3 days cycling. 387km.
Just bring legs & a smile (we’ll bring your bike and organise everything else)!
The Tour de France is a perfect excuse to explore the Pyrenees and this Loop really will feel like you’re exploring. We’ve shortened the stages to make things more manageable whilst keeping the feel and important features of each stage intact.
The Pyrenees is a place of exceptional beauty and is perfect seen from a bike. So whether you’re ‘enjoying’ a ride up to the Cauterets ski station or struggling your way up the brutally steep Col de Marie Blanque, you’ll be in awe – both of the scenery and also how the pros manage to cycle the same thing with such ease at such speed!
Our Lite version still gets you all of the big name mountains and most important parts of each stage, and you’ll still be cycling with all the other Le Loop cyclists. For even more description, see the main Pyrenees Loop description.
Note on the Lite option: Some people love knowing they’ve completed full stages; others love knowing they’ll finish before dinner. For us, there’s no better or worse and everyone will be welcomed as equals… because if you’re happy cycling, we’re happy for you.
Arrival & Departure:
Mon 26th June: Arrive to Bayonne hotel by 7pm for arrival briefing
Fri 30th June: Depart from Cauterets hotel. A transfer from Cauterets (dept 9am) to Tarbes is included in this Loop.
Mon 26th June: Arrival day
Arrive to Bayonne hotel by 7pm for arrival briefing. (NB. The hotel is in Bayonne because that’s where the Tour will finish on the 26th and it’s easier for you to get to than Dax. We’ll have a short transfer in the morning before we start cycling).
Tuesday 27th June 2023. Stage 4 – Dax to Nogaro – 140km
Proving once again that there is no such thing as a flat Tour de France stage, today’s ride will take us from the former bullfighting capital of Dax through the shady pine forests that fringe the nearby coast and into the rolling hills of the thinly populated Gers department. Expect undulating fields of corn and sunflowers and distant views of the Pyrenees hovering over the vineyards. We may even have a tailwind as we ride away from the coast – though we turn west again in the final kilometres on our way to a stage finish at Nogaro’s motor-racing circuit. This stage won’t be as hard on the legs as what lies ahead, so this is a good opportunity to warm up, enjoy the scenery, get to know your fellow riders and get ready to support each other in the mountains that lie ahead.
Lite: A short cut at the end of the stage very easily takes 40km from the 185km stage distance and it’s already relatively flat. So your first day of cycling will be a pressure-free 140km.
Le Loop Logistics
Start: Transfer to Dax
Finish: Transfer to Pau hotel
Wednesday 28th June 2023. Stage 5 – Pau to Laruns – 110km
The first few hours of this stage will feel like a French cycling holiday (oh, hang on, it is!); a pleasant roll through the fertile countryside south of Pau, as the mountains draw ominously closer and the landscape gradually tightens around us. The uphill drag begins with the magnificent karst gorge of the river Uhaïtxa, then your Lite short cut and straight into the climb over the quiet, pastoral Col d’Ichère. Then our final ascent of the day: the Col de Marie Blanque (7.7km at 8.6%). From here it’s a relatively easy roll downhill and around 7km up the next valley to Laruns. The total altitude gain today is 3400m; a tough day without anyone needing to worry about being late for dinner.
Lite: If you want to save your energy for tomorrow and enjoy a manageable day, you can take a short cut after 50km which bypasses the Col de Soudet and takes you straight to the Col d’Ichere and Col de Marie Blanque. Your day becomes 110km instead of 165km and the climbing is halved.
Le Loop Logistics
Start: Pau hotel
Finish: Transfer to Tarbes hotel
Thursday 29th June 2023. Stage 6 – Tarbes – Cauterets-Cambasque 145km
Leaving the popular Tour city of Tarbes, we gain height steadily during the morning, following the pretty river Neste to the charming village of Arreau where we swing right off the main road and head straight up the Col d’Aspin, a 12km ascent whose summit is in sight from quite far down, so you can see what you’re aiming for (and how quickly you’re gaining ground). From here we descend, through a lovely remote valley, to Sainte-Marie de Campan, universally known as base camp for the Tourmalet. Then it’s the famous 17km climb, up through the trees to the 70s-feel ski resort of La Mongie, and then past the ski lifts and the llamas, to one of this year’s only cols above 2,000m. The Tourmalet! You’ve ticked off a bucket list climb!
Our reward is a full 30km of downhill as we approach the last climb to the town of Cauterets (stopping at the hotel, rather than tackling the last 10km of ascent). Believe it or not, even this Lite stage manages to pack 3000m of climbing into 135km; we’ll get you there!
Lite: Our hotel is in Cauterets which is the ski town 500m and 10km below the actual stage finish (at the slopes) so the Lite option is to stop at the hotel – you’ll still have climbed the Col d’Aspin and the Tourmalet and you’ll feel a huge sense of satisfaction at having climbed just over 3000m.
Le Loop Logistics
Start: Tarbes hotel
Finish: Cauterets hotel
Friday 30th June: Departure day.
Depart from Cauterets hotel. A transfer from Cauterets (dept 9am) to Tarbes is included in this Loop.
Stage profiles: All available stage profiles are displayed on our Route page. The Tour de France publish maps and profiles for every stage in June. Until then we have profiles for the mountain stages and the most significant climbs only.
| Total Cost |
Deposit | Second Payment Due end Jan |
Final Payment Due end Mar |
Fundraising Target | 80% Fundraising due end April |
| £725 | £250 | £185 | £290 | £1200 | £960 |
The price of this Loop is based on a nightly cost of £175, plus a supplement of £25 for the transfer from Cauterets to Tarbes.
- Accommodation (Mostly twin share. Single supplements are available to buy in January)
- All food (3 meals and the best feedstops you’ve ever seen)
- Fully signed route, the stuff of legend
- Mechanical, medical and moral support
- Luggage Transfers
- Coach transfers to the next stage start when the stages aren’t contiguous
- Travel to and from France (but we’ll give you advice on the best travel routes)
- Bike Transport (£30 each way if you want us to drive your bike there and back)
- Evening massage (£10 or €10 per massage if you’d like one – highly recommended)
- Beer/wine/drinks at dinner