Experience the best of Loire Valley
Chateaux of the Loire Valley
Cycling down the Loire offers a scenic journey through lush vineyards, charming villages, and majestic châteaux, capturing the essence of French elegance and history. #Lovevelo #LoveCycling #Ridefurther
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Cycling Tour Through the Loire Valley
What to Expect on This Trip
The Loire Valley is a charming and quintessential French region known for its scenic villages, vineyards, and magnificent châteaux. Stretching over 280 kilometres and encompassing around 800 square kilometres, this area includes a UNESCO World Heritage Site. With its flat terrain, beautiful cycle paths, and enchanting castles, the 'Valley of Kings' is an ideal destination for a cycling holiday.
This is a trip that goes from place to place
Your accommodation will be in great hotels, expertly picked for their locations and surroundings.
We have a variety of bikes for you to explore the area including flat bar hybrid bikes, e-bikes and road bikes.
We will provide you with luggage transfers to take your belongings from hotel to hotel.
As part of your cycling adventure, we will provide you with our curated set of digital routes. Just download to your Garmin or Wahoo, or navigate from your phone.
Arrive & Depart At Any Time
Your Day by Day Itinerary
Day 1 - Arrival in Orleans
Arrive into Orleans and spend the afternoon exploring this beautiful town's historic centre or stroll over the Loire on one of its 5 bridges.
Day 2 - Orleans to Beaugency
28km total distance
This morning you will start your ride down this majestic river. A cycle through villages, vineyards and bright sunflowers give you a taste of the Loire Valley as you hug the Loire veloroute. As you cycle along the river, there are plenty of points to stop for a coffee, take in the majesty of one of the famous chateaux or even enjoy an afternoon glass of crisp white wine. Cycle paths will lead you to your first stop in Beaugency.
Day 3 - Beaugency to Blois
56km total distance
Today's route will take you along quiet lanes before stopping at the famous Chateau Chambord. This magnificent 16th-century chateau took fifteen years to build and is Europe's largest walled estate. Take a look inside and discover the magnificent rooms and its incredible double revolving staircase. The real gem of the chateau though is its gardens. After 14 years of historical research into what the gardens looked like in the 16th century, not to mention the €3.5 million spent on it, the gardens are a sight to behold. You can have a sneak preview of the gardens here.
Next, its time to cycle to Blois, the capital of Loir-et-Cher department. Explore this beautiful historic town, located on the banks of the Loire river. It was home to French Kings during the renaissance period.
Day 4 - Blois to Amboise
52km total distance
Today you will cycle through the Pays des Chateau (Land of Castles) to Amboise, a fascinating medieval town. Leonardo da Vinci lived here for his final three years and his tomb now lays in Chateau d'Amboise, which is central to the town. It formally belonged to Catherine de Medici, the Queen of France between 1547-1559.
You will explore another chateau today as around the halfway point is the Chateau Chaumont-sur-Loire. You'll feel as though you've stepped into a castle straight from a fairy-tale with its high walls and drawbridge.
If you happen to be visiting between April and October you'll be in for a treat as the gardens of this chateau play host to the International Garden Festival.
If you would prefer to ride a shorter distance today, just let us know and we can provide you with an equally scenic 40km route from Blois to Amboise.
Day 5 - Departure
Enjoy a leisurely breakfast at the hotel before departing for your homeward travel. If you prefer to spend more time in the Loire, we can easily extend your trip towards Angers.
Make An Enquiry
We are the cycling holiday experts.
Whether you're a keen road cyclist, enjoy riding an e-bike or hybrid bike, or want to get your family more active, we have the perfect cycling holiday for you.
What Our Cyclists Say
I just completed the Chateaux of the Loire Valley tour, and it was amazing! Even before my trip, the team at Love Velo were terrific. They were very patient and answered all of my questions. The hotels were wonderful. The bicycle was great. The GPS-guided tour was easy to use and took me through some amazing countryside and small villages. The chateaux were breathtaking.
Read full reviewDoug
We had an amazing cycle trip through the Loire Valley. The accommodation was perfect and the routes easy to follow. Oli and his team were always available to help before the trip and the in country support was excellent. I thoroughly recommend their service.
Read full reviewRob
This is the second time I have travelled with Love Velo to the Loire and they are always helpful and charming. The bikes are first class and the hotels we had were very high quality.
Read full reviewVirginia G
Why us
Why book with Love Velo?
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Many of our holidays are protected by ABTOT and you can find our bond using membership number 5523.
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