Cycling Tour Recommendations

We did a self-guided tour in Andalucia with Cycling Country in 2013 (which isn't your request but that trip was awesome and you could consider it if you're up for hills!). They organized everything, and the prices were very low conmpared to other outfitters, but still great service!

They have tours in France but I'm not sure if these fit your definition of location preferences and depends on your cycling ability/preferences. They have one in Provence (hilly but can rent e-bikes). Not in the south/east, but other options in France include two in the Loire Valley (easy/flat), and one starting from Bordeaux to Biarritz (also rated easier).

https://cyclingcountry.com/bike-tours-in-france/

Just about everything you will want to learn can be found here: https://www.freewheelingfrance.com This website is a labor of love by a British woman and has all kinds of information on many, many companies and self-guided tours in just about every region in France.

We did two one week tours this past May/June. We did both of those with a company called Velo Voyaguer. https://www.levelovoyageur.com/en/ Our trip report can be found, here: https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/trip-reports/fabulous-tour-de-france-2-weeks-on-foot-and-by-train-2-weeks-by-e-bike

When I researched the trip, someone on this RS Forum suggest Discover France. I know just about nothing about them. From their website, they looked like a reasonable alternative to Velo Voyageur. But, Velo Voayageur was a small French women-owned company that seemed to really know the country and countryside and that put their trips and routes together with great care and native knowledge.

While our RS trip report did not review Velo Voyageur, I have the following comments to share.

• They were wonderful to work with. They were flexible and modified our two one week tours from what they had on their website to accommodate us. On our Dordogne trip, we wanted an extra night in Montignac, which they did. On our Loire trip, what we wanted, from their many selections, was 8 days from their 15 day Orleans to the Atlantic trip. Again, that was easy. I believe we added an extra day in Amboise. Luggage transfers were perfect and seamless. If an issue arose, they were always available by phone and their system allowed us to connect via skype calls. Our one minor problem were quicky resolved by phone. :-)
• The hotels they booked were generally great. Just what we like: smaller, charming 3 star hotels. Cost of the whole package, BTW, was really pretty reasonable. There were a couple of larger hotels, and one or two 4 star hotels that they used, With one exception (a 4 star hotel in Tours), we universally preferred the smaller, 3 star hotels.
• Their "App" was great. download to your phone. Clear directions (with photos) for each and every turn along the way. Suggested bakeries, restaurants, stores and, of course, the sites to see, whether Chateau, Garden, Fortress, whatever. Just one thing: set it so you get an "off route" alert at 60 meters, rather than 20 meters (which was the default). GPS was slighly wonky and I was alerted to being off route along an isloated road in farming country. We were supposed to be in the middle of the wheat field we were cycling past, per the App.
• They (like Discover France, I believe), work with local vendors for bikes. Unfortunately, the vendor for the somewhat hilly Dordogne had e-bikes that were quite heavy and that only had 7 gears on the rear wheel (That vendor told us that he had previously contracted with Discover France, BTW.) So, we gave Velo Voyageur only 4 stars on our Trip Advisor evaluation for the Dordogne. We rightfully gave them 5 stars for our lovely trip down the Loire Valley from Blois to Saumur.

Enjoy! Bon Vacance.

We did a 5 or 6 day self guided tour with Detours in France https://www.detours-in-france.com/about-us/ a few years ago. Since we didn’t want to bike every day we alternated biking and hiking. I would highly recommend them.

My wife and I have done 13 self-guided rides in Europe, and 5 of them were with Discover France (Loire, Burgundy, Alsace, and two in Provence). I highly recommend them. They provide bikes, GPS, hotel accommodations, luggage transfers, and things to see/ do on the rides, which are usually 15-30 miles per day. Their service is excellent. What better way to see the country, learn the culture, and get exercise to enjoy the wonderful food and wine?

My wife and I did a five day self guided trip along the Midi Canal in September 2022 using Relax Tours, based in Béziers, France. We started in Carcassonne and finished in Béziers, but the company offers lots of different options. They delivered bikes to us at our Carcassonne hotel, booked our hotels, and transferred our luggage daily. Biking along the canal was relatively easy, even for us 70 somethings, but again, they offer a variety of routes. We loved the tour, and would recommend the company.