Cycle the Loire Valley
- Cycle the Loire Valley
- Orleans to Nantes – self organised trip
- When to go
- Bike Hire
- What clothes do you need to take
- What do you do with all your luggage
- Where did we stay
- Itinerary
- Do you need a special app to follow the route
- Highlights
- Cost of the trip – for the two of us.
- Rent your house out
- Get a comprehensive Guide
- Cycling in France
Orleans to Nantes – self organised trip
Whether you are cycling solo, as a couple, or as a family this is a fabulous trip. We started in Orleans and 10 days later cycled into Nantes. We are a retired couple (I am 65 and my wife Helle is 62) and it is so easy to organise it all yourself rather than take a “tour” which will set you back at double the cost. It is an epic ride, very relaxing and picturesque, with fantastic places to visit along the way.
When to go
The preferable time to go is either autumn or spring not summer or winter! We cycled in September which was a fabulous month to go. The temperature was perfect and the trail was quiet.
Bike Hire
We hired bikes through Detours de Loire. https://www.detoursdeloire.com/en/home/
They have outlets in a number of different locations along the way so we were able to pick up from Orleans and drop off in Nantes.
We hired two standard hybrid bikes with helmets – total cost for 10 days 284 euros.
We had our own panniers, however, you can hire those as well.
What clothes do you need to take
We cycled in shorts and tee shirts every day with sandals as footwear. You need one warm jumper or puffer jacket and a good light waterproof coat in case of rain plus a good pair of walking shoes.
What do you do with all your luggage
Simple answer – take it all with you! Our Loire Valley cycle was part of a 3 month trip in Europe. We travelled light and were able to put all the luggage for our entire trip in 4 panniers (which then fitted into one large soft bag) with two smaller backpacks that zipped to the pannier bags. The large soft bag folded to nothing and could be zipped up – it even had wheels and a handle! In total we had 25 kgs of luggage which was all then attached to our rear carriers on the bikes.
We purchased a small soft chilly bag with a long strap that we then strapped over our luggage – this was great for putting in cheese, yoghurt for breaky, milk, butter and could even handle keeping the wine cool!
Where did we stay
We booked our accommodation either through http://www.airbnb.com or http://www.booking.com. We had a mix of mainly B & Bs and self catering apartments. We look at ratings and reviews so choose carefully. We like boutique accommodation( definitely no chain hotels) that offers charm and a kitchen with an outdoor space to enjoy. Pick some along the route that have a washing machine as well.
Itinerary
We flew to Paris and then caught the bus to Orleans. Orleans is a lovely historic town to explore for an afternoon. We picked up our bikes the following day and off we cycled. It is just so magical. The small villages, chateaux, beautiful peaceful trails, vineyards, castles, the boulangeries and much more!
Do you need a special app to follow the route
Absolutely not! Follow the “Loire a Velo” signs and you honestly cannot go wrong! It is very hard to get lost. We missed the odd sign but google maps then becomes you friend. We purchased an airalo esim (electronic esim)for our entire trip. As we were travelling for some time we purchased a 90 day esim for $US100 with 50GB of data. Unless you are downloading movies it is absolutely enough. https://www.airalo.com
After 10 days of cycling the ‘Loire a Velo’ we hit Nantes. Just a fantastic ride. The total ride is approx 450 kms – so we averaged around 45kms a day. Our shortest day was 30kms and our longest 55kms.
Highlights
With so many it is hard to pick favourites! However must see Chateaux and castles along the way are Chambord, Charmont-sur-Loire, Villandry and Chinon Castle.
If you are into your wine there are numerous vineyards to choose along the way – you literally cycle past them! We particularly enjoyed visiting vineyards around mid afternoon – for a tasting session( usually 5 euros p/p) and then grabbed a bottle to enjoy that night. Chateau de la Grille outside Chinon was lovely. We were the only visitors!
There are so many fabulous towns and villages along the way – we especially loved Beaugency and Chinon.
We had fantastic accommodation all the way on our trip. If you do your research and read reviews(the more the better) then you shouldn’t go wrong picking places to stay that suit your style. Probably our favourite accommodation was in Nantes. We had a lovely hostess Marion and our small self contained 17th century cottage was in her garden complete with private outdoor patio and chickens! The Airbnb rating was 4.91 from 171 reviews so we weren’t the only couple that loved it!
Rochefort – sur – Loire
Cost of the trip – for the two of us.
We were pleasantly surprised at how easy and economical it was to organise our own trip down the Loire Valley. There are plenty of “tours” you can take but half the fun is researching and planning your trip plus saving money! If you plan the cycle yourself it will be half the cost of joining a “tour”.
Most of our accommodation had cooking facilities so we tended to prepare our own breakfast and mostly cooked our own dinner. For lunch we always grabbed something from a boulangerie along the way and had it on the trail. We could always find a peaceful spot to stop and enjoy lunch.
After a day cycling we preferred to just relax at where we were staying with a wine cooking dinner. It was easy to find a supermarket in one of the bigger towns enroute. Helle loves supermarkets so shopping was a joy! If supermarkets and cooking are not for you then most places had plenty of restaurants and bars. Costs will obviously then increase depending upon your level of culinary delights.
Our total cost for the trip for the two of us from Orleans to Nantes (11 nights accommodation, 10 days cycling) was 1750 euros. This included accommodation, food, drink, bike hire, travel insurance, mobile e sim, entry to all the sights we visited and sundry expenses along the way.
Our average accommodation per night was 75 euros – some which included breakfast.
The costs excludes flights and transport to get to Orleans and away from Nantes to wherever you are heading afterwards.
Rent your house out
Our Loire Valley cycle was part of a 3 1/2 month trip in Europe. We rented our house out in Auckland NZ through Furnished Rentals. This paid for half our holiday! They organised everything for us so you can rent out and be totally worry free – just enjoy the extra income that goes into your bank account!
Get a comprehensive Guide
If the above sounds great then for a small fee of US$2.95 I can share all the details of our entire trip. It will give you all the information you need to organise your own epic ride in the Loire Valley.
In addition you will also get a comprehensive guide to organising a cycle trip from Bordeaux to Sete. This fabulous trip cycles the Canal du Garonne and Canal du Midi.
If you want a comprehensive guide to organising your own Loire Valley cycle trip.
Click below
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