Denmark cycle tour plan

Denmark tour map from Google Earth

The route for our forthcoming cycle tour of Denmark is now complete. Last year, we arrived at the port of Esbjerg from Harwich with no accommodation booked nor a detailed route plan. There was always room on the Danish campsites as they tend to have a small area set aside for overnight stoppers but we were lucky to have got in at most of the hostels we stayed at.

This time everything is planned and all the accommodation booked except for campsites. We won't need to waste time stopping to look at the map or asking people the way because the whole of the route has been planned turn by turn and is loaded onto a Garmin eTrex Legend HCx GPS unit together with nightly destinations loaded on as Waypoints just in case.

Excluding two ferry crossings and one train journey the distance travelled will be almost exactly 500 miles over thirteen days. Two of those days are 'short days' from or to the ferry port at Esbjerg. Average cycling mileage per day = 40 miles approx. with a longest distance of 56 miles including a ferry crossing.

The route in Google Earth (and Maps)

The route was created entirely in Google Earth. If you have Google Earth installed on your desktop the links below will open each section in satellite view.

• Esbjerg to Ribe 19 miles to campsite (view in Google Maps)
• Ribe to Tønder 39 miles to campsite (view in Google Maps)
• Tønder to Sønderborg 51 miles to campsite (view in Google Maps)
• Sønderborg to Fynshav 11 miles to ferry (view in Google Maps)
• Ferry from Fynshav to Bøjden
  Ferries every two hours – 50 minutes crossing
  (Fynshav-Bøjden ferry | 2010 Timetable PDF)
• Bøjden to Svendborg 29 miles to campsite (view in Google Maps)
• Svendborg to Spodsbjerg 17 miles to ferry (view in Google Maps)
• Ferry from Spodsbjerg to Tårs
  Ferries every hour – 45 minutes crossing
  (Spodsbjerg to Tårs ferry | 2010 Timetable PDF)
• Tårs to Guldborg 39 miles to campsite (view in Google Maps)
• Guldborg to Køge 48 miles to hostel (view in Google Maps)
• Køge to Korsør 46 miles to campsite (view in Google Maps)
• Train from Korsør to Nyborg
• Nyborg to Odense 20 miles to B&B (view in Google Maps)
• Odense to Faaborg 33 miles to hostel (view in Google Maps)
• Faaborg to Assens 24 miles to hostel (view in Google Maps)
• Assens to Fredericia 34 miles to hostel (view in Google Maps)
• Fredericia to Varde 56 miles to B&B (view in Google Maps)
• Varde to Esbjerg 16 miles to ferry (view in Google Maps)

When to tour Denmark on a bicycle

Graph contributed by www.climatetemp.info

Mid to late May is a good time to go. The days are long and it's one of the drier months, with an average daytime temperature of about 16 degrees – perfect for cycling. It's outside the main Danish holiday season but you need to watch out for public holiday weekends when the campsites tend to be busy (for example, Prince Fredrik's Birthday on 26th May, a Monday this year).

Last year's cycle tour of Denmark | tour photos