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Cycling from Poland to Greece and Turkey , through Czech/Slovakia, Hungary, poss Slovenia/Croatia , poss Romania/Bulgaria
Submitted by jim fullwood on Mon, 2010-04-19 06:20
Hello, my wife and I are planning to cycle from Gdansk, Poland towards Greece and Turkey, starting on 2nd of June, and hopefully spending at least 5 months heading to warm south Europe at a very leisurely pace ( 50-80 km per day ).
I would be happy to hear from anyone who has any experience cycling in any of these countries, with particular interest in availability or campsites/wild camping, eurovelo bike paths, friendliness of locals in regard to camping 1 night in their gardens, and areas of countries that may be more sceniclly rewarding to cycle - we don't mind mountains ;-)
thankyou for any advice given and happy and safe cycling to all,
Jim and Terhi fullwood
Some ideas....
Hi Both!
Well, I do not have any garden, nor anybody within the family living in an own house (we live in a block-house, but if convenient, we may host you for a while - see my profile), however, I did the route from Poland to Hungary a few times (once I am Hungarian, living in Poland) so I can give you some hints. Can you give me an e-mail address? It will be easier to communicate.
Any preliminary schedule when do you intend to pass through Katowice?
Awaiting for your reply,
Tibor
http://azubrecumbents.wordpress.com/2009/05/22/trip-to-sleeping-beauty%C...
EuroVelo
I think the best thing about Katowice may well be Tibor’s hospitality. I’ve ridden through the region several times and it was not all that pleasant. The area is Poland’s industrial heartland with 3,500,000 people in a string of cites, similar to Germany’s Ruhr. Surprised at the amount of forest in the area through. Perhaps Tibor knows of better routes than I do. The south of Southern Silesia is rather nice, but I would recommend skirting the cities in the regions. A real good thing about Poland is the ability to use trains as well. Hop on and off the train in the suburbs. This avoids a lot of the real bad urban riding.
Have you selected a tentative path though Poland yet? From Gdansk to Slovenia there is the EuroVelo 9, the Amber Route. This runs from Gdansk down to the Adriatic Sea in Croatia. In places it is fairly well marked and takes you to rather scenic places in Poland, including Toruń, Poznań, Wrocław, and then on to Bruno, Vienna…..
http://www.routeyou.com/route/view/197208/cycling-route-amber-route-or-b...
Another idea is to roughly follow the Euro 9 route and north of Wroclaw head towards Czestochowa (and if you wish to Katowice) and then to Krakow where you can catch the euro velo 11 route that actually goes to Greece.
Regarding wild camping in Poland, there are a lot of inexpensive campsites in the country, so it really shouldn’t be too necessary. Also agro-tourism is really popular and cheap. It will give you a taste of the country. From my experience 20% are exceptional, 60% ok and 20% is in the category (night time is only 8 hours and I should be able to survive this). There are literally hundreds of youth hostels scattered throughout the country as well with no age restrictions. Pick up a youth hostel pass in the States (opps Finland!) to be able to use them. All the larger cities have backpacker type hostels as well.
Let me know if you are in the neighborhood, I have a profile on warmshowers and you are welcome of course.
Have a great trip!
Robert Mink
Jary Poland via Spokane USA
Thankyou Robert for all this
Thankyou Robert for all this information,
I have been in Poland last September and this March and have seen the countryside via train from Gdansk to Wroclaw via Poznan and can see your point.
But perhaps some good mostly flat terrain to get bike fit in, and some areas of forest.I have noticed how reasonably priced trains are ( for people who live in Finland ) and how easy it seems to be able to convey bikes, so have been thinking about taking the train further south to cycle in the more scenic and mountainous regions, with more campsite availability.
Am also trying to do some research on the Eurovelo routes but downloading skills are a little rusty. But yes, the Amber route certainly looks like a good idea, later picking up the 11 to Greece. I am wondering what the Croatian coast might be like in August ( tourist hell ? ) as compared to the alternative idea of Hungary - Romania - bit of Serbia - Bulgaria, Macedonia to northern Greece ( less touristy ? )
I have just received map and listings of about 140 campgrounds in Poland and as you say there are plenty, especially in certain areas.
If we pass through your area is it possible to contact you by text message maybe 2 days in advance ( or Warm showers if computor access ) and stay for 1 night, if convenient for you ?
I have stayed in backpackers hostela in Gdansk, Poznan and Wroclaw so have a basic idea of price range ( hostelbookers.com very useful ) but don't now anything about agro - tourism. Would ballpark figure be about same as hostel bed ? Mainly we plan to camp as we hope to travel for at least a year but maybe once a week we could treat ourselves to a bed if within our price range.
Are you from Spokane ? I have been there a few times and always enjoyed the microbrew scene there, and enjoyed cycling through the deserts of eastern Washington. I love the PNW.
Thanks again for all this advice and perhaps we may meet in summer,
best wishes from a cool 4c spring day in Finland 8 but at least the roads are now snow free and we can ride again and it's not 30c below ),
Jim and Terhi Fullwood.
quick response
„so have been thinking about taking the train further south to cycle in the more scenic and mountainous regions, with more campsite availability.”
You have a real lot of options here, take a couple of day trips, ride a bit and then take the train. For example, avoid a lot of the urban traffic by taking a train to Malbork, one leaves nearly every hour. Do some sightseeing at one of Europe’s largest castles/fortifications, then ride 20-40 kms to another train station, perhaps for a train to Toruń, and do the same the next day. This way you get warmed up and have the chance to see something as well.
“Am also trying to do some research on the Eurovelo routes but downloading skills are a little rusty. But yes, the Amber route certainly looks like a good idea, later picking up the 11 to Greece. “
There is a real lack of info on Eurovelo 9, but in my area it is well marked out. If you do the train assist, consider something like Torun – Gniezno. Then train to Poznan, a city worth seeing. Then take a train to Rawicz or Zmigrod. Depending upon the day (Friday-weekend) I’d be glad to ride you down to Jary.
“I am wondering what the Croatian coast might be like in August ( tourist hell ? )”
Real tourist hell, worse then hell. Great place until June and then after mid September.
as compared to the alternative idea of Hungary - Romania - bit of Serbia - Bulgaria, Macedonia to northern Greece ( less touristy ? )
Been there, Romania is real interesting and an adventure Macedonia is really dry. Northern Greece has less tourists, remember, all hot and hilly! Why don’t you go for broke? I rode from Wroclaw to Istanbul, one of the greatest cites really to experience. Maybe a ride to Varna in Bulgaria (or the Istanbul constanta ferry from Romania) and then a ferry to Istanbul. Take in that great city for a couple of days. Depending on time, take another ferry and ride down the Turkish coast to Ismir, there you can catch a ferry to Greece. Doable. Ferrys are great as most travel at night so it doubles as a hotel room, cutting costs.
“If we pass through your area is it possible to contact you by text message maybe 2 days in advance ( or Warm showers if computor access ) and stay for 1 night, if convenient for you ?”
No problem, if you are coming on a Friday or weekend I could meet you on the road somewhere.
“about agro - tourism. Would ballpark figure be about same as hostel bed ? “
Mostly cheaper, around 30-50 PLN per night, with breakfast for the most part. Most have kitchen use as well. Check out an example at Malbork:
http://meteor.turystyka.pl/en/accommodation,agrotourism,malbork,60.html
“Are you from Spokane ? I have been there a few times and always enjoyed the microbrew scene there, and enjoyed cycling through the deserts of eastern Washington. I love the PNW.”
Yes I am a fifth generation Spokanite, and the PNW is a place one usually moves to and not from.
looking forward to hosting you soon.
Robert
thanks again
thankyou for all your help Robert. This is all very useful, especially reinforcing my idea not to go through Croatia in August. Don't mind dry and hilly ( I have been close to 120F in south AZ august before ) and peaceful roads with few tourists are high on my list of good cycling.
The link for agrotourism is really useful, seems that we should be able to find beds for both of us for 50 ZL.Which is good as I have been house husband, foreign language student and minimalist traveller for last 5 years.
If we get towards Wroclaw ( I just visited in March ) we will try to make sure it is for weekend.
Your right about the PNW - if I had a $ for everytime I had told someone to go there I'd have lots of extra $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$
What could be finer than sinking a Bernie Grants while watching the sky turn crimson over the distant Cascades ;-)
best wishes from jim and terhi
ps - perfect spring weather here in south Finland, if you ever feel like cycling In Finland head for the SW Peninsula and Aaland Islands ( between Turku , Finland and Stockholm ). Plenty of cheap ( for Finland ) campsites and FREE inter sland ferries for walkers and cyclists. And usually the warmest sunniest place in Finland during summer.
Thankyou Tibor for your
Thankyou Tibor for your help,
I have sent you an email, I hope you have got it.
we should be in the Katowice area in late June, so perhaps if it convenient for you at the time we could contact you and stay for 1 night , on our way south to Slovakia.
Let me know if you did not get the email and I will write here in more detail,
best wishes,
Jim and Terhi Fullwood.
Hosting in Bucharest
Hi,
If your route includes Bucharest, you can stay with us. I can arrange a city tour and cycle with you to Bulgarian border.
thankyou
thankyou for your reply. Will let you know if we are heading that way. To be honest though, we were planning to avoid all major large cities and towns and stick to more rural areas with hopefully quiet roads. But thankyou again for your kind and helpful reply.
Do you have any links for camping sites in Romania or Bulgaria ?
best wishes from Jim Fullwood.
Camping sites
Hi,
Unfortunatelly there are not too many camping sites here,as we don't have too many organized campings. I have only two links for this:
http://www.etur.ro/cazare-in-romania/camping.php
http://www.hellotourist.net/szallasok.php
You can count on local hospitality, you'll definitely find people camping in backyards, and many locals will receive in their homes.
If you plan to enter Romania through Arad area, you can contact him there Claudiu Moga (do not know if he has an account on this site) at: claudiumoga [@] yahoo.com. It is one of the most passionate travel on two wheels in our country. Certainly will give you more details about campsites and trails to follow.
Another recommendation would be to plan your passage through Romania using roads marked with "DN" (red signs). Quality of other roads may subject you to heavy bicycle test.
If you think you can help with anything else, feel free to ask.
Regards,
Alex
Hello again Alexi, thankyou
Hello again Alexi,
thankyou very much for these links and information, they look very useful,
best wishes,
jim
Mountains in Europe!
Hello,
I want to add to my previous post and say that there quite a few steep hills. Macedonia has quite a few, but if we did these then other cyclists can too. We are not the super fit, 100km +++ a day type! Macedonia is very beautiful around the lake Orhid area. Try to go there if you can.
Aisling P
Cycling across Europe
Hello,
Last year my husband and I cycled from London to Istanbul. We left at the end of July and arrived in Istanbul at the start of December. Our pace is similar to yours (50-80km a day). Our route went via France, Italy, Slovenia, central Croatia, Bosnia, Coastal Croatia, Montenegro, Albania, Macedonia, Northern Greece and Turkey, to Istanbul.
We found coastal Croatia very expensive compared to the rest of the region. Also we found that the roads were narrow and busy.
In contrast, I would highly recommend the route from central Croatia, entering Bosnia near a town called Bihac, following the main road to Sarajevo, then on to Mostar is a great ride, with steep hills, little traffic and some campsites/ possible wild camping spots. We found Albania no trouble at all, though most 'good people' are off the road at dark. We did not camp in Albania as there were no offical campsites along our route and we were slightly worried about wild camping.
We are quite new to touring and to be honest, only started wild camping towards the end of this trip, as greek hostels were very expensive and the campsites were few and far between. Since our trip we have met people who did similar routes and wild camped with little trouble or no trouble.
We found the roads we took into Sarajevo and Istanbul (D100) scary and VERY busy! We discovered a kind of bike path in Sarajevo and Istanbul also has a bike path to the center, but you have to get to it first!
I realise that I have started to ramble on! I hope this gives you inspiration and Good Luck.
Aisling P
Thanks for all this info, and
Thanks for all this info, and sorry I have taken so long to reply.
Good to here positive things about Bosnia - I have had other good reports about it. No intention of cycling through Istanbul, want to try to avoid all big cities.
Happy to hear any more ramblings - I can be quite prone to that myself ;-)
best wishes,
Jim and Terhi Fullwood.
Land mines in Western Balkans
Hello again,
I saw on another post that you mentioned land mines. We did see signs warning us about land mines in Bosnia. These were around the border areas, particularly around the Bihac area. But we did not see signs warning people about land mines anywhere else on the route to Sarajevo. I would suggest that it is safe unless there is a sign saying otherwise!
Aisling P
hosting in istanbul
Hey guys!
Let me know when you r in istanbul, i ll be happy to host you
if I m there. Or i might be in Yalova(a town one hour toistanbul by boat) with my parents but again you r welcome to stay with us there too.
Hope you ll have a nice trip till Turkey
Selcen
If you're in Romania, do not
If you're in Romania, do not hesitate to pass through Constanta , I will be happy to host some friends :). It would be good to do a bike tour casino cliff.
thankyou :-)
thankyou :-)
maybe we'll meet
Maybe we'll meet at some point of the tour. In 10 days I'm starting a tour from Croatia to Istanbul. I'l be following the Danube river to the Black sea. Would like to meet up If our paths cross. Good luck and have a safe trip!!
Hi, good luck with your trip.
Hi, good luck with your trip. We are now in Opole, south poland, near czech. Not getting a lot of computor access so can be best reached by text message on the number listed here on my homepage. We are now heading Czech, Slovakia, Hungary , but sometimes our route changes daily - especially if we get lost :-),
best wishehs from Jim and Terhi Fullwood