Testimonial Black Forest & Vosges Mountains August 2025

“Hello John (and Jen)!

Firstly, hats off to you, John, for what must have been a very tiring tour for you – having to ride each day and ensure we had the best time. We really appreciate the way you still kept your sense of humour and energy levels when many would have found a quiet corner and felt very sorry for themselves. Also kudos to Keith for being the driver in Jen’s stead, and to Neil and Ann for being great back-markers.

As can happen, a couple of riders went “off piste” during the tour but were safely gathered in with calmness and professionalism, proving the drop off and marker system works!

The tour was simply brilliant. With it being our second trip with you we were far-better prepared and ready for each day. With everyone being in the Calais hotel the night before the tour started it set the tone by kick-starting things early with what proved to be a very sociable group. What started as a table for four grew to a table for fifteen very quickly.

Apart from one day when the weather tried to scupper us with a torrential downpour, the blue skies and sunshine really showed off the tour route at its best. The scenery was fabulous, the routes a dream to ride and the hotels were all superb. The optional ride out into Switzerland was well-worth doing – loved the twisties to get there and the waterfall stop at the end. We just don’t know how you do it for the price!! And yes, already thinking about what we do next year, and to getting on your leaderboard!”

Kevin Lee & Linda Bell, 2nd tour, Triumph Tiger 1200 GT Pro, Devon

“Hi John and Jen, just a quick personal thanks for the splendid Black Forest tour, for me personally it was the best riding I have experienced. I cannot fault the accommodation or the excellent company, the highlight for me was the ride out to the Rhine falls which was one of those Goldilocks moments of biking:- perfect temperature, little traffic and superb roads.  The only thing I would say is that both I and I believe some others found a couple of the days a little too long, this of course exacerbated by the seemingly inevitable missed marker events.  How you both keep your cool and sense of humour sometimes amazes me, I look forward to seeing you next year. I hope all goes well with your dog, I know from experience how emotionally attached you become to them. Kind regards”

Derek Smith, 3rd tour, BMW 850 GS Adventure, Essex

“Hi all,

Unfortunately we didn’t  have the pleasure to meet you Jen.

We are back home without getting lost again!

Overall we have both had a fantastic experience, met some really nice people, developed our riding skills and rode some awesome roads.

John was a good guide, obviously very skilled and a good leader, but please don’t tell him or he’ll never get his helmet on!

Some of the roads and views were truly breathtaking and I may not have mentioned this on the whole trip, but there was some nice cake.

The drop of system was well explained and managed.

The hotels were all good, welcoming and had cake. At Baden-Baden we were greeted with beer, and there was cake.

We believe that it was a valuable experience and inspired us to perhaps tackle our own tour of Europe.

Also my bike sounded the nicest and clearly the best bike on the tour, despite what others said lol. However we are seriously looking at a comfort seat option as it was uncomfortable after a 1.5 hrs plus of riding.

The only negative was the structure and time constraints, which were things I discussed with John. Given distances needed to be travelled these negatives were more about us, rather than a complaint. We are a little less structured on our holidays due to our lifestyle being very structured at home.

Did I mention that there was some good cake on the trip? We would like to pass our thanks to John and Keith for a wonderful time, which we are still buzzing over. Many thanks”

Dave & Reina Shoobridge, Kawasaki Z1000 SX, Leicestershire

“Hi John & Jen, another fantastic tour, everything from the hotels, the included meals, the fabulous  roads and of course a great bunch of riders and pillions. John as always is a great host, and we’ll look forward to booking our next tour with him (& Jen) soon”

Terry (Suzuki GSXS 1000 GT) & Julie (Suzuki SV650) Meachim, 6th trip, West Sussex

“Hi John, this was another great holiday, with some of the nicest roads I’ve ridden, coupled with the nicest people you could ever hope to meet. The highlight for me was on the day off when we rode to the beautiful waterfalls, the roads were simply spectacular and I look forward to revisiting those again. The hotels and certainly the food was exceptional, and I enjoyed every single meal, and again the company of the group. The group were great, and I really enjoyed their company, and of course yours. Look forward to seeing you on the next trip in 2026.”

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Marcus James, 4th tour, Ducati Monster, Berkshire

“Just back from the Black Forest tour. Brilliant – great roads, hotels, meals and company. First time I’ve been with the luggage van, which was a great addition. This is my 9th BN Tour, looking forward to a 10th. Thanks John, Jen and Keith”

Mike Meachim, 9th trip, Ducati Multistrada V4, West Sussex

“Hi John and Jen and Keith, we thought the tour was excellent and such a sociable group too. We can’t really think of anything that we would change“

Neil & Ann Henderson, 12th tour, Yamaha Tracer 900 GT, Bedfordshire

Reece Compton, 14th tour, Ducati Multistrada V4, Essex

“Hi John and Jen, we really enjoyed the trip and were very sorry to get back to normality today! We were very fortunate to meet people on LeShuttle who were also on the trip and who got us to the hotel in Calais. Everyone was very welcoming. The meals were all excellent. All the hotels were good. All had different strengths. The parking was fine everywhere which is something we worry about when we book a hotel. It was nice to have some evening meals together and some we chose on the night.  Everyone being friendly made it very easy despite it being our first ever group holiday and our first time riding in Europe for 30 or so years.

We felt that the cuckoo was somewhat lethargic [it does weigh 23.5 stones!! – Jen] and of all the outings this was probably our least favourite. The waterfall outing was the highlight. Your group leadership, Keith in the van and Neil and Ann as back markers made it so easy, thank you all!

Thank you all very much for a fantastic holiday. If people have any doubts about whether they’re up to doing a trip, our experience suggests you can’t go far wrong with a BN holiday. The most difficult thing is choosing which trip to book next time. Thanks so much“

Tim & Maggie Henderson, 1st tour, Honda NC 750X, Devon

“Hi John & Jen & all the helpers…this was the first time we have repeated one of the trips as a group trip and still enjoyed it, more than the first time. One because I am a better rider now, the weather was much better and I was sharing it with great like-minded people. This was my 12th trip and waiting to book my next one as soon as we can. This group really suits us as being on two bikes we really can ride our own ride, not having to constantly check we are both close together. We are also not glued to sat navs (although we do have them) as we follow the riders in front with the great drop off system. Thanks to everyone for making this a great trip, see you on the next one”

Lynne Wareing, 12th trip, Triumph Tiger 660 Sport, Manchester

Thanks to everyone for great riding & for making this such a fun tour. Thanks to Neil & Ann for riding as back-markers and to Keith for driving the van. Thanks to all those who have sent such detailed feedback – the time you’ve spent on doing this is much appreciated. Thanks also to Reece, Keith, Linda & Neil for sending lots of photos in Jen’s absence. We look forward to seeing many of you again in the future. Ride safe – John & Jen.