LONDON, 2015-3-28 — /Travel PR News/ — The rows of people lining the route of last year’s Yorkshire Grand Départ of the Tour de France are not just testament to the growing popularity of cycling in the UK, but of Yorkshire as a place to hold world-class events – and holidays!
Such was the welcome for the riders in England’s largest county that a brand new race has been created affording competitors and spectators alike the chance to revisit some of the scenes of 2014. Launching this year, the Tour de Yorkshire offers a competitive race attracting the world’s great riders from May 1-3. There’s an accompanying cultural festival from April 1 to May 3, to give visitors a sense of the unique character of some of the destinations along the Tour de Yorkshire route. It’s a great time to get to know the region that is known as ‘God’s Own Country’, and one of the nation’s beauty spots.
Where to go
The county of Yorkshire is in the North East of England and is characterised by dramatic peaks and plateaus – pulled into focus in the iconic North York Moors – as well as coastal towns and villages and historic cities like York.
Stage 1
The Tour will take in each of these elements, with Stage 1 starting in the seaside town of Bridlington.
Some parts of the race will be easier to view than others and Gary Verity of Welcome to Yorkshire, says the starts, finish, climbs and sprints offer the best opportunity to see the riders up close as they battle for pole position.
The haunting, sweeping beauty of North York Moors presents the first climb. In landscape immortalised in the Emily Brontë novel ‘Wuthering Heights’ you will find Keldy Forest Cabinsgiving you that sense of splendid isolation (www.forestholidays.co.uk/keldy). Nearby ‘Go Ape’is just right for adventure-loving families – swing through the trees in a series of zip-wires, rope swings and tree-trop bridges (http://goape.co.uk/days-out/dalby).
About 27km from the end of Stage 1, the coastal town of Whitby will be the scene of a sprint. Attractions in the area include North York Moors Railway, the world’s most popular steam heritage railway, while fish and chips at either the Magpie Café, or ‘Quayside’ is not to be missed. (www.nymr.co.uk, www.magpiecafe.co.uk, http://quaysidewhitby.co.uk).
If you fancy cycling yourself, you can get details of cycling routes in the North Yorkshire Coast and North York Moors area plus cycle hire at www.yorkshire.com/what-to-do/outdoors
Stage 2
Stage 2 starts in front of the glowing, blonde limestone of Selby Abbey and finishes in the city of York with its Gothic cathedral and cobbled streets lined with wonderful shops, bars and restaurants.
New budget accommodation in York includes the Safestay hostel while Bettys Tea Roomsare world-renowned for a proper brew and a cheeky tea cake (http://safestayyork.co.uk,www.bettys.co.uk/tea-rooms/locations/york).
Stage 3
The final Stage will see the peleton return to some of the roads raced in the 2014 Yorkshire Grand Départ of the Tour de France.
Starting in Wakefield, riders will travel south through Barnsley before heading to Cragg Vale for England’s longest continual descent. Two climbs and a sprint follow, with riders crossing the finishing line at Roundhay Park in Leeds some four and a half hours after they set off.
Wakefield is an historic city of intriguing diversity, celebrated in artistic form at the Hepworth Wakefield art gallery, well worth a visit on your own ‘tour de Yorkshire’!. The gallery features an extensive collection of works by modern British artists Barbara Hepworth and Henry Moore (www.hepworthwakefield.org).
Leeds meanwhile is a bustling metropolis offering shops like Harvey Nichols. Chambers Park Place apartments in the city centre and the Woodlands Hotel on the outskirts provide luxury accommodation (www.visitleeds.co.uk).
Specialities to look out for in Yorkshire include Yorkshire “bitter”, a dark coloured ale celebrated in an Ale Trail, traditional fish and chips and fresh, local produce served with a modern twist (www.yorkshire.com/what-to-do/delicious/delicious-ale-trail).
Download the excellent Tour de Yorkshire Spectator Guide at www.letouryorkshire.com
For your definitive guide to Yorkshire visit www.yorkshire.com
Britain on two wheels
City cycling
Santander Cycles is a public bike hire scheme in London. The scheme is exceptionally good value at £2 for 24 hours during which the first 30 minutes of each journey are free and each additional 30 minutes costs £2.
There are more than 700 bike docking stations across the city and payment is by debit or credit card. You could use the bikes as a means of transport, for example picking one up at St Paul’s Cathedral and crossing Blackfriars Bridge to the glorious stretch of arts venues on the South Bank. Or, take a longer journey where the route is as important as the destination.
www.visitlondon.com/traveller-information/getting-around-london/london-cycle-hire-scheme
Tours
Established in 1988, The Carter Company specialises in classic and luxury cycling holidays. They cover typical English holiday destinations including Devon and Cornwall in the South West and The Cotswolds, only a couple of hours from London by train.
The company offers guided, or self-guided cycling holidays. Either way you get the benefit of their many years of experience seeking out the best countryside, culture, history and cuisine in the areas they serve as well as charming boutique hotels. The company also covers parts of Scotland.
Mountain biking
Wales is a mountain bikers’ paradise with between 500km and 600km of purpose-built track and rugged terrain suited to off-road cycling.
Purpose built tracks include Antur Stiniog in Snowdonia National Park, which is predominantly a downhill and freeride centre with an uplift shuttle service while Syfidrin in Nant yr Arian forest near Aberystwyth offers high-level wilderness riding at its best.
On the outskirts of Belfast in Northern Ireland, Barnett Demesne Mountain Bike Trails offer a variety of trails suited to all abilities.
Barnett Demesne has a green trail – suitable for young families and beginners – a blue one incorporating tight, winding singletrack for more experienced riders and three red trails boasting more technical features such as rollers and drops, stretching for 5km through lush woodland.
Longer routes
From this spring, you will be able to get around large parts of Loch Lomond & The Trossachs National Park in Scotland using only boats and bikes. An expansion of the Park’s waterbus services means you could hire a bike at Loch Lomond Shores in Balloch – only 50 minutes by train from Glasgow – cycle 27km along the stunning shores of West Loch Lomond to Tarbet and get the waterbus back from there to Balloch via Rowardennan and the picturesque village of Luss.
For more information contact:
VisitBritain Media Team
pressandpr@visitbritain.com
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VisitBritain: Launching this year, the Tour de Yorkshire attracts the world’s great riders from May 1-3, 2015