On your bike on Denmark's coast

The Danish coast has hundreds of award-winning beaches, a wide array of wildlife, along with excellent cycle routes making it ideal for a cycling holiday in Europe.

One of the most popular of these, not least thanks to its gigantic size, is the Marguerite Route.

Though not a dedicated cycle route, the Marguerite covers over 2,000 miles of minor roads, chosen for their scenic beauty, and all marked with a special road sign featuring a white daisy on a brown background.

Holidaymakers are unlikely to encounter larger vehicles on the route, as they are not suitable for caravans or coaches, adding to their appeal for exploring by bike.

If you are keen to try out some of the Marguerite with a cycling holiday you can head to the south-west Sealand area of Denmark to Skælskør, around 90 minutes from Copenhagen.

The area boasts some of the cleanest beaches and waters in Europe, as well as having around 90 miles of coastline to explore.

It also has plenty of beautiful and historic manor houses and castles to see, including those visited by Denmark's most famous story teller Hans Christian Andersen, with as Espe, Basnæs, Borreby and Holsteinborg among the best.

A recommended route for exploring the area by bike starts at Espe, a manor house dating back to 1848 from which there are great views of the monumental Great Belt suspension bridge linking Sealand with Funen, Denmark's third largest island.

The bridge is over four miles long, and its towering concrete pylons are some of the tallest structures in the country.

From here the route goes through town of Skælskør before reaching Herreborgen Borreby, a fortified manor house which is considered one of the country's oldest Renaissance buildings, dating from 1556.

Also on the route is the 17th century Holsteinborg Castle, the approach to which is almost as impressive as the castle itself. You can cycle along a two-mile long chestnut tree-lined avenue before getting to the impressive moats, farm and main buildings.

There is also a lot of birdlife to take in en route, in particular at Borreby Mose, a moor and nature reserve where ruff, avocet, shoveler and grebe bird varieties can be seen, as well as the park on the island of Ormø, which has one of the largest colonies of cormorants in Europe.

Bike hire is available from two cycle shops in Skælskør, as well as through the tourist office, which is also able to provide route maps.

For more information on visiting Skælskør see www.skaelskoer-turisme.dk

More information about visiting Denmark can be found at www.visitdenmark.com