All Discussions - Freewheeling France Messageboards

Cycle from Monaco to Barcelona in Spain

jabandie — Sun, 24 Mar 2013 11:03:40 +0000

Hi,

Me a couple of friends want to cycle from Monaco to Barcelona on a long trip. I have two questions:

1) Is this a safe biking route, i.e., with biking paths?

2) How do I manage bike rentals? We are studying in Germany and are confused as to what to do. Do we get the cycles in from Germany by rail/ plane, or rent locally, and what would be relatively the cheaper option? I do not know if any of the fast trains will allow us to carry bikes on board.

Pardon me if I am breaking any board rules by asking these questions.

Thanks!

Casual Cycle Hire

Patricia — Wed, 03 Apr 2013 03:54:49 +0100

Hello looking for casual cycle hire while Iam in Mericourt-L'Abbe, my great uncle is buried in the Heilly Station Cemetary there, if anyone has information regarding cycle hire it would be most appreciated

Patricia

Roscoff to St-Malo - Need a bike!!

jpt — Wed, 06 Mar 2013 09:22:49 +0000

Hi everyone,

As the title suggests, I'm doing a short cycling trip with some friends in July from Roscoff to St-Malo. The problem is, I can't seem to find anywhere to hire a road bike to do this trip!?

I've looked at a number of the sites/providers mentioned on this site but to no avail. Can anyone help or have any ideas?!

Thanks

Bordeaux along the waterways

les tocknell — Mon, 21 Nov 2011 09:32:05 +0000

Hi,

I am planning a trip for two of us along the waterways from Bordeaux until we run out of steam or reach the Med next summer. I would like to use trains from a ferry port (pref St Malo) without going via Paris but it is beginning to look expensive. The alternative is to use the car to Bordeaux but where to park?

Anyone any info on any of these ideas?

Thanks in advance.

Breath test kits now compulsory for drivers in France

Lyn — Tue, 03 Jul 2012 10:40:02 +0100

It is now compulsory to carry disposable breath testing kits or breathalysers in your car if you are driving in France. There is a short grace period (until November 2012) for drivers, after which they will face on-the-spot fines for not having these little numbers in their car.

You can buy a single pack online before you arrive or a twin pack here.

Probably best to plan ahead to avoid any run-ins with the gendarmes.

Cycling in Provence

Lyn — Tue, 22 Jan 2013 13:10:00 +0000

Here is a really useful website for anyone interested in cycling in Provence:
http://www.provence-cycling.co.uk/

It's from the tourist board, and has some great information and links.

Bike rides in Brittany

Lyn — Tue, 22 Jan 2013 13:07:35 +0000

Here is a good article from the Brittany Tourist Board with 10 great ideas for bicycle rides in Brittany.
http://www.brittanytourism.com/ideas/art-de-vivre/10-great-ideas-for-cycling-in-brittany

Cycling in Brittany

Lyn — Thu, 23 Jun 2011 04:50:46 +0100

Hi

I've added a few profiles for towns the Tour de France will pass through in Brittany:
Lorient
Redon
Carhaix
Dinan

Brittany is probably the best covered region on the site now, thanks to Wendy Mewes, author of the Footprint guide to Brittany and the Nantes-Brest Canal guide.

Here's some other stuff we have on Brittany:

Overviews
Brittany regional guide
Cycling in Brittany
Nantes-Brest Canal
Cycling Brittany's greenways

Town/city profiles
Brest
Vannes
St-Malo
Rennes
Quimper

I'll endeavour to continue adding articles on all the other regions to ensure we cover as much as possible. As always, any contributions are most welcome if you know a town/city/department/region well.

Cheers
Lyn @ FF

Bike Rentals or Day Tour near Cavalaire-Sur-Mur

VickieB — Sun, 13 Jan 2013 16:59:36 +0000

Hello,

We are will be vacationing near Cavalaire-Sur-Mur in May. My husband and his friend are hoping to find a couple of decent touring rental bikes near this area. I have been looking online and haven't found anything close by. I was hoping that someone here would be able to help... They would also consider doing a couple of day tours it these are available...

Thank you so much,
Vickie Brown

BOOKINGS FOR BIKES ON FRENCH TRAINS

howham — Wed, 16 May 2012 19:50:50 +0100

We want to make a booking on a train for August. On voyages-sncf.com we can't see how to make a booking for the bikes. The booking form shows that you can take bikes on the sectors we want but I cannot see how to make a booking for them. I don't want to leave it until August in case they do not have space left. Can anyone shed any light on this?

Which French city as home base for a road cycling trip?

rnantel — Tue, 07 Aug 2012 13:44:57 +0100

A road cyclist friend and I are planning a one-week bike trip to France in May. Rather than moving from town to town with someone transporting our luggage, we like to have a home base city surrounded by a good network of secondary roads for these trips.

Here are our requirements:

1. High probability of sunny weather and daytime highs above 20 degrees Celcius in the month of May

2. Primarily flat or rolling hills

3. We don’t want suburbs

4. After our daily rides, we want our home base town to be a nice place to explore containing good restaurants

A charity ride worth supporting

Lyn — Mon, 03 Sep 2012 19:51:11 +0100

Mark Cramer, one of our wonderful contributors, is cycling from Orleans to Tours, and then on to the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe horse race at Longchamp in the Bois de Boulogne, near Paris on the weekend of September 8.

It's a charity ride of around 200km to raise money for research into finding a cure for Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis (both inflammatory bowel diseases, where the immune system attacks the intestines).

You can read all about the ride here (and sponsor him if you can).

Good luck to Mark and Alan for the ride – keep an eye out for them if you're cycling in around Orleans, Tours or Paris on the weekend of September 8.

You can read some of Mark's writings for us on this blog on bicycle culture in Paris (includes cycling in Paris tips) and his article on the Laval to Renazé greenway in the Loire.

French cycling terms

Lyn — Tue, 28 Aug 2012 15:25:01 +0100

We've started a dictionary on the site for French cycling words and phrases.
It's its first incarnation, so we'll be adding to it as we go.
Suggestions/additions/amendments welcome!
http://www.freewheelingfrance.com/320

New book - France On Two Wheels

Lyn — Tue, 10 Apr 2012 08:53:13 +0100

Here's a link to info on a nice book just out. It should be of interest to anyone keen on cycling in France. It's called France On Two Wheels, and it's by travel writer Adam Ruck.
http://www.freewheelingfrance.com/books/france-on-two-wheels.html

2012 TdF Programme has been reprinted.

Lyn — Thu, 16 Aug 2012 11:15:45 +0100

The 2012 Tour de France Souvenir Programme has been reprinted.

You can get your souvenir copy here:

http://bit.ly/KeyrdN

Buying/Selling Used Bikes in France

vruedebu — Wed, 08 Aug 2012 19:13:54 +0100

Hello,

I'm going to be spending a couple months in a village about an hour from Toulouse. I'd like to have a bike available but as far as I can tell renting is far too expensive for a period that long. I'm debating whether to ship my bike from the US or try to buy a used one in France which I would ideally sell before returning home. IF anyone has done such a thing I would appreciate your insights!

Thanks in advance!

Posting luggage ahead

mike — Sat, 11 Aug 2012 14:58:06 +0100

Hi All planning to ride from Bordeaux to Nice soon, will be flying to Bordeaux with our bikes in bike bags and would like to post them (bags) ahead to a post office in Nice. Does anyone know if La Poste offers this service.

Bradley Wiggins souvenir magazine

Lyn — Mon, 30 Jul 2012 19:59:57 +0100

From the people at Procycling comes a special magazine marking Bradley Wiggins' historic Tour de France win.
You can order the magazine here for £5.99.

Bradley Wiggins souvenir T-shirts

Lyn — Tue, 24 Jul 2012 08:30:33 +0100

Wiggle have released a souvenir T-shirt to commemorate Bradley Wiggins' Tour de France win.
You can see it here.
Apparently they are selling like hotcakes.
Wiggle is the official Team Sky retailer. You can see the rest of their Sky Pro Cycling range here.

Where to watch the 2012 Tour de France in the Alps (July 11 - July 13)

Lyn — Mon, 09 Jul 2012 13:00:17 +0100

Here is a link to the excellent Grenoble Cycling website that has these 3 stages covered in more detail, including local advice re the best vantage points.

See http://www.grenoblecycling.com/TourDeFrance-2012Preview.htm

Tour de France 2012 - Where to watch Stage 13 (July 14)

Lyn — Thu, 05 Jul 2012 09:30:03 +0100

Gerry Patterson, who arguably knows more than anyone about cycling in Languedoc, has this blog on where to watch stage 13. It's worth a read if you're around those parts on July 14.

Road closures in the Jura for the Tour de France 2012

Lyn — Mon, 02 Jul 2012 18:27:51 +0100

This website has a map, plus times etc for road closures for the Jura stage on July 8.
http://www.rfj.ch/rfj/Services/Infos-routes/Infos-routes.html

Vélo de descente dans la forêt bavaroise

LaCabaneDePommeDeTerre — Mon, 11 Jun 2012 16:57:16 +0100

Les meilleures conditions dans un des plus grands parcs alpins en Europe - plus d'info au http://www.restaurant-toni.de/de/mountainbike-am-geisskopf

semaines, y compris un logement, petit déjeuner et l'occupation de stationnement à partir de 250, - €

Advice on route to the Velo Anjou

botty — Mon, 28 May 2012 21:00:37 +0100

Hello,

My name is Mark and I am new here.

A friend and I are going to start our French cycle career by riding vintage roadster bicycles to next months Velo Anjou vintage ride and we need some advice.

We plan to use the V2 route from St Malo to Renne then carry on along the Vilaine to Lengen. Does anyone have any recent information about the condition of this tow path? From Lengen we plan to cut cross country to Nort-sur-Erde and then the Eurovelo 6 route. Can anyone give us any information on the gradients of hills we will come across in this area?

Thanks in advance.

Canal du midi

Fiona — Wed, 02 May 2012 10:48:35 +0100

We
are a group of 6 people planning to cycle from Lezignan to Cap d'agde
later this month - can anyone recommend any accommodation ( will need 2
doubles + 2 single rooms) around Argeliers for the first night in
the Bezier area for the second night

thanks

Fiona

Luggage

buenavista — Mon, 07 May 2012 05:29:50 +0100

Hi guys,
We are planning to cycle from Fontainebleu, outside Paris to Strasbourg via Dijon. This is part of a 6 week trip to Europe from Australia. We will hire bikes. Does any one have a suggestion about luggage? We will cycle with panniers but will need to leave the rest of our luggage in Fontainebleu or where ever we start. We will have to return the bikes and so will be able to collect our luggage.
Thanks
Buenavista

st malo to st cyprien

richac12 — Sat, 05 May 2012 17:32:23 +0100

Hi im planning on cycing from st malo to saint cyprien and im wondering on best route, my sat nav take me down to toulouse bordeaux and along the canal but seems to be using motorways which cant be good, if i tell it to avoid motorways and toll roads it takes me across via b roads would this be the better option as i have seen maybe people ride the canal route from bordeaux

Bjarne Riis Q&A in London

Lyn — Mon, 14 May 2012 08:53:06 +0100

Ex-Tour de France winner and Team Saxo Bank owner will be in London for a public Q&A.
Full details here: http://www.freewheelingfrance.com/books/302.html

Don't forget our Facebook page!

Lyn — Wed, 09 May 2012 13:02:16 +0100

Hi guys

Just a note to remind you all that you can also post general queries about cycling in France on our Facebook page - https://www.facebook.com/freewheelingfrance

As the site is a one-woman spare-time/lunch break project, it sometimes takes me a while to get round to all my email and site queries. It is often quicker (especially if your France cycle tour is fast approaching) to post a note on the Facebook page so other cyclists in the Freewheeling France community can help you out if I'm a bit snowed under.

As always, general feedback, route suggestions or general musings on cycling in France are also welcome.

Cheers
Lyn @ freewheelingfrance.com

Bike Hire near Saint-Brieuc, Brittany

wooley — Sun, 01 Apr 2012 17:15:46 +0100

Any ideas if there is bike hire in or around Saint-Brieuc area?

Bill