Enduro Long Weekend

Three nights at Banya near Bansko, guided, on an enduro bike in the Bulgarian mountains, with no motorcycle licence required.

The licence point is worth leading on. The riding is on private and forest trails rather than public roads, so anyone who has never held a motorcycle licence can take part, which puts a genuine off-road week within reach of complete beginners.

The base is Enduro Max’s own spa hotel at Banya, a village known for its mineral water a few kilometres from Bansko, and the riding days head out into the surrounding mountains with a guide, returning to the hotel and its thermal pools each evening. The full day-by-day itinerary was not available on the operator’s page, so the exact routes are worth asking for at booking, but the format follows the operator’s other trips: a briefing on arrival, guided riding at a pace matched to ability, lunch at a village restaurant and a different way home each day.

The bikes are GasGas models from 2022 onwards, and the price covers the bike, the guiding and the accommodation; the detailed inclusions were not itemised on the page and are worth confirming at booking, along with what is and is not covered on the meals. The price shown is per person sharing. Four days makes this the shortest trip the operator runs and the cheapest way to find out whether enduro riding suits before committing to a longer one. Spring and autumn suit the trail conditions best, since the summer can be hot and the winter trails need the specialist tyres the operator fits for its ski-season trip.