We started out in 1997 as Zephyr Inline Skate Tours, the world’s first inline skating (Rollerblading) tour company. By 1990 we were running ten skate tours a year – but two of them were “bike friendly”. The following year we ran 16 skate tours, with four of them “bike friendly”.
So the reality is that even back in the heyday of inline skating, our skate tours were popular with bicyclists. Why?
Skating Spouses
First off, often times an avid skater is married to a non-skater. It works perfectly for that spouse or partner to ride a bike on a skate tour. In fact, skaters love to have bikers along because they can carry more gear on a rack or pannier. Many of our bikers on skate tours still today are there with their inline skating partners.
Flat, Paved, and Car-Free Paths
However, we have other bikers who join our Skating & Biking Adventures on their own or with partner or friend who is also bicycling. Why? Simply put, the locations we choose for inline skating tours are ideal for those looking for an easy cycling tour. Consider these aspects of our skate tours:
- Flat: Inline skaters do not like hills of any size. They are hard to ascend and can be dangerous to descend unless you are very good. Bikers looking for a recreational time also love a good flat route.
- Paved: Inline skaters required either paved or concrete routes. It just doesn’t work skating on dirt or gravel.
- Car-Free: It is possible to skate on roads and we do use small country roads on some of our inline skating tour locations. But, for the most part, the wide stride of a skater does not mix well with traffic and so we avoid cars as much as possible.
- Distance: You might be surprised that inline skaters can easily skate 15, 20, or even 25 miles in a day. (I have skated a 26.2-mile marathon in one hour, 15 minutes.) These are nice distances for recreational cyclists.
All this results in a tour location that is ideal for both skaters and those bicyclists looking for a recreational ride.
Our Inline Skating & Biking Tour Locations
In 2026, we are offering two Inline Skating & Biking Adventures.
- Germany’s Flaeming Skate (September 18 – 24): The Flaeming region south of Berlin has perhaps the world’s single best network of paved pathways suitable for inline skaters, making them perfect for recreational cyclists.
- Ohio Skating & Biking: We know. No offense to Ohio but this is not on your travel bucket list. Yet the area around Dayton has an excellent network of flat, paved trails that run along scenic rivers, plus a cute and fun small host town, Yellow Springs.
We have also run inline skating & biking tours in The Netherlands, Switzerland, Burgundy, Florida, Nantucket & Martha’s Vineyard, and many more locations. Come join us!