There are different ways to tour France by bike but the most popular is to join a group or sign up for organized but self-guided tours. The difference between the two is that when you join a group, a guide or two will be there with you just in case you encounter problems (like not being able to speak French). With the self-guided tours, you will just be given the required maps (as well as any important tourist information) and you will then have to navigate on your own. Whether you prefer to join a group or to go on your own when touring France by bike, safety and security should be your utmost priority.

Joining an organized bike tour can be your ticket to an exciting road trip around France. Aside from seeing the historic castles, you also get to see the lush vineyards, stunning landscapes and charming villages. There are even tours that let you cook with the locals or experience wine tasting activities. At the end of the day, your lodging accommodations are already provided. When touring France by bike, here are a couple of the top companies offering special bike tours:

DuVine Adventures

This Company offers the usual kinds of bike tours but they also provide special tours like those with child-friendly or family-friendly features. Their tours cover Burgundy, Alsace, the Alps, Pyrenees and Bordeaux. Their tours usually last six to seven days and you can choose the kind of tour depending on the level of difficulty.

Ciclisimo Classico

This Company is known for offering bike tours throughout France. The services they offer are aimed at riders with different abilities. They have trips suitable to your riding skills. Most of their trips last for eight to eleven days.

Trek Travel

This Company lets you combine biking with your other interests. You can mix cycling with hiking or even a boat cruise. They even have cultural tours and cooking classes to go with your bike tour. Wine tasting, swimming and mountain climbing are also possible. Their tours usually last five to seven days.

Aside from organized bike tours and self guided tours on touring France by bike, the country also holds the world famous Tour de France. The race generally lasts for three weeks – covering over 3,600 kilometers of France and other nearby countries. Among the popular Grand Tours in cycling, this race is the most prestigious. A lot of amateur cyclists love to try and climb some of the harshest bits of the route to see if they can do what the professionals do. For most people though, the more sedate cycling tours are probably more suitable for holidays!

Jack is a travel writer and blogger. He loves writing about beautiful destinations and expensive hotels but mostly ends up writing about rainy days in Scotland and the Travelodge discount code 2011 .