Description
About the New World Tourist
The New World Tourist is a world-class touring bike, capable of fully-loaded trips over many weeks, and can still serve as your everyday ride. It is a custom-built touring bike that is “Best in Class” in reviews by thousands of people who have ridden it over the years, on every continent!
The New World Tourist’s ability to fold in 30 seconds allows you to put it into a car trunk, train seat, small ship cabin, or, with a little disassembly, pack it into an airline check-able suitcase for travel. Zero proprietary parts make it easy to maintain. It’s tested, tried and true, by thousands of riders!
We offer you many custom options, then hand build your bike to fit your size and particular riding plans. The New World Tourist has been our most popular bike since its introduction in 1992 and remains our best-seller to this day due to its versatility.
Select Options for Your Bike:
Choose your frame color:
There are many more colors available if you order your bike as ‘Full Custom’ when working with a Bike Friday Expert.
Upgrade and Accessory Options:
Electric Assist Option:
You can add an electric assist to this bike. It is a front hub motor pedal assist style and comes with a 36V battery with ~60km (37mile) range. This front hub motor system replaces the front hub in the front wheel. (*Airline checkable LiGo 10X will be released soon. Read more HERE*)
More details on the 350W front hub motor:
- No motor resistance, unlike a Shimano or Bosch Mid-drive
- Very light! The whole system adds only ~ 11 lbs to your bike
- Very Quiet!
- Disc brake compatible
Made-In-House Chromoly Rack Options:
Rear Rack:
Our rear rack takes standard panniers, has a 55-pound weight limit, and has plenty of clearance under the rack for use with the Bike Friday Under-bag. And it packs flat to easily fit in a suitcase with the bike.
Front Rack:
Fits standard panniers. Rated for 25lbs each side. A must for a properly weighted touring bike for best front/rear weight balance and ride control. And it packs flat to easily fit in a suitcase with the bike.
Travel System Options:
Travel Case plus packing materials: to protect your bike while traveling
Travel Trailer added to Travel Case:
The Bike Friday Travel Trailer frame can be added as a choice to the Travel Case to make a full travel system. The Travel Trailer includes everything you need to make a Travel Case into a tow-ready trailer. The system includes the aluminum trailer frame, two (12″) wheels, protective socks for packaging and one reflective flag and thumb nuts to connect your travel suitcase.
The trailer package also comes with a rear hub axle mounted hitch. This hitch can be used in place of a bike-specific hitch, or as a connection method on another bike so you can swap your trailer system quickly to another bike. There is a male air nipple included as well (integrated into the axle hitch).
The gross weight limit for the trailer is 75 pounds. This includes the weight of the trailer (6.7lbs/2.95 kg) and the average case weight is 13lbs, so the total capacity for your gear is 55lbs.
All felt packing bags and blankets are made from Eco-Fi fleece, a product made of 100% post-consumer recycled plastic bottles.
Soft Travel Bag:
The updated travel bag is now 10 inches wider to fit larger frames and tire sizes, features side cinch straps and stuffs into its own pocket. The Bike Friday Travel Bag allows you to easily carry or store your Bike Friday. Quick-fold your bike, fit it into its durable bag, and zip up! Black nylon coated pack fabric. Two sturdy woven handles and an adjustable shoulder strap allow you to carry your bike onto the bus, train or elevator with ease. A good way to keep it protected in the trunk of your vehicle too. Fits all single Bike Fridays. Wt: 672 grams. Rolls up to 4 1/2″ diameter, 14″ long. Proudly made here in Eugene, Oregon.
How to fold your Bike Friday:
Applicable to all Pocket Bikes (New World Tourist, Diamond Llama, All-Packa)
How to order your bike on this page:
- Follow all the steps in the drop-down menus above then “Add to cart” and follow steps in your cart to purchase.
- A Bike Friday Expert will follow up with you to determine your sizing, pick-up /ship date (production takes 5-7 weeks on average) and confirm any other needed details about your order.
- Then you get your bike!
Additional Ways to Order with More Options:
We offer many more options than we can post here without overwhelming people. We can likely build what you are looking for. Just contact us and tell a friendly Bike Expert what you are looking for. You can also do more exploring on your own first by clicking on the “Advanced Designer for bike geeks” button to find our bike configurator.
Bike Friday 10 Year WarrantyWe have a strong warranty on our frames against defects in material and/or workmanship for 10 years. Warranty is non-transferable. Bicycle components (excluding tires, chain, cables, etc.) generally have a 1-year limited warranty. CLICK HERE for full warranty information.
Read New World Tourist Customer Bike Reviews Below
Submit your review | |
I ordered a New World Tourist on short notice for my trip across northern Spain. Walter was very helpful in walking me through the many options, and they rushed it to me in a timely manner. It was my first folding type, so I didn’t know quite what to expect.
I was surprised how similar it was in performance to a traditional bike. It’s not nearly as fast on those little wheels, but it cruises at a respectable pace, and pedaling was quite easy (those wheels have a low moment of inertia, to use physics talk). I traversed the length of the Pyrenees during my trip, so I got accustomed to its performance on mountain roads, where it acquits itself quite well. With the lower torque of its small wheels, it requires pretty aggressive downshifting, but the 18-speed option covered the full range of grades that I encountered.
I did a maximum of sixty miles in one day. Being a comfortable ride, it’s certainly capable of more, but not being nearly as quick as larger bikes, it would make for a long day. Personally, I wouldn’t be very keen to do a century on it.
The bike is easy to maintain, containing no oddball proprietary parts and coming with a basic toolkit - on serious trips to remote places, you would need to supplement it with a few extras to cover all possible problems.
Folding the bike is an intuitive process after you’ve practiced it at home a few times. And having suffered through dragging a fullsize in its case through airports and train stations, I found the compactness a real godsend.
Overall, the New World Tourist is an excellent international traveler. After having ridden it through everything northern Spain could throw at it, I would confidently take it on any future on-pavement adventure.
I bought my first BikeFriday New World Tourist in 1994, a used one from BikeFriday. I used it for my first around the world tour. I watched people with full size bikes fumble around trying to box it at the airport. The suitcase/trailer combination is the best, for all around travel situations, airplane, bus and even hitchhiking.
I rode the BikeFriday in 2013 from Lisbon to Istanbul. I gave each country about a month. I rode the train and bus several times to keep on some kind of schedule. In Spain I got a train ticket for me, $60. For the bike?they wanted to charge me $100. I folded the bike and put it in the suitcase, within his view of course. I really only “needed” to fold it 3 or 4 times in 7 months, but still a great option.
I was planning a trip around France and Spain for April/May 2022. I wanted to bring my full size E-bike, but the train restrictions made it impossible. I hadn't seriously ridden my BikeFriday in 9 years. So I took it to a local E-bike shop and had front hub motor and BIG battery installed. I got the bus from Ljubljana, Slovenia to Paris, France for only $35 euro, the train was $200 +, and no bike.
I changed buses in Paris, stayed overnight, assembled the bike and rode to a friends house. She wanted me stay longer, then drive me to the next friends house. She didn't have a bike rack, so I folded it and off we went.
I was in camp and a French man came by to see the BikeFriday setup. I explained the bike folds into the trailer. He started saying the bike was? (His English was just Ok), S I helped him “INGENIOUS”? He gave me a resounding YES. Yes, the BikeFriday is totally ingenious. If you want to travel and keep your carbon footprint down at the same time, the BikeFriday is the ticket for Green Travel. (not on airplanes): If you';re buying a made to order BikeFriday, I suggest the internal hub (no derailleur) and Disk Brakes.
While I primarily ride and tour alone, I do, from time to time, join for organized rides for specific causes. The rides are, of course, normally across the country (USA) from where I live, and traveling with a full-sized bike is... Let's say, a pain. I have seen the Bike Friday ads in various magazines over the years, but never was interested in such a "unique" looking bike. But then I signed up for a ride during the spring of 2017 that change my mind. I decided to purchase a NWT for use during future loaded touring and specifically for the then upcoming ride (that was, of course, across the country from where I live). Since receiving the bike it's been ridden many thousand miles, and although I have a stable of multiple quality bikes, the one I ride most is the BF. If you are considering purchasing one, I strongly recommend you do. I've created a few videos that give a more comprehensive review:
https://youtu.be/BDvwn3wlp1k
https://youtu.be/4pNCtJNehk4
