The easiest beginner route is one you can ride with a plan for the hills, the roads and the way home. A route planner lets you check all three before you leave. This guide covers how to pick a planning tool, what to check on the map, how to find traffic-free paths, and how to lengthen rides without overdoing it. It does not rank specific routes, because the right route depends on where you live.
Choose a planning tool
Most planners draw on the same open map data and differ in what they let you control and what costs money. Features and pricing change, so check the current plan details before you pay for anything.
| Tool | Good for | Worth knowing |
|---|---|---|
| Google Maps (cycling directions) | Point-to-point trips in towns and cities | Cycling routes are only available where Google has data for your country or region. It finds a way from A to B; it does not design a scenic loop. |
| Strava route builder | Designing loops with surface and elevation preferences | Creating routes from scratch requires a paid Strava subscription. |
| TrailLink (US) | Finding off-road multi-use trails | Lists more than 40,000 miles of trail maps. |
Strava states that with a subscription you can create new routes from scratch, and its builder lets you choose whether to follow the most popular or most direct route, whether to minimize or maximize elevation, and whether you prefer paved or dirt surfaces. A subscription also covers suggested routes generated from a location you pick, and routes you can download to your phone for offline use. Strava’s route maps are built on OpenStreetMap data, so a missing path or wrong surface is best fixed in OpenStreetMap itself, although the change will not appear in Strava immediately.
Other dedicated cycling planners exist, and some offer a free tier. Whatever you use, the checks below matter more than the brand.
What to check on the map before you commit
- Elevation profile. Total climbing matters as much as distance. A flat 30 km (about 20 miles) ride is usually far easier than a 25 km (about 15 miles) ride with several steep climbs. If the profile shows a sharp spike, check whether you can walk that section.
- Road type. A route that is a little longer but stays on quiet streets, paths or bike lanes is usually more pleasant and less stressful than the direct one on a busy main road. See how to map a safe cycling route to work for a method that applies to any ride, and the basic rules of cycling on roads for riding the sections that do share space with traffic.
- Surface. Paved, packed gravel and loose dirt are very different on narrow road tires. Match the surface to your bike; this comparison of road, hybrid and mountain bikes explains what each handles well.
- Bail-out points. Note where the route passes a town, station or shop so you can shorten the ride if you tire or the weather changes.
- Loop or out-and-back. A loop shows you new scenery throughout. An out-and-back is easier to shorten, because you can turn around at any point.
Finding traffic-free and quiet options
Strava’s route builder can show a global heatmap layer, which it describes as a great way to discover new routes that are popular in the Strava community. Treat popularity as a clue, not a guarantee: a heavily ridden road may be busy with cars too, so confirm it on satellite view or street-level imagery.
Converted railway lines and dedicated trails are often the gentlest starting points because they have no car traffic and usually gentle grades. In the US, TrailLink lets you search trails by city, state or zip code. Elsewhere, search your city or region name with “cycle map” or “greenway” to find local authority or volunteer-made maps. Quiet residential streets one block back from a busy road are often rideable too; check them against the map before relying on them.
Lengthening your rides sensibly
Start with a distance or time you can finish feeling you could do more. One coach quoted by a South African cycling magazine suggests that newer riders ride for 30 minutes at a conversational pace, three to four times a week for at least two weeks. If that feels fine, increase ride time using the 10- to 15-percent rule from the third week, which means roughly adding three to five minutes to each 30-minute ride. The same source recommends adding a recovery week at least every three weeks.
The older advice to add 20–30% a week is more aggressive than that guidance, so treat it with caution. Pain that persists, or fatigue that does not clear after a day or two, is a sign to hold at the current length rather than push on. If pain is sharp or doesn’t ease with rest, see a doctor or physiotherapist.
The same ideas scale up for longer trips; planning a cycling holiday picks up where this leaves off.
Before you leave
- Download the route and map for offline use if your app supports it, so a lost signal does not leave you guessing.
- Charge your phone and tell someone your rough route and expected return time.
- Carry a spare tube, a pump or inflator and the tools to fit them, and practice a repair at home first. This step-by-step guide to fixing a flat covers it, and the five-minute pre-ride checklist catches problems before you are miles from home.
- If you ride with others, agree the route and meeting points beforehand; riding safely in a group covers the rest.
Sources
- Strava: How Do I Create and Manage Routes on the Strava Website?
- Strava: What Features Are Included in a Strava Subscription?
- Google: Get directions & show routes in Google Maps
- Rails-to-Trails Conservancy: TrailLink
- Bicycling South Africa: How to Gradually Increase Your Cycling Distance as a New Rider
Last reviewed: October 2026.