Here at Carole Nash we love touring on our motorcycles, but even we have to admit that creating your dream biking holiday takes a lot of time and effort. Researching routes, finding accommodation and preparing and kitting out your bike for the journey can make it a right faff, but that might all be changing as Yamaha are introducing a series of hassle-free holiday options starting this summer.
Working in conjunction with established biking events business Focused Events, the ‘Yamaha TRACER Experience’ takes the concept of a cruise holiday to motorcycle touring. Turn up at the start point and enjoy an all-inclusive touring holiday with all the planning done for you. It sounds like it couldn’t be easier!
The tours all take place in the UK and start at a Yamaha dealer. Taking place over three or five days, participants get the use of a Yamaha Tracer 7 GT, with fuel, insurance, accommodation and three meals a day included in the price. The bikes are all loaded up with touring accessories, like hard luggage and heated grips, and can be specified with manual or the semi-automatic Y-AMT transmission.
Each tour is led by two professional guide riders, meaning you don’t have to worry about planning routes or getting lost. There’s an option to upgrade the bike to a more powerful Tracer 9 GT, while riders can also specify low seat options and can have their suspension tweaked to optimise the bike to their individual requirements. Equipment hire is also available, with riding gear and helmets offered at an additional cost. Pillions can be accommodated on the tours too, and group bookings are also available.
Five tours have been devised. There are three three-day trips: the ‘Welsh Cymru Tour’ through Snowdonia and the Brecon Beacons, a ‘National Parks Tour’ starting from Manchester and a ‘Southwest Peninsula Tour’ departing from Dorset and running down to Land’s End. Two five-day tours start and finish from Glasgow, with a classic ‘Scottish Highlands Tour’ and a ‘Scottish & Northern Ireland Gaelic Tour’ which crosses the Irish Sea and takes in the Giant’s Causeway and a lap of the Ulster Grand Prix circuit.
Each tour is scheduled to take place twice during the year, with a maximum of 10 participants per event. Three-day experiences start at £1,575, with five-day tours costing from £2,695. Total mileage for the three-day tours are said to be around 600, with 900 miles covered over the five-day trips – they’re not super hard days in the saddle, giving plenty of time to relax and enjoy the company.
The idea of all-inclusive motorbike holidays isn’t completely new, but being manufacturer backed certainly gives these tours an added edge. With a brand new bike at your disposal and no need to fastidiously plan a route and itinerary, we can really see the appeal. You don’t need to own a Yamaha to participate, although you do need a full motorcycle licence. More information can be found on the Focused Motorcycle Tours website.
