loire a velo cycle path

I've used this cycle path many times when here on business, it's a great place to run or cycle, or lovely walks along the Loire river in the evenings. You can step outside the Mercure restaurant and be on it within one minute! It's very popular with the locals any you'll see lots of people running or cycling along.

We took a short 1/2 day trip from Montsoreau to Saumur, with a short detour to Abbey Fontevreaud. We left past 12 and were able to eat lunch outside the abbey, tour it, then double back to Montsoreau and make it to Saumur along the river route by 5. The signage is good, the "river" tour takes you through small towns, underground caves, along the river, and up through champigny vineyards. The elevation does change a bit but the ride is a great mix of nature, villages, and agriculture.

The best section is from Nantes to Orleans as it shows the best of the Chateaux and has a bike friendly train TER which run along side the river! Very scenic, officially the route is called the Euro Velo 6 which picks the flattest and best parts of the valley.

Excellent cycle path in both directions from Orleans and the option of cycling the Canal D'Orleans too. The Km markers can be a little deceptive in some places, so just use as an estimate, as they go up and down between certain places! Overall a brilliant way to get around, perfectly pleasant, ideal places to stop for the picnic lunch, and overall fairly quiet, occasion car / service vehicle.

We started in Orleans and went to Pornic on the Atlantic coast in 8 days at the beginning of August. Easy riding, nice tracks, very few climbs and beautiful views. We hadn't booked any camping in advance and although the camp sites were frequently full, space was always made for us as we were on bikes. I can't think of any negative points other than we were very unlucky with the weather!

The path is well marked and on traffic free or shared routes, the latter being extremely quiet. There are a lot of view of the river and the route goes through many areas of historic interest. A good family holiday.

We were only able to do 22.5 km of this path as the rains made it too cold and too wet for us to continue further. However, in between the rains - we could see how beautiful the path was, with chateaus, vineyards and of course the Loire River. Gorgeous!

A stunning route along Le Loire. This cycle track was very well signposted and even road marked. The views were stunning and the track was very cycle friendly. Some of the route us shared with other motor vehicles, but there was plenty if room and the motorists we encountered were all patient and courteous to the cyclist. For sure, these motorists were not from the UK..;). Anyone who is into cycling or even beginning this is an excellent route. We ride from Orleans to a quaint little town called Meung-sur-Loire and back. 41.5 km total distance. Both my wife and daughter, who rarely cycle managed thus ride comfortably. I recommend the restaraunt, Cafe Du Commerce in Meung-Sur-Loire for the halfway pit stop. Great cycling :)

This is a great cycle path. Family day out to the sights along the Loire river. Very well sign posted . very flat. Hardly any cars. Just a great safe family cycle trip.

Flat and good road, spectacular views, almost no cars, beautiful chateau to visit! Unforgettable. Road signs are everywhere so it is almost impossible to get lost (we managed one time tho;))

This is a great cycling tour for all types of cyclists - there are very few significant hills, and much of the trail is very family friendly. There is great signage and plenty of accommodation.

The organisation behind Loire de Velo is impressive.For most if the journey we were on traffic free country lanes very peaceful and pretty.We lost the route twice on the course of our trip, so keep your eyes out for the green signs.

This was our first cycling holiday and Orleans as a base for a 7 day break proved to be an inspired choice. Our hotel was on the banks of the river and just a 10 minute walk from the cathedral. More importantly the cycle route runs past the door. All the cycling is on flat, easy routes with most of it on tarmac paths along the levees bordering the river. The only decisions you have to make are which direction, on which bank and how far do you want to go. As well the Loire you can cycle along the tow path of the Orleans canal. The river views are stunning and the wildlife interesting, herons galore. If you want to get away from the river then there is an easy ride through the Orleans-Clery vineyards which is well sign-posted. We even managed to get to Sancerre and Pouilly-s-Loire which was a 2 hour drive but then we did a 14 mile cycle ride from Pouilly to Sancerre and back using the bridges at each town to cross the river.

My husband and I did the 10 day cycling trip from Orleans to Angers, a distance of 320km. We are by no means serious bike riders although we enjoy riding, we're both over 60 and somewhat overweight. However we loved this ride and certainly rarely felt over extended. In April, we had glorious spring weather and we started around 10am each day, generally covering 10km in an hour which included sight seeing, coffee and just being in the moment. A trip like this is about the journey more than the destination! We did the tour through Bike Direct, upgrading our accommodation to 3 stars. The set dinners were sublime and the accommodation varied but excellent. The company was efficient and well organised and the bikes Well equipped, but both bikes rarely went into 1st gear which caused some difficulty on hilly bits (there are a few but they are short). Our training consisted of rides of 20-40km once or twice a week and this seemed enough. We have good average fitness from other activities - so if we can do this, so can other oldies. Just make sure you get the padded bike pants!

We were in Orleans a couple of days and really wanted to cycle around. We tried to get the bikes at several stations and with different cards but nothing worked and the machine didnt tell us why it wouldnt work. The next day I did it all through the website and used the codes at the closest station and it worked perfectly. We got our bikes and cycled down the Loire. The bikes we great but my bell was broken and rattled the whole ride. After we were able to figure it out over the internet it was great!