Cycling in Provence: The Ultimate Guide

Provence is pictured as one thing: lavender with Mont Ventoux behind it. For a cyclist it is three regions that share a name: the flat Alpilles lanes around Saint-Rémy, the Luberon's hill villages joined by short, steep climbs, and the 1,910 m mountain itself.

This guide covers all three, the four rides that define them, and the three self-guided tours that ride them, with the real kilometres and climb for every day. For the rest of France, see our guide to cycling in France.

Why Go Cycling in Provence

Provence has a ride for every level, on different roads. Flat 30 km towpath days are the Alpilles, hill villages and 600 m days the Luberon, and the climb that killed Tom Simpson in 1967 is Ventoux. Our three tours follow that split.

The weather is the second. Provence counts around 300 days of sun a year, the season runs April to October, and summer heat is the only real limit. The mistral, a cold north wind, can blow for days and close the summit.

The roads are the third. Outside the towns the lanes carry little traffic, villages sit 5 to 10 km apart, and each has a café on the square. The Luberon and Ventoux are regional nature parks, which keeps lorries off the back roads.

What You Need to Know at a Glance

• Three tours: Ventoux loop (7 days, 302 km, 5,358 m, level 5/5), Luberon (8 days, 238 km, 2,250 m, level 3/5), Van Gogh's Alpilles (6 days, 123 km, 749 m, level 1/5)

• Highest point: Mont Ventoux, 1,910 m, climbed on day 4 of the Provence Bike Tour

• Season: April to October, with July and August avoided for the Luberon and Ventoux

• Lavender: in flower for roughly three weeks from late June, later on the Sault plateau

• Bikes: road bike for Ventoux; gravel or e-bike for the Luberon and the Alpilles

• Getting there: Avignon TGV, about 2 hours 40 from Paris, then 20 to 40 km to any of the three start towns

Provence Cycling Routes

Seven rides define cycling in Provence. The first three are our Provence cycling holidays, numbered for navigation and not ranked, from the level 5 Ventoux week to the level 1 Van Gogh tour. The other four are the classic rides each of them is built on, and each tour rides at least one of them. Choose by climb, not by village list.

1. Provence Bike Tour: Mont Ventoux and the Nesque

• Distance: 302 km over 5 riding days, 34 to 83 km a day

• Climb: 5,358 m, with 1,861 m on the Ventoux day

• Bases: Mazan for three nights, Gordes for three

• Level: 5/5, road bike, April to October

The climber's week. Three nights at Mazan put the Nesque and Ventoux within a warm-up ride. The days build: 34 km to Beaumes-de-Venise on day 2, the 75 km Nesque loop on day 3, then Bédoin and the summit on day 4.

Two hotels carry the week. The first three nights are at the Château de Mazan, an 18th-century château hotel, with Beaumes-de-Venise, the Nesque and Bédoin all within a short ride of the door. The last three are in Gordes, on the Luberon ridge, so the village loop starts from the top.

The map shows two clusters of loops, not a line. From Mazan the routes fan north to Ventoux and east into the Nesque; from Gordes they drop into the Calavon valley and climb through Bonnieux and Lacoste. The straight line between the two is the hotel transfer, not a ride.

This is the week for riders who train, and the Ventoux day is the test. A compact chainset with a 32 or 34 tooth cassette suits the 7% forest section. The mistral can close the summit at short notice, so the tour notes carry the Sault ascent as the sheltered alternative.

Riders wanting a taste of Ventoux can ride the Sault road, 26 km at 4.4%, from the Luberon tour's Roussillon base. For most cyclists, the Luberon tour that follows is the better fit: the same villages and hotel standard, with the mountain left as a view.

2. Provence Cycling Holiday: The Luberon

• Distance: 238 km over 6 riding days, 18 to 55 km a day

• Climb: 2,250 m, with 590 m on the Gordes day

• Route: Saint-Rémy-de-Provence to Fontaine-de-Vaucluse to Roussillon, point to point with two optional loop days

• Level: 3/5, gravel or e-bike, April to October

Most of our riders book this middle way. It starts flat in the Alpilles, with an optional 45 km loop to Les Baux on day 2, then follows the EuroVelo 8 path across the Durance to Fontaine-de-Vaucluse on day 3.

Three hotels break the week into three bases: Saint-Rémy for the first two nights in the Alpilles, Fontaine-de-Vaucluse for two beside the spring, and Roussillon for the last three on the Luberon ridge. Luggage moves on days 3, 5 and 7, so the optional loop days start and end at the same hotel.

The map reads west to east. The Alpilles loop sits south of Saint-Rémy, the EuroVelo 8 path runs along the Durance to Cavaillon, and the Luberon section climbs to Gordes and drops to Roussillon. The return on day 7 is flat, back along the plain.

The Luberon proper starts on day 5, when three climbs lift the route to Gordes and drop it past lavender to Roussillon's ochre cliffs. Two of the six riding days are optional loops, so the week can become four riding days and two rest days without changing hotels.

The Luberon tour is for riders who want villages, not the mountain. On the loop days a mixed group can split, half riding to L'Isle-sur-la-Sorgue or Apt and half resting. E-bikes are available for the Gordes climb, and the 18 km day 4 is short enough for anyone.

The Luberon tour shares its first two days with the Van Gogh tour below, so a group split between fit riders and beginners can start together. They part on day 3: the Luberon riders cross the Durance and climb, the Van Gogh riders stay on the flat.

3. Van Gogh's Secrets: Saint-Rémy and the Alpilles

• Distance: 123 km over 4 riding days, 13 to 40 km a day

• Climb: 749 m, with 370 m on the Les Baux day

• Base: Saint-Rémy-de-Provence for five nights

• Level: 1/5, gravel or e-bike, April to October

Anyone who rides at home can do this gentle week. It rides four loops from Saint-Rémy on the EuroVelo path and the Alpilles lanes, none longer than 40 km and only one with a real climb.

One hotel holds the week. Saint-Rémy is the base for five nights and every ride loops back to it, so there is no luggage to move and no packing between days. The town has a Wednesday market and Glanum's Roman site a 15-minute walk south.

The map shows four loops from Saint-Rémy: south into the Alpilles to Les Baux, east to Eygalières and Mollégès, west along the Rhône to Tarascon, and the ride to Saint-Paul de Mausole. None of the loops crosses a main road for more than a few hundred metres.

The theme is Van Gogh, who painted more than 140 works in his year at the Saint-Paul de Mausole asylum. The riding is flat enough to do on the hotel's e-bikes, and the two longer loops have a shorter option, so the week can be as easy as 13 km a day.

The Van Gogh tour is the one for a first cycling holiday, for riders travelling with a non-cyclist, or for anyone who wants the art and the villages more than the kilometres. Ridden on the short options, the whole week stays on flat paths at 13 to 20 km a day.

Whichever of the three you choose, the season is the same decision. Provence rides best in spring and early autumn, and the section below sets out what each month gives and takes away.

4. Mont Ventoux: The Three Ascents

• From Bédoin: 21.8 km, 1,617 m, 7.43%, the Tour de France road

• From Malaucène: 21.5 km, 1,570 m

• From Sault: 26 km, 1,210 m at 4.4%, the gentle one

• Our tour: day 4 of the Provence Bike Tour, Bédoin up and Sault down

Mont Ventoux has three roads to its 1,910 m summit, and they are not equal. From Bédoin the Tour de France route climbs 21.8 km and 1,617 m at 7.43%, steepest in the forest. The Malaucène road is 21.5 km and 1,570 m; Sault is 26 km and only 1,210 m at 4.4%.

Bédoin is the ascent to ride if you only ride one, because the Tour uses it and times are measured on it. The Tour first climbed it in 1951 and has returned 18 times. Our Provence Bike Tour climbs it on day 4 and descends to Sault: 58 km and 1,861 m.

5. The Gorges de la Nesque

• Route: the D942 balcony road from Villes-sur-Auzon to the Castelleras belvedere at 734 m

• As a loop: 75 km and 1,155 m from Mazan

• Gradient: gentle throughout, about half of Ventoux

• Our tour: day 3 of the Provence Bike Tour

Locals recommend the Nesque as the ride before Ventoux. The D942 climbs from Villes-sur-Auzon along a balcony cut into the gorge's north wall, past cliffs of more than 200 m, to the Castelleras belvedere at 734 m. The gradient stays gentle and the road is quiet.

Day 3 of the Provence Bike Tour rides it as a 75 km loop from Mazan with 1,155 m of climbing. The Nesque is the best warm-up for Ventoux in Provence, a long climb at half the gradient, ridden the day before.

6. The Luberon Hill Villages

• Villages: Gordes, Roussillon, Bonnieux, Lacoste, Ménerbes, Oppède-le-Vieux

• Hardest day: Gordes, 590 m over 30 km

• Landmark: the Pont Julien, a Roman bridge in use for about 2,000 years

• Our tours: Luberon days 5 and 6, Ventoux day 6

Above the Calavon valley the Luberon's villages sit on the ridge, and a loop through them is the classic Provence day. Gordes, Roussillon, Bonnieux, Lacoste, Ménerbes and Oppède-le-Vieux are each a short, sharp climb apart. The valley floor joins them, with the Pont Julien, a Roman bridge in use for about 2,000 years.

Two of our tours ride this loop: the Luberon tour on days 5 and 6 from Roussillon, the Ventoux tour on day 6 from Gordes. The climbs are short but steep, and the Gordes day is the hardest of the Luberon week at 590 m over only 30 km.

7. EuroVelo 8 and the Alpilles

• EuroVelo 8: 850 km across southern France, flat traffic-free path through Saint-Rémy and Cavaillon

• The one climb: the 400 m loop to Les Baux in the Alpilles

• On the path: Glanum, Saint-Paul de Mausole, Tarascon castle

• Our tours: the Van Gogh tour and the Luberon tour's first two days

South of the Luberon the land flattens. EuroVelo 8, La Méditerranée à Vélo, runs 850 km across southern France, and the stretch through Saint-Rémy, Mollégès and Cavaillon is flat, traffic-free path. The Alpilles, the small limestone range south of Saint-Rémy, add one real climb, the 400 m loop to Les Baux.

This is the country of the Van Gogh tour, and of the Luberon tour's first two days. Glanum's Roman ruins, the Saint-Paul de Mausole monastery where Van Gogh painted, and Tarascon's castle on the Rhône are all on the EuroVelo path or a few kilometres off it.

When to Go

Spring (April – June)

April opens the season with cherry blossom in the Luberon and cold mornings. By May days sit around 20 to 25°C and Ventoux's summit road is usually clear of snow. May and early June are the best weeks for all three tours, before the heat and the crowds.

The mistral blows most often in spring, and it can pin a rider on Ventoux's exposed roads for a day. The Luberon villages are busiest at Easter and quiet again by mid-May, and the Alpilles orchards blossom through April.

Summer (July – August)

Summer is lavender season, the reason many riders want July. The fields around Sault and the Luberon flower for roughly three weeks from late June, later on the high plateau, and are cut by late July. It is also the hottest, busiest time of year, with afternoons above 30°C.

The heat is why our Luberon and Ventoux tours pause in July and August. The Van Gogh tour, with its 13 to 40 km days, still works in summer if ridden before noon. Riders set on lavender should book late June, when the fields are open and temperatures sit in the twenties.

Autumn (September – October)

September is the second, quieter window. The heat drops, the vines on the Ventoux slopes turn, the harvest fills the villages around Beaumes-de-Venise, and the summit road is still open. October stays warm on the plain, though the mountain can see snow late in the month.

September is the month to ride Ventoux, with the summer traffic gone. All three tours run to the end of October, when the Luberon's cherry orchards turn. The mistral returns in late autumn, so allow a spare day in October.

Winter (November – March)

The Ventoux summit road closes for snow from around December to April, and the tours do not run. The Alpilles and the Luberon valley stay rideable on dry days at 10 to 15°C, and the villages are at their quietest.

A winter visit means day rides from Saint-Rémy or Gordes, not a tour. The Alpilles loop and the EuroVelo 8 path are the winter rides. Many Luberon village hotels close from November to March, so a winter base needs one that stays open.

Getting To and Around Provence

All three tours start within 40 km of Avignon.

By Train: Avignon TGV

TGV services from Paris Gare de Lyon reach Avignon TGV in about 2 hours 40, and in summer Eurostar has run direct trains from London. From the station, Saint-Rémy is about 25 km, Mazan and Gordes about 40 km, by taxi or the tour transfer.

A bagged bike travels free on the TGV; the bike rules are in our guide to cycling in France. Avignon Centre, the old station, has TER trains to Cavaillon, closest to the Luberon.

By Air: Marseille and Nice

Marseille Provence airport is the nearest, about 80 km from Saint-Rémy, with flights from London, Manchester and most European hubs. Nice is about 250 km east. Nîmes and Avignon have small airports with seasonal UK flights.

Riders bringing their own bike in a box should fly into Marseille and take the tour transfer.

How Much It Costs

All three tours are priced per person, with three-star hotels and breakfast, luggage moved each day, the route booklet, the GPS app and support while you ride. Tourist tax is the one item paid locally. A road bike, e-bike or e-road bike, a single room and the airport transfer are quoted as extras.

Riding here costs almost nothing. Mont Ventoux is free to climb, the Nesque road has no toll, and the Luberon park charges no entry. OUIGO takes a bagged bike for €5, and on the regional TER the bike space must be booked and costs about €1.

What to Pack

Ventoux decides the bag. The summit is often 10°C colder than Bédoin, with the mistral across the bare top. A gilet, arm warmers and full-finger gloves go in the pocket, and the descent is where they are worn. Two bottles from Bédoin; the Chalet Reynard café at 1,417 m is the only stop.

The Luberon and Alpilles weeks need less: sun cream, a rain shell in spring, a lock for village stops and shoes that manage cobbles. French law requires a bell, lights and reflectors on the bike, and a high-visibility vest outside towns at night.

Ready to Ride Provence?

All three tours are self-guided, with hotels booked and luggage moved each day. Send an inquiry with your dates and how much climbing you want, and the team will match you to the Ventoux, Luberon or Alpilles week.