Pack Smart: Ultimate Cycling Holiday Packing Guide

The ultimate cycling holiday packing guide is an essential read for what to pack on your cycling holiday. This guide will make your holiday more comfortable and more enjoyable, however knowing exactly what to pack for a cycling tour can sometimes be tricky. To help you, we’ve used our years of experience of packing for cycling tours, to put together a guide for what to include. Also check out our how to travel with your bike hassle free.

This isn’t a complete list but is designed to make it easier for you to know what to pack and what to leave behind for your holiday.

This guide on what to pack will of course require tailoring to the likely weather you’ll encounter, so remember to check the forecast before you go!

It would be easy just to include everything you might ever possibly need; however, we have resisted the temptation. While it’s a good idea to be thorough, you need to be realistic on the baggage limits if you’re flying and what is ultimately practical. The reality is that if you have anything other than a minor mechanical issue then you’re just going to end up heading to your nearest bike shop for help…

Now you have prepared yourself for your holiday with us at Port Velo using our handy guide ‘How to prepare for your cycling holiday’ read on for your ultimate guide on to what to include on your holiday packing checklist!

Bike Essentials

If you are taking your own bike, then

• Service your bike or have it serviced
• Pre-book a bike space on your flight (if flying)
• Make sure your transfers will have room for a bike box (if necessary)
• Check the weather so you can tailor your packing list
• Check your travel insurance is up to date and covers road cycling
• Check out this list of 20 things you’ll need to do before travelling, will remind you of the non-bike related things you’ll need to remember.

The decision to bring your own bike or rent one is one of the most frequent ones we get asked and there is no correct answer.

It will cost extra to transport the bike on a plane but knowing that your bike perfectly fits you offers excellent comfort when you’ll be riding for hours each day. If you choose to hire a bike, this will also be a cost consideration, but it might work out cheaper than packing and transporting your own bike. It is also worth considering the type of cycling holiday that you have booked. A full-on road cycling holiday may better suit your own bike, while bike hire could be a good option for a more leisurely cycle tour. It therefore really comes down to a personal choice.

Bike Gear

If you are taking your own bike, then spares and some tools would be advisable. A lot of bikes now require spare parts and tools that are specific to a model, year or type.  This can make finding spares in local shops a bit of a hit and miss. If there aren’t many bike shops near where you’re staying, you forgot to service your bike before or you just want to play it safe, consider adding the following to your cycling trip packing list:

• Brake pads (2 spare sets or more)
• Chain Powerlink
• Spare shift and brake cables
• Chain
• Chain splitter
• Spare tyre
• Spare Batteries (SRAM)
• Battery chargers (Electronic Shifting)
• Rear Mech Hanger

In addition to these we would recommend as the bare minimum the following:

• Bike
• Bike box or bag (consider hiring a bike box/bag if you don’t own one)
• Helmet
• Sunglasses
• Bike shoes with cleats
• Front and rear light with cables to charge
• 2 large (750ml) water bottles
• Spare cycling shoe cleats and fixing bolts
• Cable ties
• Bike lock (optional – but highly recommended)
• Computer Mount

Saddle bag items:

• Pump (compressed gas canisters are likely to be confiscated if you’re flying)
• Inner tubes (and valve extenders if you ride deep section rims)
• 2 plastic tyre levers
• Multi tool (Bike Specific)
• Pedal Spanner/Allen key for your pedal
• Any Torx keys or bike specific tools you need
• Chain lube

If Hiring a Bike

If you are considering hiring a bike, then the list above is dependent on what comes with the bike. Check first before you travel.

Most hire bikes come with a saddle bag and pump and sometimes they will have mounts for your bike computers. However to play it safe we would recommend you bring a suitable mount for your computer, especially if you use a large screen model of Hammerhead, Garmin, Wahoo or similar.

Typically helmets and pedals can be rented from the bike hire company, however we would again recommend taking your own as this will ensure the equipment fits you which in turn leads to more comfort and enjoyment.

When it comes to the pedals, it is important to ensure compatibility with your cleat setup and you may also have power pedals which will ensure you capture all the data when you smash the local KOM’s!

Finally for the ultimate comfort, consider taking your own saddle. Most hire companies will be more than happy to help fit this.

Electronics

Some of these may not be necessary for you, but most items probably should be included on a packing list for any holiday:

• Phone and Charger
• Camera – Taking a camera is a good idea for capturing memories of your trip. A large DSLR or similar may impede your cycling, however most smartphones have cameras which create very good photos, so this may be all you need. Don’t forget the camera charger
• Portable charger – If you are taking lots of photos on your mobile phone, you may wish to bring a small portable charger to ensure your phone’s battery doesn’t run flat.
• Plug adaptor – It’s always a good idea to check which plugs work in the country you are travelling to and pack adaptors where necessary.
• Bike camera and Charger
• Bike Computer and Charger plus USB Cable
• Laptop or tablet and Charger
• Heart Rate Monitor
• Headphones (we do not recommend using them while riding)

Nutrition

Nutrition is the staple of any cycling holiday. While you’re packing your clothing, bike bits and essentials it’s easy to forget the items such as nutrition. It’s envisaged that you will be riding back to back days on challenging terrain, so you need to be fuelled properly. This means taking plenty of bottles, hydration products and energy bars to help you on your long rides. Don’t forget a few sachets of recovery powder either. Even if you’re not performance focussed, these products will help you feel better the following morning and may keep you off the beers.

• Water Bottles
• Energy Food
• Energy Drink
• Gels
• Electrolytes
• Recovery Powder

Personal Items

• Chamois Cream (or similar)
• Suncream and Lipbalm – Staying safe in the sunshine is essential. Regardless of where you are cycling, we would always recommend bringing a practical amount of suncream with you to protect your skin.
• Insect Repellent
• Basic first-aid kit – It’s useful to have a basic first-aid kit. Cuts or scrapes can occasionally happen so make sure it includes a set of plasters, together with painkillers, bandages and any essential medication you may need.
• Personal Medication (particularly prescription items)
• Wash Kit (tooth brush, tooth paste, body wash, shampoo and conditioner)
• Earplugs (better safe than sorry if you suffer night-time noise!)
• Waterproof phone pouch for jersey pocket (optional)
• Plastic Bags for storing things
• Compression Bags (useful for getting more into your bag and to separate clean and dirty clothes)
• Holiday Reading (books or magazines)
• Hygiene Wipes
• Hand Sanitiser Gel (for these post-Covid times!)

 Documents

• Cash
• Credit/Debit Card – Tell your bank before you leave where you’re planning to go. If your card is used in certain countries, the issuer could cancel it because they might assume it’s fraud.
• Passport or European ID card as required (with picture)
• Visa
• Proof of travel and (if relevant) health insurance
• UK Global Health Insurance Card (UK GHIC) or UK European Health Insurance Card (UK EHIC)
• Car hire paperwork – or if you’re taking your own car, car insurance and breakdown insurance paperwork
• Details of where you’re staying
• Flight Details and Boarding Card
• Travel Insurance Documents – As a condition of booking your travel arrangements with us, you are required to have suitable travel insurance. Please ensure that any insurance you book covers you for cycle touring. Once arranged, we recommend printing a copy of your travel insurance documents and keeping these with you as you travel.
• Ball-Point Pen
• A good tip is to take a photo of any key documents so you have them as a backup

Clothing

When deciding what clothing to pack for a cycling tour, it is wise to consider where and when you will be cycling. For example, other countries in Northern Europe have a similar climate to the UK, but Croatia, Italy, Spain and Southern Europe are usually drier and much warmer, especially in summer. As a general rule for clothing, we always recommend taking layers that can be easily removed/added if the weather changes during a ride.

• Bib Shorts – The number of depends on how many days of cycling you plan, however you can in most cases have at least one pair that is drying after being washed, whilst wearing a fresh pair.
• Cycling Jerseys – This is very much dependent on the destination climate but again we would recommend having at least sufficient to rotate between washing, drying and wearing.
• Removable Layers – arm warmers, leg warmers, packable jackets, gilets and a base layer that can wick sweat away on climbs so it doesn’t cool on your skin on descents.

Note: We generally like to take three (or more) of everything so we have enough to wear, wash and dry. This assumes you’ll have access to clothes washing facilities while you’re away. If not, you’ll need to think about hand washing or launderettes

• A Cycling Cap, which will protect you from high altitude sun, as well as rain and cold.
• Socks
• Overshoes
• Waterproof Jacket – A lightweight, foldable or packable waterproof is always important to have to hand.

Casual wear

Non-cycling clothes – The great thing about Port Velo’s cycling tours is that they’re not all about the cycling! After a refreshing shower at your hotel you will have time to explore local towns, stop for a drink or enjoy a meal. When packing we would recommend you leave some room for non-cycling clothing too!

We would suggest including these on any bike trip packing list:

• Evening / Training / Casual Shoes
• Flip Flops
• Jacket

Additional Items

Day Bag – if you are riding on a point-to-point tour, you will require a small day bag that will go in the support van, to carry backup nutrition, small bike parts and warm clothing or at least a change of clothes should you get caught out in the rain or it is exceptionally cold at the top of the cols.

When putting together a packing list, you may also wish to consider the following:

Appropriate luggage – When deciding which luggage to bring your belongings in, we recommend always considering the accommodation that you will be staying in. We always recommend labelling your luggage. Plus for tours where you are staying in multiple hotels, it is essential you label your luggage on arrival and attach them safely for efficient luggage transfers.

Swimming gear – Many of our tours include rides near to lakes or the ocean and most hotels will have a swimming pool. If this is the case with your tour then you may wish to bring swimming gear with you to enjoy a relaxing dip!

Finally

• If you are taking your own bike, don’t pack your bike the night before your flight! Make sure you have your bike bag/box in good time so you can have a practice run the weekend before if it’s the first time that you’ve done it. This way you’ll also get an idea of how much your bike and box/bag weighs. Remember your airline will have limits on weight. Check out our guide on how to travel with your bike.
• Remember to take a spare rear mech hanger as you may struggle to find a replacement locally. It’s also worth taking spare disc brake pads too.
• Pack your helmet, shoes and pedals in your hand luggage, so that if necessary you can hire a bike if yours is missing, late or damaged.
• Try to be conservative with your packing and prioritise your cycling gear as this will take up most of the space and weight.
• Don’t forget the essential documents

Now you are all set. You’re packed and ready to go! If you have any questions about your upcoming holiday, our Port Velo team are always happy to help. Just give us a call on +44 7442798257 or email info@portvelo.co.uk.