intriguing southeast europe 15 days / 13 … southeast europe 15 days / 13 riding days ... than we...

INTRIGUING SOUTHEAST EUROPE 15 days / 13 Riding Days

There is something exhilarating about riding in uncharted territory. Our Intriguing Southeast Europe Tour endeavors to take riders to places off-the-beaten tourist track. We start in the vibrant city of Belgrade, Serbia, heading south into Bulgaria, across a carst and volcanic landscape to Sofia. From there, we ride further south through the wide rolling plains of Macedonia. Finally, we ride a loop through the tower-ing and untouched mountains of Albania, with one day spent travelling on what many believe to be the last stretch of undeveloped Mediterranean coast.

If you are a rider who doesn’t mind tackling a few challenging roads, handling what-comes from visiting countries new to tourism, and getting a bit of attention from locals who don’t see many riders, then this tour is for you. Our experienced, multi-lingual guides will take care of you on this adventure. Be one of the first on a guided motorcycle tour to experience riding in this wonderful part of Eastern Europe.

DATES in 2017May 24 - June 07September 08 - September 22or any time May - Oct for Self guided tour.

COUNTRIESSerbia, Bulgaria, Macedonia, Albania, Kosovo

TOUR STARTS / ENDSBelgrade, Serbia

REST DAYS3; Sofia, Ohrid, Sarande

ROUTEMileage: 2.500 km (1.600 miles) Daily rides: 120 - 300 km (75 - 190 miles). The whole tour runs on asphalt.

HIGHLIGHTSBelgrade, Riding in the mountains of Albania, Sofia, Rila Monastery, Ohrid Lake, Kopaonik National Park, Butrint

ACCOMMODATIONVery comfortable, middle class hotels, often the best in the area. 3 or 4 star.

GENERAL OVERVIEW

GREECE

MONTENEGRO

CRO

ATIA

KOSOVO

SERBIA

BOSNIA&HERZEGOVINA

BULGARIA

MACEDONIA

ROMANIA

AL

BA

NIA

Sarande

Gjirokaster

TiranaOhrid Demir Kapija

Sofia

Belgrade

Prizren

Sarajevo

Mokra goraBelogradcik

AD

RI AT I C

SE A

TOUR MAP

Day 1: Arrival in Belgrade

Day 2: Belgrade - Belogradcik

Day 3: Belogradcik - Sofia

Day 4: Rest day in Sofia

Day 5: Sofia - Demir Kapija

Day 6: Demir Kapija - Ohrid

Day 7: Rest day in Ohrid

Day 8: Ohrid - Gjirokaster

Day 9: Gjirokaster - Sarande

Day 10: Rest day in Sarande

Day 11: Sarande - Tirana

Day 12: Tirana - Prizren

Day 13: Prizren - Mokra gora

Day 14: Mokra gora - Belgrade

Day 15: Flight home from Belgrade

DAY BY DAY

CULTURE ROADS LANDSCAPE

INTRIGUING SOUTHEAST EUROPE15 days / 13 Riding Days

Day 1: Arrival in Belgrade

Welcome to Belgrade. On your arrival, your tour guide will pick you up at the airport and you can become acquainted with your motorcycle. Rest in the hotel or get out and see the vibrant city. Depending on the time of your arrival, you can stroll the pedestrianized Kneza Mihaila walking district in the Stari Grad - the old city. There is also the Belgrade Fortress, perched high above the city, to explore. At 5 PM we’ll meet for the introductory briefing and in the evening go for the welcome dinner.

Day 2: Belgrade - Belogradcik

Today we leave Belgrade, travelling south east to cross the border into Bulgaria. On the way we’ll for a while follow the majestic Danube River. Bulgaria is a mountainous country, and our approach into Belogradcik is fascinating, riding be-tween towering red rocks which are the result of millions of years of geological activity. Amidst this rockscape are caves, including the stunning Magura Cave with its Bronze Age excavations and towering stalactites and stalagmites.

Day 3: Belogradcik - Sofia

Today we ride the curves of the Vitosha Mountains on our approach to Sofia. A karst and volcanic landscape, we’ll pass through native spruce forests and subalpine mead-ows dominated by juniper grass. The Vitosha volcano sits right on the edge of Sofia, the capital of Bulgaria, an up-

and-coming city with a compact center. In the evening, we’ll stroll with the locals to a traditional folk-style restau-rant for a traditional Bulgarian dinner.

Day 4: Rest day in Sofia

Today is a rest day in Sofia. Take time to view the city’s sites, which include a number of beautiful churches includ-ing the UNESCO World Heritage Boyana church. Or better yet, take a ride with the guide to the southwest through Pirin National Park and view the Rila Monestery. From the seat of a motorcycle, the first sight of the towering exterior is sure to thrill. Walking around the arcaded galleries gives magnificent views of the Rila Mountains.

Day 5: Sofia - Demir Kapija

Today we head into the Vardar, Macedonia’s wine grow-ing region. We travel along the rich Tikves plain along the river Vardar. The vineyards with their surrounding sights make for interesting and varied riding. This was an area well populated by the Romans and it’s possible to stop and view several Roman ruins. There is also a fair number of waterfalls, the tectonic lake of Dojran, and an assortment of wonderful monasteries. Tonight we’ll stay in the best Macedonian vinery and sample their local wines with our traditional dinner.

INTRIGUING SOUTHEAST EUROPE TOUR DAY BY DAY DETAILED ITINERARY


Day 6: Demir Kapija - Ohrid

Today we ride the long curving roads of southwestern Macedonia, through a sparsely populated, forested and mountainous area. We’ll pass through Pelister National Park, famous for its ancient Molika pine trees and Mount Pelister at 2601 meters. In the afternoon, we’ll skirt Prespa Lake, then drop down to the Ohrid Lake basin. Ohrid Lake, a UNESCO World Heritage site, is one of the oldest lakes in the world. We spend the night in Ohrid town, a quaint tour-ist town on the shores of the lake, with its lovely walking promenade and lake-terraced restaurants and cafes.

Day 7: Rest day in Ohrid

Huge, blue and peaceful, the waters or Ohrid Lake calmly lap the shores of Ohrid town. Spend the morning of the rest day here, walking the shores of the lake and stopping for coffee in a lakeside café. In the afternoon, discover Ohrid’s Byzantine history. Many ancient and beautiful small church-es are within the town’s limits. After a relaxing morning, hop on the bike and take a short ride along the lakeshore to the magnificent monastery of Sveti Naum, overlooking the lake.

Day 8: Ohrid - Gjirokaster

In the morning we’ll cross into Albania, a wild and beau-tiful country where tourism is just starting to take hold. We’ll ride the most serious mountains yet of the tour, the Gramoz Range, with snow capped peaks over 2.500 me-ters high. Fortunately the road is well-surfaced and allows for the spectacular scenery to be enjoyed in comfort. We’ll make some tight hairpin turns climbing Barmashi Pass, our highest, at 1759 meters, then drop down into dense coni-fer forests which periodically open up to reveal fabulous mountain views. In the evening, we pull into the austere and beautiful town of Gjirokaster, with its grey-stone, slate-roofed houses and brooding hilltop castle.

Day 9: Gjirokaster - Sarande

Today we first ride to Butrint, an ancient Greek city and an archeological site. Than we head north to ride the Albanian Riviera, a stretch of coastline known as the most beauti-ful of the Ionian Sea. Albania’s Mediterranean coastline is undeveloped and still naturally beautiful. New roads hug the coastal curves, high above unspoilt beaches, giving far-reaching views out to the impossibly blue water. The towns we pass through are built out of the surrounding rocky coastline and haven’t changed in hundreds of years. In the evening, we’ll stay at a seaside hotel on the Bay of Sarande.




Day 10: Rest day in Sarande

After a couple of fantastic riding days you may want to rest in and around Sarande today. Explore the town or hang around the pool or beach at the hotel. If you feel like a ride, head north to the Llogaraje Pass for some of the most spec-tacular scenery in Albania. Stop and swim or just appreci-ate Dhermi and Drimades beaches, two of the last of the undeveloped beaches on the Mediterranean. You can also ride to Berat, with its impressive hill top citadel and Otto-man-style town.

Day 11: Sarande - Tirana

In the morning we head north, away from the coast, into the mountainous heartland of Albania. Albania is working hard to come out of its long isolation under communist rule, and here you’ll see all sorts of interesting things, sharing the road with fast Mercedes, sputtering Ladas, and mule-drawn carts. Don’t be surprised with the attention you receive as

a traveler. The locals see few tourists, especially on big mo-torcycles. Traffic gets busy near Tirana, the pulsating capi-tal, where we spend the night.

Day 12: Tirana - Prizren

Completing a large loop in Albania, we head back north-east into the mountains again. This is another day of twisty mountain riding, crossing huge mountain passes. We’ll pass through Kruja, the historical center of the Albanian resistance, with its huge citadel and Ottoman bazaar. We’ll also pass through the Lura Lakes region, a national park laced with high mountain lakes. Because of logging in the area, the road can be challenging. Eventually we cross into Kosovo, Europe’s newest country, and spend the night in Prizren, a sleepy town with a close packed mixtures of mosques and Orthodox churches.

Day 13: Prizren - Mokra gora

Another fantastic riding day is ahead of us today. After pass-ing Pec, the seat of the Serbian Orthodox Church in medi-eval times, we’ll continue up and over Kulina, the highest pass in the Balkans. The road here is amazingly scenic, as it is later on when we navigate through the many gorges and high mountains of eastern Montenegro. We can even hop into Bosnia for a while and visit Visegrad with its fa-mous stone Turkish bridge. The town is widely known for the book Bridge on the Drina written by Ivo Andric, a Nobel Prize winning author. We then cross into Serbia and arrive at Mokra Gora, where we stay at Drvengrad, an amazing replica of a traditional Serbian village built by Emir Kusturi-ca, one of Serbia’s best known film directors. It’s a magical place in the summer, and a great spot to spend an evening.



Day 14: Mokra gora - Belgrade

Our final riding day takes us from Mokra Gora through the Tara Mountain National Park in western Serbia and back to Belgrade. Tara Mountain stands 1.500 meters above sea lev-el, its slopes covered with some of the densest and best pre-served forests in Europe. We skirt the deep ravine carved by the Drina River, then continue on a nice twisty road over the Crna Gora plateau to a faster road directly into Belgrade. Our final, farewell dinner that night is on a floating barge on the Sava River in the center of the vibrant city.

Day 15: Flight home from Belgrade

Depending on your time of flight you may be able to spend some time in around Belgrade in the morning before head-ing for the airport.

Group discounts available.

The 15 day Intriguing Southeast Europe Tour includes:

•Late model motorcycle with lockable hard luggage and tank bags plus a Third party liability insurance and Comprehensive vehicle insurance.•Experienced guide on a motorcycle.•Support van for luggage, souvenir purchases, and one or two passengers.•14 nights accommodation in quality, mostly 4**** hotels.•14 complete buffet breakfasts in the hotel.•11 dinners, mostly in traditional local restaurants.•Entrance fees into national parks and museums (according to tour program).•Airport transfers on arrival and departure (on the first and last day of tour).•Highlighted maps of the region•Extensive tour booklet.•GPS with all the routes uploaded.

Not included in the tour price:

•Air ticket, dinners on rest days, most lunches, drinks, gasoline, tolls, personal spending, tips.


2016 SICILY TOUR (per person in EUR)

MOTORCYCLEPrice for the RIDER

Based on sharing a double / twin room.

Yamaha MT-07Suzuki V-Strom 650 4.250 € Price for the

PASSENGER3.090 €

BMW F 700 GS, F 800 RYamaha MT-09 Tracer 4.470 €

BMW F 800 GS, F 800 GTHonda CRF 1000 L Africa Twin 4.690 €

BMW R 1200 GS, R 1200 R, R 1200 RS 5.130 €

BMW R 1200 GS AdventureBMW R 1200 RTBMW S 1000 XR

5.650 €Single roomsupplement

450 €

Ducati Multistrada 1200 6.090 €

Your Own Motorcycle 3.140 €

Self-guided tour - app 20% discount applies for tour prices above, contact us

INTRIGUING SOUTHEAST EUROPE 2017 (per person in EUR)

intriguing southeast europe 15 days / 13 … southeast europe 15 days / 13 riding days ... than we...

Documents