These are sightseeing tours starting from London. Routes have the short train ride in the morning, and the long ride back in the evenings. Routes go through villages, pass sights and end in a city. All routing is in cycle•travel. Note that when viewing the maps you have a choice of layers. The default layer shows all bike routes, and places like cafés that cyclists might stop at. I prefer the OpenStreetMap layer. It shows you the churches and museums, and only the bike route that you are on. Layer icon is in upper right.
Get cycle•travel's free app at Google Play and the Apple App Store. It is suggested that you download the maps. Under Settings → Offline maps there are four quadrants to download that cover all these routes.
If you bike a route, and have a suggested tweak, I can be reached at
Slide shows of sights along the routes will be added after I've biked a route. (Not pictures of the route itself.)
- Bedfordshire: Stevenage to Bedford (all paved).
32 miles. ↗ 100m ↘ 170m | Max 3.2%
- Historic Villages: Harlow to Cambridge.
48 miles. ↗ 280m ↘ 300m | Max 7.6%
- Essex: Enfield to Chelmsford, via Epping Forest.
34 miles. ↗ 260m ↘ 250m | Max 5%
- Essex Coast: Kelvedon to Colchester, via Coggleshall, West Mersea (all paved).
Has train from end to start.
45 miles. ↗ 420m ↘ 430m | Max 8.2%
- North Kent Marshes: Gravesend to Faversham (or Canterbury).
35 miles. ↗ 240m ↘ 240m | Max 6%
- Kent Downs: Staplehurst to Canterbury, via Tenterden.
44 miles. ↗ 240m ↘ 250m | Max 8%
- High Weald: Tunbridge Wells to Uckfield, via Sheffield Park.
30 miles. ↗ 420m ↘ 510m | Max 9.8% (reverse ↗ 460m ↘ 370m | Max 6.8%)
- South Downs: Guildford to Brighton (all paved).
50 miles. ↗ 200m ↘ 210m | Max 5.5%
- North Downs: Aldershot to Reading, via Basingstoke.
40 miles. ↗ 230m ↘ 280m | Max 6%
- Chilterns Hills: Henley-on-Thames to Oxford.
43 miles. ↗ 390m ↘ 360m | Max 11.5%
1. Bedfordshire: Stevenage to Bedford. 32 miles [N of London]
cycle•travel Route
This route has a Slide Show
Stevenage: Thameslink from St. Pancras. Every 15 minutes, :01, etc.
Bedford: Thameslink to St. Pancras. Frequent.
2. Historic Villages: Harlow to Cambridge. 48 miles [N of London]
cycle•travel Route
Harlow: Stansted Express from Liverpool Street Station. Every 15 minutes, :10 etc.
Cambridge: Great Northern to King's Cross.
3. Essex: Enfield to Chelmsford, via Epping Forest. 34 miles [NE of London]
cycle•travel Route
Enfield: London Overground to Turkey St Station. Take Central or Elizabeth Line to Liverpool Street to get.
Chelmsford: Greater Anglia to London Liverpool Street. Or at Stratford switch to Elizabeth Line Shenfield. Timetables. Timetable is 02.
4. Essex Coast: Kelvedon to Colchester, via Coggleshall, Tollesbury and West Mersea. 45 miles [NE of London]
![Click for live map route map thumbnail](images/ct-Kelvedon.gif)
This is the only route where the two stations are on the same train line. You can take a train back to the start. This is also my favorite route. I like the water.
cycle•travel Route [Need to check for high tides]
This route has a Slide Show
Kelvedon/Colchester: Greater Anglia from London Liverpool St.
Timetables. Timetable is 02.
5. North Kent Marshes: Gravesend to Faversham (or Canterbury). 35 miles [ESE of London]
cycle•travel Route
Gravesend: From St Pancras: Thameslink [contactless pay] or Southeastern
Timetables. Timetable is 2 or 8.
Faversham: Southeastern to Victoria
6. Kent Downs: Staplehurst to Canterbury, via Tenterden. 44 miles [SE of London]
cycle•travel Route
Staplehurst: Southeastern from Charing Cross [stops at Waterloo (East) and London Bridge].
Timetables. Timetable is 1.
Canterbury: Southeastern has two stations. West goes to St. Pancras [best] or Stratford. East goes to Victoria. Timetables. West is Timetable 1. East is Timetable 2.
7. High Weald: Tunbridge Wells to Uckfield, via Sheffield Park. 30 miles [SSE of London]
![Click for live map route map thumbnail](images/ct-Tunbridge.gif)
It has been suggested to ride this route in reverse. Tunbridge Wells is a more interesting place to end up in than Uckfield. Under Route tools, there is a button to reverse the route. But doing so gives you a long train ride in the morning.
cycle•travel Route [has steep uphill, less steep in reverse]
Tunbridge Wells: Southeastern from Charing Cross.
Timetables. Timetable is 4.
Uckfield: Southern Railways to London Bridge. Change to Thameslink in East Croydon. Long trip. Timetables. Timetable is N.
8. South Downs: Guildford to Brighton, 50 miles [SSW of London]
cycle•travel Route
Guildford: South Western Railway from London Waterloo.
Timetables. Timetable is 6.
Brighton: Gatwick Express to Victoria Station. Every 30 minutes. Leaves :08 and :38.
9. North Downs: Aldershot to Reading, via Basingstoke. 40 miles [WSW of London]
cycle•travel Route [has some hills]
Aldershot: South Western Railway from London Waterloo. First to Woking. Then Aldershot.
Timetables. Timetable is 10.
Reading: Great Western to Paddington. Timetables. Timetable is BL.
10. Chilterns Hills: Henley-on-Thames to Oxford. 43 miles [WNW of London]
cycle•travel Route [has a mountain]
Henley-on-Thames: Great Western from Paddington to Twyford, then train to Henley-on-Thames.
Timetables. Route is T13.
Oxford: Great Western to Paddington. Frequent trains.