Bike Tour : Cycle Tourism on the Camino de Santiago on Ebike Electric Bike .
We just got back home from another Fantastic Bike Tour on Camino de Santiago in Spain, but this time we tackled it in 2.0 mode…
We actually cycled the stages of our Bike Tour on Camino de Santiago with the brand new Pedal Assisted Electric Bikes, also called Ebike. Thanks to the Ebike Electric Bike Rental Service of our partners on Camino de Santiago.
This type of bicycle is now becoming a new standard, both in the mountain biking and in cycle touring world, and in some cases it is replacing the classic standard of”classic” bikes.
But how does an Ebike actually work?
The first myth to dispel is that the bike does everything by itself… NO, IT’S NOT A MOTORCYCLE NOR A SCOOTER!
An Ebike, or Pedal-Assisted Electric Bicycle, thanks to constant technological evolution, nowadays is not very different from a classic bike.
We still find the rear sprocket gearbox and chain transmission like normal bikes of all time. The difference is that there’s a motor, usually placed in the pedal area, which thanks to its thrust helps us pedaling, reducing our effort. This motor is powered by a battery, which is invisible in new Ebikes , integrated into the frame, and is usually placed in the longest down tube, so as to be protected from impacts, water and mud.
A convenient socket will then allow us to effortlessly connect the battery charger at the end of the day, leaving the battery charging for the next day, which is very important especially on a multi-stage bike trip like this on Camino de Santiago. A useful display on the handlebar of the bike will always indicate the battery charge level and the remaining autonomy.
So, to come back at the main point, are Ebikes STILL BIKES? Absolutely yes !!! Which means that we still have to (and fortunately!!!) pedal with our own legs, even if helped by the thrust of the electric motor. This push can be adjusted with more or less intensity thanks to a control on the handlebar of the bike. For example, on a beautiful, quite demanding climb like that of the O’Cebreiro stage on Camino de Santiago, we raised the “help” level of the motor, which allowed us to better manage our climb, pedaling without jerks and in a much more fluid and regular manner.
And yes, at the top we were a little tired we must admit it, but we then fully enjoyed the beautiful descent which took us to our Hotel and a well-deserved dinner, ready for the next day’s stop in Beautiful Galicia Spain.
The convenience of Riding an Ebike, Pedal-Assisted Electric Bike on our Bike Tour on Camino de Santiago was total:
Thanks to the fantastic Rental Service we didn’t have to bring our bikes from home by plane (currently it’s not allowed to fly with electric bikes) with bulky packaging and paying for extra baggage on flights.
We found the bikes, with a useful emergency kit (inner tubes, basic maintenance tools), battery charger and helmet, directly in our Hotel in Leon, at the beginning of the trip, with the batteries already charged and ready for the first stage of the Bike Tour on Camino de Santiago from Leon to Astorga.
In Santiago de Compostela, the last stage of our Cycling Tour, we didn’t have to do anything to return the bikes at the end of the rental, except leave the Ebikes with emergency kit, battery charger and helmet at our Hotel: the guys from the Rental Service took care of everything, sending a text via WhatsApp to confirm that everything was ok, while we enjoyed a mini tour of the beautiful Santiago de Compostela, waiting for the flight back to home the next day.
So what can we say, in conclusion our thought is that all of our next Bike Tours on Camino de Santiago, even the variant of the Portuguese Way, will be done in this mode: Ebike, Pedal-Assisted Electric Bike.
IMPORTANT NOTE: EBIKE RENTAL, PEDAL-ASSISTED ELECTRIC BIKE, IS ONLY POSSIBLE IN COMBINATION WITH A COMPLETE TRAVEL PACKAGE. IT IS NOT PERFORMED AS A SINGLE SERVICE.
YOU WANT TO RIDE THESE BIKE TOUR WITH US ? JUST CONTACT!