It's never been easier to fly to France, with dozens of airlines flying from destinations across the world. Here are your options if you are planning a cycle holiday in France. By Lynette Eyb.
Heading out of Paris-Orly Airport. Photo: Dany et Maryse
Flights to France from the UK
Air France, British Airways and KLM run daily flights from various British airports (including Heathrow, Gatwick, Newcastle, Manchester, London City and Aberdeen) to cities right across France.
Budget airlines and smaller carriers also fly to airports across France, though many services operate in summer only, with schedules drastically cut – especially to smaller airports – outside the peak summer months. It’s also worth checking airports that neighbour France (Bilbao in Spain, and Geneva in Switzerland, for example), as there are often good deals on offer for cross-border cyclists.
Ryanair flies from various UK airports (Stansted, Luton, Gatwick, Liverpool, East Midlands, Bristol, Leeds Bradford, Edinburgh, Glasgow Prestwick and others) to Paris Beauvais, Paris Vatry (for Disneyland), Bergerac, Biarritz, Dinard/St Malo, Limoges, Bordeaux, Brest, Carcassonne, Corsica, Grenoble, La Rochelle, Nimes, Lourdes, Toulon, Pau, Perpginan, Poitiers, Tours, Montpellier, Nice, St Etienne, and others.
EasyJet flies from various UK airports to Biarritz, Bordeaux, Brest, Corsica, Grenoble, La Rochelle, Lyon, Marseille, Montpellier, Nantes, Nice, Paris and Toulouse.
Flybe has flights from Glasgow, Edinburgh, Manchester, Birmingham, Cardiff, Exeter, Southampton to Avignon, Bergerac, Beziers, Bordeaux, Brest, Chambéry , Clermont- Ferrand, La Rochelle, Limoges, Nantes, Nice, Paris, Pau, Rennes and Toulouse.
Jet2.com flies from East Midlands, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Leeds Bradford, Manchester, Newcastle to Bergerac, Brive, Chambéry, La Rochelle, Nice and Toulouse.
City Jet flies from London City Airport to Paris Orly, Nantes, and Deauville, Brive, Avignon, Toulon and Pau.
LyddAir flies from Lydd Airport in Kent to tiny Le Touquet Côte d’Opale airport in Nord-Pas-de-Calais.
Flights to France from Ireland and Northern Ireland
Air France flies to France from Dublin and Shannon.
Aer Lingus has flights from Dublin, Cork, Knock and Shannon to various French airports, including Bordeaux, Lyon, Marseille, Nice, Paris Charles de Gaulle, Perpignan, Rennes and Toulouse.
Flybe flies to Paris Charles de Gaulle from Belfast.
Jet2.com flies from Belfast to Toulouse.
Ryanair flies from Dublin, Cork and Derry to various French airports, including Bordeaux, Biarritz, Carcassonne, La Rochelle, Corsica, Grenoble, Limoges, Lourdes, Marseille, Montpellier, Nantes, Nice, Nimes, Paris Beauvais, Paris Vatry (for Disneyland), Pau, Perpignan, St Etienne, Toulon and Tours.
All major carriers, including Air France, KLM, Alitalia, Iberia, Air Berlin, German Wings, Corsair, Easyjet, Ryanair, Condor, British Airways, IcelandExpress, SAS, Norweigan, and Swiss International, fly to France from across the continent. It's also worth checking the budget airline Volotea, which flies to various French destinations from all over Europe.
Flights to the Channel Islands
Aurigny Air Service operates services from Guernsey to Dinard/St Malo and Grenoble. It also flies from Guernsey to various the UK airports, including Gatwick, Stansted, Southampton, East Midlands, Bristol, Manchester, Jersey and Alderney.
Air Southwest flies to Jersey from Plymouth and Bristol; and Guersney from Plymouth.
Blue Islands flies to Jersey and Guernsey from Southampton, Isle of Man, and Alderney. BMI Baby (bmibaby.com) flies to Jersey from Cardiff, East Midlands and Manchester.
Flybe has flights to Jersey from various UK airports, including Aberdeen, Belfast, Birmingham, Bristol, Glasgow, Inverness, Isle of Man, Luton, Gatwick, Guernsey, Norwich, Doncaster, Humberside, Manchester, Cardiff, Exeter, Newcastle, Southend and Southampton.
Jet2.com flies to Jersey from Belfast.
The bike assembly area at Nice Airport. Photo thanks to Will Muecke, a member of very excellent Bicycle Touring Group.
Flights to France from the rest of the world
For long-haul deals, try flight search engines such as Skyscanner, DialAFlight and, for Australasia, Jetabroad.
United States: Air France, KLM, Delta, Continental, Corsair, Condor, United, Delta and US Airways all have direct flights from France to various American airports. Other national carriers, including Swiss Air, Aer Lingus, Etihad, Emirates, British Airways and Iceland Air offer indirect flights.
Canada: Air France, KLM, Air Canada, Air Transat and Condor all offer direct fights from Paris to various Canadian cities. Delta, United and Continental all fly indirect.
Australia: A plethora of airlines link various Australian cities to Paris, meaning lots of stopover options. Qantas, Air France, KLM, British Airways, Qatar Airways, Lufthansa, Emirates, Cathay Pacific, American Airlines, Singapore Airlines, China Eastern, Continental Airlines, Thai Airways, United, Vietnam Airlines, Air Mauritius, Etihad Airways, China Southern and Asiana Airlines all ply Australasian routes from France.
New Zealand: It’s possible to book through Air New Zealand, which code-shares with Air France via Hong Kong. Singapore Airlines, Qatar Airways, Emirates, Etihad, Japan Airlines, Cathay Pacific, Malaysia Airlines, Korean Air and Thai Airways all fly Paris-Auckland/Christchurch routes; Emirates also flies Nice-Auckland.
South Africa: Air France and KLM fly direct to Johannesburg and Tambo from Paris. British Airways, Emirates, Lufthansa, Turkish Airlines, Qatar Airways, Air Berlin, Singapore Airlines, Malaysian, Air Mauritius and Etihad Airways all fly indirect from Paris to various South African airports, including Cape Town, Durban and/or East London.
Flying within France
Air France flies year-round from Paris (Orly and Charles de Gaulle) to other destinations all over France. Check also Air France's budget airline, HOP. Easyjet flies internal routes, including Paris-Orly to Nice and Toulouse; Paris Charles de Gaulle to Toulouse, Brest, Biarritz and Nice; Lyon to Bordeaux; and Toulouse to Nantes and Lyon. Ryanair flies from Marseille to Brest and Lille; and Paris Beauvais to Marseille and Pau. Eastern Airways has flights to Bordeaux and Toulouse from Dijon. It's also worth checking the budget airline Volotea, which flies to various French destinations.
Getting your bike to France by plane
Here is a handy infographic that broadly summarises airline charges for flying with bikes. The YES/NO info is particularly handy as it describes whether your bike counts as checked in luggage if you can keep everything under the weight limits.
Infographic thanks to Yellow Jersey Insurance, which specialises in bike insurance for cyclists. More on cycling insurance here.
See our shipping page for other options.
You might also find this video useful ...
See also our guides to catching ferries to France, and taking the train to France and around France once there, as well as advice for anyone wanting to take the bus. You can also search for accommodation and car hire.
