The best way to explore Europe's old wonders is by motorcycle but HOW do you do it? How do you plan a route? How do you find hotels? How do you see the cool sights without getting caught up in the tides of bus tourists? How do you learn how to do it on your own? You join Cat MacLeod of Leod Escapes and Miss Emma of Motorcycles and Misfits and learn. This isn't a full featured tour. There are no guides, no luggage truck, just instructors who are fellow riders like you ready to share all they've learned. Your hotels are booked, your rental bikes is reserved. You'll head out each day with your squadron of 4 other riders. The routes are already in your GPS. Using provided radio com you and your fellow riders will head across the curvy back roads of Germany and France. Joining this tour is Leod operations manager and serious castle nut, Nancy MacLeod who will brief you not only on what to expect but what to look for when choosing historical venues to visit in Europe. Along your way are stops at some of Europes best castles. From fairytale monstrosities, to centuries old imperial fortifications, you and your team decide which to see and how long to stay. Hotels are all 3 star in places with character and old world charm. You'll learn how to create your own adventures as you pick up tips on how to navigate culture, food, fuel and the best ways to really understand the places you visit. 

Welcome to Munich. If you like beer than by all means grab a heffeweißen ASAP because this is the best place for it. Munich, called Mingeh by the locals, is the capital of Bavaria and Germany's number one party town. We encourage you to arrive a day early if you can because today we've got important lessons on com units in the afternoon and a welcome dinner nearby that evening.

Today you pick up your bike in the morning and head out to see your first castle. Through the bavarian countryside and into the foothills of the Alps to the tourism hot spot of Neuschwanstein. It's worth braving the crowds to see "Mad king Ludwigs"  creation to honor what he thought a proper castle should look like. From there we head over the hills into the region of Baden-Würtenberg

This morning decide with your group, will you go see the castles of Hohenzollern or Hohentübingen, or both on you way through Schwarzwald to the French region of Alsace. And what will be your lunch strategy? A local Imbiss for currywurst, fresh sandwiches like the locals eat at a bakery or the ever popular dönerkebap. Not that you won't be tempted by local beer gardens and weinstube. You'll learn by eating. Tonights hotel is in the cuter than kittens french Alsace town of Riquewihr where you'll be tempted by flamenküchen, a french dish that looks strangely familiar. 

Today is honking huge castles day. Enjoy and early french breakfast and chase the morning mist off the vineyards on your way to Haut-Koenigsbourg. This massive castle has seen numerous battles for eight centuries before being fully restored in the 1900s under the direction of Kaiser Willhelm the second. Then head into the hills of the Alsace region and cross back into to Germany to ride along the banks of the Mosel river to Reichsburg Cochem. Perhaps there's time for a tour of it today or perhaps you'll see it the next morning. Tonight you stay on the banks of the Mosel river, see everyone at the beer garden.

We take the back route and pop over the hills to ride along the banks of the Rhein. There's little castles everywhere here and Maus will tell you why. We've selected one of our favorites that looks like the ultimate royal honeymoon spot. This is also your best chance for a weinstube visit for lunch and Cat will teach you why he always says "Trocken" while Maus says "Halbtrocken". We try to bypass the Frankfurt traffic to get to our final hotel on the road. It's a bit touristy but it is adorable and that's the town frozen in time of Rothenburg ob der Tauber.

It's our final day on the road, stop off in Nuremberg if you like. Take the back roads all the way to Munich or hit the A-9 and blast it full throttle for a while. Perhaps a bit of both. Tonight we'll do what German's do, eat greek food, yes it's very popular in Germany