Le Marche 2026

† Explanation of BAC Ride Fee – This fee is not included in the Estimated Cost and is non-refundable once submitted. The Ride Fee for US and Canada is $85 and $150 for all other countries, both are per participant.

Ride Description

OVERVIEW: Directly east of Tuscany, Le Marche has temperate ocean breezes from the Adriatic Coast and on the west, panoramic views of the snow-peaked Sibylline Mountains. We want to introduce you to rosy-bricked hill towns, la povera cucina (hearty peasant fare), local wines, Rosso Piceno and Jesi's Verdicchio along with the unique Olive Ascolane. Here the culture of Medieval and Renaissance Italy abounds. The prices are lower, tourists are in the minority and you'll rub elbows with the locals. This is the sixth time this tour is offered.

RIDE RATING: The trip is rated a 4B!, averaging 40 miles per day and a daily average of 3,648 feet of climbing. There are two difficult days that are required 46 Mi/4,941 Ft & 48 Mi/4,052 Ft of climbing. Using a different metric, the number of feet per mile, a difficult ride is widely recognized as 100 feet per mile. A moderate ride is 50 feet per mile. This tour averages a 92 feet per mile, so consider it a challenging tour.

LOGISTICS: Arrive in Riccione on Friday May 15, 2026 and depart Saturday, May 30 from Riccione. Last ride day is May 29. Departure day is May 30, 2026. The tour begins and ends in Riccione at the 4-star Hotel Sarti. Hotel Sarti has limited shuttle service from Rimini airport.  It is not guarenteed as the shuttle may not always be available so plan accoridngly.. The Rimini flights are limited and only connect in Italy. Consider flying into Rome or Bologna and then taking a train. Taxis are available from the train station. Bike boxes are stored at Hotel Sarti. First meeting is Friday, May 15 at 6:00 PM, likely in the hotel nursery.

DESCRIPTION: The Hotel Sarti is a bike resort overlooking the Adriatic that caters to the cyclist's EVERY need. We spend the lay-over day doing a loop ride from the hotel. You can ride to the Republic of San Marino, often a Giro d'Italia route or an optional short or long country ride, or relax at the pool. There is a lot of traffic for 5 kilometers into and out of Riccione. After the first 2 days, there is significantly less traffic on the roads until we reach Ascoli. From Riccione, we head down the Adriatic coast with spectacular ocean cliff views before we head toward the mountains for our overnight stay in the secluded Borgo Montemaggiore di Metauro. We'll watch the sunset from the dining room. Next it's inland through small castled-villages for a stop in Jesi, known for the slow-food trend. Then we stay in Montappone, at the Palazzo Riccucci, a medieval castle in a village perched on a hillside. Enroute to Ascoli Piceno is a spectacular ride with sweeping views of the Sibylline Mountains. Ascoli Piceno is the southern gem of the Le Marche region where we relax for a 3-day stay. Ascoli is famous for its marble piazzas and anisette liquor. We head back north with another stop at the Palazzo Riccucci (the food is worth 2 stops), then on to San Severino where we stay with the sisters of the Convent of Baby Jesus. The mountainous terrain offers spectacular views enroute to San Lorenzo in Campo where we have a wine tasting over dinner. In Urbino, famous for the Palace of the Duke of Montefeltro and the home-town of painter Raphael, we spend 2 nights. It boasts some of the best views in Italy with winding cobbled streets and city walls that float above the valley below. Italians take their holiday here! Our final stop is a 2-day stay and an anticipated return to the pampered life back at the Hotel Sarti.

COSTS: Deposit of $1,000 + Final Payment $1,680 due on January 15, 2026 based on an exchange rate of $ 1.20/ 1 Euro. The estimated cost includes:15 nights lodging with breakfasts and 11 dinners, luggage van & driver, and a wine tasting. Final payment may be adjusted due to currency fluctuation. After the tour we will provide a report of all expenses and refund any excess.

SOLO SUPPLEMENT: Solo supplement of $430 due January 15, 2026 Due to capacity limitation at one hotel there will be no solo riders accepted. Should a solo situation occur,  the solo supplement payments, should be made by Zelle or check. Checks should be made out to “BAC” with a notation of the tour name included on the check and mailed to:  Bicycle Adventure Club, PO Box 23998, San Diego, CA 92193.

SINGLES: Single riders who want to share a room are encouraged to sign-up. We will assist with your search for a suitable room mate. Singles who are accepted but waiting to find a room mate will have a limited time-frame to do so if there are more BAC members registered on the wait list. Once a room mate is found, both riders are added to the tour. If a single rider cannot find a room mate, they may be added to the ride on a “space available” basis.

HEALTH & SAFETY: We will invite participants to a Zoom meeting about 6 weeks prior to the tour start date to discuss health and safety rules. Up to date boosters for COVID are required. Participants are expected to come to the tour in good health and ready to ride. In short, if you are ill on the tour, be it a cold or test positive for COVID but you can ride your bike, then you can stay on the tour with precautions in place. In this case, protocols for isolation, masking, and social distancing are required. If you test positive and cannot ride your bike, then you must isolate in place. That may mean departing the tour or arranging your own transport to subsequent hotels on the tour. We will all need to be flexible as safety comes first.

TANDEMS/E-BIKES/RENTALS: Tandems and e-bikes will be accepted on a case-by-case basis. Talk with the leaders about this. Rental bikes will be available through CycleEurope (cycleeurope.com). Details in the Welcome letter. Delivery fees will depend on the number of people renting. Each rider will pay CycleEurope directly with a credit card.

MAPS & CUE SHEETS:  A document will be posted in Ride Leader Docs that will have the link to give access to the RWGPS Event.  We recommend that you print out hard copies of both the maps and cue sheets.  This document contains instructions in case you are not familiar with Ride with GPS.

CANCELLATION POLICY: The BAC ride registration fee and payment processing fee is not refundable unless the entire tour is canceled due to participation below stated minimum requirements. Any refunds are dependent on our finding a replacement from the wait list. If we can fill your position immediately you will get your refund. If we are not able to fill your position, any refund will be based on the principle that costs not be increased for those who are completing the tour (singles will need to have an agreement with their roommate on how the single supplement will be handled in case of a cancellation). Your share of fixed costs like the luggage van, leader and van driver expenses will be deducted from your eventual refund. Whatever we can recover, you will get back after the tour is completed and the final accounting takes place.

INSURANCE: Before participating in any BAC tour, you should assess whether your medical and travel insurance coverage is sufficient. BAC maintains insurance that covers expenses related to accidents, medical emergencies such as sudden and unexpected sickness, and repatriation. This coverage applies when touring outside the US and your home country, regardless of your nationality. It will cover you door-to-door for a maximum of 90 days but will expire if you make a side trip not related to the BAC tour for more than 7 days before or after. There is limited coverage for a family member to join a covered person in an emergency. The policy covers the cost of treatment for Covid and other unexpected illnesses, but not quarantine. You should ensure that your vaccinations are up to date. Coverage is subject to a $1000 deductible.

PARTICIPANT RESPONSIBILITY: Please remember that BAC Ride Leaders are volunteers, and that successful tours depend on participants providing much of their own support. Participants are expected to come to the ride well trained, in good health and ready to accomplish the required daily riding using well-maintained bicycles. All participants should accept responsibility for a safe and enjoyable tour. We encourage you to read the ride description carefully and respond to requests from Ride Leader. While on the ride, support your Ride Leader with offers to help with various tasks such as happy hour preparation and clean-up. Please do not interfere with the ride by inviting non-participants onto any portion of the ride or tour. Please keep the Ride Leader informed of any special request you may have and respect the Ride Leader’s decisions.

SIGN UP: To register for this ride, use the sign-up links just above the Ride Description. After preliminary acceptance, you will be moved to the pending list and receive an email requesting you to go back to the BAC site to digitally accept the terms of the Release of Liability (ROL), and pay the Tour Deposit and the non-refundable BAC Ride Registration Fee by credit card. There is an $85.00 domestic ride fee and $150.00 international ride fee. As soon as your deposit has been processed, your name(s) will be added to the Participant List. BAC members with questions may contact the Ride Director by "clicking" the name at the top of this Ride Description.