Trip to Italy -- Southern France -- Ideas?!

[Tommasini53]

We're planning trip to Southern France/Northern Italy; probably 2 weeks. We plan on renting a car and we would like to rent bicycles for a few days. All in all we're pretty flexible, but traveling on the cheap.

It might occur in Mid-May so there is the possibility of finding a Giro stage or two if its in the Northern part of Italy. If you have watched the Giro in person, I'd like to hear if you thought it was worth it.

I'd like to hear from formites for their must-see/must-do lists for this region of the world. :beer:

[the bottle ride]

Been to Italy it is nice- but I am French and from the area so i am biased.

Here is a few ideas that come to mind:
Aix- make a stop there. Drink coffe on the Mirabeau at the Deux Garcons. It is one of the best places to watch people.
While in the south of France:
Ride in and around Luberon. Quiet roads.
Ride around Ventabren- ride past the Les Bon Fils and say hello to my brother. make the climb to the top and visit the old castle.
Callisson- one of the best candies you have never heard of.
Buy the olive oil from Chateau Virant- the best. No questions.
Ride the coast- see the Calanques.

Bike racing is better on the TV than in person- "zzzzzipp" there went the race. Big Waste of time ATMO.

[Tommasini53]

Merci beaucoup! :)

Been to Italy it is nice- but I am French and from the area so i am biased.

Here is a few ideas that come to mind:
Aix- make a stop there. Drink coffe on the Mirabeau at the Deux Garcons. It is one of the best places to watch people.
While in the south of France:
Ride in and around Luberon. Quiet roads.
Ride around Ventabren- ride past the Les Bon Fils and say hello to my brother. make the climb to the top and visit the old castle.
Callisson- one of the best candies you have never heard of.
Buy the olive oil from Chateau Virant- the best. No questions.
Ride the coast- see the Calanques.

Bike racing is better on the TV than in person- "zzzzzipp" there went the race. Big Waste of time ATMO.

[Ken Robb]

Bring clothing that fits quite loosely. It won't after two weeks in Italy or France if you're doing things the correct way. :beer:

[echelon_john]

The Lucca area is really nice; great riding, beaches (although May's a little early), mountains.

[Liv2RideHard]

Have been over to that region on several occasions. Picked up my Tommasini from the factory in Grosseto (I noticed your handle). Renting a car and driving in Italia is an adventure and a blast, esp on the Autostrada. I have ridden in the Friuli, Giulia and Venezia regions of Northern Italia. Have traveled most all of Northern Italia. Just depends on what you are looking for. There are the epic climbs of the Giro...Mortirolo, Stelvio, Zoncolan, Piancavallo, Tre Cime di Lavaredo...I could go on and on man. You could do one of the Strada del Vino Prosecco (Prosecco Wine Routes). Amazing routes in and around the Conegliano Valdobbiadene Hills. Bella!

In May, there will likely still be snow in the Dolomiti unless the climb is to be included in the Giro, they may have it cleared.

If you have the opportunity, by all means catch the Giro. Don't miss it. I have seen the Giro and it is something you don't want to miss. Catch a mtn stage or a start finish where you can experience the atmosphere. It will be memorable.

I may be over there about the same time you will be...maybe our paths will cross! PM me if you need more info or would like someone to guide you on a ride. I may be able to help with that and...possibly with bicicleta's.

ciao

[Polyglot]

We're planning trip to Southern France/Northern Italy; probably 2 weeks. We plan on renting a car and we would like to rent bicycles for a few days. All in all we're pretty flexible, but traveling on the cheap.

It might occur in Mid-May so there is the possibility of finding a Giro stage or two if its in the Northern part of Italy. If you have watched the Giro in person, I'd like to hear if you thought it was worth it.

I'd like to hear from formites for their must-see/must-do lists for this region of the world. :beer:

I have lived in both France and Italy and have traveled extensively through both.

What does traveling on the cheap mean to you? If you really want to keep costs down you can make use of youth hostels. I traveled throughout Europe like that on my bike back in the 80's and still have friends throughout the world that I met along the way. All those trips were hugely memorable.

http://www.hihostels.com/

I have also driven throughout Italy and France by car and will readily admit that it is generally cheaper to get around in France. Just stop by a tourism office or syndicat d'initiatve and you can generally find a nice "chambre d'hote" or super economy hotel in France. In Italy you can get a guide of Agriturismo opportunities, which can often be inexpensive and incredible experiences.

Where the costs shoot up is in the cities. Food-wise, you do much better in Italy if on a budget than in France.

As far as going to see the Giro, as already mentioned you really deserve to live the atmosphere at least once. The best places to do so without feeling that you wasted your time for nothing more than 20 seconds of nothing is to either see a mountain stage or check out the start of a stage. You get to see the whole circus and often get a chance to rub shoulders with the riders. If you are out on the route in a flat stage, it is indeed quite a non-event. You don't see much suffering, or activity and don't ever know when the pack will come by and can't often follow who it is who is riding by.

If you want to discuss, send me you phone number in a PM and we can talk.

[aaronv]

If you are interest in seeing some unique bicycle culture in action I would recommend a visit to the city of Ferarra Italy.

Here is a write-up that captures some of it
http://hope-traficanti.suite101.com/ferarra---italys-city-of-cycling-a204647.

Not an exaggeration to say that almost everyone owns or rides a bike there.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/avanderlip/4082142396/in/set-72157622750374876.

[rain dogs]

I've been over there a number of times for riding/travelling/touring.

If it were up to me and I only had two weeks to explore Northern Italy and Southern France I would go from Milano to Marseilles, via the Milan-San Remo route and along the Cote D'Azur.

I did this in two days by bike, but you could spend two of the most amazing weeks of your life there if you wanted. (Monaco, Nice, Cannes etc.)

The Giro is fun to watch if you're a big fan, but if you don't get a great spot it's past you in a flash. The atmosphere is fun, but much smaller than the Tour. I rode the stages ahead of the peloton for ten days, watching the finish of the first ten stages in 2009. It's the best way to see the race. Otherwise, at worst, it can be hours of waiting in the blistering sun for 10 seconds of action.

+1 on Valdobiadene! It's gorgeous around there.

OH... the Giro is in a good region for you around the 18th and 19th a mountain finish in Cervinia if you do Milano area. It's in Milano on the 27th.

Also, I rode through the Cannes film fest, but didn't stop in. If you're a film buff, that famous festival is on from May 16th to 27th.

[MadRocketSci]

cheap? get your food at the champion (KOM) grocery store. Otherwise, the Brek self-serve restaurant in Aix was decent and pretty reasonable. It was good enough for my friend who grew up there, so it's not tourist food. They are everywhere in Europe but i believe each one does try to cater to local tastes.

Do try to get a "nice" meal at a good local restaurant a couple times :)

[laupsi]

Spain, Spain and more Spain...

Been to Italy, France too but nothing beats Costa Blanca or Costa Brava Spain for cycling and for living.

[Liv2RideHard]

Forgot to mention the Chateau Eza on the Cote between Nice and Monaco. It is in the village of Eze. It is an enchanting place. If nothing else you must at least dine there. An unforgetable place. It will also give you the opportunity to drive parts of the Monaco F1 course. Don't miss it.

[tannhauser]

Been to Italy it is nice- but I am French and from the area so i am biased.

Here is a few ideas that come to mind:
Aix- make a stop there. Drink coffe on the Mirabeau at the Deux Garcons. It is one of the best places to watch people.
While in the south of France:
Ride in and around Luberon. Quiet roads.
Ride around Ventabren- ride past the Les Bon Fils and say hello to my brother. make the climb to the top and visit the old castle.
Callisson- one of the best candies you have never heard of.
Buy the olive oil from Chateau Virant- the best. No questions.
Ride the coast- see the Calanques.

Bike racing is better on the TV than in person- "zzzzzipp" there went the race. Big Waste of time ATMO.

Yes to all that, especially the girls on the Mirabeau.

[RonW87]

With two weeks, I would focus on one region or the other, not both. Too much to see/do in either.

R.