Many
towns have bicycle-hire shops and although
it is a popular mode of transport within
certain regions, long-distance cycling around
France is only for the very fit as much
of the country is hilly. Popular cycling
events like the Tour De France also attract
amateurs who ride the course behind the
main race. Click here for details on motorbike
riding.
PREPARING FOR THE TRIP
If you are planning a cycling trip through
France you need to be prepared. Here are
some handy hints and absolute essentials:
- a basic repair kit and knowledge of bicycle repair. Make sure you take spare inner tubes, tools for adjusting seat heights
- extra snack food and water (it can be a long way between towns in some parts, particularly if you get marooned with an injury or fault on your bike)
- pack light! You can buy extra food as
you go and you really only need bike riding
gear and a change of clothes for evenings
in town.
- learn a little bit of French for small
villages
- maps (detailed for side roads that you
might take) - itinerary – give someone a copy of your itinerary and check in with them every few days so they know you are okay.
- helpful hints – there are lots of people
that have biked through France and a lot
of them have put up details on websites.
- learn French road rules and driving habits
for example the French do not respect line
markings and may drive in the middle of
the road, take wide turns and drive very
close to you.
CAN
YOU FIX YOUR BIKE?
If you are not going with a tour or with
someone that knows there bikes then you
need to have a working knowledge of your
bike components. Most people that embark
on this kind of holiday know their apparatus
but obvious essentials are:
- spair inner tubes
- tyre repair kit
- tools for adjusting brakes, seat height,
and other parts of your bike
A trip to your local bike shop would be
the best place for more advice.
SUGGESTED
ITINERARIES
The most popular places to bike include
the Loire Valley, Provence, and the Pyrenes.
We suggest you read through some of the
interesting journeys in the useful links
section for further ideas.
Trento Bike Pages - France
Renting bikes in Paris, Seventeen Best Bike
Tours in France, Holland, Italy etc. Detailed
directions and photos.
http://www-math.science.unitn.it/Bike/Countries/France/
Some of the itineraries they suggest include
the three rivers of France - the Dordogne,
Lot & Tarn Rivers Lyon to Nice via the
Alps; Cycling in Corsica; St Malo to Paris
etc
If you have cycled an interesting route
in France email us the details to paste
on the site for other travellers - france@backpackglobe.com
SAFETY
Always inform someone of your intended route
and check in with them as regularly as possible.
Make sure you have checked the weather forecast
and know what the normal weather is for
that time of year.
RENTAL
COMPANIES
Most major towns in France will have places
where you can rent bikes. We have listed
some of the ones we know about here in these
places:
Paris
Paris Velo, 2 Rue du Fer a Moulin, 5e,metro
Censier Daubenton, tel. 01 43 37 59 22.
Bicycle tours of Paris and its major monuments
and bike rental per day/week. Brittany
Cycles Lennez is just west of the train
station. The address is 13 Rue Aristide
Briand tel. 02 98 90 14 81. They were renting
bikes at about 50 Euro a day a few years
back but the price drops the longer you
rent.
Tours
Amster Cycles is just near the train station.
But they usually only rent between April-October.
Tel 02 47 61 22 23 to find out. They have
bikes up to 18 speed. Chamonix (French Alps)
Le Grand B on 240 Ave du Bois du Bouchet
rents 3, 10-speed and mountain bikes between
April and October. Tel. 04 50 53 14 16. Grenoble
Mountain Bike Grenoble, 6 Quai de France,
Tel. 04 76 47 58 76. Mountain bikes. Avignon
Cycles Peugot, 80 Rue Guillaume Puy, tel.
04 90 86 32 49. Three-speeds, 10 speeds. Cote d'Azur
Nicea Location Rent, 9 Ave Thiers, tel.
04 93 82 42 71
Cycles Arnaud, 4 Place Grimaldi, tel. 04
93 87 88. Mountain bikes. Cannes
Alliance Location, 19 Rue des Freres, tel.
04 93 38 62 62, mountain bikes. Travel with Bicycles lists
places to rent bikes in Paris, Toulouse,
Dordogne etc.
http://www.bikeaccess.net/SelectArea_db.cfm?Q=Rental&Area=Europe List of Bike Renting Places and
clubs in France - http://www.uic.edu/~jfazio/fr.html The Holiday Bikes Company
(http://www.holidaybike.com/index_us.htm)
has numerous locations around France for
renting bicycles. They also rent cars and
motorbikes. The email contact is contact@holiday-bikes.com
USEFUL
LINKS
Euro-Bike and Walking Tours www.eurobike.com
offers similar tours by bike starting with
Florence and venturing out to nearby small
towns. Go to their website for more details
or contact them at info@eurobike.com.
Their postal address is PO Box 990, DeKalb,
IL 60115 – USA.
Bike Vacations www.vangoghtours.com
This company offers biking tours in Holland,
France and Italy.
Bike Trip - Information about biking in
France.
www.biketrip.org/countries.php?cid=1
Journey Woman - Eco Adventures - Biking
in France. Article on cycling through France
for women.
www.journeywoman.com/ecoadventures/bikefrance.html
Basque Biking: through Spain and France.
http://www.biztravel.com/TRAVEL/SIT/sit_pages/5678.html
Transportation Planet: Biking in France
Index - Details about biking in Paris, Strasbourg
and other places in France.
www.transportationplanet.com/category/bike/france/
Road Biking in France - Loire Valley by
mountain bike.
https://www.outsidemag.com/ideas/west_europe/france_biking_loire.html
Rhone Alps official web site - listing sports
in the region.
http://www.rhonealpes-tourisme.com/site/seduction/mont_hiver/pages/villages/vacances.html
Mountain biking in France - Dordogne
http://www.hookedoncycling.co.uk/MTB_Holidays/France_-_Dordogne/france_-_dordogne.html
Absolute Motions - a source on information
on mountain biking in France
http://www.absolutemotions.com/subcategory5.php/mb/mountain_biking/cont3/Europe/fr/France/fr00/%20All_
France
Stories of cycling from a middle-aged fellow
who needed exercise and biked through France
in 2002.
http://www.shepscenter.unc.edu/ricketts/bikeinfrance.htm
Crazy Dog Travel Guide - biking. Tips on
renting a bike and tours in France.
http://www.crazydogtravel.com/bike.html
Insider Paris Guides - Renting a bike in
Paris, organized guided bike tours, Tour
de France bike tours etc.
http://www.insiderparisguides.com/parisbiking/
A Bicycle Tour of France - Tips on renting
and biking in France.
http://www.q-web.com/bicycle/tour/france.htm
CYCLEVENTS - Cycling Holidays in France
- Renting a bike and holidays in France.
http://www.cyclevents.com/full/france3.htm
Adventure Cycling / Cyclists' Yellow Pages
- Bike renting, bike shops in France; Also
an online bike shop (http://www.monvelo.com)
offering good bargains
http://www.adventurecycling.org/cyp_online/resources.cfm?loc=France
Gite.com - Plan your trip to France - Covers
bike touring around the world mostly for
self supported riders and offers good recommendations
if you plan to bike through France on your
own
http://www.gite.com/plantrip/travbike.html
FRANCE Magazine - Details about biking and
motoring in France.
http://www.francemag.com/frmag/content/bulletinBoard/msgcontent.asp?ID=110&GroupID=1
EuroCycler.com - Trips - Tour de France
- FAQs
http://www.eurocycler.com/trips/tdef/faq.asp
Cycling Tours in France: Individual Cycling
and Mountain biking
http://www.valac.nl/cyclingtours.html
Self-Directed Bicycle Tour - Instructions
for a complete self guided bicycle tour
of the Loire River Valley.
http://users.ids.net/~tandem/loire.htm
BIKE EVENTS
To race in France, you must have an international
racing license from your country's racing
federation or a license issued by the Fédération
Française de Cyclisme (FFC) to participate
in FFCT or UCI races, a license from the
Union Française des Oeuvres Laiques
d'Education Physique (UFOLEP) to participate
in UFOLEP races, or a license from the Fédération
Sportive et Gymnique du Travail (FSGT) to
participate in their races. You can find
information about races in France by contacting
these organizations or the Union Cycliste
Internationale (UCI).
However for road tours and rallies you don't
need any licenses. For a comprehensive list
of events go to: http://www.bicycletour.com
Here we have listed some of the more interesting
events.
July 2003 - Tour de France. First day of
racing is July 5 in Paris by the Eiffel
Tower.
http://www.letour.fr/ - official website
July - Bicycling Burgundy and Champagne,
Road Tour. Experience Plus! Specialty Tours,
Inc. See http://www.bicycletour.com
