Adventure motorcycles continue to be among the best selling bikes in the UK and Ireland, and with good reason. They truly are the most capable all round machines you can buy, with the ability to tour, commute and have fun on all combined into one.
BMW R 1300 GS Adventure
You can’t talk about adventure bikes without mentioning BMW and its iconic boxer twin GS models, so here goes…!
Although it’s been around for a few months now, the latest R 1300 GS Adventure is a new-for-2025 model. It’s based on the standard R 1300 GS, which itself is a ground-up reimagining of the legendary bike which popularised the genre, and (as you’d expect) is pretty darned good.
We’ve already reviewed the bike in depth, so if you want to know all about the latest GSA brew a cuppa and click this link to see what GS expert Phil West had to say.
The TL;DR version is that the new GS is lighter, more powerful and with increased agility over the outgoing 1250 – although looks definitely divide opinion. Technology is everywhere on the German company’s flagship adventure bike, with a big focus on making this giant looking machine more accessible. Stuff like Auto Shift Assist (BMW’s version of an automatic transmission system) and Adaptive Vehicle Height Control, which lowers the suspension at walking pace.
There’s no doubt the GSA will be a sales success, it always is, and once again there’s a very good reason for that. It really is the complete adventure bike with more than adequate power from the 145bhp 1300cc engine, a wonderfully integrated electronics suite, a tough chassis and a great name on the tank. What’s not to like?
Ducati Multistrada V4 S
At the top end of the ‘road focused’ subsector of the adventure bike market lies Ducati’s mighty Multistrada V4.
This 170bhp Grand Tourer has been fulfilling its role as a comfy superbike which can be ridden daily for a few years now, and although the 2025 iteration doesn’t appear much different – both to look at and on the spec sheet – Ducati has modified pretty much every element to make for a more refined all-rounder.
Twist that throttle and it’s still bonkers crazy, but the Multistrada V4’s party trick has always been the way in which the mechanical and electronic aids work in complete harmony and turn this fire breathing motorcycle into a real pussy cat.
Unlike the more rugged GS, the Multistrada is very much at the ‘street’ end of the adventure bike market. It’s got tall(-ish) suspension like you’d find on a bike with off-road aspirations, as well as the obligatory 19” front wheel, but the set-up is sporty and more ‘practical Panigale’ than desert crossing enduro. If you want an adventure bike with real capability on the rough stuff, we recommend looking at the Ducati Desert X.
But if the Multistrada V4 piques your interest, this is another bike our man Phil West has ridden and reviewed for the channel. He described it as ‘near perfect’ and you can read his full review of the ‘S’ specification version here.
Triumph Tiger Sport 800
We thought long and hard about including the Tiger Sport in our ‘best adventure bikes’ list, after all we’re not sure it even is an adventure bike.
With a 17” front wheel and road orientated rubber it’s less ‘adventurey’ than even the Multistrada V4 featured above. We’d say it’s more a sports tourer in the vein of Yamaha’s Tracer series, but Triumph list it as an adventure bike on their website – and the Tiger name has historically been attached to its off-road machines. It’s an important bike which should sell in the mainstream so, we grudgingly count it among the ADV set for the purposes of this feature.
Dubbed an ‘all-new’ model by Triumph’s ever enthusiastic marketeers, in reality it takes the entry level Tiger Sport 660, adds some better tech and swaps the 660 motor for a meatier 800cc triple which debuts in this model. For all we’re saying ‘is it a real adventure bike?’ and despite the 17” wheels, the 835mm seat height is actually taller than the Tiger 850 Sport and Tiger 900 GT models, machines you’d have no problem categorising as ‘proper’ adventure bikes.
This is one motorcycle we’re really looking forward to riding in the coming months, as it should bring a degree more performance and sophistication to the otherwise excellent but slightly budget Tiger Sport 660.
KTM 1390 Super Adventure S Evo
KTM’s financial travails have been well documented over the past few months, which overshadows the fact that they’ve got some exciting new models planned for 2025.
None is more impressive than the 1390 Super Adventure S Evo, a 170-bhp superbike on stilts which has the mighty Multistrada V4 in its sights.
It wouldn’t be a KTM if it wasn’t hardcore machine, and the Super Adventure S Evo comes with all their best technology. The model debuts KTM’s first effort at an automatic transmission system and it comes packed with space shuttle levels of electronic gizmos, including electronic suspension, adaptive cruise control and a new 1390cc V-twin engine featuring variable valve timing.
Hardly surprising, when you consider KTM’s back catalogue of off-road successes, the Super Adventure S Evo looks to be more dirt capable than most bikes in the category. KTM even debuted a prototype version at last year’s tough Erzberg Rodeo enduro event, and if you want a serious high end adventure bike this has got to be on the shopping list. If you don’t fancy all of that new tech, KTM are also making a non Evo version, which is less expensive and bereft of the auto transmission and adaptive cruise control.
Is the 1390 Super Adventure S Evo the bike to save KTM? Probably not. It’ll be hard to displace BMW as the market leader, and we reckon the small capacity/high volume stuff will play a bigger part in turning things around, but it can have a serious role in reestablishing the credibility of a tarnished brand – as well as introducing some cutting edge technologies which can filter down to other models in the Austrian firm’s range.
Voge 900 DSX
A controversial one, we think, including the Chinese built Voge in our list of top five adventure bikes for 2025. We could have gone for the Aprilia Tuareg or Yamaha Tenere, two of the more hardcore middleweight offerings which have been updated for this year, but in the end we’ve picked a bike we think is really relevant in today’s marketplace – if only because of its bargain basement price.
If you’ve never heard of the Voge, our man Phil West filed a full review which you can read here. In a nutshell, it’s powered by a version of the well proven BMW F 900 engine. It performs well enough, has more spec than most middleweight adventure bikes and, at under £9000, undercuts the competition by a significant margin.
Sure it’s not quite as polished as the established models in the sector, but it represents an awful lot of motorcycle for the money and could well mark the start of Chinese manufacturers becoming mainstream brands. If you can put up with some of its rougher edges, the Voge should make for a very capable all-rounder.