Directions to bicycle the Loire River Valley, France, and the Châteaux of the Loire:

This page helps you organize your trip yourself, with information on accommodations, trains and bike rentals; and also proposes loop trips of 3 to 8 days.

For information on the Loire Valley, including its geography, history, main tourist sights, and bicycling options, please refer to <Part I —General Information>.

For a point-to-point Loire itinerary, from the Atlantic Ocean to the Loire headwaters, please refer to Part III . That part also provides a link for a continuation across France and Europe.

Photographs of the best châteaux may be found in Part I of the article. Photographs of towns, countryside, and other châteaux may be found in the point-to-point itinerary in Part III of the article.

Distance and Time: Anywhere from 50 miles and 2 days, to 800 miles and three weeks, depending upon your interests, preferences, and detours. Beyond the Loire Valley, a no-detours trip from the Atlantic Ocean to Budapest, Hungary will be 1,500 miles long.

Below: Expensive "Château-hotel".    

Accommodations: Hotel accommodations and campgrounds are plentiful throughout the central tourist region from Tours to Blois. Hotels range from moderate to expensive. See a more complete discussion in Bicycle Touring in Europe, Part 3. The point to point itinerary, Option E, provides information on accommodations outside the central region of the Loire.

Bikes on Trains to the Loire: See the discussion of housses, bikes and trains at Bicycle Touring in Europe, Part 3.

If you are bringing a bicycle to the Loire valley from Paris, you can easily carry your assembled bicycle as far as the city of Tours. With more time, you can carry your assembled bike to Angers, to Nantes, to Saint Nazaire, or to La Baule.

However, going to Angers or beyond, strongly consider the use of a TGV train and a housse. TGVs take as little as 1`hour 30 minutes to reach Angers, 2 hours 8 minutes to reach Nantes, and 3 hours to reach La Baule. By contrast, to reach Angers while carrying your assembled bike with you on the train takes at least 4 hours, maybe five. To reach Nantes takes over 5 hours. To reach La Baule takes 7 hours, and, as of this writing, is not possible on Fridays and Saturdays.

To research TGVs,see the information on the page Trains and Bicycles, which will open in a seperate browser window. There are TGVs to Angers, Nantes, and La Baule. You will find that there are choices throughout the day and evening. All leave from the Montparnasse Railway Station. Remember, you must reserve in advance, and you must put your bike in a housse, the French name for a bicycle bag, which is discussed in detail on the Trains and Bicycles page.

The next paragraphs explain how to research the trains carrying assembled bicycles. All of these leave from the Austerlitz Railway Station.

Important point: As confirmed by the SNCF (French Railways) telephone ticket office, all Aqualys and TER trains on the timetable of the Centre Region carry assembled bicycles, even though there are no bicycle pictograms.

To get the current timetable, go to the regional train Internet Site http://www.ter-sncf.com. Click on the "Centre" Region. Select timetable No. 3 Tours-Blois-Orleans- (Paris). Print it out. (The first part of each section shows trains from Monday to Saturday, the last section is for Sundays and holidays.) You can take any "AQLS" or "Interloire" train. There is a large selection.

The following suggestions for continuing beyond Tour are current as of May 17, 2002 (but please doublecheck the timetable accuracy): From Paris as far as Angers: Depart Austerlitz at 6:24 AM (Saturdays 5:57, not available Sundays), arrive St. Pierre-des-Corps (a Tours area station) at 8:56. Catch the connecting train from St. Pierre-des-Corps at 9:06, arriving Angers at 10:12.

From Paris as far as La Baule: Depart Austerlitz at 12:41 (Sunday 11:41). Arrive Tours (city) at 14:50 (Sundays 14:19). From Tour, depart at 16:10, arriving Angers at 17:17 and Nantes at 18:04. On M-Th, connect to a train departing Nantes at 19:06, arriving La Baule at 20:41. On Sundays and holidays, a train departs Nantes at 19:00 and arrives La Baule at 19:53. At this writing it does not appear possible to travel to La Baule with an assembled bike on Friday and Saturday evenings.

 Below: Amboise Château from afar.

Bicycle Rentals: The author is aware of, but has no personal experience with, the following companies that claim to rent good quality bicycles for touring in the Loire area:

At Blois: Loire Valley Travel (www.loire-valley-travel.com). They may provide a baggage transfer service.

At Tours, near the railway station, Amstercycles (http://www.amstercycles.com). They also rent a tandem and a towable cart, and helmets. They will deliver cycles nearby. Also, in the town center, Velomania, http://www.velomaia.de.vu. The road bicycles from both these renters are of moderate quality, but will do for a short trip. Bring clip or step-in pedals from home. Also bring panniers if taking multi-day trips.

About 15 miles from Angers (they will pick up in Angers), Anjou Bike Center (http://www.anjou-bike-center.com/bicycle-rent_A.htm. They may also provide a baggage transfer service. A call to local tourist offices may produce additional sources.

Itinerary Suggestions: Many variations are possible. The interests and pace of cyclists vary greatly. Hence, from the following suggestions, you should put together your own day by day plan.

Itinerary Starting and Ending Points, with distances and times:

Option A, Short Spoke Tour: From Blois, three nights, 70 kilometers (42 miles).

Option B, Short Circle Tour: From Blois, two or three nights, 60 kilometers (36 miles).

Option C, Short Loop Tour: Start at Tours and End at Blois, four nights, 145 kilometers (87 miles).

Option D, Medium Loop Tour: Start at Tours, end at Blois, six nights, 190 kilometers (114 miles). Add one or two days by visiting Loche or ending in Tours.

Option E, Long Point to Point Trip (this links to Part III on the Loire) : Start at La Baule (or at Nantes or Angers) and end at Tours, Blois, Orleans, or beyond (From La Baule to Orleans with a Brittany day ride, about 530 kilometers—320 miles). Additional subsections provide itinerary suggestions for biking to the source of the Loire River, or across France and Europe.

Please follow this link for an explanation of the author's traffic ratings.

The Itineraries:

Option A, Short Spoke Tour: From Blois, three nights, 70 kilometers (42 miles).

Day 1: Arrive at Blois*** by train with your bike. Visit the Château***and enjoy the town on foot.

Day 2: If you didn't bring your own bike, rent one. Bike to Cheverny*** using back roads or the main road (14 kilometers by the main road). Visit the château and the grounds. Return to Blois after lunch, by back roads or the main road. Take in the view of Blois from the south side of the Loire. Enjoy your evening in Blois.

Day 3: Bike out to Chambord*** by any of several main or back roads (16 to 20 kilometers). After seeing the Château and having lunch, return to Blois by another route. Return your bike, if rented, and depart for Paris (or elsewhere) by train.

Option B, Short Circle Tour: From Blois, two or three nights, 60 kilometers (36 miles).

Day 1: Arrive at Blois*** by train with your bike. Visit the Château***and enjoy the town on foot.

Day 2: If you didn't bring your own bike, rent one. Bike to Cheverny*** using back roads or the main road (14 kilometers by the main road). Visit the château and the grounds. Spend the night in Cour-Cheverny or Bracieux (9 kilometers further). Cour-Cheverny has much fancier hotels, but the author had one of his best meals ever in a lovely setting at the Relais de Bracieu* (Bernard Robin). Their are campgrounds in both Cour-Cheverny and Bracieux.

As a alternative, with an early start and a picnic lunch, you could ride from Cheverny directly to Chambord*** in 17 miles, visit the Château in the early afternoon, and return to Blois in time to return your bike and catch a late train for Paris.

Day 3: Ride from Cour-Cheverny or Bracieux to Chambord*** (17 or 8 kilometers). Visit the castle and some of the grounds, return to Blois (16 to 20 kilometers) , return your bicycle (or take it with you) and catch the train for Paris.

Option C, Short Loop Tour: Start at Tours and End at Blois, four nights, 145 kilometers (87 miles).

Day 1: Arrive Tours** by train with the bicycle you brought from Paris, or rented on a stopover in Blois. Visit the various parts of the city, including the old town and the Cathedral. Enjoy the evening in Tours.

Day 2: Bike to Chenonceaux*** (about 30 kilometers) by following small roads. You might ask for advice at the tourist office. The author would try the road passing north of N140 to Greux, cross the Loire south to Véretz, and then follow the little roads south of N76 to Bleré, passing through Athée-sur-Cher and Bono. The author rode the latter part of this route, which had charm and very light traffic, while N76 was full of traffic and bumpy riding. You'll need good map skills, however.

From Bleré it is best to cross the Cher, taking the shortcut to the right just after the river. Then follow the main road to the Château entrance. The guard at the entrance kindly let the author store his bike out of sight near the entrance inside the chateau grounds.

Below: Town of Amboise.        

From Chenonceaux, bike back west one mile on D40, then follow D81 to Amboise** (very light to light traffic—about 12 kilometers total). Enjoy the Château of Amboise and the town. There are numerous choices for hotels and restaurants; there is also camping.

Day 3: Ride to Chaumont following D751 (author had light traffic to Chaumont), and visit, possibly, the Chateau. Or continue on to Blois (light plus traffic, some light to moderate traffic near Blois). The view of Blois across the Loire is excellent. Leave your baggage in your hotel, and visit the very impressive Château and the charming town on foot. (Total distance is 36 kilometers).

Day 4 and Day 5: Follow the suggestions under Option A or B above for days 2 and 3.

Alternatively: On Day 3 ride from from Amboise to Chaumont**, and through les Montils and Chitenay to Cheverny***. Spend the night at Cour-Cheverny or Bracieux (39 or 48 kilometers total).

On Day 4, visit Chambord*** and arrive Blois***, enjoying a night on the town.

On Day 5, visit the Château of Blois*** if you did not do so the day before, and depart.

Option D, Medium Loop Tour: Start at Tours, end at Blois, six nights, 190 kilometers (114 miles). Add one or two days by visiting Loche or ending in Tours.

Day 1: Arrive Tours** by train with the bicycle you brought from Paris, or rented on a stopover in Blois. Visit the various parts of the city, including the old town and the Cathedral. Enjoy the evening in Tours.

Day 2: Leave Tours heading westward along the south side of the Loire. From Saint Genouph head south to the north bank of the Cher, crossing when possible to Savonnières, and following D7 to the Château** and gardens*** of Villandry (about 18 kilometers). Now turn south on back roads, passing through Valleres, to Azay-le-Rideau***, whose Château has great charm (11 - 14 kilometers). You could stay in Azay-le-Rideau, a quaint town with modest hotels and camping; or you could follow the Indre river (D84, on the north side as far as Monts is charming) to Montbazon (22 kilometers), where you are tempted to stay in luxurious and quite grand château hotels, such as the Château d'Artigny (expensive), or eat in a Michelin starred restaurant.

Day 3: It is on to Chenonceaux*** and Amboise**. The fastest route to Bleré (near Chenonceaux) is probably to follow D17 (light plus traffic) to Truyes, and then D45. The author, however, turned north on D85 at Esvres. Be sure to turn right at the Y with the sign for Azay-sur-Cher, and very soon thereafter, to turn right again Saint-Jean-du-Grais, passing through Athée and Bono to Bleré. Do avoid highway N76 that has lots of high speed traffic, and is bumpy. Chenonceaux is 26 -30 kilometers from Montbazon, 48 to 52 kilometers from Azay-le-Rideau.

From Chenonceaux, bike back west one mile on D40, then follow D81 to Amboise** (very light to light traffic—about 12 kilometers total). Enjoy the Château of Amboise and the town. There are numerous choices for hotels and restaurants; there is also camping.

Days 4, 5, and 6: Follow the suggestions in Option C for days 3, 4, and 5.

Want to add another biking day or two? The following indicate nights spent:

Extension possibility 1 (total of 7 days, 230 kilometers—130 miles): Tour (rent bike here), Azay-le-Rideau or Montbazon, Montrichard*, Cour-Cheverny or Bracieux, Blois, Amboise, Tour (depart).

To reach Montrichard from the Château of Chenonceaux, just continue eastward along the Cher on D176 for 8 kilometers. Choose between any of the back roads that lead from Montrichard to the Château of Cheverny.

Possibility 2 (total of 7 or 8 days, 230 to 270 kilometers—138 to 162 miles): Tour, Azay-le-Rideau or Montbazon, Loches**, and then either Amboise (as per Options A through D) or Montrichard, as per Possibility 1 just above.

To bike from Azay to Loche, follow D84 , crossing the Indre to Saché. Follow D19 to Villeperdue, and D21 to Loches. To bike fro Montbazon to Loche, follow D17 to Veigné. South of the town, take the back road which leads to Tauxigny (D82 ?), and continue on D82 and D21 to Loches.

<Link to Part III of Article—Option E, Long Point to Point Trip>
<Link to Part I of Article—General Information>

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