Enjoy the Isle of Wight Cycling Festival 17 - 25 September 2011 and ‘Cycle the Wight’ with Red Funnel

The Isle of Wight Cycling Festival returns to the Island between 17 and 25 September 2011.  Attracting thousands of cyclists every year, the festival consists of over 60 rides designed to perfectly take in the stunning rolling countryside of the Isle of Wight.

Perfect for cyclists of all ages, the festival has rides to suit all abilities, such as the Quarr Abbey Family Tea Run, a popular family ride stopping for tea and cake, or the even more sedate Cycle Ride for Softies, consisting of a mainly downhill ride with numerous stops at teashops along the way.  Children will also love rides such as the Troll Trail, where riders take part in a scavenger hunt, or Tykes, Trikes and Echium Spikes, where toddlers and young children can take a gentle ride around Ventnor Botanic Gardens, with a stop at the play park.

The Festival also offers challenges for more the serious cyclist, with the daunting 70-mile Cycle the Wight road route and the Hills Killer, an orienteering based mountain bike endurance challenge over 3, 7 or 14 hills.  Riders can even learn to maintain and repair their own bikes in the Cycle Maintenance tutorial.

Accommodation packages:

Red Funnel’s special Five Night Pitch and Ferry offer is available to cycling festival attendees for just £120, working out at only £30 per person based on four sharing and includes return Vehicle Ferry travel. With this offer campers can choose to stay at a range of award winning four and five star campsites across the Isle of Wight, including Whitefield Forest Touring Park set in ancient woodland and The Orchards Holiday Park with a heated indoor pool, perfect for unwinding after a bike ride.

If you don’t fancy camping, Red Funnel has a great selection of Isle of Wight Hotels and B&Bs and is offering five nights in an en suite double room at the cycle-friendly Grange Farm B&B from just £384, including return Vehicle Ferry travel, based on two sharing.

Travelling to the Isle of Wight is easy with Red Funnel. Vehicle Ferries run regularly around the clock from Southampton, which is within easy reach of the M3 and M27 and return fares for a car and up to six people start from just £35. Arriving by bike? Bicycles are carried free of charge on Red Funnel’s Vehicle Ferries with a foot passenger ticket.

For further information and reservations call Red Funnel on 0844 844 9988 or visit www.redfunnel.co.uk