Here’s a quick round-up of bike rental and tour options available to visitors to Florence:

The Urban Treader

Walking’s not your thing but neither is heavy biking. You’re more into the casual cycle and were once caught riding on the sidewalk in your hometown. You wonder why anyone would want to carry something in a basket and giggle every time you ring the bell.

Then I give you: Florence by Bike. These gentle giants of bike rental speak English and rent bikes by the hour or for the day. They don’t offer tours but will suggest a route for you. This means that you can bike at your leisure. Accessories are all included, but pedal power provided by you. City bikes start at €3 per hour or €14.50 for the day.

Where’s north again?

A recurring nightmare of yours consists of parachuting into the desert with a duffel bag duct-taped around your waist. You love biking but only when you can read the road signs and think that GPS should stand for Guiding People to Safety.

Then join a bike tour! That way you can turn off the worry of not knowing where you are and turn on the pleasures of peeking at Florence from a bicycle. One suggestion is I Bike Florence which offers city tours of all the sights for €29.

I Peddle in my Sleep

You don’t sleepwalk, you sleep peddle. You think trains and buses are just big pollutant versions of the trusty bicycle. Mileage doesn’t scare you, instead it says tons about your “explore score.” Plus, you’ve always wanted to see a real olive tree. Enter the world of Tuscan bike tours.

First there’s Charnes Tours who offer multi-day trips all over the region. They take care of hotels, food and wine-tasting. Prices vary according to itinerary.

For single day tours, try Tuscany Bike Tours which cost €80 per person.

And finally, I Bike Tuscany lets you customize your tour or join one of the pre-planned ones, which will vary according to your level of difficulty. Pricing can be obtained by contacting the company.

So get out there and start peddling. Or else you can always join the eerie Florence unicyclist for a quick round of ring-around-the-Duomo.

Also in our Guide: If you’re getting ready to visit Florence, check out our reviews of cheap hotels in Florence. Our editors have visited, inspected and photographed dozens of budget hotels in central Florence.

The post Florence bike rentals and bike tour options appeared first on EuroCheapo's Budget Travel Blog.

Luckily, visitors don’t have to feel left out of the biking fun: Bike rentals are cheap and easy to find. And tooling around by Rad won’t just make you look and feel like a local—it will also enable you to access sights that are otherwise impossible to visit by foot or too time consuming to visit via public transportation.

Before burning rubber, read this little guide to find out where to find a bike, how to ride like a local, and which bike paths to seek out.

Step One: Rent Wheels

Many hotels and hostels will arrange bike rentals for you. But if they don’t, both Fat Tire Bike Rentals (€12/day) and fahrradstation (€15-20/day) boast several locations throughout the city. If you have time to hunt for cheaper prices (you can find bikes for as low as €8/day), scour neighborhoods like Prenzlauer Berg, Friedrichshain, and Kreuzberg for upstart rental spots.

Step Two: Follow the Rules!

Since most Berliners use their bikes as a form of transportation and are sticklers about the rules, you should brush up on a few Regeln before pedaling. You’ll see plenty of bikers blowing through red lights, weaving through traffic, and speeding past pedestrians on a sidewalk. Don’t follow their example! They give bikers a bad name—and they are asking for a ticket.

If there is a bike lane, use it. (But first make sure that you’re riding in the correct direction; not all paths are two-way.) If there isn’t a bike lane, ride on the street—not the sidewalk. Stop at stop signs, stop lights, and never, ever assume that a car driver sees you coming.

You are free to bring your bike with you onto the U-bahn (subway) and S-bahn (commuter train)—as long as you use designated compartments (look for the bike sign on the door). Baby carriages and wheelchairs have priority.

Step Three: Hit the paths

Berlin boasts 620 kilometers (385 miles) of bike paths. We’ve highlighted two of our favorites below, but the city government’s English-language biking page offers a complete overview of Berlin’s biking opportunities.

Path: Follow the Wall

The Berlin Mauerweg is a well-marked route that follows the contours of the 12-kilometer-long Berlin Wall. Though the actual divider is long gone, taking this scenic, off-the-beaten-path trail that passes through often-overlooked districts is the only way to get a true sense of the Wall’s size and scope.

For inspiration beforehand, rent the documentaries “Cycling the Frame” and “The Invisible Frame”. They feature the actress Tilda Swinton biking the Wall in 1988 and 2009 respectively.

Path: Take a Dip

Visiting the peaceful and historic Wannsee, a posh lake district in far-western Berlin, by public transportation is time consuming. After taking the S-bahn to the Wannsee station, you have to walk (a lot) or rely on buses to see the lake’s must-see sights: a historic public beach, the gripping Haus am Wannsee-Konfernz, and the romantic, flower-filled Pfaueninsel (“Peacock Island”).

Take a bike along with you or rent a bike at the lake, then pedal from one sight to the next at your leisure. Don’t forget your bathing suit!

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