Paris Sightseeing

This is intended as a tourist day. Enjoy the sights of Paris which are easily accessible from the hotel. Indeed a very pleasant days walk begins by leaving the hotel and heading north passing the Hospital on your right to reach Bois de Vincennes, continue north through the park and you will reach Chateau de Vincennes, an ancient French Royal residence, (depending upon the route you took through the park this will be about 2 miles)

Exit the park at the north gate and turn left into Avenue de Paris. This is a typical wide Parisian avenue with shops and businesses on the lower floors and residences above. If walking keep in a straight line passing through roundabouts (note that the road changes name a few times) and you will come to Place de la Bastille. It will take about an hour to walk from the park to the Bastille, but you can hop on a bus down this road if you prefer.

Turn left (south west) to join Boulevard Henri IV and at the river you will discover Notre-Dame Cathedral. Consider buying a river bus ticket, this allows you to hop on and off the ferry. Alternatively continue walking to the Louvre through the Jardin des Tuileries containing the Musee de r'Orangerie and onwards round to the Eifel tower. Next cross the river Seine and either walk along the river side or cross through another park, Esplanade des Invalides, to reach the Parc du Champs de Mars where you will find the Eifel Tower. Cross the river again to the Palais de Chaillot and proceed north to the Arch de Triumph before making you way back along the Chams-Elysees to begin your return to the hotel. If you bought the ferry ticket hop on to Quai de Bercy and follow the course of the river back to reach the hotel. This walk is about 17 miles (~27km) and, excluding time to view the attractions, will take at about six hours but if you are flagging use the excellent public transport.

The above is just a small taste of what Paris has to offer, there is so much more to see and do in Paris that we would suggest you prepare a list of attractions you want to visit and we shall point you in the right direction. Don't forget that Paris also has a superb underground rail network "the metro" with some very striking Art Nouveau entrances. There are 15 individual lines and 368 stations ensuring that no matter where you are in Paris a metro is within 500 meters.

For those wishing to partake in Sunday Service Notre Dame Cathedral is along this route and St Maurice church is a little further along the Rue du Marechal Leclerc from the hotel.

Paris, Etampes, Orleans, Aubingy, Châteauroux (186 miles)

Heading south from Paris we take our first stop at Etampes a town of about 22k inhabitants that dates back to the middle ages. After Coffee we will continue to Orleans for lunch. We shall stop close to the old centre of town at Place du Martroi (pictured right) where you will find the statue of the Maid of Orleans, Jeanne d'Arc (Joan of Arc).

Châteauroux, Le Grand-Bourg, Limoges, Thiviers, Chateau des Vigiers (195 miles)

Departing from Chateauroux we head for Le Grand-Bourg a charming village and popular stop on a pilgrimage route which will be our stop for morning coffee. At Limoges, the Capital City of the Haute-Vienne department, we stop for lunch and at Thiviers which is famed for foie gras, walnuts, truffles and the other local products. It makes a good stop for afternoon tea before ending our day at Chateau des Vigiers where we shall stay for the next 4 nights. (195 miles)

Vigiers, Coutras, Saint Emilion, La Reole, Vigiers (155 miles)

After breakfast we shall depart on our first loop and begin with a relatively leisurely trip. Setting off by main roads so that you can get used to the bike taking a northerly route to Montpon-Menesterol a small town which a number of lovely buildings. After crossing the Isle river we take a westerly route towards Coutras the site of a famed religious war in 1587. We take our first break for the day in Coutras where the river Isle that we have been following meets the Dronne.

Vigiers, Villeneuve-sur-Lot, Cahors, Monpazier, Vigiers (182 miles)

This journey will take us east to Cahors via Villeneuve-sur-Lot which shall be our first stop for the day. This road takes you through truly spectacular scenery with pretty villages, vineyards and windmills dotted among rolling hills.

Vigiers, Monpazier, Gramat, Les Eyziers-de-Tayac-Sireull, Vigiers (203 miles)

Heading east our first stop on this journey is at Monpazier, a town founded in 1284 during the reign of the English King, Edward I which is generally considered to be the model bastide among the 300 or so in South-west France. We shall break for morning coffee and take a stroll through the old town.

Vigiers, Ribérac, Angoulême, Poitiers, Chinon (196 miles)

We begin our trip north with a coffee break stop at Riberec a market town of about 4,000 inhabitants that dates back to the 9th century before continuing to our lunch break at another ancient town, Angouleme, which has a population circa 42k.

Chinon, Blois, Châteaudun, Chartres, Paris (192 miles)

Departing Chinon we head east along the Loire Valley to Blois the capital of Loir-et-Cher department. The Chateau de Blois which was a home of King Louis XII is located in the centre of the town. After a short break we shall proceed in a northerly direction to Chateaudun a charming town on the Loire river with a ruined chapel (Notre-Dame-du-Champdé) and timber clad buildings where we break for lunch