Challenge yourself on the iconic climbs of the Southern French Alps: col du Noyer, Galibier, Izoard, Lautaret, Granon, Echelle, Orcieres, Risoul, Agnel, Vars, the tour of the Serre Ponçon lake and other famous mountain roads and experience the dramatic beauty of the mountains as you tick off the hairpins!
With high quality road bikes prepared and delivered to your bike friendly hotel accommodation on your arrival, GPX tracks and detailed advice on all the iconic climbs and circuits, baggage transfers between accommodations and train station or airport transfers included, all you have to do is turn up and enjoy the rides!
In addition this unique self guided cycling adventure includes the possibility of riding on roads exclusively closed for your ride, free from any motor vehicles - just you, the open road, and fellow passionate cyclists.
We will tailor make your itinerary to create your dream Alps cycling trip to cycle the legendary mountain passes and other lesser known but equally stunning rides from our four Alpine bases and optimising opportunities to ride on the reserved cols available during your dates.
If you are looking for a shorter break or weekend, check out our Weekend Cycling Odyssey.
Roads Closed for Cyclists!
Only in France, the home of the most famous cycling race in the world, the Tour de France, would the authorities be able to justify closing roads just for cyclists to have the pleasure of riding them! In the Southern French Alps, the home of some of the most iconic mountain passes used in the race, this has been a regular event since 1997!
Every year a programme of dates are released and we have privileged early access to these so we can organise your tailor made self guided cycling holiday around them if you wish to make the most of this amazing opportunity.
The roads are closed for the mornings and are available for any cyclist to ride on. Generally the road is closed at the bottom from the junction of the main road joining the climbing route up to the top of the mountain pass. Some climbs are closed on both sides of the pass and other climbs are closed on just one side. In both situations there are people climbing and descending the same road.
The routes to get to the starts of the climbs are not closed but due to the popularity of the event, and number of cyclists, cars on the approaching roads are vigilant and accommodating to cyclists.
The local tourist offices sometimes make the events even more fun by providing refreshment stands and supporters often come out to watch and cheer you on. It is as close as you can get to being in the Tour de France yourself!
The closed cols are not part of a race, they are accessible to any level of cyclist and you will find all types of riders sharing your adventure from professional and serious athletes to families, all with a passion for cycling. There is no pressure - it is a fun, friendly atmosphere!
Your Cycling Bases:
We use four main cycling bases in the Southern French Alps for this trip; Guillestre, Briançon, Embrun and Gap, carefully chosen for easy and direct access to the legendary Tour de France climbs and routes. Depending on the rides you want to do and the calendar of the closed cols we will design your trip using the most appropriate bases and arrange any baggage transport between the bases.
