France - June/July 2011
 

Hi all

New to biking and 50 this year, jumped off the hamster wheel so no more work and looking to start touring Europe.

Taster trip Scotland(home) -Ireland - France. France for a few weeks - planning to arrive in Roscoff end of June. Will probably be on a Bonneville and taking it easy. So if you are around the Atlantic coast, Languedoc-Roussillon, Provence Ardeche, Dordogne areas and fancy meeting up just let me know?

If anybody has any advice, info on routes, biker friendly camp sites esp would be appreciated?:helpsmilie:

I have no fixed plans, prefer to just see how it go's. Enjoy travelling on my own but always good for the soul to meet other travellers and enjoy a chat few beers etc jeigerand/or travel with another person sometimes. So any offers very welcomed.


Kevin

Hope you have a great trip. I have some biker friends in Brittany if you need any contacts in the region of Roscoff. You may also want to take a look at Bike Club France • Portal to see what UK riders in France are up to while you are there.

mustaphapint that is a great link and thanks for the reply. Will have a good look and keep the news flow going on progress.

Cheers.

Kevin

Welcome to the biking fold and our corner of the net, I hope you'll enjoy France and the rest of Europe as much as I have over the years. Much more bike friendly than the UK - and I don't just mean the weather!

Make sure you push on down to the Alps and Pyranees, the mountain roads there are just brilliant. :)

Thanks. Looking forward to it and will certainly be down south in the mountains at some point.

Hi there
I'm doing the same trip but leaving Scotland (Troon) about 9th July.
Maybe we will bump into you in Ireland, France or Spain.:thumbup1:
Rory:D

Hi Rory dropped a similar thought on your thread the other day. Certainly see if I can work something out. :) Will keep in touch.

Kevin

Kevin,

Being the same age as yourself and having the same inclination - I have just returned to the UK from France having had a steady bimble around the country for a couple of weeks. Took in a lot of the back roads and found lots to look at.

I visited a number of places that I've been curious about for some years now. (Carcassonne being my favourite - you can rent a Chalet for 55 euro for 2 nights at the Cité Campsite. It was well worth it if only for having a decent bed, a secure place to dump tyhe kit whilst I went walkabout.. Carcassonne also has a huge staturday market at which i picked up some thin riding shirts for a few euro each. )

I met many long distance travelers and spent many hours talking to complete strangers.

France is camping crazy. You will not struggle to find a decent campsite.

Just about all campsites are biker friendly and for 8 to 10 euro a night you can easily get good facilities.
Don't be afraid to either just ride around the camp first or, if there are security gates, ask the reception to let you in for look around. They are happy to oblige.

If B&B's are more your style - check out BIKE-STAY - Motorcycle Friendly/Biker Friendly Accommodation Directory, for motorcyclists around the world

Plenty of brits offering decent places to stay. But expect to pay anything up to 70 euro for a nights sleep and a full stomach.

Every town appears to have a Lidle supermarket. I used these all the time and found I could have a decent evening meal (including some wine) for about 10euro.

Don't speed through towns and villages. Take the speed right off - about 24mph - Any faster and you risk upsetting the normally pro bike police.

If you want to get somewhere fast then remember that using Paigé effectively doubles the cost of the journey .. :thumbdown:.. i.e. I always think of it as if the petrol I'm using doubles in price whilt on the paigé


I can totally agree with the statement about the 'Alps and Pyranees, the mountain roads there are just brilliant.' - and then some.




I always call in at a local mobile phone shop and pick up a PAYG simcard. Cost about 10 euro and they have credit on them already - Works out a hell of a lot cheaper than using my contract mobile to phone home.

I could go on - but most of the fun is finding out for self.


I want to go back, instead of being sat in front of this damned computer.

Steve

Many thanks for the detailed reply and the Bike Stay link. I also had a read of your blog. It all adds up to itchy feet, desperate to get going.

Where are you off to next?

Cheers

Kevin

a few more places to stay here Motorbike campsites
enjoy! bier

Dave.

Kevin,

Don't read too much into the blog.. it is written with 2 specific readers in mind.

I've only just started this 'adventure' touring lark. I'm still listening and learning.

I've done loads of EU trips over the years, usually with a couple of friends or in a large group (I'm part of EU bikers club that invite each other to their neck of the woods) - but these tend to be planned down to the last minute, with no time to actually discover the country I'm in.

Because I now have more time, having virtually retired last year, I want to travel.

Next main trip is next month. 4 of us going to Spain. come back 27th June. But to be honest that's more of a holiday than proper bike trip.

I may be going to Scotland next week with a Kiwi I met on the Chunnel. Perhaps we could link up.


I should have been starting a trip today - France, Italy, Greece, Romania, Germany - but I had to pull out for various reasons.. this really cheesed me off.

I would like to do this trip.. and I'm seriously considering doing it - either solo or with someone - in July.

I hope to extend the range of the trips to outside the EU by next year.

All good fun

Steve

Hey you should try and get to Spainish Pyrennese and meet up the HUMM crowd (5/7 July). Check out the event page.

This is a HU event and there will be lots of bikers there. There is a great campsite beside the hotel.

The bro and me will be travelling down from PAU in France a couple of days before.

Steve sorry never got back sooner. On a whim just decided to go to Ireland and just back after a great week. Went around anticlockwise as far as Cork and then back up the middle.
Will definitely go back again.

Will keep in touch.

Been checking it out. Thanks for the info looks really good, just need to get some dates firmed up for France although the meet is probably too soon.

Cheers

Hi Kevin,

I'll be picking up a motorbike (organised through HUBB!) in Valence near Ardeche on the 10th/11th July, apart from a concert in Lyon (15th July) I'd like to go to and a music festival in the Ardeche park itself (16th July), and having to be in Norway by 11th August I'm pretty free with no plans, would like to see the alps mainly. Let me know if you'll be around to share the road a few days

Nick