Bordeaux to Lacanau bike route

The Bordeaux-Lacanau bike path links one of France's premier cities – and its wine capital – to the beautiful Atlantic Coast.

Distance: 67km
Difficulty: Easy - flat

Bordeaux is linked to Lacanau, on the Atlantic Coast (and the EuroVelo 1 route), by a voie verte – or greenway route – that, once you navigate your way out of Bordeaux, is almost entirely car-free.

It follows an old railway line, starting just to the north of the Bordeaux city centre. To be perfectly honest, it's not one of the most interesting bike routes in France. It's a bit "same-same" through the pine forest – I view it as more of a means to an end in terms of getting to the coast.

Once there, the beach itself at Lacanau is wonderful - long, sandy stretches of coast and plenty of amenities by way of bars and restaurants. There are a few campsites but not so many hotels, so plan ahead, especially if riding in summer or in the French school holidays.

The first 5-10km are city riding as you navigate your way out of Bordeaux. The voie verte itself starts just after the suburb of Eysines, after which you enter the pine forest, passing through St-Médard-en-Jalles (fun fact: it's home to the largest E.Leclerc supermarket in France!) and onto the coast.

If you don't want to ride to the coast, you could always consider taking the train from Bordeaux to Arcachon and accessing the EuroVelo 1 from there.

See also the rather fabulous Tour de Gironde bike route, which ties all these places together for touring and/or day rides.

Download the Bordeaux-Lacanau route as a GPX file.