What is the best starter cruiser motorcycle?

Best oil is Mobil 1

It has been said many times that the sunset of the Greek island Santorini is where one can experience the most beautiful sunset

and my son's first cruiser was an 04 ultra Classic 110CI S&S

i have owned a few bikes in my life and my 02 FLSTS was by far the best riding motorcycle I have planted mt fat AXX on.

kinda of like putting your kid in a 72 sedan deville it's gonna drive itself and although she will fly it is way cooler to just cruise.

harleys are getting cheap thats the best part of the wanna be biker craze ton's of middle aged yuppies have sank tons in their new bike only to find out it's dangerous and cars dont care how much you paid for it and your jacket

delete

double post doh

Best starter bike? Voted dozens and dozens of times, Honda Rebel. There IS a reason they use those on all the safety courses you see nationwide.
Excellent bike, holds its value.

now then....IF you're talking about a kawasaki, my personal favorite brand, the brand I've owned more of than anything else combined.........Hmmmm you're young and limber, the Ninja 250 is dam hard to beat.

not a cruiser, cruisers are somewhat difficult to master, the longer wheelbase, the controls, narrow handlebars etc.

There is also the EL250 Eliminator, the Ninja engine placed in a well-handling cruiser chassis. A lot faster and better handling than the little Honda, without actually being fast.

Too bad that nice standards like the KZ400 aren't manufactured any longer. My first motorcycle was a KL250 dual sport. It was a good choice living out in the country. Too low geared for today's highway speeds, though, and that saddle had my ass numb in less than 30 minutes. I'm going to make some changes and get a KLR650 by next year. I have a gravel commute and would like to explore some back roads on occasion.

It is strange that the manufacturers have pretty much abandoned the entry level and standard markets. Today you must choose between being a cruiser, tourer, dual purpose, or street racer unless you are willing to buy a Suzuki or Honda 250 class bike. Any adult (think especially of wives) wishing to buy a bike (especially a first bike) for recreational or commuting type functions, but who doesn't want to be limited to the constraints of a 250 or deal with a heavier (700cc+) bike better keep an eye on the used bike market or look at a Royal Enfield 500 single. Ed

I suppose that's why the Sportsters have the ignominious name of "girls bike", when, in fact, I've read that it's quite top heavy and not all that easy for for smaller statured people to handle. The base model is 883cc which is probably part of the appeal.

Kawasaki did have the Ninja 500 for a long time which was a twin and the seating position was not the full racing tuck. I think it was dropped in favor of the Ninja 650 several years ago.

The US market demanded ever larger displacements over the last two decades and the manufacturers responded. I can't really blame them for that. "Harley" is now the name for "motorcycle" to a lot of people and cruisers are the new "standards" to most people it seems.

I thought it was interesting, or perhaps it was just dated, how the MSF course still emphasized in 2005 the control advantage of having ones feet nearly underneath the seat. Several exercises were much more difficult with forward controls. I would bet that most of those in the class were planning to buy or had bought a cruiser with forward controls. Go figure.

Gravel road u say?
Well, i have a 79 kz1000.
And on my trip ive taken the bike through some loose gravel...
And sandy roads...
Absolute hell at less than 30 mph..

Definitely go for that KLR.. Or any other enduro