This year we are planning our trip similarly to the first one. We have set up Airbnb accommodations in advance for every night. The advantage of this is that we eliminate the uncertainty of finding places to stay. However, it is a bit of work to find Airbnbs along our path that can accommodate our tandem bike. Each day’s ride depends on where we are staying that night. Last year, we had to plan about one day in advance. Getting Airbnbs on 24-hour notice can be challenging, especially when hosts do not want last-minute guests. Often, the best Airbnbs get reserved early. Another advantage is that we will not have to carry a tent, sleeping bags, sleeping pads, and other camping gear. Space is really tight on these trips!

The disadvantage of pre-planning is that our schedule is set in stone and cannot flex with the weather, how we feel, or other factors that could impact our ride itinerary. If we find a town that we love and want to stay an extra day, that will not be an option because we have a reservation that night in a town 50 miles away.

I spent about a month finding properly spaced Airbnbs. I would estimate how far we could ride in a day and then look in that area for possible accommodations. Depending on where I found some, I would repeat the process for the next day, and then the next, and then the next… Sometimes, I would find that I had to go back and either increase or decrease the mileage for the previous day so that we could have a reasonable distance to the next accommodation. There seem to be far more options in France, and they also seem to be more affordable.

It will be interesting to see how we like this new approach.