ExperiencePlus! Bicycle Tours Announces 2012 Latin American Lineup Along with Early Booking Incentive

FORT COLLINS, CO, June 12, 2011 (Press-News.org) ExperiencePlus! Bicycle Tours, who in 1972 became the first North American travel company to offer pedal tours in Europe (http://www.experienceplus.com/), offers early booking incentives for its 2012 Latin American bicycle touring season beginning November 2011. Savings are $200 per person for booking by Aug. 1, 2011, bicycling opportunities in Latin America including Costa Rica, Argentina and Chile.

ExperiencePlus! Bicycle Tours has cycled the region for over 15 years and offers eight bicycle tours and two multi-sport vacation opportunities where one can enjoy temperatures in the 70s December through February.

Costa Rica programs include shorter six or seven day options, all beginning on Saturdays in San Jose and ending there as well. Bike, Hike and Paddle multi-sport (7 days for $2,295 per person, double / $500 single supplement) tour includes some of the company's favorite rides in Costa Rica, white water rafting on the legendary Pacuare River, hiking through the rain forest with a local naturalist, and the chance to watch Arenal Volcano spew lava rocks (from a safe distance). The extended version or the Plus! tour (9 days for $2,995 per person, double / $600 single supplement) extends the fun for two additional days and includes an outrigger canoe trip on the Pacific, and hiking along the beaches and tropical forest of Manuel Antonio National Park. The last two nights are on scenic and isolated Esterillos Beach.

The 6-day Bicycling Costa Rica ($2,365 per person, double / $500 single supplement) and extended 9-day Bicycling Costa Rica Plus! the Pacific ($2,995 per person, double / $600 single supplement) have all the great cycling as well as a zip line canopy tour, a float trip to see monkeys, crocodiles and a wide variety of water birds, a hike in the El Silencio Rainforest Reserve and an evening hot springs soak. The Plus! trip continues to the Pacific Coast and Playa Carrillo, one of the most beautiful and unspoiled beaches in Costa Rica.

Northern Argentina has a growing international reputation as the next adventure travel hot spot. Discover Northern Argentina (8 days at $3,350 per person, double / $500 single supplement) follows quiet roads and ever-changing scenery including an optional ride up to 13,000 feet, and other routes through rain forests, vineyards and canyons with stunning rock formations. The 12-day Plus! trip at $4,495 per person ($600 single) includes a visit to Quilmes, the most famous ruins in Argentina, and a day off in Cafayate, an up and coming Argentine wine town. Shuttles are to and from Salta, well connected from Buenos Aires.

Wrapping Argentina and Chile together is Bicycling Patagonia's Lakes District. Two tours, (an 8 day trip for $3,450 per person double / $500 single) and the Plus! version adding Chiloe (11 days at $4,495 per person, double / $600 single) begin in the mountain resort town of San Carlos de Bariloche in Argentina and travel west over the Andes (a low pass!) into Chile encompassing mountain vistas, lakes, snowcapped volcanoes and charming small towns. The Plus! version includes Chiloe Island, an archipelago accessible only by ferry, for observations of penguins, colorful stilt houses and hundreds of species of animals and plants endemic to Chile.

In Chile an 8 day at $3400 per person and 11 day at $4395 person Bicycling Chile's Wine Country tours begin and end in Santiago, traversing the Maule and Colchagua wine valleys of central Chile to look at historic vineyards, colonial cities and secluded beaches. Highlights are Santiago, Santa Cruz, the Central Valley and a stay at a vineyard in the Colchagua valley. Overnights include off-the-beaten-path wine hotels and a rest day in bustling Santa Cruz. Wines here include Cabernet Sauvignon and Sauvignon Blanc, and of course the prized Carmenere -one of the oldest European varietal grapes and once thought to be lost when all the vineyards in France died from the Phylloxera plague. It was then "re-discovered" in Chile where it had been brought over by French vintners.

About ExperiencePlus! Bicycle Tours
No North American company has been running European cycling tours longer than ExperiencePlus! Bicycle Tours (http://www.experienceplus.com/). Launched in Italy in 1972 the Colorado-based company now offers global cycling tours immersed in local character to 20 countries on five continents. Throughout the years as the business and industry have evolved, ExperiencePlus!' roots as a family business have remained strong. Authentic, experienced, self-paced and engaging were the ethos of parents Rick and Paola Malpezzi Price which have now been passed down to their daughters and current directors Monica Price and Maria Elena Price.

Standing behind their beliefs, ExperiencePlus! is the only adventure cycling company that issues a 10-point Customer's Bill of Rights outlining what clients can and should expect while pedaling on a company tour. Their cultural cycling programs engage tour leaders who are expert cyclists and trained cultural interpreters, guiding guests on innovative routes and immersing them in off-the-beaten-path experiences. Tours in 2011 go to Argentina, Australia, Austria, Canada, Chile, Costa Rica, Croatia, France, Greece, Hungary, India, Italy, New Zealand, Poland, Slovakia, Spain, Turkey, United Kingdom, USA and Vietnam.

ExperiencePlus! is a 2011 and a 2010 recipient of National Geographic Traveler magazine's 50 Tours of a Lifetime. The 2011 issue also featured Maria Elena Price and Monica Price, co-owners, among its Top 10 Tour Guides. Recognized for her visionary work within the industry, Monica Price has been named to the Adventure Travel Trade Association Advisory Committee for the 2011 Adventure Travel World Summit to be held October 17-20 in San Cristóbal de las Casas, Chiapas, Mexico.

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Tour Company Contact:
Maria Elena Price
ExperiencePlus! Bicycle Tours
TEL: (800) 685-4565 or (970) 484-8489
E-MAIL: info@experienceplus.com
WEB: http://www.experienceplus.com/