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M8 MOTO

BEST OF BRITAIN

UNITED KINGDOM

Explore the Best Roads, History & Myths of England and Wales

This tour is suitable for both experienced and new riders, we explore the best roads, sights, history, and myths of England and Wales, and with our support vehicle following you to carry your luggage you can ride-lite.

Our journey starts on the South Coast of England and takes us along the South Coast, through Mountains, past Lakes, and through Dales, we finish in the historic town of York. Along the way, we visit historic sights as we travel through 9 of Britain's 15 National Parks, and multiple areas of outstanding natural beauty. Expect great scenery, great roads, great beer and we hope great company.

Super Easy to OMG Off-Road adventure bike options are available if you have an ADV Bike, or stay on the blacktop, it's up to you.
Folkestone
York
12 Day Road Tour
~2,500 miles
Tour Options
£
2450
Per
Person

rates

Tour Dates
More Dates on Request

Deposit Text

ADV Options Available
Aerial View of Curved Road

STONEHENGE

HIGHLIGHTS

On our first day along the South Coast, we visit the Long Man of Wilmington and explore Britain's Naval history at Portsmouth. We progress along the South we visit Dartmoor, Lands End, Motorcycle Museums, and Ancient Neolithic Sites as well riding through some wonderfully old English villages.

After exploring the South we England for a few days via the Severn Bridge, to explore Wales and spend 3 days riding through both the Brecon Beacons and Snowdonia National National Parks. Wales is renowned for having some fantastic riding options, which we take full advantage of, including some great off-road options.

We then head to the Lake District National Park where we ride all the main Passes, our ADV Option includes the Old Coach Road with great views of Blencathra Mountain if you're up for it.

After the Lake District, it's onto Yorkshire where we ride through the Yorkshire Dales and then onto the North York Moors, finishing our ride in the ancient city of York.

The Adventure Options on this trip detour from the main route, and always return to the primary road route further along, it's your choice which, (if any), of the Adventure Options you want to take on any day, they range from the super easy that you can do on any bike, to quite challenging and everything in between. Just pick and choose which of the Adventure options you want to do each day.

Our typical overnight stays are in villages, small towns, and ancient Forrests, in the heart of Britain's National Parks.

ROUTE

ITINERARY

Day 1 (280 km)

The starts at Folkestone to facilitate attendees coming from Europe where we will meet you with the support vehicle.

Depending upon the time of arrival at the tunnel, we may take back roads, or the main A road west to Portsmouth and visit the Royal Navy Historic Dockyard which includes HMS Victory, the oldest naval vessel still in commission by any naval force (245 years of continual service) before continuing to our overnight accommodation in the heart of the New Forrest, one of the largest tracts of unenclosed Forest, Heath, and Pasture in Southern England. 

Day 2 (280 km)

We visit the famous Beaulieu Motor Museum in the New Forest, stop for coffee in Wareham on the shore of the river Frome, or visit the Sammy Miller Museum. This day also has us visiting the famous Cerne Giant outline and Victorian seaside towns before entering Dartmoor for our overnight stay. Dartmoor is the setting for the Sherlock Homes Story, the Hound of the Baskervilles, an ancient heathland that has taken the lives of several unwary travelers through the years.

Day 3 (320km)

We tour to beautiful coastline of Cornwall, stopping off at the most southerly and westerly tip of England appropriately named, Lands End. The Cornish coast in the 18th century was a smuggler's heaven and many of the small coves and villages were used to smuggle contraband into the UK.

After visiting Lands End, we continue along the North Coast of Cornwall with Surfing being popular in some, we have the opportunity to visit some of the local tin mining history before stopping at our overnight stop.

ADV (5km)

5km Detour along the old unsealed byway. Easy, level surface, Hardpack road with broken sealed surface in places.

Day 4 (315 km)

Today we visit the castle that is purported to be the seat of King Arthur, Camelot, actually called Tintagel Castle. We call in at one of our favorite and stunningly beautiful Cornish villages (warning, you will be doing a little walking as no vehicles are allowed in the village, and it’s on a hill, but there is a pub at the bottom.). You can change your motorcycle boots into walking shoes and leave the boots in the support van. 

Our journey continues through the beautiful Cheddar Gorge (not made of cheese) before we reach our overnight stop for the night and the following night in the ancient Roman city of Bath.

Day 5 (205 km)

Today there are a few suggested options as we are staying in Bath for a second night. 

Option 1: Chill and Relax

Explore the historic city of Bath, made famous by its natural healing spring waters, so much so that the Roman Baths (Yes, they were built by the actual Romans during their occupation of England) are an absolute must-visit. The Victorians also built some stunning architecture that still exists today. 

Option 2: Neolithic Road Loop

Take a 205km ride and visit some of the local Neolithic and druidic history, including famous landmarks such as Stonehenge and the numerous Chalk White Figures carved into the hillsides. 

ADV Option: Salisbury Plain

An easy ADV Option on almost any bike, best when it is dry as the route is mainly unsealed flint and chalk, in the wet, it can get very slippery.

Day 6 (400 km)

Today we have a longer day riding, a little over 400km, but what a day, after we cross the river Seven over the iconic Seven road bridge we leave England and enter Wales. The Brecon Seconds is the land where legend has it, that the wizard Merlin was born from Arthurian legend. Our route takes us along the absolute best biking roads in South Wales. 

We wind our way across, up and down the Brecon Beacons before heading North after optionally Castell Carreg Cennen for lunch. There are a couple of fantastic Adventure bike options today, including what is considered the best Green Lane in Wales, with the road riders also treated to some truly great quiet country roads, bends, and scenery.

ADV A (85KM)

This ride takes you through woodland along the route of an old Roman road and along what is considered to be the best green lane in Wales, the Strata Florida

Doable on large Adventure bikes it has been raining heavily recently, so avoid the large mud holes.

ADV B (70KM)

Same as Option A, but with the detour along Claewen reservoir removed, rejoining the main route at the Devil's Cauldron.

Doable on large Adventure bikes it has been raining heavily recently, so avoid the large mud holes.

Day 7 (200 km)

We have a much shorter day today, with more time to sightsee as we ride through wonderfully scenic valleys and enter the Eryri National Park (Snowdonia National Park). We ride past Lakes, and drop in at the Historic Harlech Castle before arriving at our overnight stop at what is probably the most Welsh of Welsh villages. 

ADV A1 & A2 (12.7km & 13.5km options)

Not for the beginner, it is very steep, rutted & rocky, extremely slippery, even when dry.

ADV B

Beautiful road, very little traveled due to being in the middle of nowhere! One very small boggy patch in the middle and 2 gates.

ADV C

Easy, mostly hard-packed surface with some loose gravel, ridable on almost any bike.

Day 8 (170 km - 190km)

They say there is a dragon that sleeps under what is the tallest mountain in Wales, Yr Wyddfa (Mt Snowdon) which we circumnavigate today. Not a lot of distance today, but a lot of options to pack in, use your time wisely.  

We call in at Llanberis with an opportunity to explore the brilliant mining museum, or maybe take the train up to the top of Mt Snowdon.

We call in at Conwy, a beautiful little town that was in a strategic military position guarding the entrance to the river Conwy. This is an ancient walled town built primarily for defense with many independently owned shops and cafes. Much of the defensive wall still stands to this day where it is possible to walk along the top of the old wall in places. There is also the Conwy Castle which UNESCO considers to be one of the finest examples of late 13th and early 14th century military architecture in Europe.

Day 9 (370km)

Today we head into the heart of the Lake District National Park, we ride all the great passes of the Lake District National Park, expect great scenery and brilliant roads. We are here outside of a weekend, with luck, there will be little traffic.

We visit an ancient Roman Fort archeological site, and a working quarry (for lunch), but mainly we ride in this awesome part of England. 

ADV (20 km)

This route takes along the Old Coach Road and a few other minor unsealed roads, primarily rocky road that links Keswick to the lake of Ulster and provides great views of Blencthra, one of the most Northerly hills in the Lake District.

Day 10 (250 km)

We enter a completely different landscape, Englands highest mountains give way to the rolling hills of the Yorkshire Dales National Park, an area dominated by heather heathland, sheep, and cattle farming.

The roads in the Dales are generally wider and faster than the Lake District, so it’s no surprise that many bikers from across the country come here to ride.

We visit some iconic sights, including the Victorian Ribblehead Viaduct, the Tank Hill Inn, Englands' Highest Inn, but mainly, we are here for the roads.

We also have some fantastic Adventure bike options available for those with suitable bikes that will take you along ancient unsealed Roman Roads, and over the high moors that usually only walkers and mountain bikers get to visit. 

ADV

Primarily rocky roads and loose gravel surfaces, some steep climbs and descents (avoidable), and some muddy roads (avoidable). 

Day 11 280km

The scenery changes again today as we leave the Yorkshire Dales and enter the North York Moor National Park. Where the Lake District is Englands wettest National Park, the North York Moors is the driest. A Landscape dominated by Heather heathland.

Multiple ancient and working Abbeys We visit numerous Yorkshire Dales villages with sheep grazing lazily on the village greens, before heading to the town of Whitby, infamously mentioned as the place where the Demeter was wrecked in Bram Stoker's story, Dracula.

Day 12 

We finish the tour with a run to York via the coast and the Yorkshire Wolds. There is plenty of time to explore York, a fascinating ancient walled city to visit, you can easily spend more than a few days here exploring its history and you are free to do so. The ferry terminal in Hull is about an hour away from York

What's Included
Breakfasts
Detailed Itinerary
GPX files for your chosen navigation device
Hotel Accommodation
Local Tour Guide
Mechanic with full toolkit
Rider Leader
Roadside Assistance and recovery to nearest garage
Support vehicle to carry your luggage
Welcome Dinner
What's Not
Alcohol
Entrance fees other than mentioned above
Ferry Charges
Meals
Recovery to Home Country
Travel Insurance
Visa
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