If you’ve ever considered a bike trip to Italy, chances are that you’ve come across a company called Ciclismo Classico. Celebrating its 30thanniversary this year, they offer rides like Cinque Terre & Tuscany, A Feast in Umbria and Majestic Dolomites. Italy-obsessed biking enthusiasts know they’ll get a great workout, feats on regional specialties and immerse themselves in the culture, which is why the company has an astonishing 75 % repeat traveler factor and gets raves for their local guides.

While Ciclismo Classico has expanded its trips into other European countries and even to Argentina, where photography trips in Salta are a specialty, at its heart is Italy and cycling, which is the passion of its very passionate founder, a dynamo by the name of Lauren Hefferon. “I was a hyperactive kid growing up in Keene, New Hampshire, and I injured my knee downhill skiing,” Hefferon recalls. “I wanted to stay active and I wanted to find something I could do my whole life. And that was bicycling.”