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Redspokes Cycling Grades – How We Classify Our Tours
Accommodation plays an important role in shaping your overall travel experience, from how well you rest at night to how deeply you connect with the places you visit. Our grading system is designed to give you a clear and realistic idea of what to expect, helping you choose the style of trip that best matches your comfort preferences, travel priorities, and sense of adventure.
Rather than focusing solely on star ratings, we look at accommodation in context. In remote or developing regions, the best available option may be simple but full of character, while in major cities or popular destinations, comfort and style naturally increase. Each grade reflects a balance between location, atmosphere, facilities, and how well the accommodation complements the journey itself.
Whether you’re happy with basic lodgings that bring you closer to local life, prefer reliable comfort after a full day of exploration, or enjoy a higher level of refinement without sacrificing authenticity, our accommodation grading helps set expectations and ensures there are no surprises along the way.
TRADITIONAL
Traditional accommodation focuses on simplicity, authenticity and location rather than luxury. Depending on the tour, this may include simple local hotels, guesthouses, homestays, mountain lodges, yurts or camping, particularly when travelling through rural, mountainous or remote areas.
Accommodation is generally simple and functional, although rooms will have private bathroom facilities. Standards and facilities can vary from place to place, and you should expect more basic furnishings, fewer amenities and a simpler overall level of comfort than on our Comfortable or Premium tours.
These stays are often an important part of the journey, allowing us to travel through remote communities and spectacular landscapes where more conventional tourist accommodation may not be available. What they may lack in facilities is often more than compensated for by their character, location and the opportunity to experience local hospitality.
This grade is ideal for travellers who value adventure, authenticity and a strong sense of place, and who are happy to accept simpler accommodation as part of the experience.
Example Tour: Vietnam North East
COMFORTABLE (MID)
Comfortable accommodation offers a good balance of comfort, character and location. Most nights are spent in carefully selected hotels, smaller boutique properties and quality guesthouses, providing a comfortable and welcoming place to relax after a day’s cycling. Rooms have private bathrooms and a good standard of facilities.
We favour properties with character and a sense of place rather than large international-style hotels, and standards and styles will naturally vary from country to country.
On occasional nights, particularly when the route takes us into rural or remote areas, accommodation may be simpler than the usual standard. In these locations, we select the best or most suitable accommodation available, allowing us to explore places that would otherwise be difficult to include in the journey.
This grade is ideal for travellers who value a good level of comfort and privacy while still enjoying the character, culture and adventure of travelling through less-visited regions.
Example Tour: North Thailand
PREMIUM
Premium accommodation represents a high level of comfort, with most nights spent in carefully selected hotels and outstanding boutique properties chosen for their quality, character, location and service. These properties often stand out for their design, setting and attention to detail, offering comfortable rooms, excellent dining and thoughtful amenities.
On some tours, the journey takes us into remote or less-developed areas where premium accommodation simply isn’t available. On these occasional nights, you may stay in a more basic hotel, guesthouse or lodge. We believe these stays are an important part of the experience, allowing us to explore special places that would otherwise be difficult to reach.
Throughout the tour, our focus is on choosing the best accommodation available in each location while keeping you connected to the places you are travelling through. This might mean a beautiful boutique hotel in a historic town, a comfortable lodge in a spectacular natural setting, or occasionally a simple room in a remote village.
This grade is ideal for travellers who appreciate a high standard of comfort while still embracing the adventure, culture and authentic experiences that make a redspokes journey special.
Example Tour: Sri Lanka Classic
Need some help?
Still not sure which tour is right for you? Tell us how often you ride, the kind of terrain you enjoy, and your ideal holiday length and we’ll suggest a shortlist of tours that fit you.