En Pangea Routes We have been designing, marketing and manufacturing since 1993. bicycle trips. We have seen many changes in the sector since then and have seen how the bicycle tourism.

First we saw with envy (even today, a little, the truth) how in countries like Germany, Holland or France, to travel by bicycle became a popular phenomenon. Over time we saw how France worked, as a country, to become a reference destination with planning that included tours, specialized establishments or establishments oriented to customer needs, promotion and, in a very special way, the creation of bicycle tourism product.

Another great project that we have followed from the beginning is that of Eurovelo, a project of the ECF (European Cyclists' Federation) which proposes 14 routes of cycling long-distance routes through 42 countries and that will total more than 70.000 kilometers once all the itineraries are completed. In Spain we are very behind with its development but we see how little by little the parties are aligning to develop the itineraries and 2014 is being a key year. Meanwhile we use Eurovelo in our summer bike trips, as shown by a button.

At that time we continued with our routes, at first almost exclusively Mountain bike routes, but then also cycle tourism routes, road bike trips. The sector has been growing and there are now many companies in Spain that offer bicycle trips. The market has been growing. Many entities and institutions have helped in this task, for example, Greenways, who have managed to position an excellent brand, based on excellent quality standards and constant work. Greenways and the Board of Andalucía They have also provided us with an excellent report on the Economic Impact of Cycle Tourism which contributes to better understanding the economic dimensions of the cycle tourism activity.

And to cite another Autonomous Community that is getting involved in the development of bicycle tourism, Estremadura is developing and will soon present its Regional Nature and Sports Tourism Strategy and is working decisively to create a bicycle tourism product. There are also major absences in our opinion, such as the fact that the SGT (General Secretariat of Tourism), dependent on the Ministry of Industry, Energy and Tourism, has not taken any steps to draw up some master lines to help Spain become a relevant destination for he bicycle tourism.

This year is being different, we have no doubt. He bicycle tourism has even begun to appear in the economic press, CINCO DÍAS in September of this year “Tourists get on the bike”, in specialized magazines of the sector such as in the SAVIA Magazine of AMADEUS, also in September, with the title “Cycle tourism without a road map”. This November, HOSTELTUR magazine published the article “Run and pedal with travel agencies” We see that the sector's interest is growing in products that are designed to cover specific market niches with clients with specific needs.

In September the fair was held in Madrid UNIBIKE, a great bicycle fair. This year he created a space to talk about bicycle tourism similar to euro Bike one of the benchmark fairs in the sector. Another example of the interest of bicycle trips.

To finish some data collected by CYCLOSPHERE  In this month of November, “leisure seems to lean in favor of the bicycle: cycle tourism is one of the most popular options in the US, surpassing golf as a free-time activity” echoing a report published by the World Travel Market which reflects that more and more citizens are choosing the bicycle as a companion on their vacations.

The year is ending and without a doubt we can say that it has been a good year. It is increasingly clear that the bicycle tourism It is a good way to create a new product, diversify the tourist offer, promote inland tourism proposals and help break the marked seasonality of our country.

We also hope that 2015 will be even better for all the people who work in the cycling.

A greeting.