Does a Motorcycle-Friendly Motels & Hotels Guide exist for the US and Canada?

[wkoppa]

So Wayne, do you happen to remember what that room ran you and did it include a buffet breakfast and dinner? Or better still, the name of the hotel to see what it goes for today.

For you guys coming up here, it is a deal. For me heading stateside, paying an extra 36% or more using our worthless dollars is a killer. I heard Monopoly sets will now have Canadian dollars in it aka play money.

Don't remember - don't care.

Canada can be reasonable if you don't count the price of fuel (compared to US) Value Added Tax on lodging and prices during popular holidays (Canada Day). We spent a few days in Tobermory, ON over the 4th of July and Canada Day. Over 600.00 US for three nights in a rustic cabin, no air. They were slammed, meals and lodging were pricey. We will be back.

Comparing prices in Europe without mentioning you can't get there and back without a pricey airline ticket and a loss of time to travel days does not tell the whole story.

I have free lodging in Greece where the population makes even less than those in Italy compared to US and probably Canadian wages. Lodging and meal cost is I am sure respectively less than here. If you stick to lower income countries then you should find lower expenses than most of North America.

I have lived and worked overseas. I have plenty to see and do here. Before many can make it to the airport and thru customs I can be on the road to a place I want to go. Its more a process of organizing you time and priorities. Something I am not the best at.

Wayne Koppa
Grayling, MI
#71,449L

[GlobalRider]

Comparing prices in Europe without mentioning you can't get there and back without a pricey airline ticket and a loss of time to travel days does not tell the whole story.

Wayne Koppa

Actually touring Europe in 2003, the cost per day including airfare was less than my 2003 Eastern Canada tour. All things being equal, hard to believe, but spreadsheets do not lie.

[PGlaves]

Actually touring Europe in 2003, the cost per day including airfare was less than my 2003 Eastern Canada tour. All things being equal, hard to believe, but spreadsheets do not lie.

A few years ago, when we were spending up to four months touring North America on our motorcycles each summer I built a spreadsheet: not to track what we were spending but to compute what we could afford to spend. I computed as best I could all fixed household expenses: insurance, utilities, taxes, vehicle depreciation, fund for home repairs, etc. I then subtracted total fixed expenses with a liberal allowance for the unexpected from our total net annual income. That provided an amount for discretionary spending which I divided by 365, providing a net daily budget.

Any day we spent less that amount we were richer when we went to bed than we were when we got up that morning. Some days we blew the budget like when we needed a couple of new bike tires. Some days we were way under. But I could keep a good sense on what we could afford as we toured. Some days we camped; some days we were in hotels. Fuel was fuel and food was food. But I knew our daily budget as a round number. It was a good guide to spending and what we could afford day after day.

This is of course hardly needed for a one or two week trip but was very helpful for traveling a third of the year.

[GlobalRider]

A few years ago, when we were spending up to four months touring North America on our motorcycles each summer I built a spreadsheet: not to track what we were spending but to compute what we could afford to spend.

Paul, I've been touring Europe yearly since 1995 and I often get asked what does it cost because we can't all afford to take guided tours or for someone like me, I look for value. And when you are there for 5-7 weeks every summer, you need to budget. Mind you, that is never an issue in the Alps or I would not have gone back as often.

Of course if my last name was Bezos, Musk or Gates, why would I worry.

[motormike]

Then 19 years later, I stayed in Arabba in the Dolomites, Italy. I have stayed there a few times over the years so far. The 2022 price was €72 per person including an all-you-can-eat breakfast buffet (trust me, far better than we get here) and a four-course dinner (drinks are extra). .

While I've only been able to tour the Alps and Dolomites a couple of times, I'm amazed at how much cheaper and BETTER the hotels in Europe and the UK are compared to the US. Their breakfast buffet spreads will blow you away with their selections and quality of foods. US hotels are a bland, overpriced embarrassment by comparison.

[Visian]

While I've only been able to tour the Alps and Dolomites a couple of times, I'm amazed at how much cheaper and BETTER the hotels in Europe and the UK are compared to the US. Their breakfast buffet spreads will blow you away with their selections and quality of foods. US hotels are a bland, overpriced embarrassment by comparison.

Amen.

[GlobalRider]

US hotels are a bland, overpriced embarrassment by comparison.

Exactly! Same goes for motels and hotels in Canada as well.

I just love it when someone on a forum tries to school me on something I have been doing for 27 years touring there. Or the clown on another forum trying to school me on vehicle batteries; good luck with that one as well.

[kbasa]

Just like I have some for Europe and logged into my mobile with GPS co-ordinates listing prices, amenities, etc.

Now that I am done with touring the Alps and Europe after 27 years of doing so, at my older age I am looking to tour this side of the pond where roads are a lot less technical. I have done very little "motorcycle" touring here: NY, VT, MI, WI, FL and ON, QC, NB, NS, NFLD/Labrador and hope to do much more.

But looking at the motel & B&B rates here, what the eff are they smoking in comparison to what I paid overseas. No comparison in what you get for your buck.

All I know is I have never seen such a Guide, but then I also never really looked for one. Anything On-Line?

Thanks!

No wonder you're not impressed with North American roads if that's the sum of your riding here. No offense intended at all.

I've never seen such a hotel guide. I like to use Hotels.com and in 40ish years of touring in the US, I've only had a couple bad experiences. One in a hotel back in the early 90s (kind of a funny story, actually) and the other in a campground that was not funny. That's out of hundreds of nights of traveling. There used to be a book series, "Motorcycle Adventures in [your region here]", but I don't think they've been updated in 25 years.

Come on out to California. If you want technical, we've got that. If you want sweepers, we've got that. If you get 50 miles outside the major cities, the place is deserted, too. Seriously. I've been to 48 states and while Vermont isn't exactly flat, most of those locales don't have any serious mountain roads. I've also learned that "twisty roads" in Wisconsin means something different than it does here. No offense intended; they're just different places with different expectations.

I'd highly recommend buying a set of Butler Maps as you being exploring. I think you'll be pleasantly surprised by the sheer variety of roads available in North America. Until you get further south on the Appalachians and Smokies, or over to the Ozark or west of Denver, you really haven't see much of the good riding on this continent.

Been to 49 states and most of the provinces, so ask away about locales. I'm sure others here can point you to interesting riding locations around the continent.

We've had good luck with renting AirBnBs and using them as a base of operations, which allows us to live like a local and run loops out of the house. Many have a garage so you can keep your bike safe. We like to rent them in fairly rural areas and like to make sure it has a hot tub or something. Just a thought about other options beyond hotels.

I hope that's helpful.

I'd strongly recommend maybe checking some of the regional brewers here in N. America, too. You may expand your World of Beer and Ale a little bit for the better.

Enjoy, Alex. I think once you make it out of the NE corner of the continent, you're going to be surprised by both the sheer volume of decent riding, but how uncrowded most of it is; especially in the west whether CA or US.

[ebell]

Does that qualify it as motorcycle friendly?

Not really, I couldn't get past the front door. YMMV.

[kbasa]

I like Butler maps for planning. Sever years ago I started using Rever so I can see the Butler maps on my tablet during trips.
MOA members get a 15% discount on Butler map and 33% discount on Rever.

https://www.bmwmoa.org/page/member_disc_public

https://www.rever.co/

https://butlermaps.com/

Yep.

Astonishingly great maps. The road ranking system is genius and has been accurate in my experience. FWIW, the scale on my NorCal and SoCal maps are 1:890,000 and 1:300,000 for the map insets. If the need for scale is mileage measurement, they usually have "pins" on main intersections and mileage indicated alongside the route between two "pins".

Good to know on the discount. I'm going to use both.

[GlobalRider]

No wonder you're not impressed with North American roads if that's the sum of your riding here. No offense intended at all.

YouTube did the rest and from what I saw, I was not impressed.

As for maps, 1:200 000 is as far as I will go and prefer 1:150 000 or 1:175 000. I like detail. Now you know how I find all the great roads.

Actually Dave, PM me 5 YouTube links to what you consider to be great riding roads. Not on here since this thread is about motels & hotels. Seems that a few that have experienced both here and there confirmed my thoughts.