After failed attempts to replace handlebars with joysticks and add sunroofs to bikes, scientists decided leg-powered cranks, a gyrating front wheel, and fruit-shaped seating make the best bicycle. Be captain of the handlebars with today's Groupon: for $20, you get a 3.5-hour historical tour of New Orleans with Big Easy Bike Tours (a $49 value). Reservations must be made for all tours, which run at 9 a.m. and 1 p.m. daily.

Whether your tire-turning extremities are located at home, at a hotel, or in a docked zeppelin cabin over the river, Big Easy Bike Tours will deliver the bicycle(s) to you and up to four of your cycling teammates almost anywhere in the city. All tours begin back in 1718 with sightseeing and narrated soundseeing throughout the French Quarter. From there, there is a spork in the road where you can choose between three touring fates. The first, Neighborhoods and Lower 9th Ward, takes a path past green homes built by Global Green after Hurricane Katrina, visits the levee and explains what led to its failure, and passes through St. Roch and Treme. The second journey lands you on the Esplanade Avenue of the Creoles, exploring Bayou St. John and the history of New Orleans cemeteries, European settlers, and early New Orleanians' struggles to colonize the undomesticated flavors of crawfish étouffée within its wild habitat. After pedaling through City Park and observing the Museum of Art and Botanical Gardens, you finish cruising through Mid-City. The final option, a tour of the American Sector and the Garden District, details some of the architecture, universities, and finest fine arts found in New Orleans.

Big Easy Bike Tours are a healthy, educational, and entertaining way to explore New Orleans. Much like baseball games, campfires, and Liza Minnelli's makeup, Big Easy Bike Tours are subject to weather, so plan ahead by dancing the Electric Boogaloo instead of your usual rain dance. Call ahead to schedule a tour.

Reviews

Nine Google Mappers and four Yelpers each give Big Easy Bike Tours five stars:

• My friends and I took a tour with Bob and we all had an excellent time. Bob took us all around the city to places that we would not have gone otherwise. I recommend starting your trip off with the tour because Bob can point out the best places to eat and visit from a local perspective. He brings the bikes right to your hotel, so you don't have to worry about finding the starting point. People on the bus tours looked very jealous that we were enjoying the city on bikes while they were stuck inside - there is no better way to see the city! – Diana, Google Maps
• Bob is the best tour guide ever! I had so much fun on this tour. It felt like I was touring with a friend instead of a guide. I called Bob the morning of my tour and he picked up right away. He originally planned to do only one tour that day in the morning, but quickly agreed to open up an afternoon tour for me and my friend. At first I thought other people would be in our tour so I was very surprise to find that he was only giving the tour to my friend and I. He later explained that he prefers to keep the groups small so that everyone can see what they want to see. – Wendy, Google Maps