Biking the Loire: Why staying in one town was the perfect choice for us

On this bike trip to Europe, we decided to try something different: Rather than biking from point to point along a castle-laden section of Eurovelo 6 in France, we would base ourselves in one town and do day trips.

This would not only let us experience the big bike route along the Loire River (that would be Eurovelo 6, which actually stretches nearly 3,000 miles from the Atlantic to the Black Sea) but also some of the many local and regional routes that link to it.

And no need to repack every morning either.

No regrets!

So why Tours?

We picked Tours on a combination of advice from a friend, maps that showed many biking options, and quick train service from Paris.

And there’s more than just Paris:

Admittedly Tours isn’t the prettiest of the towns along the Loire; it was heavily bombed in World War II, and the housing that went up in the aftermath has not always aged well. But it is a city of about 135,000, not a tourist-focused town, which we liked. And the train station is in the heart of the city, unlike, say, Saumur, or up a steep hill, like Blois. We were able to rent an apartment with secure bike parking just a short walk from the train station.

Tours lacks that eye-grabbing castle, but there are still tourist things to see. The cathedral, for one, is spectacular. We heard an Italian tourist describe it as like Notre Dame in Paris, just taller and thinner.

We found a wide range of restaurants, not just French. Of course we ended up in a French “cheese bar” one night, gorging on a seasonal fondue-like dish that uses Mont d’Or, apparently known as the holy grail of French raw milk cheeses.

But mostly we were there to ride. You can read about our day trips here and about using the train here.

What about the bikes?

Tours has at least three bike-rental options within a few blocks of the train station. We went with Detours de Loire because it had the nicest hybrid bikes, known there as VTC, or Velo Tout Chemin. Go for the trekking option, not standard, for more comfort over longer distances.

Our bikes were Giant Escapes, and we paid 82 euros apiece for 5 days in 2025. They provided a repair kit and a bike lock. Rent a helmet and panniers, or bring yours from home. Their English skills were great.

For those thinking about when to bike along the Loire, they told us that early June is a great time. May, with all its holidays, is crazy busy, and so are July and August.

To be honest, they also had plenty of customers on a Friday evening in late September when we stopped by for a quick adjustment.

But if you are planning a late-season ride, it’s worth asking in advance whether they are selling any of their rental bikes. Detours de Loire was offering Trek VTCs for 349 euros and Giant VTCs for 399 euros (just not in our size).

How about ending in a different city?

As we were planning this bike adventure, we briefly considered a point-to-point ride. Detours de Loire lets you return bikes at a number of locations, including Nantes, where Eurovelo 6 starts/ends, and Orleans, about 240 miles away. For a fee of course.

But we were on a bigger trip, so we knew we’d still have to come back, if nothing else to pick up the rest of our luggage (which they would store for free for the duration of the bike rental).

And if it rained? We could just chill, rather than having to get to our next overnight stop.

So for us, basing ourselves in Tours was perfect.