Hammock dreaming: Win a pocket-sized slice of suspended bliss

Picture the scene: you’ve been driving south since dawn, all panniers, passports and “are-we-there-yets”, inching ever closer to your holiday desination. Up ahead is a an “aire de repos” shaded by plane trees. You pull over, unclip a hand-sized bundle, hook it between branches, and - voilà - instant siesta. Ten minutes later the world looks brighter, the kids’ in-car snacks less perilous, and the ride in the Dordogne suddenly feels doable again.

That, in a nutshell, is the genius of the humble hammock. Packable, lighter than a paperback and infinitely adaptable, it turns any patch of summer into a private cloud.

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From Mayan sky-beds to modern micro-naps

The word “hammock” comes from hamaca, coined by the Taíno people of the Caribbean; archaeologists have traced woven sky-beds back a thousand years to the Maya, who slept above the creepy-crawlies and below the stars. Today’s versions swap sisal for rip-stop nylon, but the principle is unchanged.

Our giveaway model even sports two hoops that could clip neatly to a bike’s top tube or handlebar.

Win your own ride-ready hammock

We have a two-person hammock up for grabs, complete with ropes. To enter, drop a comment below telling us where you’d sling yours - a Cornish cliff-top, between the goalposts at the local park, or perhaps a Provençal lay-by of daydreams.

Just remember: whether you’re hanging between palm trees or freewheeling down Alp d’Huez, cycle insurance from ETA keeps the two-wheeled part of the equation safe - and provide Euro breakdown cover if it's a car road trip.

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The ethical choice

The ETA was established in 1990 as an ethical provider of green, reliable travel services. Over 35 years on, we continue to offer cycle insurance , breakdown cover  and mobility scooter insurance while putting concern for the environment at the heart of all we do.

The Good Shopping Guide judges us to be the UK's most ethical provider.

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