To provide you with the best experience, cookies are used on this site. Find out more here.

Map

My Planner

To build your own Itinerary, click to add an item to your Itinerary basket.

Already saved an Itinerary?

You are here: Home > See & Do > Activities > Cycling

Cycling

If you're planning to come to the Great West Way to go cycling during the ongoing COVID-19 situation, please read our advice on visiting the Great West Way responsibly before you plan your trip.

The Great West Way offers a wealth of landscapes for cyclists of all stripes to explore, from tots trundling along on their first wheels to the next Laura Kenny.

You’ll soon discover that the UK is cycling crazy, so there’ll be no trouble finding your perfect ride... There’s family-friendly woodland paths, long distance cycle routes and downhill mountain bike trails for the daring.

The rural charm of the touring route, including 3 Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty, makes it a dreamy destination for any bike tour. Picture a leisurely Sunday road cycle through sleepy Cotswolds villages or a week-long group adventure from London to Bristol on Route 4.

If you’re visiting from abroad and don’t have your bike in tow there are plenty of places to hire one here including electric bikes, vintage bikes and tandems. There are also some really fun themed bike tours around cycling-friendly cities such as Bristol - one of which includes stopping off at independent eateries to sample their produce. What a satisfying way to take in the sights!

Visiting the Great West Way Responsibly

Don't follow the herd. Be curious. Be responsible. How to visit the Great West Way during the ongoing Coronavirus pandemic.
Things to do in Bristol

This city of boats, bridges and balloons is full of colourful things to see and do.
Top 10 Scenic Cycle Routes

Top 10 scenic cycle routes along the Great West Way.
Canal & River Trust

The beautiful Kennet & Avon Canal (or K&A as its known) flows along 87 miles of the Great West Way. From Bath to Reading, it winds through quintessential rolling Wiltshire hills, bustling towns and even a World Heritage Site. Since 1810, narrowboats have drifted along at four miles an hour, plying their trade from Bristol to London. Today, you'll find a mixture of holiday and live-aboard boaters, all seeking the calm and tranquillity that comes from life on or by the water.
Wiltshire

Between London and Bristol & Bath, and venturing up into the Cotswolds, you’ll find the county of Wiltshire. Patchwork fields, chalk plateauxs and irresistibly pretty villages. It’s not all rural heartland, of course, there’s market towns and a city to explore too...
The Cotswolds

The Cotswolds offers the sort of chocolate box views that many imagine when they think of England. Its honey-coloured limestone villages and rolling farmland, dotted with curly-haired Cotswold sheep, make up the largest Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty in the country.