🐝 Cycle Cities Buzz - Somewhere in the Middle of Summer 🚲

Hi Reader,

We're now somewhere in the middle of August, that strange point in the season where summer feels both very long and like it's disappearing far too quickly.

Some of you are probably deep in the busiest weeks of the year.

Others may finally be finding a little more space to breathe.

And somewhere between the tours, the bookings, the bikes and everything else that needs doing, I hope you're finding a moment to enjoy the season too.

Here's this week's dose of Cycle Cities.

Symposium News 🤝

A quick reminder that Symposium 2027 is getting closer and September is the next important date to keep in mind, as the Early Bird rate comes to an end.

If you're planning to join us in Hamburg, don't leave it until the last minute. The Symposium is one of the best opportunities of the year to step away from the day-to-day, meet other independent bike tour operators and have the conversations that often continue long after the event itself.

We'll share more details as preparations continue, but for now, make sure you have your place on your radar.

Secure your spot

Groupwork Gold Nuggets 💛

The Connectors: Partnerships

We're continuing with our latest table, where Toomas Lelov, Cem Balsun, Martin Riewestahl, Jenniek Scheltens and Inga Elbers have been discussing partnerships, and, this week, one of the biggest challenges facing independent operators:

What can we do as a collective (Cycle Cities) to have more power over OTAs?

The following content is only visible for the Cycle Cities Members.

One of the strongest ideas was simple: negotiate as a collective rather than individually.

With dozens of independent operators across different cities, Cycle Cities could potentially have a stronger voice when dealing with OTAs than any individual business can have on its own.

But the conversation went beyond negotiation.

The group also discussed keeping parts of the product exclusive to direct bookings: such as certain e-bike upgrades, so customers have a reason to book directly.

Another idea was to create a recognizable Cycle Cities quality mark, something that could become an international signal of trust across member websites, clothing and customer touchpoints. Remember the Cycle City Legacy Bacth?

And finally, there's the question of how we encourage customers to book direct. Small but tangible benefits, combined with educating travellers about the importance of supporting local operators, could help make the choice more obvious.

The bigger question behind all of this is an interesting one:

What could we achieve together that would be difficult to achieve alone?

That's exactly the kind of conversation these tables are designed to create.

Tool of the Week 🛠️

The Bike Tour Operator Dashboard — Part 3: The Monthly Business Review Routine

We've now reached the final part of the Bike Tour Operator Dashboard series.

The goal isn't simply to track numbers.

It's to create a habit of stepping back from the day-to-day and looking at your business with enough distance to make better decisions.

In Part 3, we bring everything together with a simple review routine covering your monthly, quarterly and annual business reviews.

The idea is to move from:

Looking at numbers → Understanding what they mean → Deciding what to do next.

Because a dashboard is only useful if it helps you take action.

This final part gives you a practical framework for turning your data and reflections into priorities, and making continuous improvement part of the way you run your business.

Download it here

Community — Highlights ➡️

That's it for this week.

Whether you're currently running at full speed or finally getting a chance to slow down, I hope there's something in this week's newsletter that gives you an idea, a useful thought or simply a reason to start a conversation with another operator.

See you next week,

Isabella

Managing Director (Interim)
Cycle Cities 🚲

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