Requirements of our
Islandhopping Tours

Our five difficulty levels give you a reliable impression of what to expect on our tours.

 

Applies to all Levels:	Safe cycling skills and familiarity with road traffic are prerequisites for taking part in our tours. The daily stages vary between 20 and 60 km. All tours, including the elevation gains, can be mastered more easily with electronic assistance. Anyone renting an e-bike should already have experience and be confident in handling e-bikes, as these bikes are significantly heavier and faster than conventional bikes.
Level 1 / 5	Cycling tours through predominantly flat terrain, mostly on paved bike paths or well-maintained roads. Suitable for cyclists who ride occasionally but can handle several-hour-long bike tours.
Level 2 / 5	Cycling tours through gently rolling terrain with ascents of up to approximately 150 meters. Mostly on paved bike paths and low-traffic roads or well-maintained gravel paths. Suitable for cyclists who enjoy multi-hour tours and can confidently handle descents.
Level 3 / 5	Cycling tours through hilly terrain with longer ascents of up to approximately 250 meters. Mostly on paved, low-traffic roads, occasionally on unpaved gravel or forest paths. Suitable for cyclists who ride regularly and can confidently navigate varying surface conditions.
Level 4 / 5	Cycling tours through hilly to mountainous terrain with some steeper ascents of up to approximately 400 meters. Requires confident riding on winding descents, uneven asphalt, and occasionally gravel paths. Suitable for experienced cyclists accustomed to longer daily stages.
Level 5 / 5	Cycling tours through mountainous terrain with demanding ascents exceeding 500 meters. Requires excellent bike handling, even on descents with steep hairpin turns and unpaved paths. Suitable for highly experienced cyclists accustomed to challenging routes.

 

For even better planning and to help you choose your ideal trip, you’ll find a detailed description of the tour profile in the “Good to know” section of each trip page. This includes the following parameters:

 

Elevation

Distance

Road Condition

Traffic

Infrastructure

There is something very important to us at Islandhopping regarding all our bike tours: it is a vacation and it is your time to have fun and relax. Therefore, we don’t want you to feel pressured at any point during the cycling tours which is why we ensure that there is always plenty of time to complete the tours at a comfortable pace.

Special Requirements for E-Bike Riders

Since e-bikes are quicker than conventional bikes, it’s important that riders have the necessary balance and mobility.

E-bikes are also heavier than regular trekking bikes, which means it takes a certain amount of strength to hold or push the bike while stationary. If you’d like to join one of our tours with an e-bike, we strongly recommend borrowing or renting an e-bike at home beforehand to get familiar with assisted riding

What’s Required on Our Sailing Trips

 

As our sailing ships are too big for small fishing ports, most nights are spent on anchor. This means that the cycling day often begins with a short crossing to shore in a dinghy. Sure-footedness and a certain degree of mobility are required when getting on and off a tall ship. In Scottland, the tidal range (high and low tide) results in the ship only being able to be reached by ladder or dinghy in some ports. Height differences of up to 3 meters may need to be overcome. Therefore, a good sense of footing and balance is also required here.

Level Classification for Our Mountain Bike Tours

Level 1 / 5	Easy mountain bike tours for Islandhoppers who are confident with and have good control over their bike. Most tours follow asphalt roads and wide natural trails (20-30 km and 200-400 meters of elevation gain per day, S0).
Level 2 / 5	Easy to intermediate mountain bike tours for Islandhoppers with a good level of fitness and good bike control. Tours predominantly follow nature trails and easy single trails (20-40km and 300-500 meters of elevation gain per day, S0-S1).
Level 3 / 5	Intermediate mountain bike tours for Islandhoppers who enjoy riding on diverse terrain and are used to climbs of up to 500m (30-50km and 400-600 meters of elevation gain per day, S0-S2.
Level 4 / 5	Intermediate to demanding mountain bike tours for Islandhoppers who are confident riding on various terrain and who have a good level of fitness and bike control. Tours mostly follow hiking trails and single trails (30-60km and 400-750 meters of elevation gain per day, S0-S2).
Level 5 / 5	Demanding mountain bike tours for Islandhoppers with excellent bike control and a love for technical trails. Tours mostly follow hiking trails and single trails (30-60km and 500-1,000 meters of elevation gain per day, S0-S3).

 

 

Single Trail Classification

To make sure that you are well prepared for your bike trip and know what technical requirements you can expect on the different bike stages, we have tried to classify the single trails for the different tours. For the classification of the various levels, we have used the European single trail scale as reference (https://www.mtblivigno.eu/en/single-track-scale-sts):

 

Blue (easy, S0-S1): Smaller obstacles such as flat roots, small stones, the occasional gulley, erosion damage, gradients up to 40%, possible lose ground, tight curves but no hairpin bends. Basic riding skills required, controlled braking, dynamic weight dispersal, riding standing up. Obstacles can be rolled over.

 

Red (intermediate, S2): Surface usually loose, larger stones and occasionally roots, flat ledges and stairs, gradients up to 70%, slight hairpin bends, constant readiness to brake, exact control over the brakes and shifting of the body's centre of gravity.

 

Black (difficult, S3-S5): Blocked single trails, many large stones, rocks and occasionally roots, slippery ground, loose scree, high ledges, gradient greater than 70%, narrow hairpin bends, expert bike control required.