Next up: South Korea

I’ve never had a strict criteria for deciding where I should go cycling.

Sometimes it has been driven by a whimsical romantic idea, like pedalling across the Italian countryside, pausing during cafe hours, and finding time to nap each afternoon.

On other occasions, there is a deeper determination, a desire to complete a challenging journey from A to B, or race late into the night, competing against the cut-off time at a checkpoint.

But more often than not, I choose the destination of my next trip in response to how a previous one unfolded.

After my last long adventure - a month along the Pamir Highway in July 2024 - I swore to myself that the next destination would boast delicious food. The Pamir revealed why it is part of bike touring mythology, and the views were incomprehensible at times, but not much grows on a 4000m plateau, so the food was…errr..basic.

That said, all three countries that I cycled through - Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, and Kyrgyzstan - had some of the best hospitality I’ve ever experienced. I could pedal all day, confident that almost anyone I passed would be willing to invite me to stay (often for $10-15 per night, occasionally for free). This made a very remote adventure feel very safe.

So how did I land on South Korea?

This trip will be my partner’s first multi-day cycle tour. Most of my decisions have been guided by giving her the best chance of enjoying it, and creating an itinerary that I can feel inspired by!

I eventually settled on South Korea because of a specific route: the Cross Country Trail. It’s 700km from the capital city, Seoul, to a city on the south coast, Busan. For the most part, the it follows separated cycleway infrastructure, and is predominantly flat (3,500+ elevation in total). Both safety and accessibility scored highly when reviewing the short-list of options for a beginner level journey.

We’ll be riding the 700km over a period of two weeks; leaving plenty of time to stop for Korean bbq and restorative ramen.

And we’ll hire one-way rental bikes via Bike Nara, which means no bike-box on a budget airline headache.