There is one kind of trip where you never unpack a suitcase: the one where you sleep in your own vehicle. You bring the van, we bring the trails, the pitches and the logistics. We call it Camp'n'Ride.
Here is how it works, what it costs, and who it suits.
You sleep at home, we handle the rest
Six days, one region, and a base camp that follows the group. Your bed, your kitchen, your things where you left them, and no suitcase to unpack every evening. In the morning the bike is already there and so is the coffee.
We change valley every day. We ride a region, we sleep at the foot of tomorrow's trails, and we never drive the same road twice. The pitches are booked in advance for the group, so nobody spends the end of the day looking for a place to park.
Your vehicle is also your space, and people use it. One regular turned his camper into a proper bike garage with a repair workshop built in. Nobody is going to tell you it is too much.
Why a camper, and not a hotel
The camper has been our working tool for fifteen years. It is what we leave in when we go and scout itineraries, sleeping where the trails are rather than where the hotels are. Camp'n'Ride is simply letting you have that same freedom, with the guiding and the logistics added on top.
It also moves the money around. No accommodation to book, no half-board you did not want, and the evening meal is whatever you feel like, in your van or all together at the restaurant down the road.
A day, hour by hour
8 am, coffee at the camp. Everyone wakes up at home. We meet outside, talk about the day and the weather, and get the bikes ready.
9.30 am, off. Straight from the camp when the terrain allows, otherwise a short shuttle transfer. On an e-bike the assistance swallows the link sections and saves the battery for the trails.
12.30 pm, break. A picnic high up or a stop in a village, depending on the route and what the group feels like.
4.30 pm, back to camp. Often on a new pitch, a few kilometres away. The vans move, the group finds each other again.
7 pm, evening. Drinks between the vans, dinner in your own van or all together locally. Tomorrow gets decided right there, with the map on the table.
What is included, and what is not
Included: guiding by a Swiss Cycling certified guide every day, the camping pitches booked for the group, the shuttles and transfers during the trip, the itineraries scouted and adapted to the group and the weather, mechanical support on the road, and the photos of the trip.
Not included: your van, camper or caravan and its fuel; your meals; the extra camping costs such as electricity, water and tourist tax; your e-bike if you do not rent one from us; and your accident, liability and rescue insurance.
The ones who do not ride can come too
This is the part people do not expect. The price is per riding participant, and whoever shares your van without riding pays us no supplement at all. The pitches are chosen with that in mind: villages, beaches, markets. There is something to do for those who stay, and everyone meets again in the evening.
Where we run it
Camp'n'Ride needs two things at once: dense trails and well placed pitches. Three regions tick both boxes.
Tuscany and the island of Elba. The marble quarries of Carrara, the hills, the singletracks above the sea and the red lakes of Elba. Sun in spring as much as in autumn, and it is the departure that is currently open.
The Aosta Valley. An hour from Orsieres, ridges above 2,500 m and side valleys that are still quiet. Mid-June to the end of October, on request.
The Valais. Our own playground: three zones, well placed areas and the shuttle network to go with them. On request.
No van?
The format assumes you sleep in your vehicle, but that is not necessarily a dealbreaker. Write to us before booking and we will look together at what is possible on the rental side.
Dates, price and level
The Tuscany Camp'n'Ride runs six days, technical 3 out of 4, fitness 2.5 out of 4, e-bike, CHF 990 per riding participant with the pitches included. A 30 percent deposit at registration, the balance before departure. The departure is guaranteed from three riding participants, and if a trip does not gather enough people it is postponed or refunded.
Not sure about the level? Our levels page places you in two minutes.
The next dates are online. And if you would rather come with your own group of vans on your own date, a Camp'n'Ride can be privatised.
Chris
