TRIP FINDER
On this tour you get to bike and taste the renowned vineyards of the Medoc, as well as UNESCO-listed St Emilion - all on lovely quiet roads...
2017 per person price
| Classic Tour | 1390€ |
| Classic+ Tour | 1590€ |
| Deluxe Tour | 2820€ |
* Price based on double room occupancy - please contact us for details on single room supplements
** Please note the included tastings are not available on Sundays
| CLASSIC PACKAGE | |
| 1 Night Hotel Pavillon Margaux in Margaux | www.le-pavillon-de-margaux.fr |
| 2 Nights Hotel le Vignoble in Pauillac | www.hoteldefrance-angleterre.com |
| 2 Nights La Commanderie in St Emilion | www.aubergedelacommanderie.com |
| 1 Night Hotel le Continental in Bordeaux | www.hotel-le-continental.com |
| CLASSIC+ PACKAGE | |
| 1 Night Le Relais Margaux in Margaux | www.relais-margaux.fr |
| 2 Nights Chateau Pomys in Saint Estèphe | www.chateaupomys.com |
| 2 Nights Le Logis des Remparts in St Emilion | www.logisdesremparts.com |
| 1 Night Hotel de Normandie in Bordeaux | www.hotel-de-normandie-bordeaux.com |
| DELUXE PACKAGE | |
| 1 Night Hotel Relais Margaux in Margaux | www.relais-margaux.fr |
| 2 Nights Hotel Cordeillan-Bages in Pauillac | www.jmcazes.com/fr/chateau-cordeillan-bages |
| 2 Nights Hostellerie de Plaisance in St Emilion | www.hostellerie-plaisance.com |
| 1 Night Regent Grand Hotel Spa in Bordeaux | www.ghbordeaux.com |
Upon your arrival at Bordeaux train station or airport, you will be met and transferred directly to your first hotel in the heart of the Medoc wine country in Margaux. After settling in to your room, you will be given your trip package and will do a final check on your bike fitting with our Trip Manager. Take some time to wander the small town of Margaux itself, after which the famous wines are named; the visitor's centre, The Maison du Vin, is also an excellent centre for information about the region's wines, At the end of the afternoon (depending on your arrival time, a tasting by Margaux will welcome you to the Medoc properly! Your first dinner this evening is included.
Your first ride, one of the prettiest, also takes you past many of the greatest names of wine in the world, which spread out around the town of Margaux and near Pauillac, with their beautiful architecture - be sure not to forget your camera! Chateau Margaux (which boasts the Premier Grand Cru appellation), Chateau Giscous, Chateau d'Issan, Chateau Beychevelle, Chateau Pichon Longueville... we include a visit and tasting along the way (not on Sundays). Enjoy the easygoing ride through pretty vineyards and flat marshland; you'll see the pretty town of Moulis as well (whose name, meaning "mill" reminds us that the many mills in the region date from a time when wheat was the principal product in the Medoc, rather than wine!).
The riding today is easy, and fascinating, with a variety of landscape, dear to the hearts of the region's fishermen. You are riding further along the longest estuary in all of Europe, through vineyards and pretty marshland. As well as seeing today the famous chateaux of Chateau Pontet Canet, Chateau Marbuzet and Chateau Lafite Rothschild, you can stop in charming small port towns or villages like Vertheuil with its 12th century abbey, and St Sauveur. You'll have some beautiful panoramas of the estuary as you pedal along. Of course, before you leave the Medoc, we have organised another tasting for you, this time at either Chateau Phelan Segur or Chateau Pomys (not on Sundays).
Today you will leave the Medoc behind, and head towards UNESCO rated St Emilion. However, the Gironde is blocking your way! After a few kilometres, roll your bike on to the small ferry at Blaye to cross over. Once landbound again, stop to visit the impressive military Citadelle overlooking the water (built under Vauban), before continuing your ride along the banks of the Gironde towards pretty Bourg, where you can stop at the Maison des Vins to learn about their wines, and then on to the town of Saint Andre de Cubzac, with, nearby, the cathedral-like bridge built by Gustav Eiffel.You can be picked up there, to be transferred in to St Emilion, or let us know the day before if you feel like more distance, and ride further to the village of Galgon to be picked up there. Your dinner this evening is included.
Your riding today is a loop that takes you out of Medieval St Emilion, and into the countryside and vineyards which surround it, uniquely classified as a World Heritage ensemble by UNESCO. You will ride through the vineyards of the Pomerol region. The Pomerol area is tiny, but the small production of essentially Merlot wines is renowned around the world today, and not only because of its star, the wines from Petrus, which of course you'll ride by, as well as Angelus, Canon and others. And of course, a tasting, at either Chateau Figeac or at Beauséjour Bécot (not on Sundays). You'll also want to spend some time exploring St Emilion itself, with its medieval ramparts and underground monuments, or to do some additional tasting!
Today's ride is a little long, but you'll find it quite easy, as for most of the day's ride, you are following a tranquil bike path. After crossing over the Dordogne River in Branne, you rejoin the "Roger Lapebie" bike path, through beautiful countryside all the way back to the heart of Bordeaux itself. It takes you by Creon, where we encourage you to stop for some exploration. This typical bastide-town is quite beautiful; you'll pass many other villages as well, with pretty Romanesque churches and chapels, fortified mills, and abbeys... The path ends at the Place de la Bourse in the centre of Bordeaux. Once there you are not far from your hotel, in the heart of the historic city, where you will be staying for your final night.
After a relaxing breakfast, say goodbye to Bordeaux, until the next time. A variety of connections out of Bordeaux train station or airport make your further travels easy. Bon Voyage!
