A low cost and great way to go bicycle touring is to join other clubs for one day or a longer journey when visiting other regions or even countries.
Our outdoors club sometimes has people look us up on the internet and ask if they can join us for a hike or cycling trip. While the club I am a member of does not charge for guests some other clubs do charge a small fee and still others do not permit guests. On longer trips our policy is members first but if there is space then we accept guests which is fairly typical.
For example a few years ago it seemed as if there was only one club having a 3 night long weekend ride in our area and many cyclists joined another club. There was a small fee for this one trip plus the accommodation costs. The cost was dirt cheap. I joined this trip also to the Finger Lakes region of New York State along with over 100 other cyclists and it turned out to be a great experience.
Not only rides with clubs normally inexpensive you get to meet new cyclists, perhaps see different gear they might have particularly if in another country and to check out a different route while seeing how other clubs do things.
Frequently colleagues of mine when visiting Europe join a club in southwestern Germany for some of their rides. A few of our members have also joined the CTC (UK) which has extensive European bicycle touring rides at a low cost.
When 3 colleagues and myself were on a bicycle tour of Maine we stopped for coffee in in Freeport which happens to be the main base for the outdoors company LL Bean. We got to talking to one of their staff who mentioned they offer free rides one evening each week and we were invited along.
We declined and cycled to the next town of Brunswick where during lunch in the park the local club was gathering for a ride and the also invited us to join them. So bottom line many clubs and organizations welcome cyclists who are visiting their regions.
A guided bicycle touring trip can be done cheaper if you join another club for their day ride or longer trips. Although the leaders are not professionals and usually there are no fancy features like sag wagons which you find on the tours operated by travel companies.
So if you are looking for some inexpensive bicycle touring and some cycling companions consider joining another club just for a short while, it may be a lot of fun.
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