Everybody knows that time affect trail signs in a bad way. Painted signs are disappearing due to sun, rain and frost impact. Plates are disappearing due to human behaviur. All it decreases overall quality of trail singage - that's why it is recommended to check and update trails signs every two years.

Last weekend BikeLand team started this works in Vorokhta area. Unfortunately, rainy weather didn't allow us to do a lot, but we will continue!

We thank our volunteers from Chernivtsi city for their participation.

BikeLand

We're happy to inform everyone that bicycle day in yaremche was covered in evening news by Inter, one of major Ukrainian TV channels.

Unfortunately, TV crew spent just an hour in Yaremche and didn't shoot the most interesting partds of the party - bicycle ride Yaremche-Bukovel and evening concert. However, we are very greatful to the journalists for coming!

BikeLand

The special occasion for this celebration is 100-years anniversary of cycling tourism in the Ukrainian Carpathians. The detailed program of the fest will be published on Bikeland.org.ua a bit later.

Welcome to the Bicycle day in Yaremche!!!

We have successfuly distributed over 4.000 copies of promo materials, i.e. magazines, leaphlets, trail maps etc. 

Also, we collected the amount of UAH 1210 (appr. 120 euro) of donations to be used for preparing bike trails for the new season (refreshing sings and clean-up of the trails). 

We are grateful to all the participants and donators! Welcome to BikeLand!

You are welcome to find out more about our plans for 2011 from the PDF file in the Library (sorry - only Ukrainian version available). 

Yours, BikeLand

You can find our stand using this scheme:

For further info, please visit the exhibitoon official web-site at http://velobike.kiev.ua/

Please provide us with your honest opinion about the routes you biked, especially the condition of the trails and signs.

We know that the markings on certain trails need to be updated and some trails need to be cleared. We’re doing what we can, but physically can’t monitor every trail all the time.

That’s why we need your help!

Please post your comments and complaints on the forum (section "BikeRoutes") or send us an email.

We will carefully study and fix all the shortcomings. We’re even ready to offer a prize to the most active “informers”. Let’s work together to make the trails better!

Sincerely,

The BikeLand Team

The conference “BikeLand – Birth of European Tourism” took place in Yaremche on 15-16 July, during which the preliminary results of our project were presented. 

There were more than 80 participants, not just from the Carpathians, but other regions of Ukraine – Kyiv, Chernivtsi, Volyn and even Crimea!  They included nearly all the members of the BikeLand network – representatives of bicycle-friendly recreational facilities and bicycle rental shops, as well as NGO leaders and activists, ecotourism operators, and local government officials.

The conference lasted one and a half days and was held at the Vodospad Hotel. Presentations were made by project managers, local coordinators, guests, independent experts and network participants.

Bikeland manager Viktor Zahreba highlighted the project’s main achievements.

Click to view the presentation:

Preliminary results of the “BikeLand” Project

View more presentations from viktoza.

An interesting presentation was also made by Oksana Fedorovych, the head of the Ivano-Frankivsk Tourism Association:

Ecotourism product next

View more presentations from viktoza.

Thank you certificates were issued to partners and friends of the project, as well as BikeLand network participants (photo)

On the second day, after the official section of the conference was over, participants set off on a three-hour bike ride along trail No. 303 “Legend” - led by the leaders of the NGO “Center for Social and Business Initiatives” (BikeLand project implementer). The excursion included a picnic along the Kamyanka River.

It should be noted that the project will officially last until the end of July 2010; therefore, the results presented during the conference are not final.

We look forward to reading your comments about hotels, bike trails and rentals, stories about your trips and anything else you’d like to share about BikeLand, the Carpathians and bikes!

http://bikeland.com.ua/forum/

Cyclists, welcome to Kolomyya!

Thanks go the good weather, all the planned activities took place, including: a hike to the top of Ukraine’s highest peak – Hoverla, descent to the Zaroslyak sports center, visit to the Yaremche Eco-Tourism Visitors Center, and ride along bicycle route 303 in Yaremche.  Following the event, close to 40 unique media references were made to “Europe Day in the Carpathians” and the BikeLand press tour, including 5 special reports for newspapers and magazines, 3 radio reports, and 1 video report.

In interesting side story was the damaged marble trident on Mt. Hoverla that the journalists saw firsthand. Information about this filled the internet and radio and forced officials to investigate the incident and fix the monument.

Over 70 participants from different cities of Ukraine made a bicycle ride from Vorokhta to Zarosliak and hiked the mountain. Eight members of the expedition conquered Hoverla mountain with their bikes and made a extreme descent after.

Celebration was organized by the Center for Social and Business Initiatives of Yaremche, implementor of the BikeLand project supported by the European Union.

The exhibit included a broad spectrum of types of green tourism: resorts and tourist centers in villages and towns, and farmstead stays. BikeLand was ideally suited for this type of show and had an impressive stand, complete with plasma screen, free coffee, tea and souvenirs that helped attracted numerous visitors.

Representing the project were PR manager Volodymyr Zakaljuzhnyj and office manager Ivan Zinoviev, who handed out 1000 bicycle trail maps and 1000 project catalogues.

The exhibit also included performances by folk groups, seminars, and presentations, including about BikeLand.

Kyiv:

"SvyerkhNovaya Zemlya"
Kombayneriv St., 3-А
(044) 59 909 45, 59 902 26, 227 33 99
www.velokiev.com

"VeloOnline"
Heroiv Stalinhrada St., 4, building 7
(044) 581-55-77, 581-55-78
Bolshevyk Mall, Hetmana St., 6, block А
(044) 223-00-55, +380 67 125-40-07
Mykola Bazhana Prosp., 10
(044) 223-00-44, 593-07-43
www.veloonline.com

Lviv: 

Lystopadna St., 16

(032) 270-62-66, (032) 270-70-63

www.fira.com.ua/

Kharkiv:

"Velopark"
Sumskaya St., 128
(057) 700-44-48         (057) 700-44-48,
www.velostyle.com.ua
 
"Velostyle"
Academika Pavlova St., 88
(057) 7-549-609         (057) 7-549-609
velo@kharkov.com
www.velostyle.com.ua
 
 
Zaporizhzhia:

"Velomashina"
40 Lit Sovyetskoyi Ukrainy, 82
(061) 220 4630         (061) 220 4630,               (061) 270 4606
www.velomashina.com  
 
 
Dnipropetrovsk:

"BikeShop"
Titova St.,  20
(056) 371 3397         (056) 371 3397
support@bikeshop.dp.ua
www.bikeshop.dp.ua
 
Novomoskovsk:
"BikeShop"
195 Diviziyi St., 4
(056) 931 4349         (056) 931 4349
www.bikeshop.dp.ua
 
Ternopil:
"RoverBike"
Sheptytskoho St., 3
068 501 7844         068 501 7844

 
Kryvyy Rih:
"Velotechnika"
Urytskoho St.,6
(067) 971 85 60         (067) 971 85 60

Vinnytsia:
"VeloHouse"
Pyrohova St., 135
(0432) 67 2733         (0432) 67 2733
www.VinBike.com.ua  

"VeloLiga"

Keletska St., 83

0432 43 14 85, 067 27 40 502

www.velo.vn.ua
 
Simferopol:
"VeloCenter"
Krilova St., 26
(050) 667 5393, (0652) 61 0671
www.velocenter.info

 THIS LIST IS CONSTANTLY UPDATED

This is the largest tourism show in Ukraine, with organizers reporting upwards of 10,000 tickets sold.  

Interest in the active vacations offered by BikeLand was high, as evidenced by the more than 2500 project catalogues, 1000 hotel leaflets, and 1400 maps handed out  to visitors.

The most important result was the contacts made with tourism agencies interested in cooperating with Yaremche businesses to organize tours and utilize the infrastructure developed by the BikeLand project to increase tourism in the Carpathians.

*Отримання мийок відбудеться у вівторок 6-го квітня в центральному офісі проекту у місті Яремче.