrated computer so we had different readings from each other.

Paul Quick, Australia.

Many thanks, Paul and Juanita. We have reviewed the roadbook for inaccuracies since your visit, as we do at the end of every season.

Jaime, AFTC.

A holiday with Away from the Crowds is a great way to explore parts of Spain that are a bit off the beaten track.

"We had a fantastic holiday cycling the Alicante and Costa Brava route. Away from the Crowds provide everything you need for your trip. Due to flight dates/times we wanted to stay an extra day at the start of our trip and they arranged that for us. Any questions we had prior to the trip were responded to quickly and they also provided some useful last minute tips just before the start of the trip.

Everything went very smoothly - airport transfers, bike delivery and set up, daily luggage transfer. Everything was done as arranged and without fuss. Each day when we arrived at our hotel our luggage was waiting for us and there was somewhere secure to store the bikes. People everywhere were friendly and helpful.

The routes were varied and covered different terrains from cycle paths, quiet roads and off road tracks. There were some sections of busier roads but these were kept to a minimum. We used the road book in combination with the gps maps and that worked well for us. The road book has detailed directions as well as useful suggestions for refreshment stops. It also tells you about the area you are cycling in with reference to points of interest and local history. Some of the off road sections were a little challenging and care is needed when transitioning from road to off road as the bikes are heavy and can slip around a bit. The road book highlighted this and suggests sections where you may prefer to push (I did). The route between Alcoi and Villalonga is stunning with a fair bit of off road and quite a few tunnels!

The hotels were all very comfortable and well located. We especially liked the smaller hotels in Bocairent and Villalonga which had beautiful rooms with their own distinct character. I would also recommend visiting Plaza de Dins in Alcoi in the evening - the square is buzzing with many cafe bars where you can get great tapas and soak up the atmosphere.

A holiday with Away from the Crowds is a great way to explore parts of Spain that are a bit off the beaten track.

Jennifer Anderson, Scotland.

Thank you Jennifer. Very much appreciated. Delighted that you enjoyed!

Jaime, AFTC.

We had the most enjoyable experience

We had the most enjoyable experience cycling the Alicante/Costa Blanca 6 day tour. Everything was brilliantly organised and the course a good mix of lesser visited inland towns and more popular beach locations.

We're a couple with different levels of cycling fitness so we chose this particular tour, rated easy to moderate.

There was one particularly challenging climb but also no hurry so it's OK to walk if you want to. Much of the time we were on old rail trails and sometimes they're quite rough. We had good fun on these although they might not be for everyone.

With only an average of 30 odd kilometres a day to travel, you have plenty of time to get to your destination and have a good look around along the way.

The accommodation was always excellent (Villalonga our favourite), the bikes good quality and the quick responses from the folks at AWTC made us feel as though we were always being well looked after.

All good things come to an end and the time went by too quickly. We'll definitely consider coming back in future to try a different course.

Particular thanks to Jorge and Cris for all their help before and during the tour. Your personal touch is much appreciated.

Stephanie Segoura, UK

The route instructions were really good and easy to follow

Here are our comments, mainly Roger's as he was navigator. We had a very good time, and hope to do another with you again some time. The bikes were fine, although I would have preferred one a bit lighter on some of the route. We have of course already told you about the tunnel that was temporarily closed for works.

We really enjoyed the trip, particularly the section along the R Serpis after L'Orxa which really felt ""away from the crowds""!

It was unfortunate that a lots of the bars were closed in early October, but it couldn't be helped. Weatherwise it was an ideal time to go.

The route instructions were really good and easy to follow, nevertheless it was useful to have the GPX tracks which helped confirm that we were on the correct route (or not). We used these in conjunction with the Gallileo App - the basic version is free.

The luggage transfers all went well, and we liked the hotels. It was good to have swimming pools at some of them.

Margaret Goff, UK

Many thanks Margaret, I imagine the bike would have felt heavy going up to the Sierra de Mariela Natural Park. Here a sports road bike would have been ideal. Touring bikes are certainly heavier than other bikes but they are dependable, sturdy, comfortable and safe. I think it´s a good compromise.

Jaime, AFTC.

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