1. What is MotoXplorers?
MotoXplorers is a Portuguese company founded by 5 travel companions. In past years we've motorcycled many exotic and faraway destinations. We've become addicted to this form of travel to the point of considering making it a way of living. We've decided to continue to explore the world and to give others the possibility to do the same. Our goal is to ease your way into motorcycling the most wonderful regions of the planet without having to spend all your holiday time on preparations, bureaucracies, shipping agents and so on. We organize motorcycle tours from one to four weeks long on Africa, Europe, Asia and Central America. We are based in Lisbon where we also rent motorcycles and run an Adventure Store.
To get to know us better click here.
2. What kind of tours do you organize?
Adventure Tours: two to three weeks duration, ideal for experienced motorcyclists. We will provide a tour leader on a motorcycle, a support vehicle and reserved stays in hotels and equivalent units. Usually the tour is not a loop and we will take care of shipping the motorcycles back to the origin point. This transport can be by air, sea or land. We will minimize the time needed to perform such an adventure as we will take care of every aspect of trip planning and motorcycle transport.
Xcape Tours: usually one week long, in loop format, riding back to the origin point. Ideal to do with a passenger, we will usually provide a tour leader on a motorcycle, a support vehicle and reserved stays in very nice hotels and equivalent units. Like on Adventure tours, we will daily load your GPS with a detailed track of the stage and a lot of waypoints corresponding to refueling stops, interesting panoramas, places to eat and so on. You can ride together with the tour leader, but you have everything you need to ride on your own if you decide to do it at a different pace.
Xplore Tours: two to four weeks long, conceived to experienced off-roading motorcyclists. Camping gear is mandatory, no support vehicle, you can expect a lot of off-road on isolated places. We will supply one tour leader on a motorcycle and will advise on all aspects of the tour. We can also connect to locally owned rent-a-bike business and include the use of a motorcycle in our prices.
3. How does an Adventure Tour works?
An Adventure Tour is an unique opportunity to travel across parts of the globe that only a few previleged manage to reach. Integrated on a small group of like minded companions, a tour leader on a motorcycle will open the way each stage. A support vehicle capable of transporting two motorcycles and two participants will close the group. This will assure that you will be back with no delays at the end of the tour, even if some mechanical mishap decides to act up. We will plan and recon the itinerary, process the demanded documentation, and will help obtaining the necessary permits. We ship your bike, reserve the stays and will provide a knowledgeable Tour Leader to help you through the whole trip.
Before each tour, every participant receives an Adventure Pack containing an instruction manual, a Roadbook booklet with all the info pertaining all daily stages, a Mapsource file with the reference waypoints of the whole trip, a list of suggested items to carry and a detailed description of all the documentation you must provide.
Before each tour, a Pre-Ride of one day will help establishing the tour way of working and will make all the participants acquainted with Motoxplorers staff and the other participants. We will also test if our software is compatible with every participant's GPS.
4. What tours are available right now?
Lisbon - Dakar - Bissau, Adventure Tour - 16 days across Portugal, Spain, Morocco, Western Sahara, Mauritania, Senegal, Gambia e Guinea Bissau.
Greece - Turkey, Adventure Tour, 16 days at the door of the Asian Continent.
Iceland - Explore Tour, 9 days at the volcanic country that's been on the news lately. Icelanders have been living with volcanoes and geysers ever since. We're going to find out how. We supply local motorcycles and a tour leader, you just have to show up at Reikjavic with your riding and camping gear and your off-road expertise.
Central America, Adventure Tour - 16 days through Mexico, Guatemala and Belize. We supply local motorcycles, a knowlegded tour leader and lodging at very nice locations.
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5. How do I reserve my place at one of your tours?
Just send us an e-mail with your reservation, we'll be happy to include you on the preliminary list of participants without any commitment or cost on your side. If we're at less that 6 months to the start of the tour we'll answer with our specific conditions for the tour and we'll ask you a 10% reservation fee. Priority will be established by order of arrival of confirmed reservations up to a maximum of 8 participants (6 participants in some of the tours). As soon as all available places are reserved we'll open a waiting list.
You can do your reservation here clique aqui
We'll need the following preliminary information:
- Adventure Tour you'd like to be a part of
- Name
- Postal Address
- Telephone number
- Brand and model of motorcycle you intend to participate with. Motoxplorers rents motorcycles, please state if you intend to use one of yours.
6. What's included in the price of an Adventure Tour?
Each of our tours is unique and probably different from any of the others. We will do a detailed description of the services included on the Tour at the corresponding page here on our web site. Generally, Adventure Tours will comprise:
- A careful and deep study of the itinerary. At a previous recognition of the whole track, we record all the waypoints needed for navigation. We get acquainted with the local way of living, establish the contacts that will make your tour safer and richer.
- Some tours are not in loop format. If that's the case, we generally include the shipment of your motorcycle back to the starting point. Having done at least one recon trip, we're aware of the specifics of each transport and we'll choose the most adequate way to get the bikes back in good shape.
- Accommodation. We look for small, charming units, if possible run by local people. This way we contribute to support local communities and we have a better opportunity at knowing the local culture. As a rule, every lodging unit will offer rooms with en-suite bathroom and safe parking for the motorcycles. Our prices assume you will share a double room with another participant. If you specify a single room, a supplementary cost will be informed.
- Meals: all breakfasts and dinners are included. We don't include lunches to avoid a mandatory regrouping at lunch time. Dinners usually work as a daily meeting where you share the journey events. On longer riding days we usually have dinner at the hotel. If it was a short journey we may be able to go looking for local restaurants.
- An Adventure Pack that will include an instruction manual of the tour, an A5 sized roadbook, each page showing the daily stage Map and relevant information and a suggested packing list of what to carry with you.
- GPS loading - before each tour we'll make sure we can communicate with your GPS and will do the necessary configurations. During the tour we'll daily load your GPS with next day track and relevant waypoints: service stations, where to eat, what to see.
- Our staff services. A knowledgeable tour-leader will ease your interface with different cultures and ways of living. The support staff driving the van will make his best to help you maintain your motorcycle in good working order throughout the trip.
7. Can anyone participate on one of your Tours?
It basically depends on the kind of Tour.
Xcape Tours are less demanding, usually recomendable for less experienced riders, and even for pillion passengers.
Adventure Tours are usually longer and through a bit more challenging terrain.
Xplore Tours will demand off-road expertise, and experience with a loaded trail bike in off-road conditions.
8. How do I know if I am experienced enough?
When you send us your reservation request we will answer back with a few questions that will help us profiling your experience. We've travelled with a lot of different people, we know the road conditions, the terrain we'll go across. All this considered, we will advise in relation to your participation. If we feel necessary we may direct you to some training actions that may complement your current experience.
9. What happens once I reserve my participation?
We will answer back with more specific info on the Tour you are reserving, namely prices and payment terms. We will ask a few questions to help us advise on your participation and preparation. To confirm the reservation we will then ask for a 10%, non-refundable fee. Non-refundable means that if you decide to cancel your participation we will hold this fee. If the Tour is cancelled by us, we will refund it entirely.
When reservations are complete we'll open a dedicated section on our private forum, accessible to all participants and moderated by the assigned tour Leader. The forum is an easy to use communication platform, allowing participants to get to know each other before the start of the Tour. There you can ask questions regarding the itinerary and the preparation of the tour.
60 days before the tour we'll ask for 45% of the total amount and two weeks before the tour start the remaining 45% should be settled. Meanwhile, you'll receive the Adventure Pack including an instruction manual of the tour, an A5 sized roadbook, each page showing the daily stage Map and relevant information and a suggested packing list of what to carry with you. During the preparation of the tour we'll be available to advise you and answer all your questions. We are passionate about travelling, we do love to talk about it.
10. What's your tour cancellation policy?
10% deposits are non-refundable. Meaning that if you decide to cancel your participation we hill hold it in full. If we decide to cancel the tour we will refund the 10% deposit entirely.
If you decide to cancel up to 30 days before the trip you will loose the 10% deposit plus 50% of your the second payment. If you decide to cancel at less than 30 days before the trip, we will hold 100% of the payments due to date. Our tours are generally expensive and complicated to prepare. We have to book and pay logistics, travel agencies, documentation and a lot of other third party supplies well in advance, so, we really have no options here.
If the tour is cancelled by us, you will be refunded in full of all amounts paid to that date.
11. What kind of motorcycle is adequate to your tours?
Generally, any kind of trail bike will do. It is obviously crucial that the motorcycle is reliable, in good working order and with fresh consumable components like brake pads, chains and sprockets, etc... More specifically, some of our tours are run 100% on asphalt and you could use whatever bike you fancy, while others (like the Xplore ones) will comprehend a big percentage of off-road riding and will demand a suitable motorcycle.
In either case we recommend a rigid luggage system equipped with lockable closures. You should also have a fuel range of at least around 250 kms (150 mi). Our rental bikes offer this as stock, included in it's basic rental fee.
Experienced riders may have learned to overcome these issues, but if the tour itinerary will undoubtedly run off-road, we discourage the use of top-cases. Supports are usually not sturdy enough and the weight is carried quite high. For this same reason, tank bags should be avoided. Besides they will not allow you a proper off-road riding position.
Yous should be equipped with a Garmin compatible GPS and a power supply cable running off the bikes electrical system. Our rental fleet is equipped with 12 Volt outlets . If you don't own a GPS we can rent you one.
12. What kind of gear should I wear?
It is common sense to use protection gear every time you ride a motorcycle. While on tour this becomes mandatory:
- A good full-face helmet.
- An abrasion resistant suit, comprising knee, elbow, shoulder and back protection.
- Gloves
- Motorcycling boots that should not allow a lot of lateral flexion at the ankle.
- A rain suit (either in inner layer format or as an overall)
13. Do I need to carry camping gear?
On most of our tours, no. We have opted to choose nice hotels to allow a good night's sleep to rest from the day's riding and to provide us with a substantial breakfast for the next stage. However, on some specific Xplore Tours, yes, it may be required.
14. Is it necessary to carry a GPS on your tours?
Yes. We do pre-ride all of our itineraries. We record all navigational and interesting information as GPS tracks and waypoints. Every tour evening, we load your GPS with next day's information. This way you can choose to ride independently if you prefer to. Obviously you can also decide to ride after your tour leader all the time (they are fun to ride with...) but should you get lost or decide to take a break or special picture, you will have a very simple navigational tool to make you reach the end of the journey safe, sound and with no delays.
Your GPS should be rugged, waterproof, adequate to motorcycle use and it should be able to cope with user waypoints and tracks. We recommend Garmin GPS's and we can rent you a unit. We can also brief you in its very simple use. You don't have to have previous GPS experience to navigate with us.
Our rental fleet is equipped with 12 Volt outlets that can supply your own GPS unit, if you have a power supply cigarette lighter adapter.
15. Do I need special vaccination or are necessary special health prevention measures?
It really depends on the countries on our itinerary. Some require special vaccination, others don't. We can only inform on legal requirements and based on our experience. After we send you your Adventure Pack we suggest you consult your doctor to get proper directions on travelling heath prevention measures.
16. Do I need some special insurance?
Motorcycle Insurance:
If you are using your own motorcycle you should have third party (liability cover) insurance valid though the countries in our itinerary. In some countries the only way to get third party mandatory insurance is to buy it at border posts. This is usually inexpensive and the Adventure Pack we'll supply previously will mention it. Your Tour Leader will help you through this transaction. You must also have roadside assistance covering the repatriation of your motorcycle from the countries visited.
Travel insurance:
It is a mandatory condition to participate in one of our tours. You must previously demonstrate us that you have an insurance covering medical assistance in and repatriation from the countries visited. Some credit cards offer something like that in their packages. We suggest you make sure with your credit card company that this is the case. You must supply us the policy number, insurance company name and contact and the procedure to activate your policy.
Sometimes we're able to offer insurance through an associated insurance company, please contact us if you need this kind of services.
17. Can I carry a pillion passenger?
Generally yes. As any participant, passengers must have a Travel Insurance covering medical assistance in and repatriation from the countries visited. If the itinerary is very demanding like on some Xplore Tours, we will advise against carrying a pillion unless you both have experience in similar conditions.
18. What is excluded from your Tours?
Expenses with Visas and other legal demands of visited countries.
Your transportation to/from the start/finish of the tour.
Lunches.
Insurance.
Fuel, drinks and all kinds of personal expenses. Some beverages will be part of the included meals, alcoholic drinks will not.
Some extra activities that may be suggested by your Tour Leader like museum visits, trekking, safaris... are not included in our services. All of them are optional and, should you decide to attend, will be paid by you directly to the supplier.
Tips and gratifications
Any doubts or further questions, e-mail us through mail@motoxplorers.com
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