The masses of cyclists show it: day trips by bike to the swimming lake, in the mountains or in the beer garden are suddenly in great demand again, not least because of Corona. But how do you find the most beautiful and, above all, most relaxed way to your destination?
In addition to helpful navigation apps that specialize entirely in cycling, such as Bikemap, Naviki or komoot, we can especially recommend OpenCycleMap, which can be used to plan great bike tours across all regions of Europe. In addition to bicycle workshops and parking spaces, it can also be used to track down restaurants, cafes and bars along the route.
OpenCycleMap: Lots of colorful bike paths through Germany
At first glance, the OpenCycleMap looks very colorful and confusing. But if you take a quick look at the legend of OpenCycleMap, you will quickly find your way around. National cycle paths are marked in red, i.e. longer routes that often lead from city to city. In addition, there are regional cycle paths in purple that connect larger towns within a region, for example. The blue routes are mainly shorter inner-city routes – for example in Munich or Berlin.
Smaller bike paths within towns and communities are also marked with blue dashed lines. These, in turn, can be easily distinguished from the pure footpaths, which are kept in orange. Nice feature by the way: facilities such as fitness trails and other car-free streets are also entered in the OpenCycleMap.
Bicycle parking spaces, bike sharing and free drinking water
The bicycle parking spaces shown in blue rectangles are particularly practical, if there are fewer than 20 parking spaces, or for larger parking spaces with a "C" and the corresponding parking space capacity as a number. Rental stations for bike sharing, professional workshops and locations with freely accessible tools and free drinking water are also marked on the map.
There are also restaurants, cafes and bars, which are also noted on the map. Places with freely available WiFi are also highlighted accordingly. Particularly practical: If, for example, you first have to drive from the city to the surrounding area, you can also use the level menu on the right-hand side of the screen to display public transport. In this way, you can find the right route to your destination from the S-Bahn stop.
Essential for bike tours: Possible climbs that have to be overcome. The layers offered in the top right corner help here. Here you can call up a special landscape map that shows the altitude difference on the map.
As the name suggests, OpenCycleMap is a freely accessible map service that anyone can edit and add additional information. The large community associated with it enables you to be up-to-date with the latest changes anywhere and comparatively quickly. The basis for the OpenCycleMap is provided by the OpenStreetMap, known from many navigation services and apps, which is also freely accessible and is kept up to date and constantly expanded by many volunteers.
The best map service for cyclists
For us, OpenCycleMap is the best map service for bicycle and e-bike riders. Important bike paths can be recognized at a glance and thus the most beautiful / safest route can easily be found. The many extras such as parking spaces, workshops and the like can also be very practical on the go.
It's just a shame that there is currently no navigation option directly on the map – so OpenCycleMap is more suitable for planning the best bike route in advance. The best navigation app for cyclists and e-bike riders, including live routing and voice announcements, is presented in a separate article.
The original for this post "Free app shows secret bike paths: How to find the most beautiful tours for e-bike and bike" comes from chip.de.