France (all)

L'Alpe d'Huez; Col de Sarenne; Les Deux Alpes; La Berarde; Cols de la Croix de Fer/Galibier; Mont Ventoux (July 4, 1999).

Route descriptions, with maps of the recreational bicycle route network in West-Vlaanderen/Flandre occidentale and in the North of France.

Claudio Colombo has several illustrated reports of tours in Italy, France, Spain and Switzerland

A massive travel site, this guy has been everywhere.

Hier finden sich einige deutschsprachige Reiseberichte von Fahrradtouren, die hoffentlich unterhaltsam und informativ sind, aber auch vielleicht die eine oder andere Anregung für Leute geben, die selber einmal so etwas machen wollen. Für englischsprachige Radtourenberichte habe ich hier auch einen Anfang gemacht, ebenso für schwedischsprachige Radtourenberichte, wobei noch ein bißchen auf norwegisch und dänisch dabei ist, aber diese drei skaninavischen Sprachen sind so ähnlich, daß man entweder alle drei ein bißchen lesen kann oder eben keine davon.

An enormous collection of bicycle tours all over the world.
Eine enorme Sammlung von Fahrradtouren in der ganzen Welt.

dozens of reports about bicycle tours in "Donauradweg, Neckartalradweg, Bodenseeradweg, Enztalradweg, Gotthardradweg, Rheintalweg und viele andere", including Bretagne and Ireland

I am an American bicyclist whose focus, since 1979, has been racing. [...] In the fall of 1996 I moved to France and in February, 1997 joined a French cyclotouring club. Except for some individual training and some rides at the velodrome, all my riding is with the club. [...] My pages provide information about French cycling organizations, the types of rides available through these organizations, and my cycling experiences as a member of a French club.

Includes direct experience on La Marmotte, Riding at Longchamp, VCL Tour du Vexin, La Randonnée de Gresivaudan, Le Reblochon, The Weekend at Auxi-le-Chateau, Levallois Criterium, Velodrome La Cipale. With an important note on Bicycles on Trains in France, 1998

``France is paradise for the cycletourist'' says Sheldon, who lived outside of Paris for a year (1988-89) and has plenty to tell. English/French bicycle dictionary, several tour reports, single and tandem rentals, biking in Paris, various articles.

Useful commentaries and plenty of fine photographs for their trips:

• Alps & Auvergne
• Pyrenees & Atlantic
• Provence & Jura
• Seine Valley
• Flanders
• Picardy
• Cotentin
• Normandy
, Brittany

I woke each morning, excited as a child on Christmas morning,wondering what adventures would be unwrapped for us that day. Though we were never disappointed, there were days which stood out as particularly magnificent. The journey from Cucugnan to Lagrasse, though hard, took us along beautiful gorges and woods from where we would emerge to wonder at the amazing sights of former Cathar castles high on inaccessible hill-tops. The quiet and simple attractions of the Canal du Midi led us into the bustling pink brick city of Toulouse. The craggy and rugged mountains of the Pyrenees, full of cycling legends and fantastic views, tested our stamina over several days. Perched along a mountain side, the Cirque du Litor was a fairy-tale path between two mountain tops and a place to which I would gladly return.

A large list of cycle tours, 30 at the last count. Most are in Germany, but others go all over central and northern Europe. See the overview page. English translations are available for all pages.

[The author travels around the world and reviews hostels, and has built up a large hostel directory.]

What are hostels?

The quickest answer I can give to you is that hostels are budget accommodations where you share a room with other travelers. To be more specific though and to give you a better idea of what to expect I will say that a hostel room is like a hotel room but instead of being just one bed there are a couple (or a few) bunk beds. There are also (gasp!) other people. People you do not know! These other people are travelers who are most likely very much like you in the sense that they are exploring and traveling and doing it as absolutely cheaply as possible. Hostels have been around a long long time. There are over 20,000 of them around the world. Hostels are very much a part of the culture of Europe, and are starting to be known in the USA as well. Hostels are a cheaper way of staying in a city where you do not live.

This website gives information for on and off road cycling in the Alpes Maritimes inland from the busy roads of the Cote D'Azur.
Detailed descriptions of on and off road cycles, including height graphs and distances.
Photo gallery.
General information about the area - market days, restaurant phone numbers etc.
Information about cycle friendly accommodation with a shopping service to save cyclists carrying heavy shopping on bicycles when coming to an area devoid of shops. There are cycle tools, a lockable garage, all maps are provided, washing machine available.

What you need to know about renting bikes in Paris; bicycling in Paris; subways, trains, and the RER; and cycling out of Paris. French pronunciation; French bicycle types and repair vocabulary; Road signs and their observance; helmets. How to get regional maps, lodging, and tourist sight information. Six bicycle routes and tours out of central Paris, avoiding almost all traffic: Detailed Directions and Photos. On the same site: Seventeen Best Bike Tours in France, Holland, Italy, Germany and Austria.

Eurostar, Paris Metro, TGV, local trains.

This page has a report of the 1999 edition of Paris-Brest-Paris, a history of the Paris-Brest-Paris tour, and other material.

The IGN (Institut Géographique National) has just [Spring 1995] issued a cycling map of France, with the help of FFC (Fédération Française de Cyclisme) and FFCT (Fédération Française de Cyclotourisme).

See also the important note on Bicycles on Trains in France, 1998 from Barbara Leonard's Bicycling à la Française.

Pari Mont-Blanc is a challenge for two men, Eric Foulon and Pascal Carré, to climb the Mont-Blanc by an ambitious and original way: departure from Paris to Saint-Gervais by bicycle and arrival at the Mont-Blanc by the Dome du Gouter

from the pages of the Ariège region, has some information about events in the area.

>L'AF3V est un organisme à but non lucratif (association Loi 1901) créée le 20 décembre 1997. Elle regroupe les acteurs intéressés au développement des Véloroutes et Voies Vertes en France. L'AF3V est composée des grandes fédérations FFCT (Fédération de cyclotourisme) et FUBICY (Fédération des cyclistes urbains) et de nombreuses associations locales d'usagers porteuses de projets régionaux. Elle est soutenue par le Ministère de l'Aménagement du Territoire et de l'Environnement et le Ministère de la Jeunesse et des Sports. Elle tend à rassembler, au delà du monde cycliste, les institutions et organisations ayant intérêt au projet dans le secteur de l'aménagement du territoire, des loisirs, du tourisme, du transport et du développement durable.

La FUBicy (Fédération Française des Usagers de la Bicyclette) regroupe la plupart des associations françaises dont l'objectif est de promouvoir l'usage de la bicyclette en tant que moyen de déplacement non polluant, non gaspilleur d'énergie, silencieux et générateur de bien être physique.

The French Federation of Bicycle's Users (FUBicy - Fédération Française des Usagers de la Bicyclette) federates the greater part of the french associations whose aim is to promote the use of bicycle as a mean of transport, which is pollution free, silent, which saves energy and generates physical well-being.

De meeste internationale hoofdsteden yijn binnen 24 uur vanaf Eindhoven te fietsen. Op onze homepage vindt u vetenswaardigheden over de nog nooit vertoonde monsterrit van Londen naar Eindhoven.