Hungary, Slovakia, Poland and Czech Republic Self-Guided Motorcycle Tour

Thirteen nights across seven countries, self-guided, which is the same flagship route RideWithUs run with a guide and several hundred pounds cheaper.

The difference is the company rather than the itinerary: the hotels, the crossings, the GPX files and the day-by-day plan are all the same, and the riding is done at whatever pace suits the rider, which on a route of this length is a real consideration, since a fortnight in formation does not suit everyone.

The Ardennes, the Black Forest and the Salzburg region come first on the way east, then Lake Balaton in Hungary with a free day for Sumeg Castle or the thermal lake at Heviz. Slovakia takes the middle: the Low Tatras, then the High Tatras by way of three national parks and Banska Bystrica, in a range that is compact, steep and almost unknown to British riders. Krakow follows with a free day for the old town, Wawel Castle and the Wieliczka salt mine, then Prague with another, and Franconia and the Ardennes on the ride home.

Thirteen nights of bed and breakfast, five evening meals and the return Eurotunnel crossing are included, along with the GPX routes, the kit list and the emergency numbers; fuel, parking, admissions and the vignettes are not. Fourteen days for this much of Europe means long transit days at either end and three free days in the middle. Summer is the season, since the Tatra passes are a different proposition in cold weather, and the roads further east reward a bike with some suspension travel. For a rider who has already done western Europe, this is the tour in the range worth looking at.