Epic Road Rides is all about providing inspiration and useful information to road cyclists that want to ride the world’s best routes.
One of our core values is honesty.
It’s in this spirit of openness and transparency, that we describe below the different streams of revenue generated by this website, our email communications and associated platforms.
Please also read our Website terms and conditions of use. By way of example, section 19, “We are not responsible for third party services”, is particularly relevant to this Disclosure Policy.
If you have any questions, do drop us a line.
“Supported by”
Where content is marked as “supported by” a particular organisation, this means we have received payment from that organisation (whether cash or in kind and whether specifically for the content or as part of a broader relationship).
The content is editorially independent. That means we choose what subject to write about, what words and images to use and we don’t show it to the organisation for approval before publication.
The content might include paid feature(s) from our client, which they have written or approved. These are clear and separate to the substantive content.
An example of “supported by” content is our Almeria destination guide.
“Sponsored by”
As with “supported by” content, where content is marked as “sponsored by” or “sponsored post”, this means we have received payment from that organisation (whether cash or in kind and whether specifically for the article or as part of a broader relationship).
The difference is that, for sponsored content, the organisation will have had significant input into the content. Though we retain ultimate editorial control, they may have chosen what to write about, have written some or all of the words and provided the images. We may have sought their final approval before promotion of the content.
We only agree to sponsored content that we think will be truly interesting and of benefit.
An example of “sponsored by” content is our Q&A with Bike Weekender.
Paid features
Some content contains paid features from our clients.
For example we work with accommodation providers who want to attract cyclists to stay in their holiday apartments and houses and might feature their accommodation within our article. We receive payment for listing their property in our article.
Where content contains a paid feature, we mention this within the relevant content.
An example of content containing a “paid feature” is our article on where to cycle in Spain.
Affiliate links
Affiliate links to third party websites are found in some of our content, for example to Expedia or Booking.com.
If you click on one of these links and buy something or make a booking we may receive a commission.
Where content contains an affiliate link(s), we mention this within the relevant content.
An example of content containing an “affiliate link” is our article on cycling gifts.
We may also make a commission where you use a discount code we share (more information below) or fill out a contact form on our website or email us with a query and we refer you to a third party provider.
Site supporters
Some of the brands we work with pay to have their logo appear on our site and/or email newsletters, with a link to their website.
We often also create content that is “supported by” or “sponsored by” these organisations.
Sponsored reviews
In some cases we are gifted the product/service we review. If this is the case, we make it very clear at or near the start of the review.
Before we agree to review a product/service, we explain to organisations that we retain editorial control over the review we write.
You will see that we include the negatives, as well as positives, of any product/service we review, even where we have received the product/service as a gift.
An example of a sponsored gear review is our Cyclon cleaning products review.
Discount codes
Some of our content shares codes and discount codes.
These may or may not be part of/related to other kinds of paid content as described in the sections above. For example, if you use a code, we may also receive a commission.
We love to offer codes and discount codes as they benefit you, our readers. However since they are provided by third party businesses, please be aware that they may be withdrawn, and so cease to work, at any time without notice, and this may occur before the end date we specify in the content. This means a code you see on our site may not be honoured by the third party and we cannot be held accountable for this.
Email newsletters
We use our email newsletters to share content we think you’ll find interesting. Some of this content falls into the categories above and so may, for example, be sponsored content, contain affiliate links or discount codes that pay us a commission when you claim your discount.
Amazon Associates disclosure
Epic Road Rides is a participant in the Amazon EU Associates Programme, an affiliate advertising programme designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.co.uk, Amazon.de, Amazon.fr, Amazon.it, and Amazon.es.
We are a participant in the Amazon Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon and affiliated sites.
We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.