Holidays on two wheels: the best on and off road routes
An 87-day journey from Munich to Da Nang, Vietnam. The black Icelandic desert or the 33 Alpine passes to be tackled in a week. Or Uganda, for a safari that takes a social turn. Between high technical performance and sporting performance.
4' min read
4' min read
Travelling to discover distant lands, on a two-wheeler, responds to a desire for freedom that has grown considerably over the last ten years: from 54,607 registrations in 2014 (including enduro, sport, touring, custom, naked) to 166,454 last year (Ancma data). From the hairpin bends of the Stelvio to the hills of the Langhe, from Cinque Terre to the Amalfi Coast, from Chianti to Sulcis, Italy is the destination par excellence for motorbike enthusiasts. It is no coincidence that, practically every year, at the start of the summer season, Ducati and Dainese organise the Expedition Masters Italia, seven days and 1,500 kilometres: in total, there are 33 passes to tackle, with heights varying between 315 and 2,779 metres, on asphalt surfaces of all types.
For those who already know the roads of our peninsula very well, looking abroad is essential to measure oneself on new routes in unusual places. From 12 to 18 July, a tour of Iceland Off-Road starts, which is much more than a holiday: 7 days and 1,100 kilometres of escapism among active volcanoes and glaciers, where the discovery of the landscape is accompanied by a strong riding experience on the Ducati DesertX and DesertX Rally, among fords and black desert. At the end of September, however, the two motorbike brands head west, on the most classic of motorbike tours: the western United States. Eleven days, 3,200 kilometres along the historic Route66, starting and finishing in Las Vegas along the roads of Nevada, Arizona and Utah, passing through Death Valley, the Grand Canyon and Monument Valley.
For those looking for more motivation than pure fun, from 13 to 21 September, Dainese is organising a trip to Uganda that combines motorcycling and social commitment. Nine days, 1,500 kilometres between the capital Kampala, safaris in Murchison Park and Lake Mburo, crossing the equator, but also visits to hospitals and villages benefiting from projects supported by Doctors with Africa Cuamm, to whom a portion of the cost of participation is donated. For its part, Ducati is looking even further east, with six days inside Thailand's Golden Triangle, the mountainous area bordering Laos and Myanmar, for over a thousand kilometres of dirt and paved roads riding a Ducati DesertX. And, in November, in Australia, with Xpeditions - High Country 2025, where on a Multistrada V2 or V4, a DesertX or DesertX Rally, you will explore the High Country landscape in Victoria. Winding mountain passes, bush tracks, wide dirt roads, boutique lodges and gourmet dining in the heart of Australia.
For those who prefer adventures in small groups, but with a broad view of less travelled trails, 77Roads is an Italian agency, based in the province of Lucca, that organises tailor-made trips, individually or in pairs, or for small groups of friends up to a maximum of 10 motorbikes, with guidance, accompaniment and assistance throughout the entire route.
Among the most interesting proposals for this year is the Silk Road: 24 days in August through Turkey, Iran, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan. From Istanbul and Safranbolu, the tour winds its way through the mountains of Pontus, Iranian territory with Tabriz, Tehran, the Caspian coast and the Golestan National Park, with a night in a tented camp set up near the striking chasm known as the Gates of Hell; then Uzbekistan and its caravan cities, Khiva, Bukhara and Samarkand, ending even further east, in the Pamir mountains. Alternatively, in the second half of August, one can opt for an Indonesian tour, between Java and Bali, or postpone it to October and set off on a tour of Rajasthan that touches on the Thar desert, the oasis cities of Bikaner and Jaisalmer, the sacred lakes and painted Havelis, all in the saddle of the ever-popular Royal Enfield, an institution before being a motorbike, or even a mountain route in the High Atlas Mountains and the cities of Morocco.
