FAQ

The cycling tours run from mid April to early October. July and August are the busiest times of the season.

In our opinion, May and September are the best times to come. The countryside looks beautiful during these months and they are less busy than other times of the summer. In May, summer will be in full bloom and in September the autumnal colours will be creeping in.

We receive bookings for the coming season all year round. Mid January to mid April is the busiest time for the year for bookings, with lots of people planning their summer trips. A lot of guests book before Christmas, which is a great plan since there will be more choice for hotels and B&Bs. Bookings after April are more difficult as it depends on rooms being available in various hotels/B&Bs during the tour. Late bookings can be more expensive for the same reason but we will always tell you this in advance.

You can choose any date that suits you between April and October. Availability of a start date depends mainly on the rooms being available in the hotels and B&Bs.

We are based in Galway but run tours all along the Atlantic coast of Ireland. Most tours start with a night in Galway, which is easily accessible to Dublin airport, Shannon Airport and Ireland West airport. We also start tours from Westport, Clifden, Ennis, Cong, Kinvara and Oughterard and it is possible to arrange a customised starting and finish point.

Yes. We normally run a few group guided tours per year along the Atlantic coast. These tours have an experienced guide in a support vehicle and typically have 12 to 16 riders. Usually, these groups are already formed before they contact us but sometimes, couples or smaller groups of people can join together to form a guided group. We have run guided tours all along the west coast of Ireland, including Connemara, The Burren, Kerry and Donegal.

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Yes, no problem. We will happily change out the pedals for your own set of pedals. You will need to notify us in advance if you would like this service. Please also bring your own cycling shoes as we do not hire cycling shoes.

Yes, we have a network of drop-off and collection points throughout Ireland. The price of which depends on how far away it is from Galway. Please send an email to ask about this.

If you have a mechanical problem during your tour, we will figure out a solution. All our bikes are fully serviced by experienced bike mechanics and mechanical issues are rare but sometimes things break and if this happens, we will help straight away. If you have a problem that is easily repaired, we may arrange a mechanic to come to you and fix it or, we will send a replacement bike to you. In previous instances of mechanical problems, guests always have a fix or replacement bike the same day it is reported.

We also provide repair kits with every bike. The kit includes a bike tool, repair kit, tyre irons (for removing the tyre), spare tube and pump.

Yes, we have top of the range Trek e-bikes with a Bosch motor and 500w battery with daily range of over 80 kilometres.

Yes, you can do any of our tours using your own bike if preferred. We may not be able to help fix your bike if it has mechanical problems. You will also need to be able to assemble and disassemble your own bike at the beginning and end of the tour. 99% of guests use our bikes, which are a very high standard for a rental fleet. Frequently, when guests bring their own bikes, problems are encountered during shipping so unless you ship your bike frequently, we advise against bringing your own bike.

Yes, your tour includes a hybrid bicycle, helmet, pannier, lock and repair kit.

Most of our tours include a luggage transfer service. We provide you with our luggage tags at the beginning of the tour and we transfer the bags from accommodation to accommodation each day. Typically the bags are collected around 11am and arrive at the next stop around 2pm. Guests usually bring 1 or 2 bags per person but if it is significantly more than this, please let us know in advance.

Yes, if you prefer a tour without our luggage transfer service, just let us know at the time of booking. We have bike panniers which attach easily to our bikes. The panniers are Ortlieb Backroller bags with a capacity of 35L per bag. The panniers are 100% waterproof just in case it rains

The answer to this is ‘maybe’. The luggage is transferred by one of our trusted transfer providers and sometimes they may not have the space for people or bikes. If you can’t or don’t want to cycle we ask for you to let us know in advance (the day before) and we will make a plan to get you and your bike to the next destination.

We will take care of you and can arrange the necessary help and further transport. If you feel unwell or cannot continue on the tour for any reason, we will help arrange transport to the next town or airport if need be. If you need medical assistance we can help contact you with local medical services and if you need transport home, we can help arrange a taxi to the nearest airport.

It is a good idea to bring water, snacks, a light waterproof jacket and an extra layer in case you get cool. Frequently it is cooler in the morning at the start of the ride and you can shed layers as you warm up.

We constantly monitor the weather during the summer and if the forecast is too bad to cycle, we will contact you in advance and let you know. We will arrange alternate transport for you, either with the luggage or we will send a vehicle to transport you.
Sometimes, we get storms with strong winds and we do not let our guests cycle during these weather conditions. During a typical cycling season, from mid-April to early October, there will be 5 or 6 days in total, when the weather is too bad to cycle. Light rain and showers are common but not too bad to cycle in.

Our weather is unpredictable and it is not possible to know with any great certainty what the weather will be more than 3 or 4 days in advance. Temperatures are typically 15 to 18 degrees but can sometimes go into the low 20’s for a few weeks each summer but it is not possible to predict when this will happen. Rain and showers are common but usually short lived. A typical summer day would have light winds, blue sky with passing rain showers, which last 10 to 15 minutes. It is also common to have stretches of weeks with no or very little rain. The summer days are long with sunrise around 4:30am and daylight until almost 11pm (mid June). Heavy rain showers and strong winds are less likely during the summer, but still possible and if this is forecast during the cycling day, we will contact you to arrange alternate transportation (only on our selfguided and guided cycling tours).

If you opt for our standard tours you will be staying in top rated B&B and hotel accommodation. These B&Bs are very highly rated and are perfectly set up for cyclists. Breakfast is included and the rooms are almost always ensuite. The hosts are welcoming and will have useful information about the local area.

Yes, all the B&Bs and hotels and wifi.

Yes, there is a phone signal along about 90% of our cycling routes. Some routes which pass through narrow valleys with surrounding hills have patches with no phone coverage but this is rare.

Yes, please let us know in advance and we will advise the accommodation listing. All the accommodation providers are well used to special requirements be they vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, etc. Gluten free is quite common in Ireland and restaurants do cater with at least one dish.

Insurance is not included as part of the tour price. Please ensure you have your own travel insurance in place before arrival.

Yes, provided the children are used to being on a bike, either cycling themselves or in a child seat.

Yes, no problem. If a member of a group would like to be part of the tour but not cycle, we can organise alternative transport. We will explain the cost of this in advance.

Yes. Sometimes part of a group decides to rent a car and carry the bags and the rest cycle and we can explain and advise on this at the time of booking.

Yes, no problem. However, if your tour finishes in a different location, we would need to transfer it to your final hotel or you can come back to the starting point to collect it.

With over 2,000 km of coastal cycling to enjoy, the West of Ireland is perfectly suited to explore by bike. That being said, there are stretches of road that should be avoided by bike and we will always choose the safest cycling route for you.

The minimum number of participants for a guided Green Marble Cycle Tour is 6 people and the maximum number is 16, on a self-guided tour the minimum is one person and the maximum again would be 16 guests. We suggest you book your tour as early as possible, in order to guarantee your reservation.

To reserve your cycling tour, we require a booking payment of €100 per person once your itinerary is agreed. Once your payment has been received, we will send you a confirmation. The booking payment is non-refundable.

The final payment date for your tour will depend on your tour start date. For tours starting in April, the final payment date is 1 March. For tours starting in May & June, the final payment date is 31 March. For tours starting in July, the final payment date is 30 April. For tours starting in August, the final payment date is 31 May. For tours starting in Sept, the final payment date is 30 June.

Should you be unable to proceed with your tour for any reason you should inform us immediately. Our cancellation and refund policy for all tours is as follows:

• Booking payments are non-refundable. Cycling tour bookings require a considerable amount of time to arrange including booking hotels/B&Bs, transfer services, preparing tour documents and files, corresponding with guests and also booking ferries, bikes, taxis etc and the booking payment covers a part of this work and is therefore non-refundable in the event of a cancellation.
• The final payment is 100% refundable until 30 days before arrival. If you cancel within 30 days, it is non-refundable.