New York City Bike Tours

The warm weather months are perfect for exploring our beautiful city and surroundings, and doing so on two wheels allows you to cover much more ground more quickly than on two feet. Luckily, if you don't know where to start, or lack the proper skills or equipment, a number of city organizations stand ready to get you off and pedaling. Check them out before winter makes spin class your only two-wheeled option.


Bike New York

Bike New York

If "just like riding a bike" is a phrase that falls on deaf ears for you, perhaps it's finally time to learn to ride or refresh bike-riding skills that haven't been put to use since childhood. Bike New York is a nonprofit devoted to encouraging bicycling and bike safety in the five boroughs through events and education. With Bike New York, kids and adults alike can learn how to ride for free at a number of classes and practice sessions.

While Bike New York is behind well-known major rides like the 40-mile 5 Boro Bike Tour and New Jersey's Twin Lights Ride, they also offer a number of shorter local tours that combine the perfect amount of sightseeing and pedaling. The Carousel Family Fun Ride on July 30 takes riders on a tour of city carousels from Battery Park to Chelsea Piers and up to Central Park, and includes two carousel rides along the way. On August 13, the Brownstone Brooklyn ride takes participants on a lovely tour of the iconic townhouses of Brooklyn Heights, Cobble Hill, Park Slope, Carrol Gardens and Boerum Hill. And, the Bike to the Beach excursion on August 19 guides riders from Prospect Park along the Ocean Parkway bike path to Coney Island for an afternoon at the beach. Each tour clocks in at around 15 miles and costs $20 for non-members and $5-7 for members.

 

Get Up and Ride

Get Up and Ride

Brooklyn-based Get Up and Ride is wildly popular among Yelp and TripAdvisor users, earning five-star ratings on both sites, and it's easy to see why. Their daily tours cost just $99 for five or more hours of sightseeing, with bike, helmet and headset included. The Brooklyn tour runs from Williamsburg to the Brooklyn Bridge, while the Manhattan tour cruises from Port Authority through Lower Manhattan. Each small-group tour includes plenty of stops for photo ops and food, and is expertly guided, via the supplied headset, by an engaging guide. Ready to take it to the next level? Get Up and Ride also offers private tours and mountain biking excursions outside the city.

 

Bike the Big Apple

Bike the Big Apple

To pedal deeper into typically unexplored territory, head to Bike the Big Apple. This 16-year old tour company not only covers the usual Manhattan and Brooklyn neighborhoods, but they also head out to Harlem, Upper Washington Heights and the Bronx. Each tour includes great historical facts about the route, interesting stops for food and abundant opportunities to update your Instagram. Most tours run about $99 and include a bike, helmet and licensed tour guide.

 

CitiBike

CitiBike

For a DIY approach to bike touring, without the bother of owning and storing a bike, look no further than the ubiquitous CitiBike, now offering 10,000 bikes at 600 stations in Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens and Jersey City. The CitiBike website offers a number of suggested routes, including where to pick up and drop off your CitiBike, plus places to eat, drink and take in the sights along the way. Among our favorites are the Brooklyn Waterfront Greenway and the Jersey City Waterfront rides. CitiBikes are available for $12 for a 30-minute ride, $24 for a 3-day pass with unlimited 30-minute rides, or $163 annually for unlimited 45-minute rides.

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