Burgundy is noted as a place of artistic and historical interest, famous for its Romanesque heritage and architecturally interesting towns and villages. It's famous too for its exceptional wines and delicious food, and is often described as 'the land of great art and good living'.
This four night self guided cycling tour provides a real connoisseur's guide to Burgundy: the wines, the towns and the strategic importance of the waterways over the centuries. The cycling is relaxed and undemanding, along riverside trails and canal towpaths, and takes you through rolling countryside, with vineyards and orchards. The routes have been specially designed to allow for lazy riverside lunches, wine cave visits and a chance to potter around the pretty ports and villages along the Canal de Nivernais.
Your accommodation is hand-picked for its charm and character. The family-run Hotel Normandie in Auxerre was converted from a maison bourgeoise and is perfectly situated to explore the medieval town. The Hostellerie des Clos in the heart of Chablis was once the hospice, now beautifully renovated to a 4 star hotel.
This is one of France's prettiest medieval cities, on the banks of the River Yonne, and your base for tonight. Here you'll find two Gothic churches: the Cathedral of St-Etienne (13th and 16th century with magnificent stained glass windows) and the Abbey of St-Germain (13th & 14th century with 19th century crypt). There's time to explore the medieval lanes and pretty port before dinner in town with plenty of choice of restaurants within a couple of minutes' walk of your hotel.
You stay at Hotel Normandie (Breakfast included)
Take the path along the River Yonne, out of Auxerre, to the spectacular 12th century Abbey at Pontigny, founded in 1114 as a Cistercian monastery. Among those buried at the abbey are Adele of Champagne (queen of Louis VII of France) and Saint Edmund of Abingdon (Archbishop of Canterbury from 1234-1240 who was later canonised following alleged miracles at his grave!). Continue on along the River Serein and through La Chapelle Vaupelteigne to Chablis.
You stay at Hostellerie des Clos (Breakfast and evening meal included)
Explore the town of Chablis, which gives its name to the world-famous wine. Enjoy wine-tastings galore in local caves with the seven Grand Cru vineyards of Les Preuses, Vaudesir, Grenouilles, Valmur, Les Clos, Bourgros and Blanchots all sitting on a single south-west facing slope just to the north and overlooking the town.
Alternatively, pedal, from Chablis, along the beautiful River Serein valley, discovering pretty towns and villages, including Chichee, Viviers, Tonnerre along the way. Enjoy rolling countryside as you cycle from one town to the next and enjoy a picnic by the Burgundy canal in Tonnerre. Later on, do not miss Hotel Dieu medieval hospital complex (the Hotel-Dieu) constructed at the end of the 13th century and at that time one of the largest hospitals in France.
You stay at Hostellerie des Clos (Breakfast and evening meal included)
You will cycle through picturesque villages and on small country roads with magnificent views and rolling landscapes. Passage through Irancy vineyards with the possibility of a visit to a major producer of 'Crémant' (sparkling wine), with impressive cellars installed in old quarries. Then continue along the Yonne Valley and the Nivernais Canal.
You stay at Hotel Normandie (Breakfast included)
During your holiday you stay at the following hotels. If you'd like to extend your time at any of these or, if you'd like to enhance your stay with an upgraded room, just let us know at the time of booking. If you'd like to keep your bikes with you for any extra nights we can arrange this for you for just £ per adult per day and £ per child per day.
To find out more call our sales team on 1-800-267-3347, use our live webchat or email usa@exodustravels.com
Find out more on the hotel website.
Read customer reviews on Tripadvisor.
NEARBY:
Room upgrades: Privilege Room.
The Privilege room has a very spacious bedroom with king size bed.
Extra nights: Please contact us for details.
Find out more on the hotel website.
Read customer reviews on Tripadvisor.
NEARBY:
Room upgrades: Grand Confort Room, Superior Room or Duplex Room.
Grand Confort rooms offer the same facilities as the standard Confort rooms but are approximately 5m2 larger (24m2). Superior rooms offer the same facilities as the standard Confort rooms but are much larger (average size 53m2). Duplex rooms are over 2 floors with an approximate surface area of 90m2. They also have a separate lounge area and have direct access to the sauna.
If you'd like to extend your trip with extra nights at the start or end, or if you'd like to arrange a stop off point en-route, then we recommend the following hotels.
Find out more on the hotel website.
Read customer reviews on Tripadvisor.
NEARBY:
Room upgrades: Privilege Room.
The Privilege room has a very spacious bedroom with king size bed.
Extra nights: Please contact us for details.
Call now to speak to our specialist team at 1-800-267-3347 or email us at usa@exodustravels.com for enquiries or to book your trip.
Here at Headwater we thrive on feedback from our customers. It's the only way we can continue to develop, and where necessary improve, our services and ensure our holidays continue to be the best they can be. However, as this is a relatively new holiday, we don't yet have any customer reviews available.
You can be confident that our pricing includes all the standard requirements of your holiday and many additional extras. Always ensure that you are comparing like for like when booking your holiday.
This 4 night self-guided cycling holiday includes:
Hotel-to-hotel accommodation in a mix of hotels
All breakfast and 2 evening meals
Management by your local Headwater-appointed agent
Route directions and maps
High quality bikes
Luggage transfers between hotels
How to book:
For further details, or to check availability, speak to our sales team on 1-800-267-3347 or complete our holiday enquiry form (we'll contact you at a time that's most convenient for you).
To enquire about this holiday, or for further information, call our sales team on 1-800-267-3347 or complete our holiday enquiry form.
We do not currently have departure dates and prices available on-line. The season may have ended for this tour, or we are still in the process of adding these details to our website. Please contact us for further details.
Children
Please contact us for child prices.
Holiday type
Self-guided cycling Managed locally by Headwater appointed agent.
Departures
Meals
All breakfast and 2 evening meals
Tour only
Transfers can be arranged at a supplement from Auxerre train station at 14:20 and back to Auxerre train station at 11:20.
For further details, or to check availability, speak to our sales team on 1-800-267-3347 or complete our holiday enquiry form (we'll contact you at a time that's most convenient for you).
Call now to speak to our specialist team at 1-800-267-3347 or email us at usa@exodustravels.com for enquiries or to book your trip.