Winter motorcycle destinations: our suggestions

To some it might be the most wonderful time of the year but, for us, it is just the reason to be forced at home by bad weather.  So, we decided to make a list of winter motorcycle destinations that might cure your winter blues. Let’s see them together.

Pacific Coast Highway, California

California is the perfect destination for those looking to catch warm rays of sun during winter months. I tell you what: writing this I have California Dreamin’ by The Mamas & the Papas playing in the background. Getting back on topic: riding down Pacific Coast Highway from Sunset Beach south to Dana Point provides beautiful riding since Highway 1 runs alongside the beach much of the way. For those who prefer to ride along the central coast, we suggest heading north to Monterey to see the jaw-dropping coastline where mountains meet the sparkling Pacific Ocean.
Last but not least in our list of points of interest for your ride, the Bixby Creek Bridge, which is about half an hour south from Monterey.

Yosemite National Park, California

California has a second spot in our winter motorcycle destinations list, it could have not been any different. Yosemite National Park has more and more visitors every year. With its massive natural monuments and its gargantuan giant sequoia trees, this national park is on the bucket list of every biker. Now, be aware that, since it is very internal, in winter months there could be snowstorms. Therefore, this destination requires a bit of planning.

Zion National Park, Utah

If you are into twisty roads, you will never get tired of the route through the park: you will be surrounded by fantastic views of the rock high overhead and of the river running down below. If you have time and the trail is open, get off your motorcycle and go for a short hike to the Canyon Overlook. You won’t be disappointed! This destination will make you happy because of the road to get there and your family because of the breathtaking scenery and ability to get out and hike the multitude of trails. Definitely a “must go to” destination.

Hill Country, Texas

Texas must have a place in our list of winter motorcycle destinations. Near San Antonio/Austin is possible to find this region’s “must ride”roads: also known as the “Twisted Sisters”, Ranch Roads 335, 336, and 337 are worth of any rider’s attention. While in the area we suggest stop by the Lone Star Motorcycle Museum in Vanderpool, and Frio Canyon Motorcycle Stop in Leakey. Texas is full of incredible points of interest so, here’s another pair of them: Lost Maples State Natural Area and Garner State Park.

Wolf Pen Gap, Georgia

In North Georgia is possible to find a dream road: Wolf Pen Gap Road (or GA Route 180) is a 12-mile-long two-lane road in the Chattahoochee National Forest. If you want to take a nice, winding 40-mile route around the area, start your ride in Suches, Georgia, take Wolf Pen Gap Road to US 19, and back north up the 60 to Suches. Worth to be mentioned is the motorcycle-friendly camping/cabins of Two Wheels of Suches on GA 60.

Around the world

USA is not the only country to have awesome places to be visited in the wintertime: Europe, for example, has a couple of locations too.

Spain

Let’s start our list on winter motorcycle destinations starts in Spain.

TENERIFE

Tenerife is one of the Spanish Canary Islands, a few miles off the coast of Morocco. January temperatures average around 17 degrees Celsius, definitely a nice temperature for motorcycle riding.

Tenerife is a volcanic island sculpted by successive eruptions throughout its history. Therefore, we highly recommend to start with a ride up El Teide – the third biggest active volcano in the world. This breathtaking tour start from Vilaflor, rides through the lunar surface and great heights of the Parque Nacional del Teide, and returns swirling back down to eastbound Arafo.

Tenerife is filled with lots of roads that are worth riding: the ride from Las Mercedes to San Andrés is less touristy, but offers an awesome bendy road which rides through the Parque Natural de Anaga. This natural park offer a different surrounding compared to the rest of the Island: mountain views embedded in green, terraced fields and woods.

ANDALUSIA

Spain offers an incredible number of winter motorcycle destinations.

We selected Andalusia because it rarely has rainy days (about five days of rain during winter), bathes in sunlight (average of about seven hours per day) and is packed with twisty panoramic roads. Basically, it is like this region was specifically engineered for motorcycle riding.

Let’s start with the road from Marbella to Ronda, which locals call ‘El Camino Ingles’ because was built by British people who fled the summer heat of Gibraltar to enjoy the mild weather near Ronda. There are two ways to ride it:

• you can choose the original approach: A377 towards Casares and the A369 from Gaucin on
• or opt for the more challenging side which stretches over 40 kilometers from La Heredia to Ronda, El Madroñal.

The second option is simply great since it is made of a seemingly endless chain of sweeping switch-back corners that not only raise your heartbeat a few nudges, but also treats you with incredible sights.

Greece

Kefalonia is one of the islands of Greece; it shares a latitude with capital Athens but is situated on the westside of the country, at about 10 kilometers offshore from Vasiliki.

For less than 20 euros, a ferry will take you and your motorcycle to the island in about an hour, which leaves you the rest of the day to explore the spectacular coastal and mountain roads between the harbor of Fiskardo in the north and endless beaches in southern Skala.

Sicily

Sicily has a lot to offer: up north we suggest to start your route from Campofelice di Roccella through and around the Parco Della Madonie for a historic ride, as it is exactly the place where the Targa Florio used to take place in the early 1900’s (it used to be one of the hardest automobile races in history).

Do not get me wrong though, the track will not exactly be the best surface you’ve ever ridden on, and temperatures in this part of Italy rarely rise above 14 degrees in winter times but, trust me, the whole setting will make your experience incredible.

Our list of motorcycle winter destinations has come to an end. Hope it was useful for your motorcycle vacation plans or, at least, that it helped warming up your soul a bit during this winter day. If you feel like some places have been left off, please let us know in the comments. We will be more than happy to write a chapter 2.