Self-guided Cycling / Original tour
Web code FR013
France / Provence and Camargue
Roman sites and Van Gogh landscapes
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Day by Day
1. Arles
Individual arrival in Arles, the city of diabolical “ferias”, muse of artists and poets, known for its rich ancient and Romanesque heritage.
2. Arles – Aigues-Mortes (65 km)
Leave the city and go into the delta of the Rhône, better known as “Camargue”, where nature still prevails over civilization. You will cycle among cane fields, salt lakes, flamingos, horses and bulls. You will stop in Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer, and then continue towards the medieval fortress of Aigues-Mortes.
3. Aigues-Mortes – Nîmes (40 km)
Back to civilization. Following streets with low traffic you reach the populated centre of Nîmes; rich in art and history, it is also called the “Rome of France”, but it also reminds Spain with its arenas and bullfighting.
4. Nîmes – Uzès (45 km)
After a tour of the city, surrounded by its Roman past, you will cycle up to the best preserved Roman aqueduct in Europe: Pont du Gard, a truly spectacular work. Refresh yourself with a bath on the banks of the river Gard before reaching Uzès.
5. Uzès – Avignon (50 km)
Riding through gentle hills, today you will reach the capital of Provence, a real open air museum. Avignon was a papal city for nearly a century and here seven popes decided, in 1300, the destiny of the Christian Church. Before the arrival, stop at the beautiful ancient village of Villeneuve-lès-Avignon.
6. Avignon – Châteauneuf-du-Pape – Avignon (45 km)
You will cycle towards Châteauneuf-du-Pape, following low-traffic roads surrounded by vineyards. You cross the river Rhône at the height of Roquemaure and come back in Villeneuve along the Rhône banks.
7. Avignon – Arles (60 km)
After leaving the Palace of the Popes, you will cycle again to close the tour returning to Arles. Along the way, you cannot miss a stop at the famous Saint-Rémi-de-Provence and Les-Baux-de-Provence, well-known places throughout the world thanks to Van Gogh.
8. Arles
After breakfast, end of services.
Due to organisational reasons, weather conditions or provisions issued by local authorities, the itinerary may be subject to some changes before and/or during your holiday. For example, along the way you may find temporary deviations caused by roadworks, which cannot be foreseen; in this case please follow the indications you will find on site. -
Route profile
- Total length: 305 km
- Total vertical up: 980 m
- Terrain: 91% tarmac, 9% unpaved
- Train connection among the overnight stays: day 3 and 7
- Possibility to shorten the itinerary by taking the train: day 3
Route mostly on low traffic roads in rural and city areas. Short stretches are on unpaved roads. A couple of days present some short uphill sections with the only relevant ascent to Les-Baux-de-Provence (4 km of gentle ascent).Some days the itinerary will be flat, others it will present some hills. Suitable for everyone in good physical condition and with some cycling experience.
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How to get there
Arles is connected with the following airports:
Nimes: 40 Km, Montpellier: 80 Km, Marseille: 90 Km, Lyon: 280 Km.Trains
For further information on timetables and prices you can consult the following website: www.sncf.com. -
Accommodation and meals
We personally choose all the hotels mindful of your comfort as well as the proximity to cycling paths and any relevant local sites.
According to your category of choice you will be accommodated in:- Cat. A: 3/4* hotels
- Cat. B: 2/3* hotels
All rooms have en suite facilities. Most of the hotels are equipped with air conditioning.
When you book the tour please specify the type of room requested:- double room is a room with one double bed
- twin room is a room with two single beds
- triple room is usually a room with one double bed and a single bed or a sofa bed.
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Bikes and accessories
Girolibero bikes are available in different sizes and frames:
- Touring bike 27-gear Shimano Deore
- E-bike 9-gear Shimano
Features:- aluminium frame
- mudguard
- rear rack
- comfort gel saddle www.selleroyal.com
- anti-puncture Schwalbe tyres
- ergonomic bicycle grips
- Speed Lifter system
Accessories
All rented adult bikes are equipped with:- 1 cycle computer
- 1 Ortlieb one-sided saddlebag
- 1 front bar bag
- 1 water bottle (0.75 l)
- 1 repair kit per room: 1 spare inner tube, glue, patch, a pump, 2 allen keys and tyre levers
- 1 combination bike lock
At the moment of booking you can also rent helmets suitable for head circumferences from 54 to 61 cm. All our helmets have a certification mark according to the DIN EN 1078 (CE) European norm. -
Accompanying material
Before your arrival, you will receive an email from us with the digital information material. It contains:
1. Link to download the App including maps, points of interest and GPS tracks (you can use the App offline, too)
2. Link to download the tour information material in Pdf:
- Tour notes
- Final tour details
3. Digital travel documents:
- Final hotel list: due to overbooking or organizational needs your hotel list may be changed just before your arrival
- Hotel vouchers to show to the hotel reception upon arrival
- Luggage labels
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By your side
Staff support
In the Final Tour Details you will find the contact phone numbers you can call during the tour in case of emergency.
The Girolibero team is always available for you at the office number during office hours. -
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Dorothea
Departure 07-14 September 2019
Online from 21 September 2019
Nur ein Minuspunkt: einen Tag Regen ☺️ -
Robert
Departure 02-09 September 2019
Online from 16 September 2019
siehe Kommentar Hotel in Uzes und evt. Roadbook überarbeiten.
Unser Fazit auf jeden fall - es war ein gelungener und toller Urlaub -
Elisa Cecilia Maria
Departure 2019
Online from 21 August 2019
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Angelo
Departure 2019
Online from 10 July 2019
Città belle ma itinerari un pò "piatti" con alcune eccezioni a Pont du Gard e Saintes Maries de la Mer. Il percorso richiede un minimo di allenamento sia per le distanze che per qualche dislivello, se non siete sicuri prendete una Ebike e tutto filerà liscio. Consiglio anche un GPS per seguire più velocemente i percorsi. -
Massimo
Departure 2018
Online from 26 September 2018
Vacanza molto bella; luoghi interessanti dal punto di vista paesaggistico e culturale. Le costruzioni risalenti all'epoca romana sono molto belle e caratterizzano il paesaggio. -
Gabriella
Departure 11-18 August 2018
Online from 25 September 2018
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Arnaldo
Departure 2018
Online from 25 September 2018
Tutto ok -
Manuela
Departure 2018
Online from 25 September 2018
Quando hai visto il mondo intero...non ti resta che pedalare x conoscerlo a fondo. -
Laura
Departure 2018
Online from 25 September 2018
Nel complesso è stata una bella esperienza! Da ripetere sicuramente. -
ATTENZIONE
Le seguenti impressioni sono state pubblicate prima del nuovo sistema di ratingKaren, Calgary (Canada)
Departure 2016
Online from 01 June 2016
Hello Maddalena
We have recently completed our Provence cycle trip and wanted to make a few comments.
We were very pleased with the help and organization we had for the trip. Our bicycles were in good order and Marco was very helpful with last minute changes in the route and generally a very friendly guy.
We have completed now, 10 Hotel and bike cycle trips in Europe, 5 of them with Girolibero. We are most pleased with your company and would recommend it to anyone who asks.
We still think Girolibero is the best of the 4 cycling companies we have used in Austria, Germany, France and Italy.
All hotels were excellent and all in all this was a very nice trip for us.
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