I'm 77 and in the last 5 years have rode my trikes in all 49 NA States, 9 Canadian Providences and Mexico. My bucket list. Would have done about a 5,000 mile Road trip to the Southwest and Pacific Coast highway this Spring but then came the virus. Feel very lucky that am still able to travel and want to but I know my time is running out. Have looked at some of the tours offered by different Companies and have not found one that hits all the thinks I want to see. Thinking about flying into Munich, German with my riding buddy, renting two Trikes if possible and then visiting 8 Countries on about a 3,000 mile trip. Normandy and the Swiss Alps high on the list. Wanting to do this without a guide. Anyone had any experience riding a bike in Europe and suggestions.

 

I can't help with your question but "WAY TO GO", man!!!

 

Not trike specific, but there's a whole section here in the forums on Road Trips, you should find a lot of information there.

Road Trip Forum

It sounds like it would be a great trip; we've been all across this country but that would be wonderful.

 

Thanks I will check it out.

 

I have ridden in Europe twice, once with a guide and once without.

We used Edelweiss as our tour guide for our honeymoon in 2002. They take care of all hotel reservations, most meals, bike rentals and your luggage including picking you up at the airport. It costs $$$$$ but it makes the trip so much easier and less stressful. They also provide guides that speak the appropriate language for where you are. The company is German based, all guide were German but also spoke Italian and of course English. We went from Innsbruck Austria to Switzerland then looped around northern Italy back to Austria, 14 days. Amazing trip.

2005 friends where working in Europe and fell into a great deal on a villa in Tuscany for a week, super cheap, I think our end was $500 for a private suite. We flew into Florence, the dealership was a 5 minute taxi ride away. Dealership was great but English to Italian was a challenge. There English was better than my Italian, but a couple of things took a lot of hand signals. Anyway, we had the luggage packed with all of our gear already in the HD tour pak/saddle bags. We pulled them out and left the suitcase at dealership. We had about a 3 hour ride to the villa, via Pisa and the coast. 2005 we only had a rudimentary cell phone and paper maps/driving directions.

Unlike here, the roads generally have no names, you get to an intersection and it points to the next town. You need to be familiar with your route so you know which town is next then you basically hop town to town, each one with another turn. Signs not being in English makes this a bit more of a challenge, but hey it is an adventure.

Do do it today, with a GPS, it would be a no brainer you could go anywhere. 99% of the people we met along the way were nothing but friendly. more people speak at least some English than you would guess. If that fails, grab the menu and point to what you want, effective.

We have been talking about going back for our 20th anniversary, she wants to do a tour similar to the honeymoon. I will likely agree as it really gives the rider a better experience. We were on very technical mountain passes, some city traffic and overall a lot of turns. Doable with a GPS, but riding 4th in a pack of 8 bikes, all you have to do is follow the guy in front of you. They even had the gas stops planned out. Really lets you hang back and enjoy the amazing scenery and not worry about the next turn or gas stop.

I would do it again either way, just what kind of experience are you looking for, I probably have more info if you have specific questions. Good luck.

 

Was in Bozeman, Mt last week and a guy strolled over sniffing bikes. Rides Ducati's but has a Heritage also. Spends time riding Europe every few years and was showing some pics of his Stelvio Pass, Italy ride. Pretty impressive. Would love to ride there.
I wish you a great ride!!

 

Thank you Architect very helpful. If this virus goes away hope to do this trip next year. When I get a little better idea of where we are going will message you and ask for your help. Really appreciate the long informative response. Joe

 

Stelvio Pass is one of the rides I hope to do.

 

Didn't ride through Europe but I did visit H-D dealers in Dublin, Ireland, Edenborough Scotland and Marseille, France. I don't speak any French but I was able to find the motorclothes section of the dealer. Wandered around Marseille on my own, Stopped by a Green Cross drug store. Finally was able to purchase what I wanted from the nice lady.
I wanted to visit the H-D store in Naples and Rome but it was too far from the dock and our ship.

 

Hi. I'm from the UK. Did two fairly big Europe tours two years running. First was to get to Scandinavia, 2nd was to Italy and back. 4 & 3 yrs ago respectively. Fairly easy to plan. Definitely need GPS but also a good idea of your route. Happy to help with suggestions or ideas. Although did the two trips on my Heritage (now sold) we are planning return trips on the trike year after next (2022).