Research by bicycle insurance website MoneyBeach.co.uk has revealed that Chiang Mai in Thailand is the best place for a beautiful bike ride, according to Instagram data that looked at numbers cycling related posts vs. city size.
Aiming to provide some outdoor, socially distanced bucket-list inspiration for when international travel resumes, MoneyBeach.co.uk analysed more than 350,000 city specific cycling hashtags on Instagram to discover which city has the most cyclists sharing their snaps. The results were then weighted against city size to crown where’s best for a two-wheeled tour.
Chiang Mai in Northern Thailand took the top spot, with a thriving cycling culture that sees many tourists hiring bikes to take in the breath-taking mountainous scenery and tour the city’s many temples. Outside of sightseeing on two wheels, the area is also home to a more competitive cycling scene too, with multiple hill climb races taking place throughout the year.
Miami, USA and Paris, France followed, with the long beachy rides and street-art adorned roads of Miami also placing it as the best place in the States for anyone looking for a photo-ready bike ride, above Atlanta and Seattle. Paris meanwhile proved popular for its cycles along the Seine and routes that take riders from sight to sight.
The 20 Most Picturesque Cycling Cities in the World
1. Chiang Mai, Thailand
2. Miami, United States of America
3. Paris, France
4. Beirut, Lebanon
5. Bristol, United Kingdom
6. Cambridge, United Kingdom
7. Barcelona, Spain
8. London, United Kingdom
9. Dublin, Ireland
10. Athens, Greece
11. Amsterdam, Netherlands
12. Copenhagen, Denmark
13. Bath, United Kingdom
14. Florence, Italy
15. Atlanta, United States of America
16. Seattle, United States of America
17. Taipei, Taiwan
18. Warsaw, Poland
19. Berlin, Germany
20. Oxford, United Kingdom
According to the data, the United Kingdom is the country with the most beautiful cities for a bike ride, with five of the world’s top 20 situated across the nation. Bohemian Bristol, which straddles the River Avon and is surrounded by South West countryside makes it number one for a scenic cycle, while second placed Cambridge pairs historic sights with relaxed rides along the River Cam. Despite its scale, London ranked third in the UK, a testament to the capital’s ongoing aim to become a more cycling friendly city, with more than 60,000 London cycling related hashtags recorded in the study.
The 10 Most Beautiful Cycling Cities in the UK
1. Bristol, England
2. Cambridge, England
3. London, England
4. Bath, England
5. Oxford, England
6. Edinburgh, Scotland
7. Glasgow, Scotland
8. Brighton, England
9. Birmingham, England
10. Cardiff, Wales
Mike Rees, CEO of MoneyBeach.co.uk said: “As better weather and hopefully the ability to travel to new places is on the horizon, there can be nothing better than a bike ride. In major cities around the world, it’s long been a great way to take in the sights at your own pace. In 2021, it also makes a socially distanced, COVID-safe way of getting about, so we wanted to discover which city proves the most popular and picturesque for cyclists.
The Instagram data provided the perfect way to find this out, and the research was filled with snaps of bike rides up beautiful mountains or across bustling cities. We hope our rankings can act as the ideal post-COVID travel inspiration for any keen cyclists, as well as some ideas for rides a little closer to home”.
The full findings and further information on the top cycling cities and the most popular routes within them, can be found here: moneybeach.co.uk/the-boardwalk/most-beautiful-cycling-cities
