Getting your motorcycle licence
Everything you need to get your motorcycle licence — from your first lesson to riding independently.
Maybe you’re still thinking about taking your first lesson. Maybe you’ve already started and are wondering what comes next. Whatever your situation, this is everything you need on the way to your motorcycle licence.
This section is mainly based on the Dutch motorcycle licensing system. If you’re reading from outside the Netherlands, some parts may not apply directly — although you might still find useful insights or perspectives along the way.
First decisions
A1, A2 of A?
Which category fits your age, experience and plans?
Choosing a motorcycle school
A good instructor often makes more difference than you’d think.
How much does a motorcycle licence cost?
About lessons, tests, gear and the investment that is often underestimated.
THE FIRST STEPS
Riding slowly shifts from an idea into something that starts to feel real. This is where the learning process begins.
Theory test
Not everything starts on the road. Sometimes freedom begins with understanding how traffic really works.
AVB (motorcycle control)
The first time you truly feel how a motorcycle moves. Building confidence, learning to look ahead, steer and control the bike at low speed.
AVD (road test)
Your first real kilometres on the road. Corners, traffic and slowly discovering how relaxed riding can feel.
When it doesn’t come naturally
Not every lesson feels like progress. Sometimes it seems like others learn faster than you — and that’s more common in motorcycling than you might think.
AVB exercises explained
About confidence, technique and the exercises many learners struggle with.
Getting your motorcycle licence later in life
Why surprisingly many people start later in life.
Explore more ✦
Step-by-step learning to ride motorcycles
For me, learning to ride a motorcycle didn’t feel like something you master all at once, but like a process of small steps where confidence slowly builds — especially during AVB exercises.
BEHIND THE SCENES
Riding is not only learned through books or exams. Sometimes it helps to hear how someone with experience sees the learning process.
A conversation with a motorcycle instructor
About exam nerves, building confidence and the mistakes almost everyone makes.
Read more ✦
AFTER THAT, IT REALLY BEGINS
For many people, passing the test feels like the end goal.
In reality, it’s often where real riding begins.
Your first motorcycle. Your first solo ride. Riding in the rain for the first time. Your first trip away.
Choosing your first motorcycle
Not every motorcycle makes a good first bike.
Explore more ✦
Buying your first motorcycle gear
What you really need and what can wait.
Explore more ✦
Your first solo kilometres
When riding suddenly becomes fully yours.
Explore more ✦
Sometimes it starts with a single lesson, sometimes with an idea that’s been there for a while, and sometimes simply with curiosity.
A motorcycle licence is not just about exams or lessons.
It’s about the road that starts afterwards — the places you’ll go, and everything that happens along the way.
Maybe this is where it begins.
