ExperiencePlus! Blog


What happens after you book your cycling trip with ExperiencePlus!

You Booked Your Bicycle Tour!

Now what?

Pure magic and exhilarating joy! And aside from that, also some planning that we gladly help you with.

Step 1 – We need some more information!

What’s with this Customer Information Form (CIF)?

We will email you a link to what we call the Customer Information Form (CIF) with your reservation confirmation. We use this form to collect important information we need for your safety and convenience on tour with us, and also to double-check some details with you about your bike, medical history and dietary needs. The form also covers the mandatory Legal Release we ask all our travelers to complete.

If you have traveled with us before, you can quickly and easily skip any sections pertaining to information we already have on file.

Step 2 – Obtain Travel Insurance. Yes, seriously, it’s a good idea.

We’ve seen it all – flooded homes, weddings, accidents, unexpected life events that can keep you from setting out on your planned journey. We highly recommend taking out trip insurance. Our recommended provider is Arch Insurance and you can find all the information you need here.

Step 3 – Ready to start planning?

We are as excited as you are to make sure your trip is perfect. Before you start planning, please check to make sure your departure has met its minimum to be guaranteed; we’ll also make sure to keep you posted about the status of your tour.

Once it’s time to plan, we can help you find the perfect flight itinerary together with our friends at Exito Travel; we can make extra night reservations for you at the starting and ending hotels of your tour, and we can help with questions about how to best get to your tour start, or head out after the tour ends.

If you’re wondering where to find your starting and ending hotels and tips on how to get to your tour – this all is explained in a handy document that we call the GTA – Getting to and Away. It will be emailed to you either with your reservation confirmation, or, if we are still finalizing all these details, we’ll email it to you once your tour is guaranteed.

If you are planning on some more traveling, you might also like our After You Book Pages online. They will offer you a plethora of information on packing, hotel recommendations, information on getting around, handling money abroad and so much more!

Step 4 – Get into the nitty gritty

If you’re a hands-on traveler and have made all your own arrangements, we’d still ask you to share those travel plans with us, especially if they are just before or after your ExperiencePlus! cycling trip. If we don’t have these details, we’ll reach out to you closer to your tour start. Not only will it be helpful for Tour Leaders to know where you’re at, but having these details on hand will help us make some things run smoother. This means, in case you’ve made your own reservations at e.g. the starting hotel, we’ll double-check so they know you’re with the group, and ideally, will keep you in the same room for your entire stay.  If we have dietary needs on file for you, we’ll check in with you to be sure they are still current.

Of course, you can also lean back and have us take care of all the extra hotel nights at our tour starting and ending hotels.

Step 4 – Don’t overthink it!

Travel is all about experiencing new things and have some unexpected and unplanned adventures. Make sure to leave room for new discoveries, surprises and relaxation. This piece of advice is multi-faceted but basically means: relax, don’t over plan. As an example, we often find that travelers feel they need to book their train tickets in advance, which can tie them to a schedule unnecessarily and take away flexibility. Many trains don’t require reservations, though it can be advantageous for some routes. If you’re unsure about how much flexibility you have with regard to planning on trains or other means of transportation, ask us, we’ll be glad to help! Another aspect to this piece of advice is – ask your Tour Leaders for inspiration and expert advice on tour and leave room for adventures! They will have insights and tips on tour that will make your trip with us even more unique and memorable.

We can’t wait to travel with you!