Rethymno awarded as a bike friendly destination!
Cycling is an activity for all, young and older people, and it’s an affordable means of transport. It exercises the body while, most importantly, it is environmentally friendly.
Rethymno, in the framework of promoting sustainable development and alternative tourism, is now one of the cities bearing the mark “Bike Friendly”, that is, a city friendly to cyclists. This mark is awarded to municipalities – tourist destinations that meet a number of internationally recognized criteria.
The city of Rethymno has a network of bicycle paths 20 km length, while in the wider area around and outside the city there are 22 cycling routes. This is why Rethymno hosted the World Journalists Cycling Championship in 2012 and has been awarded as a safe and accessible European city for cyclists and pedestrians.
On the cycling routes outside the city, one can enjoy the beauties of the place. Traditional villages, ancient paths, archaeological sites and monasteries (Ancient Eleftherna, Arkadi), endless olive groves, flowers and herbs from the local flora of the island, give the visitor/cyclist the pleasure to explore and get to know them. At the same time, it gives himself a unique opportunity for well-being and rejuvenation away from the crowds and the exhausting rhythms of everyday life.
The city of Rethymno is one of the most beautiful and well-preserved medieval cities in the Mediterranean. The Old Town with its labyrinthine alleys, full of colors and scents, the fortress “Fortezza”, the Venetian Port and the mosques, uniquely combine the architectural elements of the West and the East.
By cycling, the visitor can discover unique corners of the city, visit its museums, churches or take part in cultural events.
Rethymno is also an ideal place for bicycle racing. It has the entire appropriate infrastructure that athletes from all over Europe are looking for to prepare themselves, especially during the winter when temperatures are higher and the weather is generally milder. Moreover, the distance from the northern coasts to the south is small, while the routes are framed by a unique environment of particular natural beauty.
The ideal climatic conditions (many days of sunshine), a special geomorphologic landscape, “authentic” and hospitable people, local products worldwide known for their health benefits (Cretan Diet), make the city of Rethymno and more generally the wider region, the ideal destination for cycling.