New MSC Cruises Bike Excursions – Discover New Roads
Introducing MSC Bike Adventours
During our 14-night cruise onboard MSC Magnifica, we caught wind of an exciting new way to explore ports with the introduction of bike tour excursions!
MSC Bike Adventours are already available on MSC Seaside, MSC Meraviglia and MSC Splendida but this Summer 2018 they’re also being rolled out (excuse the pun!) on MSC Seaview, MSC Preziosa and MSC Magnifica.
We met with the MSC Magnifica Shore Excursions team to learn more about the bike tours. On the day we met them, they were going out on a practice ride in our last Spanish port of call – La Coruna. We decided to tag along to meet the guides and for a sneak peek at the shiny new bikes.
On this trial bike tour, there were two guides and six other riders from the excursions team. We met them on the pier where their bikes and helmets were waiting for them. They grabbed a bike each and posed for some snaps before we walked to the front of the terminal.
Now, all gathered around in a group, they went through the motions that passengers can expect when they book this type of excursion. First, they were given a safety briefing and told how the tour would work. It was also explained how to adjust the bikes to the right height for each rider and some key safety tips on riding during the tour.
Then there was a brief opportunity to ride around and warm up. After a couple of small circuits, the group reconvened and the guides checked in with everyone before setting off.
A cycle route around La Coruna had been carefully studied for the trip but we were told GPS devices would be in use when the bike tours are offered to cruise guests on the following cruise.
On the ride through the city, one guide rides in front, guiding the tour group through the city with a second guide riding at the back making sure everyone has a smooth ride and more importantly, no one is left behind. You can also be assured there are stops along the route to give everyone an opportunity to take photos – it was made very clear during the safety briefing that taking selfies whilst riding was not recommended!
And with that, they were off to explore the port of La Coruna! A bike excursion is a great way to see ports of the world with the wind in your hair and although the tours hadn’t quite started on our cruise, they are now live on MSC Magnifica and across several other ships in the fleet!
Pricing for this type of shore excursion differs on each cruise (based on each one differs in length, depending on terrain) – login to your MSC Cruise Voyage Planner or ask whilst onboard to find out which ports these excursions are available in!