United States of America

Cycling in the USA is a dream for many,. Choose between the famous pacific coast highway 101, the Great divide mountain bike route or a coast to coast route of 5000 km. You'll find deserts, mountains, temperate rainforest, dramatic coastlines, metropolises, endless roads and agricultural fields.

People in the countryside quickly invite you to come and eat and/or stay overnight, especially if you are alone. In Alaska the people are very hospitable, friendly and helpful. They think cyclists are brave, sporty or crazy. They like to chat.

Bouke: "In the ten weeks that we cycled in the south, we met a lot of hospitality. We were spontaneously invited several times to come and have dinner or to stay. Not only in the countryside, but also, for example, near Washington. We soon decided gratefully accept all offers, unless they were obviously dubious in nature (which we haven't experienced!)."

Only Canadians and citizens of a few small islands can enter the U.S.A. without a visa. A few countries can apply for the Visa Waiver Program. Other countries need to apply for a standard visa.

We've heard rumours that you can't enter the U.S.A. if you've been to Iran before. Perhaps this is only the case when the stamp of Iran is still in your passport. Please verify this information if you have experience with this situation.

The United States and its territories

Visa-free countries

Visa Waiver Program countries

Visa required for entry to the United States

Source: Wikipedia.

The US is a safe country, especially outside the cities.

There is plenty of food available everywhere. Fresh fruit and vegetables, however, is very difficult, especially in sparsely populated areas. Gas stations and supermarkets in sparsely populated areas or along highways usually only have convenience food in their range.

Cooking fuel

The blue camping gas is unknown. They do have butane-propane canisters. Burner fuel is called white gas/white fuel or coleman fuel.

Bottle almost empty? ask someone who is mowing the lawn for some fuel (because jerry can). with a bit of luck you can also eat or sleep there.

Paul & Yvette: "We filled up our bottles at gas stations. They are not used to it, takes into account questions. For 20-30 cents you can cook for a week."

Supermarkets

The large supermarkets have a lot to offer. Try not to get lost :)

Paul & Yvette; "If you travel for a longer period of time in the country, it is useful to ask for a free membership card at the large supermarkets, this will give you nice discounts on the final amount."

Stalls on the street

Very good and cheap. Are subject to a license and therefore subject to the Commodities Actwet.

Restaurants

Restaurants are good and cheap, but not always pleasant. The portions are usually large. The service is often very fast; the bill comes pretty fast too. However, that is not meant to get you out the door!! Americans just don't usually eat out to dine for over an hour.

Eating vegetarian food in restaurants can be tricky. Especially in neighborhoods around universities a wide variety of restaurants with food from all over the world, vegetarian is also no problem here.

TIPS. gratuities are standard in the restaurant industry. Europeans are notorious for their bad tips.

a white-collar worker earns a fixed wage of about $500 a month (well below minimum wage!!) and the rest must be earned through tips. so just tip, guideline is 15-20%. a bad service does not always have to be the servant! in this case, tip 10-15% and leave 1 cent or 5 cents on the table.

No tipping required: starbucks, McD and other fast food chains, gas stations and their snack bars, chipotle, chickfilla, subway/quiznos and takeaway counters.

Do give tips: everything with service such as coffee / sandwich shops, pizza hut, dennys, arbys, applebees, steak house, sushi, chinese etc.

In Alaska it is advisable to bring food for 3 to 4 days, sometimes even for more days. Gas stations and lodges have food for sale (it is expensive there though). Distances between them vary between 80 and 150 km.

Drinkable water

Tap water is usually reliable, in large cities and desert areas it is chlorinated. Bottled drinking water is also readily available in less populated areas. In Alaska you have to filter the water beforehand. And often take water with you for 1 to 2 days.

Make sure to get a comprehensive health insurance. medical expenses are very high in the usa. If you need urgent care, do not go to the ER (emergency room) but to an urgent care center. this because of the cost!

Best time to cycle

The weather is most pleasant in spring and autumn, especially in the south. In autumn the forest areas are very beautiful.

Tip: in May - July it is best to cycle from east to west. If you cycle from west to east, some passes in the Rocky Mountains are closed until June because they are not yet free of snow. You can find more information about this on the forum.

Spare parts

There are many bike shops: every decent town has one. Only the distance between 2 bicycle repair shops is sometimes more than 300 km! Most bike shops have 26 inches in stock. 28" is usually found in cities.

if you need parts in the middle of nowhere, you can order them online and have them delivered or forwarded by UPS. UPS and Fedex also have stores where you can have your order delivered and picked up later. consult with the shop concerned first; sometimes $5 is charged for storage, etc.

There are only a few bike shops in Alaska, especially in the larger cities. This is not a problem for most materials.

Given the great distances and the few places in the Midwest, take spare spokes, tires and cables and of course tools.

Nice routes

• Adventure Cycling has many routes throughout the US. The great advantage of these routes is that they use quiet, safer roads. They publish maps on a bicycle-friendly scale over the entire route. See https://www.adventurecycling.org/routes-and-maps/
• The Crest Highway (Road 2) from Hollywood through the Gabrielle Mountains is beautiful, but tough to cycle. climb up to 3000 meters altitude.