France Bike Tour Reviews — 91 to 120 of 211

This was a fantastic bike trip! The weather forecast for our trip was not favorable but we had only 1 rainy day and we were prepared with rain gear. The route was beautiful and very safe. French drivers are very aware and respectful of cyclists. So many beautiful places to see! We highly recommend on the 5th day to visit the gardens and Benac castle. There is a choice to visit 2 other castles that day but the gardens include lots of walking as does exploring the castle. The optional ride in Sarlat is well worth it but don’t miss the canoe on the Dordogne. We did both. We stayed an extra day in Sarlat in June because high season is July so it was not mobbed. A lovely experience! If you do not speak French just try a few words and you will be well received. If you expect a non English speaking French person if they speak English they will say no and not attempt to help you.

The most memorable part was the quality of the bikes. Negatively memorable. They were very heavy. Definitely not of the same quality we had on the barge. I recommend a different supplier. Otherwise enjoyed the area and the hotel.

Beautiful countryside, wonderful chateau’s. We stayed at the Hotel la Breche which is 2 blocks from the train in a quiet residential area and a short 10 minute walk to town. Included was an unbelievable 8 course meal. It was very fancy and fun to try French cuisine. Breakfasts were wonderful also. Hosts are very hospitable. We enjoyed sitting in the gardens when not in use for the restaurant.
The bike routes were great in that we were mostly on bike trails. It was great to have a focus for the days ride. We found the directions co fusing and had a hard time figuring out which voucher for chateaus went with which day tour. The bikes were also very cumbersome. They had a deep V and there was no room between the V and the water bottle so it was hard to get on and off and to stand. Once on them they did work well.

Most Memorable Part: The castles, garden, beautiful paths for biking.

Just returned from this cycle tour and had a wonderful experience. The castles just kept getting better each day. Our favourite was the Leonardo portion. We stayed at Le Breche which was very comfortable. Our one dinner there was amazing and have never eaten like that before! The court yard was beautiful, large and private and the owner allowed us to being our own wine and snacks to enjoy before the restaurant opened. Our only complaint was the bikes! They were extremely heavy and way to large for our lady group. The water bottle holder caused a lot of leg bruising and after the first day we had to remove it. Once we were able to get up in the saddle they rode ok. Countryside was lovely with all sorts of crops and vineyards. The instructions were ok and only had a couple hick-ups. The roads wondered through small villages and roads with very little traffic. Over all a good trip.

From start to finish we had a great time and definitely lived up to all expectations
will definitely do another trip next year and for longer
communication with staff on arrival (Paul Garcia) and luggage forwarding was very good
accommodation was excellent in Dijon at Hotel des Ducs and Chateauneuf was charming
I would definitely suggest air con as essential at that time of year, we had two hotels without and suffered as a result
Directions around Nolay were very confusing and we lost an hour & a half trying to work it our but I can think of worse places to be stuck!

We actually combined two Loire Valley segments - Tours to Angers, and Angers to St. Brevin les Pins, adding an extra day in the middle, in Angers. The Loire Valley is a wonderful cycling experience - spectacular scenery, countless fascinating historical sites, charming inns, excellent food and wine. The cycling was definitely on the easy side - mostly flat, reasonable distances each day, the trails well-marked, the paths mostly paved and separated from the roads. The bikes (Scott Sport 20) were steady and comfortable. The weather during our trip (mid-June) was near-perfect, except for a bit of unusual heat the last few days. Highly recommended for every aspect of the cycling experience.

The route was well planned and paced, the hotels perfectly fine and the sights were tremendous. What beautiful scenery! A few tricky spots, but some must be expected on a bike tour. Highly suggest using the app, suppled by Tripsite, for each day's itinerary; would not have wanted to follow the route using paper maps. A word to the wise on e-bikes: the last three days were very hilly, so care must be taken to conserve the battery when possible. Even being cautious, I ran out of juice on two days. It was not fun peddling these heavy bikes the last 4-5 miles. On the whole, highly recommend this particular tour, the third one we've taken with Tripsite.

The garden festival at Chaumont-Sur-Loire was probably the nicest surprise visit for us all tho there were lots of high points and each person of our group would have slightly different takes different.
Quality of routes and ease of following was wonderful.
Canoe and wine experiences could have been better.
Better indications of facilities for coffees and sandwiches en route would have been helpful as well as advising impact if weekends and bank holidays.
Hotels quite variable - one excellent, two good albeit rooms not great, one disappointing - I had to generalise in giving rating below but Amboise for example would be very satisfied on all and Cheverny ‘neither’ apart from food which would be ‘satisfies’
All in all a great trip

Great Trip,
All the places were very nice.
The service was very good
It will better if yousay who little town is worth to go inside (if you have time) and which is better for lunch, etc

In the hotels.
The Hotels Mais d Agret in Les Baux is really very COMPLETE and GOOD
The Hotel du poete is good but need Manteinance, pinting, etc
The Hotel Ibis in Avignon os maybe the less..

Thanks for everything,

The coverage of the company is excellent. They fulfilled everything they offered. The bikes are new and of very good quality. Le Baux de Provence is a beautiful place

The weather was perfect and the food out of this world. Just be aware that off season means just that. While not a huge issue but some of the restaurants etc were on reduced hours.

Cycling along the river, the journey

The whole trip was fantastic. The variety of terrain was great. The GPS was invaluable and steered us just right. I would suggest stopping at a market before leaving for the day to get lunch to take on the ride and then stopping at patisseries or glaciers in the towns for treats.

This was an excellent trip. Our first trip in almost two years. The hotel was lovely, excellent service and restaurant. The bike riding itself was also very good. The routes were well organized and on very quiet roads and bike paths. We had zero issues with traffic. The terrain is relatively flat with only the climb and descent to the Loire river posing any kind of difficulty. The area was relatively quiet due to the pandemic however most restaurants were open as well as the various chateau. We were able to create the pass sanitaire with our Canadian vaccine certificates so entry into restaurants and attractions was a non-issue. They do scan at most restaurants and often times on the train.

The Canal du Midi tour is a wonderful cycling experience - generally easy riding along a lovely tree-lined waterway and across gorgeous countryside. The daily distances were about right, 30 - 40 kms, and allowed us to arrive at our destinations not all all tired and with enough time to explore and relax when we got there. I would think this would be a perfect first tour for uncertain, inexperienced riders and even for families. The stops were all excellent and varied - some rural, some more urban, most with historical significance (especially Carcassonne and Narbonne!), and the canal itself becomes a big part of the tour as you learn about its history and its many innovative engineering achievements. The food, of course, was also a highlight of the tour, and I would definitely recommend including the additional meals, as the restaurants selected were all first class, served exquisite local fare, and were in excellent locations. The hotels and inns were also all excellent choices. We are so appreciative of the local organizers for all these great arrangements, and also for the seamless support along the way - the bags were always picked up by 9:30, and they were always waiting for us when we arrived at our lodgings. Robert of Ruckenwind is clearly very passionate about cycling and he was an enthusiastic presence and a great resource throughout the trip. Some things worth noting beforehand, however: 1) the canal paths start out smooth and paved, and also very well shaded, but get progressively more uneven as you get farther away from Toulouse, some with rough gravel patches and others with mud puddles or dried, rutted spots that are hard to navigate; and the plane trees are dying in places so you are periodically exposed to the hot sun; 2) the routes often diverge from the canal, partly to avoid some of those rough patches, but also, I think, just to get riders off the canal to offer some diversity and to allow you to see more of the landscapes. This is generally a good thing, and you can never really get lost because you always have a sense where the canal is. But we did lose our way sometimes, and often had to rely on our GPS to find our way back. Anyway, thanks again to Tripsite, to Ruckenwind (especially to Robert!), and to the local operator for a truly memorable cycling experience!

We loved the Bed and Breakfasts Tripsite set us up with! Very charming with delicious breakfast food

This was the best bike trip of our lives. We took it in early June, 2019 with e-bikes and upgraded accommodations. Unless you're a strong cyclist, e-bikes are the way to go for this trip. First, the hotels were amazing and in each one after the first the specific rooms reserved were wonderful. The first hotel in Avignon was simply awful. Not only because the air conditioning was out, but the room was tacky, in bad repair, and was musty. The tour needs to have this changed. The common areas were just fine, it was only our room. Another thing to change would be the route on the first day through Avignon - heavy traffic, a lot of road construction, and then cycling on a road with a narrow shoulder, semi trucks, and 30 mph winds. This was still a five-star trip. I hadn't done much research ahead of time, and so Les Baux de Provence and Fontaine de Vaucluse each came as a complete and wonderful surprise - I had not even imagined places of such beauty and charm. There were some minor problems with the GPS, particularly the road barred off in one place. Fortunately we had a hotspot which we took with us each day, and were able to figure out how to reroute ourselves using Apple maps, but we would have been in trouble otherwise. We went to the market at Isle sur la Sorgue, but it was impossible to visit with bikes due to the crowds of people. We didn't dare leave the e-bikes, even locked, so we had to take turns going in - but still fun!

The hotels were great & friend

Beautiful scenery loved the old towns. The bikes were great

The beautiful landscape in the Loire Valley and the picturesque towns of Chinon and Azay le Rideau made this trip a wonderful experience that I would warmly recommend everyone! The bikes had high quality and the hotels were all great.Everything went smoothly and everyone was very helpful. I will definitely come back some day.

The bikes supplied were fantastic. The maps and directions were easy to follow, and the route was spectacular. We were very happy with all of the hotels chosen by Tripsite. All in all, we had an extremely enjoyable 5 days, and we will be definitely doing another bike trip with Tripsite the next time we visit Europe.

Make sure you bring layers in case of rain

It was all beautiful, but Pérouges was a real highlight. A well preserved medieval town, the accommodations and spectacular food reflected the history of this special place.

This trip was fabulous, very scenic and the ebikes were perfect. We thoroughly enjoyed the trip although we went at a time when the vineyards were mainly closed for harvest. We made our own picnic lunches along the way or stopped at local pubs and restaurants for lunch and wine. The written directional instructions were very helpful, as were the gps tracks. Julian, our local coordinator was very helpful in resolving a small glitch with our first hotel. All the hotels were great, and the restaurants and food were generally quite good, even though our dinner selections were limited to a few choices. Of the towns we stayed in, Colmar and Kayersburg were the best! The dessert in the Colmar Grand Hotel Bristol was memorably fantastic. The restaurant we were sent to in Basel was rather mediocre and disappointing given what we had pre-paid, especially the horrible cup of fruit cocktail we were given for dessert ( not even on the menu!) The vineyards ended before Mulhouse, which seemed like a very industrial city. And although the scenery into Basel was lovely with rolling hills (ebikes saved the day!) Basel itself was just okay. We would probably skip the Mulhouse-Basel part of the trip if we were to do it again. We would prefer in future to spend more time in Colmar and smaller villages like Kayersburg.

This was a truly outstanding tour. Excellent routes found for cycling and gave the chance to see the beaches and really understand the way the Normandy Invasion unfolded and how big the area involved in this incredible event in history was.

A seemless trip where our biggest concern was where to get our next cup of coffee as we meandered across the countryside.

The best memory of the trip was a spectacular meal at Auberge de la labourer in Chenonceaux. They were fully booked but set up a table in the bar and gave us the full restaurant menu. It’s a great restaurant and the extra work the staff put in added to the experience.

We had two complaints. First, neither of our odometers worked so we had no way of measuring distance. This meant constantly stopping and checking to make sure we were on the right way.

Second, the directions to get to Cour Chevigny had one massive error. When we came off the trail and onto Route 52 the directions said to turn right, go to the roundabout, and follow the sign to Route D102. There is no such sign. The only sign to Cour Chevigny is for Route 52, the road we were already on. So, thanks to some help, we turned around, followed route 52 for five kilometres and came right to our hotel. THIS SHOULD BE FIXED.

What a fabulous way to see Provence. The route selected took us through many memorable villages. Provence Bike did a great job with high quality bikes, good maps and well set up GPS systems. We particularly enjoyed seeing Roussilon; Gordes; Baix Aux Provence as well as the source of River Sourge. Our group of 4 decided on e-bikes which we did not regret because of the steep hills getting in and out of the villages. We particularly liked the idea of staying multiple nights in one location. A great trip!! A suggestion -- include a list of things "not to miss" that are less than a kilometer from the route or, in the villages we are going through. It is convenient to have a guide book but a few notes would be really helpful.

Most Memorable Part: The bikes were top quality, delivered and picked up from hotel on time. Great itineraries- we highly recommend Tripsite!

Amazing! We've done many organized and self supported tours, but this one by far is our favorite. We combined two 4-day (of riding) tours into one, the Orleans to Tours and Tours to Angers tours, for eight days of riding and a day on each end for coming and going. We chose the lowest level of hotels and all were fine. We don't spend much time in the room anyway, we just need a comfortable bed. The itinerary was perfect, average of 50km a day and usually one chateau visit along the way so at an easy pace we had plenty of time for a morning coffee stop, a few hours at the chateau du jour and lunch, and arrived at the hotel in time to do laundry and head to dinner. The overnight stops were a good mix of big cities (Orleans, Tours) and quaint towns. We didn't take a rest day, but if you're considering it, think about Amboise, a quaint town, rather than the midpoint Tours. Amboise was our favorite town-a good selection of restaurants, a beautiful chateau reflecting on the rivers, and if you're there on a Sunday, don't miss the local market, "the best in France" according to the guy at our hotel. The route was well marked, the maps they gave us were excellent, and if you have the GPS capability, definitely ask for the GPX tracks because those came in handy more than a few times. My wife upgraded to an e-bike which was absolutely worth it. Although it's mostly a flat course, it made it much more enjoyable for her. And we bought the chateau package which was worth it. It includes the best chateaux to visit, and although it doesn't save you much money, it saves you a lot of time waiting in line to buy a ticket which at some chateaux could be lengthy.