How to take a quick far-off motorcycle vacation
If you don’t have much vacation time left but want to take a week-long motorcycle trip in another part of the country, you can. How? Be creative to make your dream getaway come true.
You could ride your bike one way and then ship the bike home while you take a plane. So consider shipping your bike, even if it’s coast to coast. Compare the shipping cost to the costs of hotels, food and gas, plus the wear and tear on your bike for a week long coast-to-coast trip, and you may well save money.
To ship a bike in the United States and get an AMA discount, call Federal Companies, an agent for Specialized Transportation Inc., at (877) 518-7376. Be sure to have your AMA number handy. To get your discount, be sure to have your AMA number handy. funtransport.com.
Another AMA partner is Motorcycle Shippers. You can get instant online quotes and if you enter your AMA number when placing an order you can get discounts of $25 off each bike one way or $100 off round trip or $50 off each bike when multiple bikes are involved using the same addresses. motorcycleshippers.com.
If you don’t want to ship your bike, you can fly to your riding destination and rent a machine. Bikes cost more to rent than cars but they are so much more fun! If you want, you can even rent a machine to ride on an organized tour. AMA partners EagleRider Rentals & Tours and Colorado Motorcycle Adventures have the bikes and adventures you need.
EagleRider also gives AMA members who join Club EagleRider two bonus rental credits and the initiation fee is waived. This exclusive offer unlocks the freedom to do one-way rides from hundreds of locations. americanmotorcyclist.com/benefits/eaglerider.
Colorado Motorcycle Adventures offers AMA members 10 percent off all motorcycle rentals and tours. Mention your AMA membership when reserving your rental or tour. A current AMA membership card required to get the discount. coloradomotorcycleadventures.com.
Another option for making your quick trip come true is to buy a new motorcycle in some other part of the country and then ride it home. Just decide what you want, find a dealer where you want to go, arrange the sale and ride home. Be sure to schedule the first maintenance stop along the way, if required. Also, get insurance coverage.
For any of these scenarios for a quick motorcycling vacation, check with your insurance agent to make sure the bike you plan to ride, rental or recently purchased, will be insured.
If you plan on staying in hotels or motels during your vacation, be sure to take advantage of your AMA discounts. Choice Hotels offers AMA members a 15 percent discount on best available rates at participating Ascend, Cambria, Comfort Inn, Comfort Suites, Quality Inn, Sleep Inn, Clarion, MainStay Suites, Woodspring Suites, AMA members receive a 20 percent discount on available rates at Red Roof Inn properties nationwide. Motel 6 offers AMA members up to 10 percent off best available rates.
For information on the discounts, go to americanmotorcyclist.com/ama-members-deals-and-discounts.