One-Year-Old Adventure-Touring Bikes That Are Just As Comfortable On The Highway
Adventure bikes have never been more capable — or more tempting for riders who spend most of their miles on asphalt. The segment has matured to the point where the best road-oriented examples rival dedicated sport-tourers for comfort, electronics sophistication, and outright performance, all while wearing that tall, commanding ADV silhouette. If you want the look and versatility without sacrificing highway manners, the machines below are worth a very close look.
The adventure-bike world splits broadly into two camps: on-road oriented and off-road oriented. The differences show up most clearly in the front wheel size, tire choice, and suspension tuning. Off-road-oriented bikes typically run a 21-inch spoked front wheel, knobbier rubber, and suspension tuned to soak up rough terrain. On-road ADVs favor 17-inch cast front wheels, street tires, and sportier suspension calibrated for agile pavement behavior. A happy medium lands on a 19-inch wheel, with the tires themselves signaling which way the bike leans — on-road stability with the option for light off-road shenanigans.
Among the road-savvy ADVs you’ll find street-centric features such as cornering-enhanced electronic rider aids, active or semi-active suspension, and cruise control to make highway touring genuinely comfortable. Increasingly, this blurs the line between street-oriented adventure bikes and what we’ve traditionally called sport-tourers and crossovers. For ADVs tuned for the highway, we’ll focus on those with 17- or 19-inch front wheels and street tires.
2025 Ducati Multistrada V4 Pikes Peak
Price (When New): $31,995
Ducati tops the list with its road-centric Multistrada V4 Pikes Peak. The bike rolls on 17-inch wheels front and rear, cementing its status as one of the most pavement-focused models in the ADV segment. Öhlins forks measure a beefy 48 mm in diameter for rigidity, while a TTX36 monoshock handles the rear.
All of that is under electronic control, allowing quick push-button suspension adjustments through the Öhlins Smart EC 2.0 system. Ducati’s up-and-down quickshifter comes standard, joined by a comprehensive suite of electronic rider aids that keeps this bike firmly in the top tier of the tech race. One of the standout features is the radar-assisted adaptive cruise control, which monitors and maintains a safe following distance from the vehicle ahead.
Yamaha Tracer 9
Price (When New): $12,599
Yamaha takes a different approach with its Tracer 9, delivering affordable road-focused performance in a package that’s genuinely approachable. The Tracer 9 features updated electronics and revised switchgear alongside a seven-inch color TFT display. A configurable top-speed limiter lets you set a ceiling before temptation gets the better of your right wrist.
A Deltabox frame sharpens handling while improving long-distance comfort, and the ergonomics are well suited to extended riding. The 890 cc engine is paired with a six-axis inertial measurement unit that feeds the electronic control unit and a full complement of rider safety systems. Standard hard cases mean you leave the dealership with usable storage already in place.
BMW S 1000 XR
Price (When New): $17,995
BMW enters the fray with its S 1000 XR, which fits the bird’s-beak ADV mold in the sportiest Beemer fashion. A rally-style screen sits above a ram-air port at the nose of the beak, channeling pressurized air directly into the intake tract for a low-tech but effective performance boost. The payoff is real: the S 1000 XR matches the Ducati Pikes Peak in the horsepower department.
An electronically controlled suspension system delivers automatic dynamic damping adjustments on the fly, backed by a robust electronics package that covers all the major bases. One particularly useful feature is the E-Call Intelligent Emergency Call system — essentially a dead-man’s switch that adds an extra layer of protection for both rider and passenger.
KTM 1290 Super Adventure S
Price (When New): $20,999
KTM blurs the line between ADV-bike design and the sport-touring models the segment seems to be slowly supplanting with its 1290 Super Adventure S. This decidedly street-centric machine carries all the usual KTM genetic markers — spiky styling and relatively minimal bodywork. Power from the LC8 V-twin nudges past everything above it by a slim margin, and the electronics package is similarly top-shelf, placing it firmly among the best long-haul tourers available.
Interestingly, the factory specified unusually short pistons — not narrow in diameter, but minimal in height — leaving them looking like little more than a crown with just enough structure to support the wrist-pin bosses beneath. The result is reduced reciprocating mass and a notably free-revving character. It’s also worth noting that a larger 1390 variant of this platform has since arrived, so check current KTM offerings for the latest.
Triumph Tiger Sport 660
Price (When New): $9,695
Triumph offers a more accessible entry point with its Tiger Sport 660, which comes in under $10,000 while still delivering a solid suite of modern road capabilities. The bodywork is slim and trim — the front fairing and adjustable windscreen offer modest wind protection at best, so taller riders may want to budget for an aftermarket screen.
The electronics, however, hold their own against pricier middleweights: Shift Assist, cornering ABS and Traction Control, and three Riding Modes mean you’re not giving up much on the tech front to hit that price point. Showa suspension handles both ends without any electronic complexity to worry about. For riders stepping up from a naked bike or looking to stretch their budget as far as possible, the sub-$10,000 MSRP is genuinely hard to argue with.
Harley-Davidson Pan America 1250 ST
Price (When New): $19,999
Even the Harley-Davidson Motor Company has skin in the adventure-bike game with its Pan America line. The Pan America 1250 ST proves just how mainstream the genre has become. H-D went with minimal pilot protection — a beefy headlight housing and a smoked bikini windscreen lead the charge. The engine is another departure from Milwaukee tradition: it’s a V-twin, yes, but liquid-cooled for far greater thermal stamina than an air-cooled lump can offer, making it well suited to sustained summer highway work.
At around 150 horsepower, the output is genuinely impressive for a brand that wasn’t even publishing power figures a decade ago. Torque, however, takes a back seat — which is decidedly bass-ackwards relative to the norm. The MoCo also gets in on the electronic suspension action with Showa units fore and aft, and H-D’s electronics suite — lean-sensitive and comprehensive — ranks among the best in the class.
BMW R 1300 GS Triple Black
Price (When New): $19,945
BMW doubles down on the adventure-touring formula with its streetwise R 1300 GS in Triple Black trim — a configuration clearly aimed at covering ground on tarmac rather than trails. Beyond this variant, buyers can also opt for the Touring Package for enhanced two-up comfort and integrated routing for BMW’s native navigation system, or go all-in with the Alpine Express package, which adds heated seats and expanded hand protection for tackling long rides in colder conditions.
Optional Dynamic Suspension Adjustment and Adaptive Vehicle Height Control are available for those who want a more sophisticated setup than the already-capable stock suspension. BMW’s iconic Boxer-Twin delivers the goods with somewhat less horsepower than a few others on this list, but calling it weak or slow would be a serious mischaracterization.
Honda Africa Twin Adventure Sports ES
Price (When New): $17,599
Honda’s Africa Twin has grown into a legend in its own right across a range of variants, but the Adventure Sports ES stands out as the most road-focused of the AT siblings. Its electronically adjusted suspension offers around eight inches of travel at both ends, delivering a supple ride that handles less-than-perfect pavement with ease on long hauls.
Power comes from a proven parallel-twin engine that has logged globe-trotting miles since the model’s debut, building a reliability record that’s worth a great deal when you’re far from home. The laced wheels are a nod to the Africa Twin’s off-road heritage — a vestige of its roots that also adds a classic visual appeal. Cornering-sensitive ABS and Selectable Torque Control round out a modest but well-chosen electronics suite.
Triumph Tiger 900 GT
Price (When New): $15,195
Triumph earns a second spot on this list with its Tiger 900 GT, which sports a slim profile thanks to a stressed-engine design that allows for a notably abbreviated frame. The front fairing is minimal and wind protection is modest, but the screen is well vented for a clean airflow edge, and standard hand protectors mean you’re not entirely at the mercy of the elements.
Cornering-enhanced ABS and traction control help keep the rubber side down, while a long-travel suspension setup ensures smooth progress over imperfect surfaces. Power comes from a proven liquid-cooled triple producing around 100 horsepower — more than enough for confident interstate cruising with reserves to spare. The suspension is manually adjustable across the full range of settings, with generous stroke lengths for long-range comfort.
Suzuki V-Strom 1050
Price (When New): $15,409
Suzuki’s V-Strom family is a well-proven platform, and the 1050 continues its role as the brand’s street-centric adventure offering. The suspension is straightforward, with a damping adjuster at the rear as the main concession to tuning. Cast wheels wear Bridgestone Battlax Adventure A41 radials, a tire well regarded for long-distance comfort and all-weather grip. Power flows from a 90-degree V-twin engine packed with thoughtful engineering details: sodium-filled exhaust valves to reduce combustion-chamber temperatures, a dual throttle-plate intake for smooth transitions across the rev range, a Low RPM Assist feature to prevent stalls in awkward situations, and a dual-plug combustion setup for strong flame-front propagation that benefits both fuel economy and emissions.
Sources: OEMs
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