<\/p>\n

It just so happens that\u00a0exactly one year ago I\u00a0was ripping around Beijing\u00a0in a wolfpack of other cyclists. First I headed\u00a0South, through\u00a0Tian’anmen Square to the Pearl Market.\u00a0Then I took my new knock-off iPod over to the\u00a0Temple of Heaven and back to\u00a0a market near\u00a0Tian’anmen for some tea and Dim Sum.\u00a0For the afternoon I headed north to the Bell Tower and Olympic Park monstrosities before finishing the day off with some drinks in the NanLuoGu\u00a0Hutong.\u00a0Yeah, you could say I hammered out the tourist sites, spending a grand\u00a0total transportation cost of . . . roughly $2.86.<\/p>\n

I realize\u00a0renting a bike in China to zip off the tourist sites before moving on\u00a0won’t necessarily break the bank. In other parts of the world\u00a0biking it can be a\u00a0bit more expensive. The NYT’s Frugal Traveler revealed some\u00a0useful tips\u00a0for acquiring a\u00a0two wheel, pedal-powered limousines all over the world<\/a>. <\/p>\n

Rentabikenow.com<\/a> is a\u00a0searchable\u00a0database you can use to find rental shops all over the United States. It’s convenient, but outfitters\u00a0need to choose to be listed. So until it’s popularity increases, a\u00a0simple Google search may be a better option.<\/p>\n

If you’re staying somewhere for\u00a0longer than a few days, daily bike rental fees can add up.\u00a0Look into\u00a0buying a used bike and selling when you leave. Just take the usual precautions\u00a0when buying off sites like Craigslist, or find a willing local to help you navigate the options. Another idea would be to grab a paper and head to the nearest garage\/yard\/tag\/whateverthelocaltermis sale. Also, check out freecycling<\/a>, a world of barter you can utilize to\u00a0pay it forward on departure.<\/p>\n

There are a few established organizations out there like recycleabike.org<\/a>. It’s a program working with public schools where students learn about bicycle mechanics and lets them earn free bikes through volunteering. The bikes the kids fix up go on sale at the organization\u2019s two New York locations, in the East Village and Brooklyn, for pretty reasonable prices.<\/p>\n

When push comes to shove and your travels take you overseas, pick up one\u00a0of those crazy looking\u00a0bikes that fold. The Frugal Traveler recommends the Tokyo Citizen folding bike, citizenbike.com<\/span><\/a>, which only costs $164 and weighs 29 pounds, small enough to throw in a piece of luggage with your clothes packed around\u00a0it.<\/p>\n

Like my hostel in Beijing, often times hotels have dirt-cheap, or sometimes free, bike rentals to customers. Something to look into next time you’re\u00a0trip planning.\u00a0Click here to check out the article which offers up several more suggestions on cost-cutting through pedal power<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

It just so happens that\u00a0exactly one year ago I\u00a0was ripping around Beijing\u00a0in a wolfpack of other cyclists. First I headed\u00a0South, through\u00a0Tian’anmen Square to the Pearl Market.\u00a0Then I took my new knock-off iPod over to the\u00a0Temple of Heaven and back to\u00a0a market near\u00a0Tian’anmen for some tea and Dim Sum.\u00a0For the afternoon I headed north to the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":6756,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1,2565,2564],"tags":[1519,1209,734],"yoast_head":"\n