If the rising cost of fuel has you rethinking your trip or renting a car while on vacation, try these bike-focused vacation ideas. www.backroads.com has tons of itineraries that will take you on two shiny wheels along the coasts of California, through the Tuscan sprawl of meadows or even visit the Castles in France.

Case in point: the weekend in California's Alexander Valley tour which meets in the spa town of Calistoga. You'll start by tasting some exquisite merlot, then spin on some hillsides dotted with vineyards, apple orchards and oak forests. You end with biking through Armstrong Redwoods State Reserve and end up in San Francisco.

Or you can bike through France's Bordeaux Wine Estate region and stay at Premiere Inns. There are trips to Brittany and Normandy, as well snorkeling trips to the Mayan Ruins in Belize.

Several people cannot sing enough praise about the tours given by this company: the trips give you a chance to bike alone and meander through quaint towns you would otherwise bypass by car; or the opportunity to be gregarious and bike with a group.

And the best part is that you'll probably shave off more pounds on your vacation than you would on your Weight Watcher's diet!