Beds for Cyclists launch bike-friendly hotel map browser

Finding a place to stay on a long-distance ride or a cycling holiday has got a whole-lot easier with this week’s launch of Beds for Cyclists' map based hotel browser.

The website takes away the frustration of trawling the internet’s depths for appropriate cycling accommodation on UK cycle routes, by collating the best bike hotels, on the best cycle routes in a new, visually appealing and easy to use tool.

Beds for Cyclists currently features 28 long-distance cycle routes each with their own specific page on the site. Each route page features a list of appropriate, local accommodation options, the route's start and finish points, its total ride distance, and the type of terrain a rider is likely to encounter.

Routes include known ones like the Sea to Sea (C2C) which takes riders from east coast Newcastle right across to Whitehaven on Cumbria’s west coast which feature on the site alongside some shorter and and lesser known routes.

The site even covers both of Yorkshire’s Grand Départ routes and the bike-friendly hotels in their vicinity - although if you're planning a visit around the race itself, we imagine you may have a bit of trouble finding somewhere.

The site's founder, Sam Howard, has pledged that more routes and hotels will be added to the site as the word of his service spreads and new trails are opened around the country.

“This new platform will make it easy for cyclists to find accommodation on any major long-distance route in the UK,” Howard said.

“Our aim is to have a wide variety of cycle-friendly accommodation for every budget, along every major route in the UK. With more and more accommodation providers seeing the potential of the cycling trade and joining the site, this vision is becoming a reality.”

The easy to use interface makes exploring your accommodation options on any of the routes straightforward and has even been endorsed by the founder of sustainable transport charity Sustrans, John Grimshaw.

He said: “I’ve been involved, for many years, in the creation of many fantastic long-distance cycle routes but this is the first comprehensive resource I’ve seen for cycle-friendly accommodation along them.

"It’s not only a really useful resource for the riders, but it’s a great tool for demonstrating the potential cycle routes have to support local businesses, a key factor to developing new routes.”