Saddle up for seven of the most eye-opening bike rides in the world.

The benefits of cycling are many and varied. It’s the greenest, cheapest, healthiest way to get around, but when we’re grinding over London Bridge on a cold Tuesday in February or sweating it out in Brooklyn in August, it’s easy to lose sight of the life-changing potential of two wheels.

So it’s important to look beyond the daily commute and take your bike out of the city and into the wild world beyond. Day trips are great, sure, but to truly escape, you need think bigger: in every continent there are long-distance routes that reward the adventurous cyclist with stupendous views, new cultures and an unparalleled sense of achievement that you are never going to get from lounging by a pool.

When undertaking a heroic cycling tour, it’s not advisable to just hop on and go – spending days in the saddle requires preparation, or there’s a danger of an early, painful and disappointing finish. Every ounce of weight needs to be accounted for, the bike must be perfectly fitted, and the engine – ie, you – has to be properly fit and fuelled. But the sense of freedom a long-haul tour brings makes it worthwhile. Here we present the best rides on the planet.

In 2016, former pro cyclist Mr James McCallum completed this 516-mile road route round the north coast of Scotland in little more than 31 hours, but taking it at a gentler pace (and, you know, stopping now and again) makes for a more appealing option. The NC500 follows an all-road loop from the city of Inverness along the very edges of the northern Highlands, from the Black Isle through Caithness to Wester Ross, with the crashing sea on one side and mountains on the other. If it’s finished in seven days or so, it becomes a wonderful, if challenging, way to experience the scenery, nature (golden eagles if you’re very lucky) and friendly people of this remote part of Britain (and there are more than a couple of whisky distilleries, including Clynelish and Glen Ord, to drop by, too). On the Applecross Peninsula the route takes in Bealach Na Ba, the notoriously steep but breathtakingly beautiful Alpinesque pass.

This route from Cairo to Cape Town ranks as perhaps the most adventurous cycle in the world. From the first southbound pedal stroke at the pyramids of Giza in Egypt, its 7,000-mile-plus course visits Sudan, Ethiopia, Kenya, Tanzania, Malawi, Zambia, Botswana and Namibia before the final hop-off under the shadow of Table Mountain in South Africa. In the saddle, riders experience cultures close-up that most of us never go near, plus they get to see the Victoria Falls, the Great Rift Valley and the Namib Desert, to name a few of the incredible waypoints. And the monkeys, elephants and giraffes are a bit more attention-grabbing than the ratty pigeons you pass on your commute. Allow a generous four months for this one.

In the late 19th century, before the car became king, American long-distance pioneers took to their “highwheel” penny farthings and endeavoured to cross their country under their own steam, often on roads that were barely walkable. Now, cycling coast to coast is easier going, but still a test. The Trans America Trail is a volunteer-designed and crowd-sourced route following some paved roads but mainly publicly accessible tracks and trails (fat tyres and a tent are essential). In its 5,000-mile journey from Oregon to the East Coast (generally Virginia) it takes in some eight states and treats riders to such sights as Yellowstone Park, Great Divide Basin, the Rockies, the Great Plains and the Appalachian Mountains. “It is by riding a bicycle that you learn the contours of a country best, since you have to sweat up the hills and coast down them,” said Mr Ernest Hemingway; this might be the best way to see the US away from its coasts and cities.

There is no single official Camino de Santiago – it refers to any number of routes taken by pilgrims to the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela in Galicia. But whether you’re going to pay your respects to the remains of St James or you just fancy a break among the green hills, dramatic mountains and quaint towns of this unspoilt part of northern Spain, cycling is an ideal way to do it. Pamplona is a good place to start – careful, bulls and bikes don’t mix – from where riders can follow the 400-mile Camino Francés to the baroque city where the apostle himself apparently rests. Done over a week outside peak heat (spring is best, when the region begins to bloom), it’s relaxed and rewarding, especially if combined with stop-offs at some of the region’s many peerless seafood restaurants.

The Carretera Austral – “Southern Highway” – is a 770-mile vanity project built by former president Mr Augusto Pinochet to demonstrate state power in the mostly empty land of Patagonia. Starting about halfway up the country on the Pacific Coast, the course heads south through thick forests and towns, past mountains, fjords, glaciers and immense rivers. When you see “Highway”, you might think of smooth asphalt made for easy rolling, but that’s not this road: it’s often potholed and gravelly, and given the untamed landscape, twisty-turny and steep. Riders need to be mostly self-sufficient and will meet few fellow humans, so wild camping is the norm (often in waterside sites – Lago General Carrera is particularly picturesque), and since the Carretera Austral finishes in remote countryside, anyone who ends up there needs to arrange forward travel, either by bus back north or offroad over the border to Argentina. If that doesn’t put you off, this could be the once-in-a-lifetime ride for you.

Cycling the Murray, Australia’s longest river, from source to sea makes for an unforgettable off-road tour. Four weeks is usually enough to do it in one, and allows a bit of downtime to enjoy the surroundings of this windy, mighty, muddy waterway. Beginning at Albury, southwest of Canberra, and ending at Goolwa, not far from Adelaide, the route bisects South Australia, New South Wales and Victoria, never straying too far from urban centres (like Mildura with its numerous vineyards or lively Swan Hill), and is made up of mostly state trails that are dusty but decent. Plenty of free official camping makes the job much easier, leaving the rider the chance to appreciate the peace and quiet, plus the kangaroos, birds and river wildlife, as well as the sense of history at every turn.

The Silk Road connected traders from China, India, the Middle East and Europe. It spanned countries, kingdoms and centuries and still evokes images of laden caravans, mysterious cities rich with the scent of smoke and spices, and vast deserts. Much of it is relatively unvisited by outsiders, making this pan-Asian odyssey one of the most spectacular trips you can do on a bicycle. Touring company TDA Global Cycling organises a trip with guides, luggage transport, accommodation and food, which is probably a good idea for all but the most dedicated traveller (there are also dip-your-toe-in shorter stages). Starting in Beijing in springtime and ending in Istanbul some five months and 8,125 miles later, the ride passes through China, Mongolia, Russia and several former Soviet republics on its way to the Bosphorus, stopping at the cities of Samarkand and Bukhara, crossing the Kazakh Steppe and Kyrghstan peaks, pushing on through sun, rain and the odd sandstorm.

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