We are intending to cycle France in July. We are looking for accommodation in Paris that accommodates bikes and where we could leave big bags until we return a month later. So far we have had no luck. We have wondered whether to take our bikes or purchase when we arrive. We would appreciate advice.
Heather
Bike friendly accomodation in Paris
水, 2012-02-01 06:14
#1
WS Member
Bike friendly accomodation in Paris
Don't forget that the Tour de France will be going on most of July also. Accommodations may be limited when they are in an area, so if you want to avoid it, you may want to check out their website http://www.letour.fr/us/index.html for their schedule.
As mentioned by Randy there might be a shortage of rooms with the TdF. I have never attempted to find accommodations in the Paris region but have had great success in other cities in Europe using HRS (Hotel Reservation Service) a German booking service with website in many languages and pricing to fit your currency. Website set up to include all types of accommodations and shows distance to airport or train station as well as links to property maps. I have used HRS to find likely accommodations usually close to my European tour start city airport and then contacted the hotel by email and asked about storage of my bike box. Usually reserving a room for the night of arrival and night at end of trip is all that I have had to do to get a quick OK for free storage of my box and assorted stuff I do not want to carry on tour.
Also might suggest that it may work out to set up accommodations somewhere near the airport so that taxi haul of bike boxes to hotel will not be too expensive. Some close to airport hotels even have van shuttles that easily can fit a bike BUT these hotels usually are much more expensive than smaller independent inns/pensions/etc...
Since getting into and out of major European cities on a bike can be less than fun, my suggestion is to book accommodations in distant suburbs near the airport AND with public transport (bus/tram/train) to the city center available close to the lodging. Then one can head off on tour without having to "fight" the way out of the city on day one.
Have you toured in Europe before? I have made 3 solo tours of various areas and might be able to answer a few questions but not relative to Paris. Please contact me if you feel I might be of general assistance.
Bon voyage!
C2Cin2006
Hi Heather, Just wondering how you got on on your trip. We are off to cycle for 10 weeks later this year and will start and finish at Paris CdG! Tossing up whether to just assemble the bikes at the airport and take off and hope to buy on our return. Or book in somewhere and hopefully leave the boxes etc for our return! Although after the trip from Australia they can sometimes be a bit worse for wear!
Cheers
Elizabeth
Am sure if you contacted a WS host near the airport, could store the bags there, to pick up later