IMPORTANT: Please read this article to the very end in order to hear about my 14 island getaways that are the perfect place for a cycling holiday.
Hello and welcome to my remote island paradise in beautiful western Norway!
That’s right! I’m writing this article from a small, remote island just off the western coast of Norway – about 150 kilometers north of the city of Bergen.
Why am I here? And how did I manage to get a house on this incredible island paradise… for FREE? Well, that’s what I’m about to tell you now.
You see, when I was 17 years old, I spent the summer before my first year of college riding a bicycle from Oregon to Mexico – a 1,000 mile journey down the coast of California. The year after that, I cycled across America – from east to west. And for the last 15 years, I’ve been biking all around the world. In fact, I’m now one of the most experienced bicycle travelers on the planet!
My job as the Bicycle Touring Pro is to ride my bike, travel the world, and teach others how to conduct their own incredible bicycle touring adventures. I’ve written four popular cycling books; I run the world’s largest and most popular bicycle touring blog/website; and I’ve helped thousands of people (just like you) conduct their own bike tours all around the world.
Island Bike Tours – A Great Way To See The World
During my travels by bike, I’ve been able to live a life others only dream of. I’ve been to Paris and seen the Eiffel tower; I’ve climbed to the top of Machu Picchu in Peru; and I’ve been to Asia… Africa… and almost every single country in Europe.
I’ve been to some truly amazing places in the world, but some of my favorite places to travel by bike are ISLANDS!!!
- I spent 25 days cycling around Iceland
- Two months biking around the island nation of Taiwan.
- A full month bicycle touring in Ireland.
- And I’ve been to dozens of other islands all around the world.
Islands are special… and they’re a wonderful place to go bicycle touring because they allow you to start and finish your trip by bike in the same location, without ever seeing the same scenery twice. Simply cycle around one side of the island… and then cycle back on the other side. It’s a great way to travel by bike!
So, yes! Islands are great.
But I bet you’re wondering what I’m doing in Norway and how I managed to score this free house on a remote island in the western part of the country.
How I Scored A Free Island Holiday In Norway
Well, I rode my bicycle to Norway from Denmark. After arriving in Norway, I met my friend Eric at the airport in Oslo (Norway’s capital city) and for the following ten days we participated in two back-to-back bike tours with a company called Active-Norway.com.
The first bike tour we did with the company was a 5-day tour of the Hardangerfjord – the second largest deep-water fjord in Norway.
Then immediately after we finished that bike tour, Eric and I began another 5-day cycling holiday through Norway’s Sunnhordland region.
Sunnhordland is an area south-east of Bergen, Norway and is the home to dozens of large and small islands. During our bike tour in this area, Eric and I were able to visit a number of the islands… and it was a truly spectacular ride – through forests, along the edge of the water, and looking out at other islands off in the distance.
There was one day on the Sunnhordland bike tour where I rode my bike across 11 little islands in a single day. How cool is that!?!
After my island bike tour with Eric was over, I began cycling across Norway with another friend of mine named Rob. Rob and I cycled across the country (from east to west) and we finished our bike tour in Bergen – Norway’s second largest city.
Once in Bergen, Rob and I spent a few nights with his friends Kjartan and Ingeborg, who just happen to live in the area and were kind enough to host us in their home.
While staying with Kjartan and Ingeborg (two people that were absolute strangers to me at the time), I began to tell them about my future plans for cycling in Norway… and it was then that they suggested I go and stay at their summer home, which just happened to be located on a remote island several hours to the north.
So, there it is: These two strangers offered me their island home… for FREE!!!
This is just one example of the many incredible things that can happen when you go bicycle touring. You make new friends, visit new places, try new foods, learn new languages, and on occasion… something incredible will happen – like someone offering you their island home as a free place to stay for the next few weeks.
Even though I had originally planned to be cycling across a different part of Norway at this time, I couldn’t let such an incredible opportunity pass me up. So I said YES to the island home and for the last two weeks I’ve been living in a beautiful three-story house on an island in western Norway.
Every day I wake up, do some computer work, and then I go for a run, hike or bike ride. In the evening I cook food, listen to podcasts, make a fire, play darts, and do whatever it is I please. It has been an absolutely incredible experience!
Now It’s Your Turn – These Island Getaways Are Waiting For You
So yes, islands are great… and they’re a wonderful place to go bicycle touring.
But now it’s you’re turn! Which island do you want to visit on your next bike tour?
Here are some links to help you find your cycling holiday island getaway:
If you could go bicycle touring on any island in the world, where would you go? And what would you do there? Leave a comment below and let me know where your next island getaway is going to be!
Darren,
Norway is my dream ride. Both of my great grandmothers were from there. I have one year to full retirement, so; I’m thinking summer 2017 I’ll be cycling in Norway.
Thanks for the great pictures and all the cycling info.
Michael
Sounds like a good plan Michael. Norway is a wonderful place to travel by bike. I look forward to seeing the photos from and hearing about your adventures in Norway!
Darren, How could you miss some of the best islands in the world? San Juan Islands for the U.S. & Canada’s counterpart Vancouver & Gulf Islands?
How about some Nordic Island outside Norway? I am currently on Gotland Island off of Sweden. Beautiful UNESCO World Heritage Site. I’ve cycled the Turku Finland Archipelago, the Ă…land Islands are another Finnish Archipelago well worth cycling. I preferred the Turku Archipelago (Turku’s Saarista). Much of the south coast of Finland is made up of beautiful islands full of tri-lingual, satisfied people (much like the Norwegians) enjoying such a quality of life that they don’t want to do nasty stuff or steal your cycle. Oh, and ferries are free in the Finnish Archipelagos…
Almost forgot the San Juan Islands off Washington’s NW coast!