Road Cycling the Philippines

We ride a total of 762 km over 9 cycling days and across four islands in the Central Visayas Region of the Philippines. These are Cebu, Bohol, Siquijor and Negros. We designed the route to experience a wide variety of the Philippines’ terrain and scenery, including rural areas, jungles, highlands, and coasts. Almost all of our rides are point-to-point, except for days 4, 7 and 10 when we have short vehicle transfers to avoid busy traffic coming in and out of cities. We also have boat journeys between 1-2 hours before our rides on days 2, 5, 7, and 11. These are a tour highlight in their own right, affording delightful sea views as well as a glimpse into the hustle and bustle of inter-island mobility in the Philippines. Our route leads us to iconic landmarks of the Visayas region, such as the Chocolate hills, as well as coral stone churches and white sand beaches, for an enriching experience on and off the bikes.

Your guide’s expert knowledge of the area and terrain means that you always know what is coming up in terms of distance and difficulty. This makes a tremendous difference, as does the constant supply of water and refreshments along the way. This tour is fully supported with a vehicle following us at all times. In Bohol, Siquijor and Negros we use quintessential Filipino jeepneys; converted jeeps with benches in the back. These are open-air with no AC. In Cebu we use a Commuter Van with AC.

Suitability: This tour is ideal for experienced road cyclists comfortable with long, back-to-back riding days. Along the coasts the terrain is mostly flat and gently undulating, while further inland the elevation rises, so riders should be capable of tackling continuous ascents with low to mid-range gradients. Downhills are just as prominent – good handling skills are an asset to enjoy them at their fullest. We have one full rest day in Siquijor on day 6 and there are some shorter rides sprinkled throughout, ensuring there is still plenty of time to enjoy the Philippines' beautiful beaches. The main challenge of the tour is keeping up stamina and cycling in the tropical heat. Less experienced riders are welcome but should prepare themselves for the longer distances and hillier days. The support vehicle is always nearby to offer refuge to any weary cyclists.

Biking Conditions: We cycle entirely on paved roads. Surfaces are either concrete or asphalt, ranging from very smooth to mildly bumpy. The occasional section of cratered or broken road does present itself and, in case of road works, short patches of gravel may be encountered. There are no designated bike paths in the Philippines and the width of shoulders varies. So, be prepared to share the road with other vehicles, such as jeepneys, motorized rickshaws, cars, and the occasional bus or truck. While near towns or popular attractions some busier traffic should be expected, for the majority of the tour there is very light traffic and we have chosen routes based on the most scenic and quiet roads available. The coastal roads can get windy which, at different times, works in and against our favor depending on the direction we are cycling in! Rainfall is not uncommon in the Philippines at any time of year. We generally ride rain or shine, but based on the guide’s discretion or your level of comfort, modifications to the planned route can be made. It’s all part of the adventure!

Hotels: In areas with a well developed tourism infrastructure such as Cebu, Anda and Siquijor, we stay in deluxe, character-rich hotels at the 4 star level. You can expect elevated comfort, professional staff, swimming pools, bars, and breakfast spreads worth waking up early for. Hotels in local areas, while still more than adequate for hard-working cyclists, tend to be simpler with fewer amenities and facilities as well as a more relaxed service pace. Some older properties may show signs of wear & tear. Many of the hotels on this tour are directly on or nearby a beach, which is always a highlight! For larger groups, we may need to use more than one accommodation and, in case of limited availability, switch to an alternative property from the one listed in the itinerary.

Bikes

Because some people can't imagine going on a trip without their beloved bicycle, we do not provide them as part of this tour. However, you can hire bikes locally for the price listed in the tour pricing section. We provide high-quality SUNPEED or similar road bikes. If you bring your bike, please ensure it is a road bike in good mechanical order.

Bike Repairs

Basic spares and tools are carried by the guide and on the support vehicle, though we cannot guarantee having spares for every conceivable problem. Carrying a basic tool kit, a spare tube and a pump while riding is recommended.

Safety

Wearing a helmet is required on all our biking adventures and is non negotiable. If you do not wear a helmet you will not be allowed to cycle. Your tour leader is trained in first aid and emergency rescue, but to a large degree you must be responsible for your own safety while riding. It is therefore compulsory that you take out travel insurance that will cover you for a mountain biking tour.

Guides

You will be led by a local English-speaking guide and if the group is 9 people or more we will add another guide to the tour. All our guides are well informed in the history, culture and religions of the area where you are biking and are skilled at passing that knowledge on to you. Your guide is also medically trained and an experienced cyclist, able to handle most minor repairs en route.

If this is the tour for you here's what you need to do to confirm your place:

FLEXIBLE BOOKING CONDITIONS

CONFIRMING YOUR BOOKING

Just complete our online booking form or send your booking details offline (email or post), and we will confirm your participation. No deposit is needed to confirm your place on a SpiceRoads tour.

You are advised to read our Booking Conditions in full before you make your payment and should you require further clarifications of any of the conditions below, please email us or call our office.

TRIP STATUS

There is a minimum number of participants (usually 2) required to enable the trip to go ahead. Once the minimum number is reached, the trip status will change from 'Available' to 'Guaranteed to Depart'. Once a trip is guaranteed to depart you are free to book your flights and make other travel arrangements. If the trip status is ‘Limited’ will mean we have only a small number of spaces available for booking. If you are unsure about the trip status, please email us or call our office.

BOOKING ONLINE

From the tour page, click the 'Book Now' link. All departures for this tour will appear, just select the date you'd like to travel. For the next steps, you'll need to know the names of the people travelling. If you wish you can also provide extra details such as passport numbers, height (for bike hire), or you can add that later by logging into Manage My Trip (we'll set up an account for you automatically if you don't already have one). Our system will contact you from time to time to fill in the missing information, as it will be required before departure. However, if the trip that you are booking offers a child discount, you will have to fill out the date of birth of each rider (so we can calculate the appropriate discount).

If you are having any problems please send us an email, or give us a call (+66 026 3295) and one of our travel specialists will assist you with your booking.

BOOKING OFFLINE

Just call us or send an email indicating which trip you want to join and we will happily send you a list of questions and process your booking for you.

DEPOSITS AND PAYMENTS

We do not require a deposit or full payment to book a place for you on a tour.

The balance of the tour’s cost (final invoice) will need to be paid 60 days before the departure date with fees for any bicycle rental(s), single supplement(s) and extra hotel nights.

In the case where a booking is made when there are less than 60 days until the tour departure date, the tour’s cost should be paid in full within 72 hours of receiving an invoice from SpiceRoads. Payment can be made by credit card using our online payment gateway or by bank transfer. When making payment online you will need to confirm that you have read these booking conditions during the "checkout" process, which equates to agreeing to the terms of services and stipulations as indicated in this document.

In all cases, tour fees need to be paid “in full” before participation in a tour. No person(s) will be allowed to join a tour without fully settling their invoice and receiving a confirmation number from SpiceRoads.

The exception can be made for last-minute miscellaneous fees that can be paid locally (visas, additional local hotel bookings, etc.) can be settled on the day of arrival.

FULL FLEXIBILITY FOR TOUR CANCELATIONS

If the tour is cancelled or postponed by SpiceRoads because we didn't make the trip numbers and the tour can’t run, we will make a full cash refund (by bank transfer or on your credit card).

If the tour is cancelled for any other reason, including due to Covid related travel restrictions, we will give you a full credit (with no deductions for admin or any other small-print item) to use on any SpiceRoads tour with no time limit. (Exceptions being flights, special permits and other non-refundable items and these will be advised when booking the trip).

Before paying for your tour, you can cancel your booking with no charge and up until 40 days before departure, you can change your booking to another travel date or move your booking onto another SpiceRoads tour with no charges.

If you need to cancel after you have made full payment, please see our cancellation policy.

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