Tour de France 2012
Sat 7th-Sat 14th July
A fantastic weeks' holiday to explore the Spectacular Vercors, climb the iconic Col de le Croix de Fer on the day of the Tour prior to the peleton coming through and experience the passion and excitement of the Greatest Cycle Race on Earth. We have chosen the most important stage of the Tour in the High Alps where the battle for the overall winner may well be fought: Stage 11 : Albertville to La Toussuire.
Tour de France Director Christian Prudhomme’s Analysis
'Twenty years after the Winter Olympic Games, the riders will set off from Albertville for an alpine stage with a substantial agenda and marked out on a shorter distance. During 140 km, the peloton will go over the Col de la Madeleine, the Col de la Croix de Fer and the Col du Mollard before tackling the final climb towards the resort of La Toussuire. This will certainly single out the potential winners.'
Arrival Sat 7th: Settle into gite, set up bikes if you have hired or brought your own. If there is time a quick 1 hour ride to experience what the Vercors has to offer, followed by drinks and dinner where we will chat about routes and give you as much information as possible about the region.
Sunday 8th: Depending on your level of fitness a ride into the Vercors to experience your first Alpine climb via a spectacular gorge or a more gentler ride through the rolling hills of the Drome Provencal to the charming historical 11th Century village of St. Antoine L'Abbaye.
Monday 9th-Wednesday 11th: Choose from a huge variety of routes from 20kms - 180kms with a choice of 22 Cols, rolling hills and a second to none matrix of quiet, well surfaced roads.Specitacular gorges, grassy plateaux and mountain climbs featured in previous Tour de Frances' including the 24 switchback Col du Rousett. We generally have daily chats and suggest the best route depending on how your legs are feeling.
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Thursday 12th July: The Ascent of Le Col de Croix de Fer (2067m or 6,200ft) categorised as Hors Categorie, 'Beyond Category' by the Tour de France. From our drop off point we will ride up this iconic mountain soaking in the atmosphere, smells and colours along with the hundreds of thousands other spectators. We'll then watch and wait for the pre-race cavalcade to come through followed by the riders at a crucial point close to the summit of the climb. It will be noisy, colourful and eventful – the equivalent of the Glastonbury Festival for cycling fans!
Friday 13th July: The final ride of your stay
Saturday 14th: Departure after breakfast
Some of the many highlights during your week: Spectacular scenery boasting waterfalls, limestone vertical cliffs, gorges, rivers, rare fauna and flora, Roman Acqueducts, walnut groves, snow capped mountains and fruit orchards. Wonderful speciality foods of the region and the famous Cotes de Rhones wines and of course the opportunity to see the Tour and climb the mammoth Le Col de le Croix de Fer.
What the week includes:
- 7 nights accommodation in a self-catering gite
- Gite stocked with everything needed for 7 breakfasts
- 3 evening meals inc wine
- Route Maps
- Pack lunch on Tour de France stage
- Transport to drop off point on day of Tour
- Our personal knowledge of the region
- Cycling advice and training tips
What is not included:
- Transport to Velo Vercors. However, we are happy to arrange transport from Valence TGV, Grenoble or Lyon airports
- Lunches or 4 remaining evening meals. There is a choice of gourmet, bistro and takeaway restaurants in the town of St.Jean-en-Royans a 3 min stroll away
- Travel Insurance
- Other personal expenses
All rides are independent, however Roger is available for accompanied rides
Price Per Person: £570 based on a minimum of 2 people in our 2 bedroom gites Tourniol and Limouches and a minimum of 4 persons in our 3 bedroom gite Combe Laval
For availability and more information see our Rates and Calendar page.