Winter weather was sapping my spirits, so I escaped to an off-season gem

David Bradford takes the chance to sojourn in sun-soaked Cyprus

David Bradford lounges poolside sipping a Martini. His bike is in the foreground in front of the pool
(Image credit: Anton Thompson-McCormick)

April might be the cruellest month if you’re a maudlin poet, but for sun-starved British cyclists, that title belongs to March. By mid-March – recall at your peril – the cold and wind had lingered so long it felt like spring would never arrive. Morale was low, work was busy as I adjusted to a new role, and the thought of gearing up in winter kit to brave the aggro drivers and potholes of south-east England seemed barely worth the hassle. Then I remembered an intriguing email that had landed in my inbox a few weeks earlier. Would I like a complimentary stay, it asked, “at a boutique hotel offering premium bike rentals and guided cycling trips in Cyprus?” At first, I dismissed it as too good to be true, but as another wintry squall rattled the window, my defences crumbled. Oh, go on then, I replied – or words to that effect – don’t mind if I do.

David Bradford's trip to Cyprus
David Bradford

CW’s features editor David Bradford hopes to carve out a niche as a luxury cycling resort correspondent.

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Spring
Row 0 - Cell 0 Cyprus MallorcaTenerife
March19/818/522/16
April22/1120/723/17
May26/1524/1125/18
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Autumn
Row 0 - Cell 0 CyprusMallorcaTenerife
Sept30/2028/1728/22
Oct27/1624/1327/20
Nov23/1119/824/18

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David Bradford
Features editor

David Bradford is features editor of Cycling Weekly (print edition). He has been writing and editing professionally for more than 15 years, and has published work in national newspapers and magazines including the Independent, the Guardian, the Times, the Irish Times, Vice.com and Runner’s World. Alongside his love of cycling, David is a long-distance runner with a marathon PB of two hours 28 minutes. Having been diagnosed with retinitis pigmentosa (RP) in 2006, he also writes about sight loss and hosts the podcast Ways of Not Seeing.