This is a very leisurely holiday designed for you to fully enjoy the notable food and wines of the area, the many chateaux, the sun, swimming pools and the considerable history and charm of the region. Bordeaux itself is a great start and finale to the tour with its people friendly streets, markets and great food culture.
Bordeaux and St Emilion are both World Heritage listed and in between lies a landscape of deep valleys and vineyards, tiny hamlets and quiet country lanes, wine cellars and grand chateaux, fortified towns and country markets and games of boules in the village square. The tradition of local produce served simply with great wine has led to the pleasure of dining slowly. With gentle gradients and shortish distances we certainly haven't spoilt the fun.
Holiday details
Price
- Classic
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from £930 per person
Based on two people sharing a room
What’s included?
There are no extras, however you’ll love what’s included as standard
Duration
7 nights
Start & Finish
Starts daily from 30 March to 15 October and is circular from Bordeaux. Bordeaux airport is 25 minutes from the city centre and has regular flights from many UK ariports. Bergerac airport is 1 hour away by train. Bordeaux can be reached by train from Paris - 3 hours by TGV or from Lille without the need to change trains in Paris
Hotels
- Classic
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A 3 star hotel, a small chambre d'hotes, chateaux with swimming pool and a boutique hotel
Holiday type
Self-guided
This tour is priced without a guide and you are free to explore on your own. If you would like a guide for part or all of your trip, we are happy to provide a knowledgeable, local guide
Activity level
Gentle cycling (1) More info...
Electric bikes
Not available
Mileage
5 days of cycling 12 - 20 miles (19 - 32 km) per day and 1 day of optional cycling
Terrain
Gentle slopes
Traffic-free
20% very low traffic on the rest
Options
- Additional nights in Bordeaux
Itinerary day-by-day
Classic
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1. Day one
Bordeaux
Arrive in Bordeaux and check into your hotel in the heart of this elegant city. Listed as a World Heritage site for its stunning 18th Century architecture, there is much to discover here. Enjoy its chic golden triangle of lingerie, chocolate and perfume boutiques that make any visit to France special and linger in a cafe or two. Your host will meet you in the early evening to run through your itinerary and show you the restaurant quarter of St Pierre.
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2. Day two
Bordeaux to Dardenac
First thing your host will see you off from Lastresne at the start of a cyclepath that runs along a former rail-track through a secluded valley that winds its way into the Entre Deux Mers . Halt at one of the old stations for a coffee and then continue to the former Bastide town of Creon. The market square here offers several choices for lunch or you may choose to picnic at the shaded tables alongside the cycle path. The local Maison de Vin nearby could be your source for a taste of local produce. Continuing on the cyclepath you reach La Sauve Majeure where the ancient Abbey buildings are worth a visit and you may encounter modern-day Compostella pilgrims breaking their journey to Santiago in North-west Spain. Within another 6 km leave the cyclepath to ride through country lanes to the hamlet of Dardenac where Francoise is your host at Chateau Dardenac.
17 miles (27 km)
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3. Day three
Circular ride to St Emilion and back
Today you have a choice of lounging beside the pool at the chateau or discovering World Heritage listed St Emilion. The ride there heads down to the Dordogne and then crosses the valley to reach this medieval town. With two cloisters, an underground church and much of its moat, walls and towers intact, there's a network of cobbled streets to explore and an array of wine bars, cafes and cellars all beckoning to passing visitors. Enjoy! Return to Dardenac for dinner.
Optional 15 miles (24 km)
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4. Day four
Dardenac to St Macaire
Rejoin the cyclepath this morning to continue eastwards through a deep wooded valley rise to reach St Brice in the Entre Deux Mers heartlands. Turning off the cycle path here and pedal through a series of small villages to reach St Germain de Graves where you descend to Verdelais. Here you may choose to take lunch in the village cafe (if you haven't already dined at the destination restaurant at Coirac) before exploring this bucholic little hamlet with its pilgrimage church, Calvary and the grave of the artist Toulous-Lautrec in the cemetery. Rested continue to St Maixant and follow the Garonne flood-plain upstream to St Macaire. This former river port and centre for barrel-making had a turbulent history but that is now behind it and its shaded streets offer sleepy cats and crumbling masonry. Your charming hotel boast neither of these but its plunge-pool and dining room provide an excellent welcome to cyclist guests.
20 miles (32 km)
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5. Day five
St Macaire to Cadillac
Perhaps take a pre-breakfast stroll along the foot of the ramparts to appreciate what a daunting task faced St Macaire's attackers before leaving the town by crossing the Garonne and on the outskirts of Langon heading for Roillan and the fortress of Roquetaillarde. This is one of the Pope clement V nephew chateau and has been lived in by members of the same family for just on eight hundred years. Turning north at this point takes you through woodland to the Sauternes where in the village you can sample this sweet white wine and choose from either of the two village restaurants. Alternatively continue down to Bommes and picnic and rest alongside the Ciron river. Either way you now track the river downstream to reach Barsac another sweet white wine appelation. Then continue through vineyards to cross the river at Cadillac and reach the Chateau de la Tour hotel where the outdoor pool offers a chance to relax and the grounds are big enough for a pre-dinner stroll after a tour of the Duke of Epernon's Palace next door.
16 miles (26 km)
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6. Day six
Cadillac to Martillac
Heading downstream close to the Garonne this morning you will find Rions - a medieval time - capsule where film crews often occupy the narrow alleys. Following country lanes and tracks your route reaches the old chateau at Langoiran and then Langoiran itself, where a riverside restaurant competes with a traditional typical village cafe. Just adjacent at Le Tourne is a long established boat-building yard displaying the variety of craft that used to ply the river. Crossing the river here the Chateau de Mongenan at Portets with its eccentric collection of bygones and Masonic Temple heirlooms is well worth a stop before a series of left bank villages lead to Martillac where your overnight stay is in the Chateau de Lantic with its wonderful pool and terrace.
15 miles (25 km)
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7. Day seven
Martillac to Bordeaux
Your final day of cycling leads through the Prestige Pessac-Leognan vineyards where prior booking can secure a tour at Chateau Smith Haute Lafite or Chateau La Louviere. If the exertions of the week have earned a little pampering, the Source de Caudalie spa is also on your route and to help put back some of the calories burnt one of its two restaurants boasts a Michelin star. The cycling distance today is short enough to allow time for a quality chateau tour or a return to Bordeaux early enough for a few more city pleasures.
12 miles (19 km)
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8. Day eight
Depart Bordeaux
Sip a final coffee in one of Bordeaux's squares and depart at your leisure.