Islabikes Rothan balance bike review

If you're looking for a kids' bike then you certainly should consider options from Islabikes

Cycling Weekly Verdict

A £150 the Rothan isn’t the cheapest balance bike on the market, but factor in all the finer points of detail, such as the rounded allen key bolt through wheel axles that prevent rider injuries in crashes, 12” puncture resistant tyres, and a balance bike specific scooped saddle that helps a bottom stay put and little feel touch the floor, all adds up to giving the feel of a real bike and enhances the experience of riding a bike for the first time. Add to all this a choice of four bright colours, makes it’s perfect for picky toddlers.

Reasons to buy
  • +

    Lightweight

  • +

    Size specific and light action brake leaver

  • +

    Small diameter bars

  • +

    Integral steering limiter

  • +

    Choice of four colours

Reasons to avoid
  • -

    Hard to fault it!

You can trust Cycling Weekly. Our team of experts put in hard miles testing cycling tech and will always share honest, unbiased advice to help you choose. Find out more about how we test.

Islabikes is celebrating its 10th year on the market this year and has enjoyed success launching premium kids bikes this year too.

The Islabikes Rothan is the industry marker of how to build a kid's first bike.

>> The best balance bikes: a buyer's guide 

>>> The best kids bike helmets: a buyer's guide 

The size specific micro reach brake lever and smaller diameter handlebars allows little hands to not only grip the bars securely and reach the lever, but the lever also provides a light action braking, making stopping a realistic feature, unlike many children’s specific bikes.

isla-bike-rothan-08

The balance bike’s geometry makes the bike very stable, within a handful of rides my two year old was able to confidently scoot and lift her feet up to free wheel on slight downhill slopes.

>>> Top tips for buying kids' bikes

An integral steering limiter, that prevents the handlebars from spinning all the way round, really helped prevent a few total wash outs and total toddler tangle.

Non-rider to rider in under an hour

Made from aluminium (7005 T6) makes it incredibly lightweight at just 3.2kg. Not only does this make manoeuvring the bike by the rider very easy, it also means that once they’ve had enough, there’s minimal effort for the parent having to carry it back through the park.

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Hannah Bussey

Hannah is Cycling Weekly’s longest-serving tech writer, having started with the magazine back in 2011. She has covered all things technical for both print and digital over multiple seasons representing CW at spring Classics, and Grand Tours and all races in between.


Hannah was a successful road and track racer herself, competing in UCI races all over Europe as well as in China, Pakistan and New Zealand.


For fun, she's ridden LEJOG unaided, a lap of Majorca in a day, won a 24-hour mountain bike race and tackled famous mountain passes in the French Alps, Pyrenees, Dolomites and Himalayas. 


She lives just outside the Peak District National Park near Manchester UK with her partner, daughter and a small but beautifully formed bike collection.