Bike shops and mechanical workshops in Switzerland
A very good shop and mechanical workshop in Geneva, since 1946 :
Jean Brun & Fils, 3 Place du Cirque, 1204 Genève.
The travel bikes expert in Geneva : Viscacha Bike, 3 Bd James Fazy, 1201 Genève. Mathieu takes care of Claude Marthaler’s bicycle : isn’t that a recommendation ?
In Sion (VS) : Cycles Ferrero, 27 rue des Casernes, 1950 Sion. Friendly welcome, faultless work, detailed invoices and cheapest prices.
Websites about travelling by bike and cycling in general
Betzgi’s Cycle Tours, in German and English. Equipment, routes and photos by Betzgi who cycled more than 125’000 km around all 5 continents.
Bicycle Traveler Magazine, in English and Dutch. Free downloadable magazine gathering travel stories, photos, informations about equipment and interviews.
Bicycle Travels, in English. Travel stories and photos. Western Europe, Australia and United States.
Claude Marthaler, in French and English. The new website of the tireless Swiss traveller and writer.
crazyguyonabike, in English. Travel diaries of many cyclists all over the world.
Cycletourer Website, in English. Comprehensive website focused on Northern Europe.
Cycling Challenge – Cycling in the Alps, in English. Mountain passes and alpine itineraries (Switzerland, France and Italy).
Cyclosite, in French. Travel stories and many links.
Europe Bicycle Touring, in English. Lots of informations about travelling by bike and numerous routes across Europe.
EuroVelo, in English. The official website of the European Cyclists’ Federation (ECF). News, projects related to sustainable mobility and trans-European cycle routes.
France Vélo Tourisme, in English and French. Information website about touring France by bicycle and launched by Tourism Federations. Itineraries, destinations and practical infos.
Freewheely, in English. Diary of a bike journey from Zurich to Cape Town (South Africa).
Patrick’s Schleppi’s bicycle pages, in English, French and German. Travel diaries, photos and gps tracks of tours in the Alps (Switzerland, France, Italy and Austria).
Pro Velo, in English, French and Flemish. Belgian association whose overall mission is “to improve the quality of life by actively contributing to the modal shift from car to bicycle”.
Routavelo, in French. Nicolas’ journeys across Europe, Africa and Americas – North and South.
Sustrans, in English. The official website of UK’s foundation for sustainable mobility. Numerous itineraries throughout the country (14’000 miles) and lots of other valuable informations.
the.mtb.biker – Unconventional Rides, in Italian. Beautiful website proposing MTB itineraries, mainly in Northern Italy, but not exclusively.
Trento Bike Pages, mainly in English. Links to numerous websites about travelling by bike. Sorting by country, author or date.
ViaRhôna, in English and French. The official website of the Rhone bike route, from Geneva Lake to the Mediterranean sea (Eurovelo 17).
Accomodation
Warmshowers, free accomodation for cyclists based on reciprocity : once back, you become a host and welcome cyclists at your place. I never tried it, as I travel disconnected (meaning I don’t know where are the warmshowers), but some friends told me that they enjoyed this community service.
Online maps & GPS app
Bikemap, over 4.7 million routes recorded by cyclists around the world, free download of gpx and kml files
Official interactive map of Switzerland
Official interactive map of France
Official interactive map of Austria
OpenCycleMap, based on OpenStreetMap data
OpenStreetMap, with cycle map layer
OSMAnd, GPS app for smartphones, including cycle and hiking paths
Travel equipment and clothing
All you need to load your bike and leave : Veloplus and Randobike.
In Geneva, much is available at friendly Cactus and Le Globe Trotter.
Great t-shirts : Share The Damn Road !