To the beginning of the St. James Way!
Bike holidays in Burgundy are also a trip through French culture and history. It is a region of great art and good living, pastoral and peaceful. During the cycling trip you discover great abbeys, elegant castles, medieval half-timbered villages and fortified towns. The vineyards of Chablis and Auxerrois will accompany you, tastings are programmed and the fine food will round up your days. This itinerary reveals Northern Burgundy’s main treasures.
Day 1: Arrival in Auxerre
Auxerre, city of Art and History, has conserved an exceptional architectural heritage over time: the cathedral, a model of gothic style elegance, the Saint Germain Abbey, a nearly intact monastic complex with the crypts of 9th Century with one of the oldest mural paintings discovered in France, the clock’s works is set against the tower.
Day 2: Auxerre > Ligny-le-Châtel, ~27 km
Welcome and adjustment of hired bikes. Ride to the Cistercian Abbey of Pontigny, the largest and one of the most beautiful Cistercian churches remaining in France.
Day 3: Ligny-le-Châtel > Noyers-sur-Serein, ~38 km
Ligny-le-Châtel with the Renaissance church; Chablis vineyards, Burgundy’s largest white wine vineyard is your program today. After visiting Chablis and a wine tasting, the itinerary follows the Serein valley through the beautiful villages of the southern of Chablis vineyards and the medieval town of Noyers with its naïf Art museum. Noyers has preserved fortifications and half-timbered houses.
Day 4: Noyers-sur-Serein > Avallon, ~46 km
Today you cycle across the superb “terre plaine” plateau and Avallon landscapes. You will pass by the medieval hamlet of Montréal before reaching Avallon, a beautiful ancient town.
Day 5: Avallon > Vézelay, ~42 km
Via small villages and on side roads you will reach today's destination - Vézelay. One of Burgundy’s finest landscapes, with a stop in Vézelay and its Sainte-Madeleine Basilica, a Romanesque art masterpiece listed as UNESCO world heritage. During the Middle Ages, Vézelay was a major pilgrimage site and a special halt on the ways to Compostella. The mediaeval town with its fortifications is dominated by its Basilica.
Day 6: Vézelay > Escolives, ~41 km
Starting by a hill to reach the Yonne valley, the itinerary follows it all day, as well as the Canal du Nivernais. You cross very lovely sites such as Châtel-Censoir and Saussois cliffs before arriving in Mailly-le-Château near the Canal de Nivernais.
Day 7: Escolives > Auxerre, ~33 km
Water dominates, for here are some of the great rivers of France. In fact, Burgundy has been called 'the water table of France'. All the mighty rivers are interconnected by a marvelous canal system. You are bicycling beside the water in a fantastic nature and then you leave for stage through lovely Auxerre vineyard villages: Irancy, Saint-Bris-le-Vineux, Bailly. In Bailly you will taste the famous Crémant de Bourgogne before leaving to Auxerre.
Day 8: Departure
C'est la vie - your biking tour in Burgundy is finished. After having a last breakfast you have to say goodbye to this charming region in France.
