USA - Daytona Bike Week - 2012

Join MC-Travel on a Harley-Davidson motorcycle tour to Daytona Bike Week in Florida.

Experience one of the world’s largest and most fascinating motorcycle rallies!

Daytona Bike Week is the largest motorcycle rally in the USA, and people come from the whole world to join in the party.

There are adventures and fascinating motorcycles to any taste.

We have made up a motorcycle holiday of 10 days in the South of Florida – and since we are in this area anyway, we have combined the tour with a trip to Key West, which is the southernmost point of the USA. The tour will take us across lots of bridges and to beautiful tropical islands.

You will have theopportunity to go on your own or with our guide.

The motorcycle tour Daytona Bike Week:
(new itineary coming soon)

View Daytona Bike Week (english) in a larger map

Day 1: Major European airport – Miami.
We meet in a major European airport and board our plane for Miami.

We will be picked up by our accompanying bus, and we will go for at short ride to the hotel, where we will stay overnight.

You will also have the opportunity to see the alligators living nearby.

Day 2: Miami – Key West.
We start the day by picking up our motorcycles and going towards the Florida Keys. The ride goes via Overseas Highway, a trip of 200 km. On the route there are lots of bridges and beautiful tropical islands.

The road ends in Key West, which is the southernmost point of the USA. The small green mile-marker signposts are also used as addresses along the Overseas Highway. For example,John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park at mile-marker 102 is facing the Atlantic Ocean. Distinction is made between addresses on the Atlantic Ocean-side and addresses on the Bay-side, facing the Gulf of Mexico.

There are no less than 42 bridges along the Overseas Highway, and you spend 15 percent of the total driving time crossing water.

The history of Overseas Highway.
It was the dream of building a railway down the east coast of Florida that laid the foundation stone of the Overseas Highway.

The building of the last stage of the Florida East Coast Railway started in 1904 in Miami, and in 1912, the railway to Key West was opened. The layout of the railway to Key West was considered as sheer madness by many, but oil-millionaire Henry Flagler, who funded the railway adventure in Florida, was stubborn and got his railway, which became a great attraction after the opening.

However, a heavy hurricane on Labour Day, the 2nd of September 1935, destroyed large parts of the railway. Instead of reconstructing the railway, it was decided to establish the Overseas Highway at the top of the old railway bridges that had survived the hurricane. In 1938, the Overseas Highway was opened to the delight of the many new motorists in the USA.

Today, the railway bridges have been substituted with new and wider road bridges, but the old solid railway bridges still remain to commemorate the time, when you could take the Key West express all the way from New York to thesouthernmost point of Florida.

Day 3: Key West.
We spend the day in Key West. The city is known for the lovely relaxed atmosphere and for Ernest Hemingway, who lived in the city. You will also have the opportunity to go snorkeling at a coral reef or to go for a sail in the Gulf of Mexico.

Key West is the jewel of the Florida Keys and the natural end station of the Overseas Highway. The place has always been known as a refuge for those who think differently, i.a. the intellectuals and hippies.

Key West started as a trading post, where particularly salvaging of wreckage was a very profitable business. Throughout history, innumerable ships have foundered upon hitting the treacherous rocks off Key West. The men of the city were constantly on standby and ready to go out on rescue operations to save sailors, passengers and – not least – valuable cargo from the ships.

The citizens of Key West have also had a reputation for “helping the business” themselves. Under the cover of darkness they lit false lighthouses and signal lights on the coast to lure the ships aground on the jagged reefs. This is refused point blank by the locals, though.

In any case, you can get the story of some of the numerous shipwrecks at the Key West Shipwreck Museum.

In 1912, Key West got a fixed link to the outside world, when Henry Flagler opened the last stage of the Florida East Coast Railway.

The opening of the railway suddenly made Key West a destination that was within the reach of tourists, and at the same time Key West became the intermediate station of a new ferry link between Key West and Havana in Cuba. The ferry sailed up until Fidel Castro’s takeover in 1959.

But it is chiefly owing to Ernest Hemingway that Key West has become so popular among the tourists. A trip to Key West is not perfect without a visit to the Hemingway House.

Hemingway is ”present” everywhere in Key West, but Sloppy Joe’s Bar at Duval Street is a great draw in particular. Don’t forget to see thesunset at Mallory Deck or to come by Sloppy Joe’s, the most popular bar in the area.

Day 4: Key West – Palm Beach.
We head north again, via the Florida Keys and through the gigantic urban area Miami/Fort Lauderdale to Palm Beach, where we stay overnight.

For a long time, the Palm Beach area has been known for its exclusiveness and wealth, and that is probably also the reason why the area is better known as ”The Golden Coast”.

There are plenty of wonderful beaches on the coastline along Palm Beach. Downtown on Worth Avenue you will find lots of great shops.

Those who are interested in culture will have the opportunity to see some of the museums of the city, e.g. the Henry Morrison Flagler Museum.

If you go a little further north to West Palm Beach, you will have the opportunity to experience i.a. the Lion Country Safari, where you can drive around and see the animals at very close range!

Day 5: Palm Beach – Daytona Beach.
We ride along the coast to Daytona Beach. We will be staying at a hotel that is situated very near the beach. We will spend the rest of the day taking a look around at the Bike Week and finding out where everything is.

Day 6 and 7: Bike Week.
The annual Daytona Bike Week in the USA is undoubtedly one of the ultimate H-D events. Since the beginning in 1937, the rally has grown to become one of the world’s largest motorcycle rallies, today stretching over two weeks.

We will make excursions to the various events that are scattered throughout the area.

There will also be motorcycle races at Daytona International Speedway for those who fancy that. Of course we will also make a trip – or two – to Main Street in Daytona Beach.

Day 8: Daytona Beach – Miami.
We leave Daytona and head for Miami, where we will hand over our motorcycles. We will spend the rest of the day taking a closer look at the known area, Miami Beach.

The classic Art Deco district in Miami Beach is without exaggeration the greatest draw of Miami. A stroll up and down the boardwalk is a must, when you visit the city. Ocean Drive is the place to go to be seen, but for the mere mortals it is just as fascinating to sit at one of the pavement cafés and watch the people passing by.

The special Art Deco style in Miami Beach dates from the thirties, where the low houses along Ocean Drive sprouted up. Originally, the houses were white, but today neon colours are the order of the day in Miami Beach.

Day 9: Journey home.
Since we are staying in Miami, we can pass the time until we board the plane relaxing or shopping. While the main part of the attention is focused on Miami Beach, downtown Miami is rather in the shadow of its “jaunty sister” on the coast.

However, when it comes to shopping, the choice is easy – Flagler Street downtown abounds in funny little shops, where you can buy cheap clothes, suitcases and electronic equipment of every shade. But you must be aware that the Cuban shop owners are clever business men. So if you don’t want to be taken in, you must be prepared to bargain – and make sure that you are up-to-date regarding price levels before you close a deal, especially when it comes to electronic equipment.

Day 10: Arrival.
We return to our starting point at a major European airport, and it is time to say goodbye. We hope that everybody has had a wonderful tour.