If you're looking to hire a bike to ride a stage of the Tour de France or to take part in Etape du Tour, it pays to get organised and book ahead.
In some parts of France, road bike hire can be hard to find in a regular month – and it can be near impossible at Tour de France time. Some areas are just more geared up for leisure bikes or MTB than road bikes, and that means there's usually a shortage of quality road carbon fibre bikes wherever the Tour passes.
Even in the Alps and Pyrenees, where there are ordinarily plenty of road bike hire options, bikes can be at a premium come July. The Tour de France combined with Etape du Tour and the regular French summer holiday season create a perfect storm for road bike rental. Last year we received dozens of enquiries from people wanting to hire road bikes at the last minute and there were simply none left for some busy stages.
It's not such a problem for hybrid or leisure bikes, but if you have your heart set on a great spec carbon road bike, it's important to book as early as you can.
The Etape du Tour is always over-subscribed – demand is always high for high-spec bikes. This again stretched bike hire resources – you need to book EARLY and ASAP.
Need Etape du Tour or Tour de France bike hire? Here's how I can help
I have a bespoke bike hire service to help you find quality Tour de France bike hire.
So I can help you quickly and efficiently, email me at lyn@freewheelingfrance.com with the following info:
- Your dates - when you you want the bike and how long do you want it for?
- How many bikes and what type? Road bike, mountain bike, hybrid/tourer, electric, kids', tandem? If you need a road bike, include whatever specs are important to you in terms of gearing, brand and size, etc
- Location: Where do you want to pick the bike up from and where do you want to return it, do you need it delivered to you/your hotel, etc?
- Save us doubling up - include where else you've tried (if anywhere) so we don't double up.
Allez, allez!
