civismundi
Member
Fellow Beemer Riders,
I would like to bring a company to your attention that might be of interest to you if you are thinking about renting a motorcycle for a tour in Europe, specifically, starting in Southern Germany. (Full disclosure: I am originally from Germany but live in the US).
My wife and I recently returned from a 12-day self-organized motorbike trip from Germany through Switzerland to Southern France and back. We did a similar tour last year, through Austria and the Dolomites in Northern Italy. For both trips we rented a R1250GS from a company called Enduro Reise & Training, located in the town of Bad Groenenbach, about 60 miles (100km) WSW of Munich in the Allgaeu region. (https://www.enduro-reise-training.de/en/). I haven't seen them advertise here in the US, so I thought I would briefly introduce them.
This company for many years ran BMW's Enduro training center in Hechlingen, Germany, on behalf of BMW, until they lost that operator contract to another bidder last year, as I understand. Now they are focusing more on tours and rental, and enduro training at their other facility in Aras, Spain. They have a substantial fleet of all-BMW bikes and they know these bikes better than most. The bikes they provided us with were very low on miles and in top condition. Of course you can also rent optional equipment like luggage and GPS.
The company also operates a Touratech gear shop right next to the rental office, if you wanted to treat yourself to a new outfit or needed some gadgets for your tour. From the shop you can rent gear for your trip, and I did that last year; rented pants and jacket. It was high quality stuff and I felt very well protected in it, but I found it a little too heavy and hot for the summer. This year I brought my own mesh-like gear with me. (Renting gear unfortunately is not an option for my wife. With her petite size it is almost impossible to find good gear for her to buy, let alone rent.)
The only downside to renting from this company is the fact that their location is not the most convenient to get to. Not difficult, just a bit inconvenient. Bad Groenenbach is a small town and the rental company is located outside of town in a light industrial area, albeit near an exit of a major Autobahn route. I don't think there is even a local taxi service that could take you from a hotel in town to the rental company (too far to walk). There is a train station about a 15 minutes walk from the rental office but I don't know how many connections there are. The nearest larger cities are Memmingen, about 10 miles north, and Kempten, about 10 miles south.
Renting the bike from this place worked well for us because after arriving in Germany from the US we normally take a rental car at MUC airport anyway. The first two or three days in Germany we spend visiting family and friends, and doing some sightseeing and shopping. We need this time to get a bit over the jetlag. I would not want to hop off the plane onto the bike right away, especially since I can never get any sleep on an overnight flight to Europe. We then return the rental car at Memmingen Airport, where many of the large car rental companies are represented, and take a taxi to the bike rental place. On the way back we do it in reverse: taxi from the bike rental to Memmingen Airport, there we take a rental car that we return at MUC airport for our flight back to the US a day or two later.
The taxi sets you back about 60 Euro each way, not cheap, and I don't think there are ride-sharing options. But therefore the rental fees at Enduro Reise & Training are very reasonable, and, really, this is a very small part of the overall cost of such a trip, if you consider air tickets, accommodation, and all.
If you are looking for BMW to rent and the location of this company suits your itinerary, check them out. I found the folks there very competent and helpful, and would rent from them again anytime.
Safe travels!
I would like to bring a company to your attention that might be of interest to you if you are thinking about renting a motorcycle for a tour in Europe, specifically, starting in Southern Germany. (Full disclosure: I am originally from Germany but live in the US).
My wife and I recently returned from a 12-day self-organized motorbike trip from Germany through Switzerland to Southern France and back. We did a similar tour last year, through Austria and the Dolomites in Northern Italy. For both trips we rented a R1250GS from a company called Enduro Reise & Training, located in the town of Bad Groenenbach, about 60 miles (100km) WSW of Munich in the Allgaeu region. (https://www.enduro-reise-training.de/en/). I haven't seen them advertise here in the US, so I thought I would briefly introduce them.
This company for many years ran BMW's Enduro training center in Hechlingen, Germany, on behalf of BMW, until they lost that operator contract to another bidder last year, as I understand. Now they are focusing more on tours and rental, and enduro training at their other facility in Aras, Spain. They have a substantial fleet of all-BMW bikes and they know these bikes better than most. The bikes they provided us with were very low on miles and in top condition. Of course you can also rent optional equipment like luggage and GPS.
The company also operates a Touratech gear shop right next to the rental office, if you wanted to treat yourself to a new outfit or needed some gadgets for your tour. From the shop you can rent gear for your trip, and I did that last year; rented pants and jacket. It was high quality stuff and I felt very well protected in it, but I found it a little too heavy and hot for the summer. This year I brought my own mesh-like gear with me. (Renting gear unfortunately is not an option for my wife. With her petite size it is almost impossible to find good gear for her to buy, let alone rent.)
The only downside to renting from this company is the fact that their location is not the most convenient to get to. Not difficult, just a bit inconvenient. Bad Groenenbach is a small town and the rental company is located outside of town in a light industrial area, albeit near an exit of a major Autobahn route. I don't think there is even a local taxi service that could take you from a hotel in town to the rental company (too far to walk). There is a train station about a 15 minutes walk from the rental office but I don't know how many connections there are. The nearest larger cities are Memmingen, about 10 miles north, and Kempten, about 10 miles south.
Renting the bike from this place worked well for us because after arriving in Germany from the US we normally take a rental car at MUC airport anyway. The first two or three days in Germany we spend visiting family and friends, and doing some sightseeing and shopping. We need this time to get a bit over the jetlag. I would not want to hop off the plane onto the bike right away, especially since I can never get any sleep on an overnight flight to Europe. We then return the rental car at Memmingen Airport, where many of the large car rental companies are represented, and take a taxi to the bike rental place. On the way back we do it in reverse: taxi from the bike rental to Memmingen Airport, there we take a rental car that we return at MUC airport for our flight back to the US a day or two later.
The taxi sets you back about 60 Euro each way, not cheap, and I don't think there are ride-sharing options. But therefore the rental fees at Enduro Reise & Training are very reasonable, and, really, this is a very small part of the overall cost of such a trip, if you consider air tickets, accommodation, and all.
If you are looking for BMW to rent and the location of this company suits your itinerary, check them out. I found the folks there very competent and helpful, and would rent from them again anytime.
Safe travels!
