ship or rent?

October 13, 2009 1:32 PM

vacation ideas... wanna take the girlfriend on a two week motorcycle tour through the south in early january. had planned on going from texas to florida. we live in seattle. what is the cheapest way?

looks like we can rent bikes for about $500-$800 a week (two bikes for two weeks = $2000 - $3200). Or we can ship our bikes for about $600 one way (two bikes, round trip = $2400), but im not sure we'd be able to get exact pick up and delivery dates.

or we could ride our bikes from seattle to texas, then to florida. how much of our two weeks would seattle to texas take up, assuming we were really aggressive about covering distance?

anyone know of cheaper rentals/shipping? alternatives im not thinking of?

general advice/tips related to the trip itself? (things to see, routes to take etc)

the dates are pretty concrete, but the locations (start/destination) are stretchy. can you think of better places? kind of wanna do this same thing in mexico/south america but air fare would get more expensive and i'd be worried about safety.

posted by nihlton to travel & transportation (9 comments total)

allikat - sorry. bike = motah' bike
posted by nihlton at 1:50 PM on October 13

or we could ride our bikes from seattle to texas, then to florida. how much of our two weeks would seattle to texas take up, assuming we were really aggressive about covering distance?

According to Google maps, from Seattle to Dallas, would take about 34 hrs. Driven safely, you're talking about a three day trip. Mind you, this means that you'd have to either go south down along the coast and hit I-40, which will add time, or go through the Rockies and across the Plains in the dead of winter. Likewise, you have to drive back, so you're looking at nearly a week of just going back and forth from your two week time out. It would seem that for the best time just driving through the South, renting bikes in Texas would be the optimal choice (or shipping your own).
posted by Atreides at 1:57 PM on October 13

Seattle to Texas in january is going to take longer because you'll have to go south around the mountains or risk the very real possibility of weather messing with you big time. Sounds like a better trip for any season but winter, as there are very few options that don't include at least one high pass (there will be snow near Mt. Shasta on I-5 S for instance).
for the money you'd spend shipping you might want to just lay on a beach in the keys and rent a bike for daytrips...
posted by OHenryPacey at 2:05 PM on October 13

I would say maybe more than a 3 day trip to get to texas. I don't know about your biking style, but I won't ride more than 8 hours in a day before I'm not having fun anymore. I'd give it 5 days to get to the middle of texas.

You'd want to go down the coast and then south because heading through colorado wouldn't exactly be the smartest routing in january. I would be much more inclined to rent bikes down there, as you could try out a different style of bike from your current one [maybe even a fancier one!], and you would have at least double the time to spend in your region of choice.

Check out starting points in New Mexico or Arizona, as those are both motorcycle-friendly [or so it appears], and maybe rentals could be cheaper there. Save 'old' Mexico for at least your second big trip together.
posted by Acari at 2:05 PM on October 13

[A few comments removed. To be clear, the question is about motorcycles, not bicycles.]
posted by cortex at 4:22 PM on October 13

I once rented a BMW from CruiseAmerica (in winter, and rode it from LA to Washington, no less) but I'm not sure they rent bikes any more. There's a lot (A LOT!) to be said for riding your own bike, vs. whatever you can get your hands on at the rental company. But more importantly, consider whether the winter is the best time for this sort of trip. Although the most memorable bike trips are often the ones where everything goes wrong, and you MacGyver your way through with your trusty Leatherman and biker pluck, you want to be certain that your riding styles (speed, stamina and stupidity) are in sync before heading out on what is likely to be a Memorable Ride, even if you only do the southern route.

If you've ridden together before and are road-compatible, then knock yerselves out, do whatever is cheapest. The northwet winter sucks, but if you don't mind slabbing it, you can probably get down to Norcal and head southeast in a couple of days (allow 1.5x the time to get back, just in case!) 2 weeks Seattle<>Florida in January is pretty aggressive, but I don't reckon it's impossible. If the journey is your destination, then I'd say "ride until you're half-way done, then turn back two days earlier." If you're looking to dip your toes in the Atlantic, maybe take a train/plane to Texas first.

Good luck!
posted by spacewrench at 5:54 PM on October 13

Quick and dirty, I'd say fly down and ride the rentals.

Riding the interstates down there isn't bad, but by the time you get there you'll be thinking more about finding a room with a jacuzzi than thinking about scenic routes.

This may not be giving the best economic advice, but shipping is (or often is) a pain in the ass and isn't worth it unless you're trying to rack up trophy miles on your bikes.

It sounds like you might be doing that on your NEXT trip.

Mind if I ask what bikes you guys ride?

Good luck and have fun!
posted by snsranch at 6:54 PM on October 13

snsranch - im on a 99 cbr 600 f4, and she's on an 81 cm 400. we're kind of a mismatched pair out on the road :)
posted by nihlton at 2:25 PM on October 14

Awesome! I hope you guys have a blast!
posted by snsranch at 5:41 PM on October 14