South of France
 

Hey Guys,

New to this forum!!

Me and my partner are hoping to head over to South of France in July/August time this summer on the bike.

Just wondering if anyone has any recommendations on a route to take down there?? We will be taking the ferry to Calais (as this is the cheapest ferry crossing).

We live in Worcester, so journey to Dover is approximately 3 and a half hours.

We are hoping to do this trip within 7-9 days (unfortunately due to work commitments).

I've tried searching through the forum but couldn't find anything that relates!!

Thanks in advance!! :mchappy:

Hi
Welcome to the forum.

Searching using the box top right works quite well. I just tried typing in France routes and came up with lots of good stuff. This will give you a good opportunity to compare what's written with a digital or paper map.

You don't say where in the South of France but I would consider a route linking the D964 from Sedan to Neufchateau, the D475 from Gray to Dole and the Route des Grande Alpes or Route Napoleon. For the return, I'd make certain that I rode the Millau Bridge but there's not a lot else. Maybe just zig-zag from and to Parcs Naturel.

Southern France has tons of beautiful routes in the mountains, on both sides of the Rhone River. Buy the Michelin Southern France map and follow virtually any of the green labeled routes and you will not fail to find fantastic countryside, small quaint stone villages and great vistas. I drive through Southern France everytime I leave/return to homeport (Barcelona) and head to northern/ eastern europe or Asia for overlanding and never cease to be amazed with the beauty I find there. The river Valleys like Lot River are especially beautiful, but then hell, so are the mountain tops. Just drive the green routes and you will not go wrong.

France
 

Hi Worcester boy I came from Evesham , lived in languedoc south France 13 years now just follow D roads in yellow on Michelin maps best roads in Europe .stay in Logis hotels usually family run good local food and wine ,enjoy sinky

+1 for Route des Grandes Alpes. Lille or Rheims a good first night. Then pick a route through the Vosges and Jura mountains on the way there. Route des cretes also excellent. You can't go wrong. East a mile better than west in France.

The Route Napoleon to Cannes / Nice is great and heavily populated by bikers! Depending on how you feel returning, what about a slight 'right turn' and heads back up through Switzerland and Western Germany? Switzerland is wonderful, and if you're camping doesn't need to cost the earth. If you're in a rush (with your work commitments), using the motorways in Germany won't cost you anything either! Freiburg and Trier are worth a visit, if you're looking for over night camping options.

It just depends on how much of France you'd like to see . . . .

Hi and welcome. It's a route I know well and it's going to depend on whether you just want to get to the south quickly or whether the ride is as important as the destination. If day one starts with leaving Worcester and heading for Dover for the ferry you're unlikely to make it into France much before 3.00pm (unless you leave really early) so that'll limit your range.

When I leave from Oxford I usually aim to stop around Reims or Troyes. In mid summer I'd go for Reims as the centre is a great place to spend an evening with lots of open air restaurants, bars etc. Unfortunately the only practical way to get there in time is on the autoroute (it's 200 miles from Calais) as the non motorway alternative will take nearly twice as long, is not particularly interesting and is tricky to navigate (I keep getting lost anyway). The scenic route would be to head through the Ardennes and stop for the night in somewhere like Metz. The last time I did it it took well over five hours though and Metz is, well, I'm sure there are some good bits :rolleyes2:

An early start on day two would get you to the south coast by the evening if you just kept on the autoroute (Troyes, Dijon, Lyon, Orange and wherever you're going after that) but it is boring beyond belief and expensive. I do it when I'm in a hurry but usually I'll go from Reims to Epernay over the "mountain" and via Sezanne to Troyes. From there there's a great country route to Dijon via Chatillon sur Seine. At Dijon you have a choice of following the Route des Grand Crus (if you're into wine) and along the Saone valley to Lyon or (my favourite as I'm heading for Grenoble) heading across country to Bourg en Bresse (if you're into chickens!) and then via nowhere at all to Grenoble.

I'd normally expect to get to Grenoble in about seven hours from Reims so it might be a reasonable place for a stopover - particularly if you're thinking about the route des grande alpes or the route Napoleon the next day. Both of those go virtually past my door and will take you through some seriously spectacular scenery but they are slow and it'll take you most of the next day to get down to the coast. The alternative would be to stop over in somewhere like Lyon and finish the trip on the autoroute (about 3hrs) the next day. The "bouchon" area of the centre of Lyon is great for food but leave the bike at the hotel and use the tube to get there.

Not withstanding the good information in the previous posts, personally, I would steer clear of the south of France coastline during the high season of the holidays in France = August.

Especially for a period of about a week, I would head into the Massif Central and the Vercors regions/parks of France which have more than enough great roads, scenery and the like for 7-9 days.
Those roads will seem empty compared with the Cote de where-ever.

I'd agree with walkabout in the Provence region, but I live in Languadoc as well, and it's pretty darn good riding all year around here. Sinky57, if you ever feel like a ride out and about in our area, just give a shout.


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France hi Atsalute
 

Where are u based I am near beziers Sinky

I have to agree about avoiding the far south of France during the holiday season, it`s where all the mad drivers from Paris, Lyon and Toulouse go, and the accident stats for that part of the world during May-August are horrifying.

I`ve lived in central/south west france for nearly 10 years now and have travelled everywhere. France is a BIG country, so with only 7-9 days for your trip, don`t try and do too much, or you`ll be in the saddle for longer than is safe or comfortable, and two up you travel slower anyway.

During the holiday season July/August the roads are packed, even the motorways, and it will take a lot longer to travel than you think, especially if you avoid the autoroutes, which is recommended, other wise you see nothing.

Best tip is chose an area you can get to easily within one days travel of your port of entry, and explore the area, you`ll have a much better holiday.

Whatever you chose, have a good time bier

Logis hotels are good; they can be quirky, in a good way, and all of those I have used were family run.
There is usually a brochure lying around within them so that you can find others in other parts of France, but they are also online.

Languedoc used to be less popular/well known than the other southern regions - a dozen years ago anyway.
Well worth a visit.


It just struck me that you could consider watching out for where the Tour de France goes this year and follow that route; it can be interesting to see the latest road graffiti.
Here's one feature that has figured often in the previous tours and is well worth a visit if you do get that far south in Provence.
Mont Ventoux - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Invariably, I do this also. You get a break while travelling on the boat which is of longer duration compared with the tunnel - it gives time for a decent walk about to stretch the legs and to eat. That would work very well after riding from Worcester.
Also, if you arrive early you often just get on the next ferry - basically you get slotted in if there is any room for another bike, so there is little time spent hanging about at the docks; sometimes I have ridden my bike straight onto the ferry without stopping after arriving at the port.

I'm just outside Carcassonne - Trebe side (Aigues Vives)


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