Mâcon quais
Cluny abbaye vélo
Vitrine Cluny
Cluny Ruines
Château de Germolles
Château de Germolles
caveau Côte Chalonnaise
Chalon sur Saône Place St Vincent
chalon sur Saone
Chalon Place St Vincent
Abbaye de Cluny
chateau de cormatin
Boucherie St gengoux le national
St Gengoux le national
Cluny
Berzé le chatel
Vignerons des terres secretes
Chalon sur Saône

5 days/ 4 nights

Get on your bike for a superb cycle loop from Chalon to Mâcon via the cycle path “the blue route” along the Saône river, then return via Cluny on the green route along the Côte Chalonnaise vineyards to Chalon sur Saône. Gastronomy, oenology, and culture will be at the rendezvous of this easy and pleasant cycling trip.

This tour in Southern Burgundy is perfect for lovers of quiet and relaxing holidays. The gentle cycling serves simply as a pretext for discovering the local gastronomy and the wines of Burgundy. Without stress and without crowds of tourists, completely outside of mass tourism, you will be spoiled by Southern Burgundy and its magnificent landscapes.

You will discover the hidden treasures of Burgundy: the towns of Chalon sur Saône, Tournus, Mâcon, Cluny. Romanesque art is omnipresent even in the smallest villages. The towns you cross have some great jewels in store for you: Mâcon with the cathedral of Vieux-Saint-Vincent, Chalon-sur-Saône and its remarkable museums, Tournus and Cluny for their abbeys.

Do not hesitate to extend your route to take the vineyard route which will take you to Beaune through authentic villages with strong wine-making traditions. Finally, Beaune and its famous Hôtel-Dieu (or Hospices de Beaune). A must if you haven’t visited it yet! Option available on request.

This stay is suitable for children, almost all of the routes are on a cycle paths.

Program

DAY 1 Arrival

Arrival by your own means in Chalon sur Saône. Check-in at the hotel. Briefing meeting and delivery of bicycles, tourist documentation, maps and route notes. Dinner on your own, but we will provide you with suggestions. Overnight at the hotel.

DAY 2 Chalon sur Saône – Tournus ~33km

After breakfast you will go for a nice ride south of Chalon.

This stage in southern Burgundy takes for the moment an unofficial cycle route of the “blue way” which will be finalized very soon. The route follows the small, flat roads of the alluvial plain of the Chalonnais region.
In Tournus, you will cycle along the Quai de la Marine and follow the rustic towpath to the center of the town and your hotel.

DAY 3  Tournus – Mâcon ~33km

Today’s route will charm you with charming villages built around Romanesque churches. This stage takes the bike path along the Saône river between Tournus and Mâcon. A fairly easy stage by bike, under the sign of the river navigation which has animated the Saône since the dawn of time. Arrival in Mâcon via the quays of the Saône to the marina located north of Mâcon. Arrival at the hotel located in downtown Mâcon.

DAY 4 Mâcon – Cluny ~28km

After breakfast you will say “goodbye” to the charming town of Mâcon and the river that has accompanied you the last two days. Make way for the bucolic landscapes of the countryside.
Slowly by surely, you will approach the Côte Chalonnaise by climbing towards the Bois Clair tunnel, the longest tunnel in Europe open to cyclists.

Today the Green Way bike patch starts in Charnay-lès-Mâcon with hilly and astonishing passages made up of karstic rocks of Roche de Vergisson and Roche de Solutré.

Several optional cycling routes will be signposted along the greenway. You will be able to adjust your journey with the maps that we will give you on the first day.

A gentle arrival in Cluny in the heart of a remarkable village, the three abbey spiers stand out from the green hills. An essential visit to the Abbey of Cluny awaits you there. But also beautiful residences, the Museum of Art and Archeology, a national stud farm. If you travel in summer (July / August), you would have the opportunity to participate in the “Les Grandes Heures” de Cluny music festival.

DAY 5 Cluny – Chalon sur Saône ~51km

Departure from Cluny in the morning, heading north. Today you will have a thousand opportunities to discover a rich heritage made up of Romanesque churches and timeless villages. To start, you will reach the elegant renaissance castle of Cormatin. A visit to its gardens and the dazzlingly rich apartments is a must as a short break.
Then, the route continues to follow the the old railway line which winds at the foot of the vineyards of the Côte Chalonnaise.
Arrival in Chalon sur Saône and end of the route.

Or an additional night in Chalon sur Saône and the rest of the cycle route north, to reach the city of Beaune via the Voie des Vignes which winds through the vineyards of the Côte de Beaune, classified as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Option : Ride to Beaune and stay additional night in Beaune.

Practical information

Almost the entire route is on easy-to-follow cycle paths.

A real playground for family cycling trips.

You will start on the banks of the Saône, on the “Voie Bleue” cycle path, heading south. Then from Mâcon, you will go up by an old railway line transformed into Voie Verte. (First Green Lane in France!)

Warning: Bois Clair tunnel closed from 15/10 to 31/03, alternative route by circuit n ° 14

Chalon sur Saône, the gateway town to the route, is served by many trains accepting bicycles from and to Paris.

Possibility to take the TGV Est to Dijon, Montbard, Beaune, Chalon-sur-Saône, Le Creusot / Montchanin / Montceau-les-Mines, Mâcon-Loché. All these stations then provide TER connections to Chalon sur Saône.
Dijon also has direct TGV connections with Disneyland-Paris, Paris-Roissy airport and Lille (with Eurostar connections for London and Thalys for Brussels).
Direct TGV connections exist with the South of France: Marseille / Montpellier-Dijon: 3 hours.
TGV connections also exist from Switzerland: Zurich, Bern, Lausanne, Geneva.

If you come by car, we can reserve a parking space for you at your hotel. Or an outdoor car park located in the immediate vicinity of your hotel.

400
Par personne
Price includes
  • 4 nights in 2 * hotels or guest houses
  • 4 breakfasts
  • Briefing the first evening in Chalon sur Saône
  • The description of the stay, the day vouchers for the hotels and restaurants and tourist documentation,
  • RWGPS app for navigation with your own smartphone
  • Permanent assistance for all problems
Options

Bike rental : 130€/bike
E-bike rental: 250€

Up-grade of the stay to 3* and 4* accommodation is possible, please contact us.

Luggage transferts: 190€ up to 4 people, and 20€/extra person

Single room supplement in 2* hotels: 180€
Single room supplement in 3* et 4*: 195€

Half board supplement in 2* category: 190€
Half board supplement in 3* & 4* category: 250€

Extra B&B night in double room in Chalon sur Saône 2*: 65€/personne
Extra B&B night in single room in Chalon sur Saône 2*: 95€/personne

Extra B&B night in Beaune 3* in double room: 68€/personne
Extra B&B night in Beaune 2* in double room: 59€/personne

HIGHLIGHTS
  • beautiful bike paths, well maintained and easy to track
  • mixture of stunning nature and landscapes and highly cultural and historical places
  • Burgundy – the French region with beautiful traditions and where life is easy and food extremely good
  • Magnificent natural landscapes, change of scenery and guaranteed relax
  • Burgundy towns, castles and cellars
Price excludes
  • Luggage transfer
  • Bicycle rental
  • Night at the end of the stay in Chalon sur Saône
  • Additional night in Beaune

Share:Share on FacebookTweet about this on TwitterPin on PinterestShare on Google+

Request to book

NOM Prénom :*

E-mail* :

Tél :

Dates (ou période) souhaitées :*

Commentaires / Questions

Please take a moment to review the above information for accuracy before continuing. Thank you. We will get back to you shortly.