Milan Bergamo Airport has launched a premium electric bike rental service called NextBG, billed as the first high-end e-bike hire scheme set up inside an Italian airport terminal.
The airport, in Orio al Serio, is also the first in Europe to be recognised as bike-friendly, and it is positioning cycling as a way for arriving passengers to begin exploring the region the moment they land.
Subtitled “The New Way to Explore Bergamo,” NextBG was developed through a partnership between DIF and SACBO, the company that manages Milan Bergamo Airport, with technical support from Würth and the bike maker Bergamont, part of the Scott Sports group. The fleet runs to more than 25 latest-generation Bergamont e-bikes, mostly premium electric mountain bikes offered in several variants to suit different riders.
The rental base sits directly at the airport, which the operators describe as a zero-distance starting point that lets travellers set off without transfers or waiting. The pedal assistance is meant to make the rides accessible to a wide range of people rather than only experienced cyclists.
NextBG offers several ready-made itineraries alongside the basic rental. A four-hour guided tour titled “Città Alta, where Bergamo tells its story” explores the upper old town with a cycling guide, and a half-day variant adds a traditional Bergamasque lunch. Other routes take riders through the Moscato di Scanzo vineyards or out to Castello di Malpaga, with optional guided visits, tastings and meals. The service also builds custom experiences for families, couples and solo travellers, and more tours are due to be added in the coming weeks.
The scheme was presented at a press conference attended by Giovanni Sanga, president of SACBO, Giorgio Corno, president of DIF, and Giuseppe Paganelli, bike manager of NextBG. Also present were Enrico Maccarini, a cycle tourism specialist who founded e-Stelvio and now runs operations at the Hotel Funivia in Bormio, along with Vittorio Stefana of Würth and Simone Trussardi of Bergamont. Sanga said the airport had embraced multimodality, building its development around sustainability, accessibility and a flexible approach to mobility linked to air travel.
The launch fits a wider mobility strategy at Milan Bergamo Airport. SACBO received Cycle Friendly Employer certification in 2021, becoming the first airport operator in Europe to do so, and reached Gold level for sustainable mobility in 2024. The operators frame the project as aligned with the United Nations 2030 Agenda, with cycling now treated as part of both the passenger experience and staff transport.
Passengers arriving with their own bicycles can already use a dedicated path inside the terminal and a Bike Room set up for assembly and maintenance. From the terminal, riders can reach a cycle route around the airport perimeter that connects to Bergamo and to wider national and international routes.
That network links to the Bergamo-Brescia Cycle Route, which opened during the 2023 Italian Capital of Culture year shared by the two cities, as well as the Musica nel Vento, AIDA and Sole cycle routes. The airport said a new rail connection due to open soon would give visitors a further option to arrive by train and continue by bike.
For Bergamo and the surrounding Orobie territory, the scheme adds another layer to a growing cycle tourism offer that already spans historic centres, countryside landscapes and food-focused itineraries. With NextBG, the airport is casting itself as a starting point for that activity rather than simply a point of arrival.
