Ride to Italy or rent a bike there?

[jones9999]

I just sold my last bike and before i buy the next one i am trying to plan a trip to Italy.

Having rode a lot of France and Spain for 30 years on trips from UK i would like to by pass it as it will take up a lot of time just to get to Italy.

So i am trying to sort out another way,

 

Fly from UK and rent a 500cc or bigger bike there ,then fly back again after 2 weeks or so.

Is there a European train set up where i can take my own bike to Italy and back to UK again.

Catch a Santander ferry from UK then ride over to Italy ,then return on the ferry.

Any other ideas or suggestions would be great.....

 

 

 

 

[Gerontious]

Motorail. Dusseldorf to Verona. Renting should be fairly simple in Italy.

[bonio]

If youre after saving time, then rent. You might even be able to find a place that will pick you up at the airport.

[Steve_M]

2 hours ago, Gerontious said:

Motorail. Dusseldorf to Verona. Renting should be fairly simple in Italy.

I’ve just had a quick glance at this option wondering if it would give us more time in Italy on our tour this year. Unfortunately it wouldn’t work for us as the available dates don’t work with our ferry bookings.  
 

 

There is also the issue of cost. I may have misunderstood costs as I had already realised it didn’t work for us so didn’t try to look for the cheapest option. They appeared to be eye wateringly expensive. 

[Gerontious]

1 hour ago, Steve_M said:

I’ve just had a quick glance at this option wondering if it would give us more time in Italy on our tour this year. Unfortunately it wouldn’t work for us as the available dates don’t work with our ferry bookings.  
 

 

There is also the issue of cost. I may have misunderstood costs as I had already realised it didn’t work for us so didn’t try to look for the cheapest option. They appeared to be eye wateringly expensive. 

 

Nothing is cheap in Germany. you use the Motorail to save time. and people will pay for that. leave Folkestone in the morning and wake up in Italy the next morning. if you just have a week or slightly more then its worth it. Not something I need. but, it was a sad day when the motorail from calais ended. afternoon ferry. short ride to the rail station then wake up in Perpignan. 15 minutes from the balmy Mediterranean water. That was cheap. French rail has always been cheap. and quick. and reliable.

[Steve_M]

1 hour ago, Gerontious said:

 

Nothing is cheap in Germany. you use the Motorail to save time. and people will pay for that. leave Folkestone in the morning and wake up in Italy the next morning. if you just have a week or slightly more then its worth it. Not something I need. but, it was a sad day when the motorail from calais ended. afternoon ferry. short ride to the rail station then wake up in Perpignan. 15 minutes from the balmy Mediterranean water. That was cheap. French rail has always been cheap. and quick. and reliable.

I can see the advantages if time is a constraint. 

[John Metcalfe]

There's a company based in Milan called Mototouring, they do rentals. They also offer a free drop off and pick up service from all 3 of Milan airports, along with other locations throughout Italy subject to numbers.

They have a website at https://mototouring.com.