Читать книгу The Rhine Cycle Route. From source to sea through Switzerland, Germany and the Netherlands онлайн

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Loading a cycle onto a Swiss train

From northern England, an alternative is to use Stena Line ferries to reach Hoek van Holland from Harwich or P&O to Rotterdam (Europoort) from Hull, then Dutch NS trains to Rotterdam. Here you can connect via Venlo and Düsseldorf with DB (German Railways) services, with cycle provision, that will take you on to Basel. To book German trains go to www.bahn.com. Provision of cycle space on European trains changes frequently and up-to-date advice on travelling by train with a bicycle can be found on a website dedicated to worldwide rail travel ‘The man in seat 61’ (www.seat61.com)

By air

Airports at Zürich (two hours 30 minutes by train to Andermatt), Basel (three hours but you need to cycle from the airport to Basel station), Milan Malpensa (four hours 30 minutes) and Geneva (five hours), all served by a variety of international airlines, can be used to reach the start point. Airlines have different requirements regarding how cycles are presented and some, but not all, make a charge – which you should pay when booking as it is usually higher if you pay at the airport. All airlines require tyres to be partially deflated, handlebars turned and pedals removed (loosen pedals beforehand to make them easier to remove at the airport). Most will accept your cycle in a transparent polythene bike-bag, but some insist on use of a cardboard bike-box. Excess Baggage Company counters in all terminals at Heathrow and Gatwick sell bike boxes (www.left-baggage.co.uk). Away from the airports, boxes can be obtained from cycle shops, sometimes for free, although you do have the problem of how to transport the box to the airport.