Stage 1: Barcelona – Barcelona. 21km. Sat 27th June

Grab your castanets, we’re heading to the home of tapas, the Sagrada Familia and creme Catalan!

The first stage is (for the Pros) a 19.7km team time trial around the City of Barcelona. We won’t race it as teams; instead we’ll enjoy the opportunity for a sight-seeing ride past the port and beaches, the Sagrada Familia and a finish at the Monjuic Olympic park complex. It’s a true “Hello Barcelona” moment on bikes and a wonderful way to meet fellow cyclists and consider what lies ahead…

Le Loop Logistics
Start: Barcelona hotel
Finish: Barcelona hotel

Stage 2: Tarragona – Barcelona. 178km / 2550m ascent. Sun 28th June

Stage 2 is a beauty: we’ll start with a transfer south west along the coast to Tarragona and we cycle back to our finish in Barcelona (note, two nights in the same hotel!).

The first half of the 176km ride is as good as flat (famous last words) with all of the atmosphere, coastal views and Catalan feel you could hope for. This will feel fast and the feedstops will come quickly – so that by early afternoon we’re already approaching the big city…

But then as we approach Barcelona, the route turns left and veers off into the hills for a few punchy climbs to test us, and culminates in three laps of the Olympic park (that’s three more little hill climbs) to finish. A truly spectacular Spanish stage!

Le Loop Logistics
Start: Transfer to Tarragona
Finish: Barcelona hotel

Stage 3: Granollers – Les Angles. 196km / 3950m. Mon 29th June

Today’s ride takes us into the lush green hinterland of Catalunya. We roll briskly out of the bustling market town of Granollers, and very quickly find ourselves in the steep, verdant hills that form Barcelona’s hinterland. Within an hour we hit our first climb of the day: a 7.6km haul up to the scenic hilltop town of Sant Feliu de Codines, and from here a winding balcony road offers panoramic views of the otherworldly rock formations of the Tenes Gorge.

After a rolling descent to the Plain of Vic, our route plunges us back into the hills, and we gain height steadily as we follow river valleys north to Ribes de Freser, a historic town famous for its mineral water. From here it’s a long, but fairly steady climb up to Col de Toses, and then we have around 20km of descent into the high-altitude Cerdanya Valley, which spans the border with France.

Soon after thinking we’ve made it to France, confusion will set in when everything looks Spanish again; it’s a brief visit to the tiny Llívia, a 13 km2 Spanish enclave which has been cut off from the rest of Spain ever since the two countries negotiated their borders in 1659. Returning once again to France, a set of sharp hairpins will take us up out of the valley, with views of Llívia’s ruined castle, and onwards to Fort-Romeu, which at 1,800m is home to France’s National Altitude Training Centre – so keep an eye out for elite athletes as we pass through.

There are two more descents, and two more climbs, before we reach the pretty resort of Les Angles.

Le Loop Logistics
Start: Transfer to Granollers
Finish: Transfer to Carcassonne hotel

Stage 4: Carcassonne – Foix. 182km / 2,750m ascent. Tue 30th June

Departing from Carcassonne, we start the day with a couple of hours of rolling roads through quiet countryside – big skies, fragrant foliage, and the occasional vineyard. If it’s a clear day, we may see mountains looming on the horizon and, following the short climb up to Villerouge-Termenès, we get to admire one of the many Cathar castles that dot this ancient landscape.

Our elevation gain is fairly evenly spread throughout the day’s ride, but the two biggest climbs come in its second half, as we move into the foothills of the Pyrenees. Setting off from Quillan, with its stone buildings and picturesque red roof tiles, we ascend up out of the valley, via gentle, tree-lined gradients, to the Col de Coudons. We keep our elevation for the next hour or so, rolling across the Plateau de Sault: a remote highland region of the Pyrenees where tourists seldom tread.

After descending through an ancient fir forest into Bélesta, we tackle the Col de Montségur which, with an average gradient of 6.6%, should be our toughest ascent of the day. As we follow the climb’s twists and turns we catch glimpses of the imposing Château de Montségur, which perches on a rocky outcrop, far higher than we go today. The final hour or so of cycling is mostly downhill, albeit with a few noticeable bumps, and we end our ride in the medieval city of Foix, overlooked by yet another château.

Le Loop Logistics

Start: Carcassonne hotel
Finish: Foix hotel

Stage 5: Lannemezan – Pau. 158km / 1,600m ascent. Wed 1st July

This stage is billed as being flat, and actually includes more downhill than up – but don’t let that lull you into complacency! There’s still plenty of climbing, albeit only in small doses, as the road takes us in and out of the countless small river valleys that run through this fertile region of France like the veins of a leaf. This is the stage where you can expect those classic Tour views of sunflowers, vineyards, and towering avenues of plane trees.

We begin in Armagnac country, where grapes have been grown – and spirits distilled – since Roman times. Starting our ride with a descent from the Plateau de Lannemezan, we then head west through Castelnau-Magnoac, briefly admiring its half-timbered buildings before crossing several small watersheds. After a series of five short climbs, we pass through the handsome market town of Trie-sur-Baïse (they should have plenty of leftover decorations from having hosted a stage start in 2018!), and continue our gentle downhill progress.

There are more rolling hills as we wind our way across the quiet countryside, past fields of sunflowers, and the vineyards that have brought generations of wine-lovers to this area. A few more ups and downs take us through cornfields and quiet villages to the lip of the Ousse Valley, and from here it should be an easy descent into Pau.

Tour logistics
Start: Transfer to Lannemezan
Finish: Pau hotel

Stage 6: Pau – Gavarnie. 186km / 4,155m ascent. Thu 2nd July

Today’s ride offers everything you want from a mountain stage – including the nervous excitement as we roll south through the suburbs of Pau and the rolling farmland that surrounds it, watching the mountains draw closer and closer on the horizon.

The landscape will gradually close in around us as we approach the historic pilgrimage centre of Lourdes, and we spend the next couple of hours fairly low down, winding our way through the foothills as we enjoy the wooded slopes and tranquil villages of this region where the mountains meet the lowlands. Then, finally, we turn south into the tight valley of the River Neste, whose icy-cold torrent will accompany us all the way to the foot of the Col d’Aspin, our first big climb.

The Aspin is a beautiful, and very popular climb, with 12km of hairpins, a fairly steady gradient of 6.5%, and increasingly fine views as we move up above the tree line. Take a moment to catch your breath at the top, before plunging down to Sainte-Marie-de-Campan: the site of one of the Tour de France’s most enduring legends. This small village is where Eugène Christophe famously repaired his own fork using a local blacksmith’s forge, having broken it on the descent from the Tourmalet.

We then head up the way he came down, enjoying the Giant of the Pyrenees from its shorter – and slightly steeper – side. En route we pass through the Brutalist ski resort of La Mongie, seeing llamas on the upper slopes if the weather’s clear. Then, after 20km of descent, we head south again for the crowning glory of today’s stage: a very rare opportunity to visit magical Gavarnie. We get to savour the increasingly spectacular scenery of this remote valley as we ride its relatively steady gradients (this is an 18.7km climb, at an average of 3.7%), and if it’s a clear day, we may be able to see the magnificent Cirque de Gavarnie – and the highest waterfall in mainland France – from the finish.

Tour logistics
Start: Pau hotel
Finish: Gavarnie hotel

Stage 7: Hagetmau – Bordeaux. 175km / 850m. Fri 3rd July

There’s very little climbing on today’s stage, and much of it will take place on long, straight roads that take us rapidly through the shady pine forests of the Landes department, before we emerge into the vineyards that surround Bordeaux. The trees should shelter us from the worst of the coastal side winds, leaving us to enjoy the flawless French tarmac, and the company of our fellow riders.

Listen out for explosions (!) as we pass close to the village of Captieu: this is Europe’s largest military firing range and test area, covering an area almost as big as Paris. Despite these occasional disruptions, the site is also home to around 70 protected species, and we may well catch glimpses of curlews and common cranes as we roll past.

There are a few small climbs towards the end of the day, as we move into the fertile wine country for which Bordeaux is famous, but the scenery makes up for it – countless chateaux, rolling vineyards, and the lazy River Garonne, which accompanies us into the city.

Tour logistics
Start: Transfer to Hagetmau
Finish: Transfer to Perigueux

Stage 8: Périgueux – Bergerac. 182km / 1,150m ascent. Sat 4th July

Expect a summer holiday feeling on this stage which is entirely in the Dordogne area of France. Scenery-wise, it’s a French paradise, with fairytale chateaux, spectacular rock formations, and village after spectacular village built from honey-coloured stone.

The route is a near-copy of a 2017 stage which French TV viewers voted as the most beautiful stage of that year’s Tour. Whilst the helicopters will be busy for the pros, we get to enjoy the view from the ground; cycling through the archways of fortified city walls, under the rocky limestone overhangs and alongside the river that gives its name to the region.

Our morning’s ride takes us close to the Lascaux caves, where 17,000-year-old paintings showcase the skills and interests of our ancestors. The route winds through the region in a big loop, taking in as much of the regional scenery as possible with many gasps and “wow” moments as we round corners along the route today! Then the afternoon keeps close to the river and the visual treats keep coming, with views of vineyards replacing the river gorge scenery as we get closer to Bergerac.

For a Tour stage, 1,150m of climbing is nothing. It’s the second stage in a row designed for sprinters and a total joy for us amateurs. It’s impossible to describe the exceptional scenery of stage 8; this is a world away from home and an absolutely charming day of cycling. There’s every chance that stage 8 will get voted top for beauty again in 2026!

Tour logistics
Start: Perigueux hotel
Finish: TBC

Stage 9: Malemort – Ussel. 185km / 3,300m ascent. Sun 5th July

The Massif Central, a remote range of mountains deep in the interior of France, has a completely different feel to the Alps and the Pyrenees, and although the region is popular with French holiday makers, it’s also very thinly populated, so we should feel like we have the place to ourselves for much of the day.

There is barely any flat terrain on this stage, and the climbing begins almost immediately as we set off into the wooded hills that surround Malemort (a suburb of the better known Brive la Gaillarde). Following winding, view-filled balcony roads, we make our way south, and then north, eventually descending into the smart riverside town of Tulle, the accordion capital of France!

Heading out of Tulle via the steady climb of the Côte de Naves, we dip down to the River Vimbelle, before ascending through chestnut and pine woodland to Chaumeil, a small town with glistening slate rooves whose pitches foreshadow the massive climb that lies ahead of us. Suc au May, today’s only categorised climb, is quiet but deadly, with an ever-changing gradient that means it’s difficult to get into a rhythm. The road emerges from the trees towards the summit, giving us momentary views of the distant hilltops before we begin our descent to Treignac, a charming medieval town with a 13^th-century bridge and numerous half-timbered houses, overlooked by a famous twisted bell tower.

There will be more views to enjoy on our ascent of Mont Bessou – the high point of today’s stage, at 977m – and from here it’s mostly downhill to Ussel, a small town in the middle of the “plateau of a thousand cows”, though there are still quite a few lumps and bumps over this last 24km – a test for our weary legs.

Tour logistics
Start: TBC
Finish: Ussel hotel