Bike rental suggestions, Camino del Norte

[Kiwi Suz]

We are struggling to find reviews of bike rental companies in Spain. We are going in August, so figure we need to book. Any good or bad reviews of the main bike rental places would be really appreciated. We will start from Santander (finish in Santiago de Compostela). Most of the bigger companies seem happy to deliver bikes to starting points. Looking at Cycling-Rentals (a few reviews saying broken spoke issues, but good at reimbursing you), vz Bicigrino, vs BikeIberia (some great reviews prior to 2 yrs ago, some terrible recent reviews), vs Cyclingthecamnio.
Any feedback or suggestions great appreciated! About bike specs, accommodation, anything to do with the Northern Way would be great. We are looking at getting two women's style mountain bikes, if you think thats not a good idea, let me know!
Thanks, writing from a stormy day in New Zealand

 

[AdaR]

Kiwi Suz,
I used BikeIberia last September. They delivered the bike to a hotel in Pamplona, and picked it up at my final hotel in SdC. I had also read some not so wonderful reviews, but my experience was quite satisfactory. I chose BikeIberia because they offered a hybrid women's bike with a step through frame, and their all inclusive price for the 3 weeks was reasonable. I had no issues with the bike, though it was clearly not a new model. My only complaint was the lack of a chain guard that left me with a very greasy right calf EVERY day. The chain also came off several times, but I chalked it up to operator error -- incorrect shifting and over correcting.
I did contact them once initially to ask to return some of the heavier accessories that I didn't think I wanted to haul with me. They accommodated my request with no extra fees, even though it required an additional pickup. I texted them when I got into SdC, and they scheduled the pick up for me. I just parked my bike and said goodbye to it and the Camino.
All in all, it was a good experience, so I wouldn't hesitate to recommend BikeIberia or use them again myself if I ever had the chance to bike the Camino again.
Buen Camino

 

[Ajrk]

We are struggling to find reviews of bike rental companies in Spain. We are going in August, so figure we need to book. Any good or bad reviews of the main bike rental places would be really appreciated. We will start from Santander (finish in Santiago de Compostela). Most of the bigger companies seem happy to deliver bikes to starting points. Looking at Cycling-Rentals (a few reviews saying broken spoke issues, but good at reimbursing you), vz Bicigrino, vs BikeIberia (some great reviews prior to 2 yrs ago, some terrible recent reviews), vs Cyclingthecamnio.
Any feedback or suggestions great appreciated! About bike specs, accommodation, anything to do with the Northern Way would be great. We are looking at getting two women's style mountain bikes, if you think thats not a good idea, let me know!
Thanks, writing from a stormy day in New Zealand

Hi there not long back from the Camino (12th of May ) I cycled from Roncesvalles to Santiago and used Bicigrino who I would totally recommend ,the bicycle was a top of the range mountain bike ( I wanted to use the walkers path so road bike would not have suited ) it was a great machine for the task everything from the 29 inch wheels to disc brakes ( believe me you will need disk breaks on some of the descents) to the ratio of gears /weight / balance.I had mine for 28 days and it worked out around 400 euro with a 200 euro refundable deposit ( which was back in my bank within 48 hours of me leaving the bike at the drop off point in Santiago) and as strange as it seems I was a little sad to walk away from it as we had such an adventure together good luck with which ever option you choose
Alan