tour de france route review

Tour de France 2023 route: Every stage of the 110th edition in detail

This year's race has kicked off in Bilbao, in Spain's Basque Country. It looks like it'll be a Tour for the climbers, with the Puy de Dôme returning and 56,400 metres of climbing in all

• Sign up to our newsletter Newsletter

• Stage summary
• The stages in-depth

The 2023 men's Tour de France began in Bilbao, Spain on Saturday, July 1, with a route that looks set to be one for the climbers. It features four summit finishes, including a return for the iconic Puy de Dôme climb for the first time since 1988.

There is just one time trial across the three-week event, a short uphill race against the clock from Passy to Combloux over 22km. There are also returns for other epic climbs like the Col de la Loze and the Grand Colombier, with 56,400 metres of climbing on the Tour de France 2023 route.

The race started on foreign soil for the second year in a row, with a Grand Départ in the Spanish Basque Country , the setting for the race's 120th anniversary. There were two hilly stages in Spain, before the peloton crossed the border into France for a stage finish in Bayonne on day three. 

After visiting Pau for the 74th time on stage five, the race's first real mountain test came on stage six, leaving Tarbes and cresting the Col d’Aspin and Col du Tourmalet before a summit finish in Cauterets. 

On stage seven, the Tour’s second most visited city, Bordeaux, will welcome its first stage finish since 2010, when Mark Cavendish claimed his 14th of a record 34 stage wins. Leaving nearby Libourne the next day, stage eight will head east on a 201km slog to Limoges. 

Before the first rest day, the riders will wind up to the summit of the Puy de Dôme, a dormant lava dome which hasn’t featured in the Tour for 35 years. They’ll then enjoy a well-earned day off in Clermont-Ferrand before continuing their passage through the Massif Central. 

France’s national holiday, 14 July, will be celebrated next year with a summit finish on the Grand Colombier, the site of Tadej Pogačar ’s second stage win back in 2020. From there, the mountains keep coming. The riders will climb over the Col de Joux Plaine to Morzine on stage 14, before another mountaintop test in Saint-Gervais Mont-Blanc the next day. 

Get The Leadout Newsletter

The latest race content, interviews, features, reviews and expert buying guides, direct to your inbox!

The sole individual time trial of the Tour de Franc route comes on stage 16, when a hilly 22km dash from Passy to Combloux will give the GC contenders a chance to force time gaps. The following day will bring the stage with the highest elevation gain, counting 5000m of climbing en route to the Courchevel altiport, via the Cormet de Roselend and the monstrous Col de la Loze. 

On stages 18 and 19, the sprinters are expected to come to the fore, with flat finishes in Bourg-en-Bresse and Poligny. 

The penultimate stage will play out in the country’s most easterly region, ascending the Petit Ballon, Col du Platzerwasel and finishing in Le Markstein, as the Tour de France Femmes did last year. 

The riders will then undertake a 500km transfer to the outskirts of Paris for the curtain-closing stage. The final day will start at France’s national velodrome in Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines, the track cycling venue for the 2024 Olympics, and will conclude with the customary laps of the capital’s Champs-Elysées. 

The 2023 Tour de France will begin on 1 July, with the winner crowned in Paris on 23 July. 

2023 Tour de France stage table

Jonas Vingegaard raced in the Basque Country this year

Tour de France route week summary

Tour de france week one.

The race began in Bilbao, starting in the Basque Country for the first time since 1992, when the Tour started in San Sebastian. The first two stages are packed full of climbs, with ten classified hills in over the opening couple of days, meaning there will be a fierce battle for the polka-dot jersey. Watch out for Basque fans going crazy on the roadside.

Stage three saw the race cross into France, which it will not leave for the rest of the 18 days. As expected we saw a sprint finish in Bayonne, even after four categorised climbs en-route. Nothing is easy this year.

The fourth day was another sprint, on a motor racing circuit in Nogaro, as the race moved, ominously, towards the Pyrenees. The Hors Categorie Col de Soudet on stage five was the first proper mountain of the race, and was followed by the Col de Marie Blanque, which has tough gradients. A GC day early on, although they are all GC days, really.

Stage five was a mountain top finish in Cauterets-Cambasque, but its gradients didn't catch too many out; it is the Col d'Aspin and Col du Tourmalet that will put people through it.

The seventh day of the race was a chance for the riders to relax their legs as the race headed northwest to an almost nailed-on sprint finish, before another opportunity for the the remaining fast men presented itself on stage eight - after two category four climbs towards the end, and an uphill finish.

The long first week of the race - which will have felt longer because last year had a bonus rest day - ended with the mythical Puy de Dôme.

Tour de France week two

Magnus Cort in the breakaway on stage 10 of the Tour de France 2022

The second week begins with a lumpy road stage around Clermont-Ferrand, starting from a volcano-themed theme park. This will surely be a day for the break. The next day could also be one if the sprint teams fail to get their act together, with two early categorised climbs potential ambush points.

Back into the medium mountains on stage 12, with a finish in the wine making heartland of the Beaujolais, Belleville. Another day for the break, probably, but none of the five categorised climbs are easy.

The following day, stage 13, is France's national holiday, 14 Juillet. The Grand Colombier at the end of the day is the big attraction, with its slopes expected to cause shifts on the GC. Stage 14 is yet another mountain stage as the Tour really gets serious, with the Col de la Ramaz followed by the Col de Joux Plane. The latter, 11.6km at 8.5%, will be a real test for a reduced peloton, before a downhill finish into Morzine.

The final day of week two, stage 15, is yet another day in the Alps before a rest day in Saint-Gervais-Mont-Blanc. There is nothing as fearsome as the previous days, but 4527m of climbing should still be feared.

Tour de France week three

Tadej Pogačar in the final time trial at the 2022 Tour de France

The third and final week begins with the race's only time trial, 22km long and with a lot of uphill. It is not a mountain event, but it is certainly not one for the pure rouleurs .

Stage 17 looks like the race's Queen Stage, with the final climb up to the Col de la Loze looking incredibly tough on paper, and in real life. That follows the Col de Saisies, the Cormet de Roselend and the Côte de Longefoy, adding up to 5,100m of climbing. The race might be decided on this day.

After that, there is a nice day for the sprinters on stage 18, with a flat finish in Bourg-en-Bresse surely one for the fast men. The next day, stage 19 could be a breakaway day or a sprint finish, depending on how desperate teams are feeling, or how powerful the remaining leadout trains are.

The final mountainous day comes on the penultimate stage, with the men following the Femmes lead and finishing in Le Markstein. However, there's no Grand Ballon, just the Petit Ballon, and so unless something chaotic happens, there should not be great time switches on this stage.

Then, at last, there is the usual finish on the Champs-Élysées in Paris, after the race heads out of Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines, which has a long-term deal to host the start of Paris-Nice too. ASO country.

Remember, this will be the last time Paris hosts the Tour de France until 2025. So, be prepared.

Tour de France 2023: The stages

Stage one: Bilbao to Bilbao (182km)

The opening stage is very lumpy

There was no easing into the Tour de France for the peloton this year, with a tough, punchy day in the Basque Country. Adam Yates took the first yellow jersey of the 2023 Tour de France after a scintillating stage in the Basque Country that saw the overall battle for the Tour take shape at the earliest opportunity.

The Briton emerged clear over the top of the final climb of the stage, the short and steep Côte de Pike, with his twin brother Simon a few seconds behind him. The pair worked well together to stay clear of the chasing bunch of GC contenders before Adam rode his brother off his wheel inside the final few hundred metres to claim victory.

Stage two: Vitoria-Gasteiz to Saint Sebastian (208.9km)

Still in the Basque Country, there is a Klasikoa theme to stage two

This was the longest stage of the Tour, surprisingly.  Five more categorised climbs meant  it was unlikely to be a sprint stage, including the Jaizkibel, famous from the Clasica San Sebastian, tackled on its eastern side 20km from the finish. This second stage from Vitoria Gasteiz to San Sebastian on the Basque coast followed many of the roads of the San Sebastian Classic, held here every summer.

An early break was soon established in the first 50km and established a three-minute advantage. However, the break was reeled in and a group, including the yellow jersey Adam Yates, pressed towards the finish with Wout Van Aert (Jumbo-Visma) clearly hoping it would finish in a sprint. 

Victor Lafay (Cofidis) had other ideas however, and with all and sundry already having attacked Van Aert, Lafay finally made it stick with a kilometre to go, holding off the reduced bunch all the way to the line.

Stage three: Amorebiata-Etxano to Bayonne (187.4km)

Still some hills, but this should be a sprint stage

The third stage took the riders from Amorebieta-Etxano in the Basque Country and back into France, finishing at Bayonne in what was always tipped to be a bunch sprint.  Ultimately, despite a very strong showing in the leadout by Fabio Jakobsen's Soudal-Quick Step team, it was Jasper Philipsen who triumphed , having benefited from a deluxe leadout by team-mate Mathieu Van Der Poel.

Mark Cavendish, who is hunting for a record 35th stage win in what will be his final Tour de France, was sixth.

Stage four: Dax to Nogaro (181.8km)

A nailed on bunch sprint, surely. Surely!

Now this one was always going to be a sprint finish, right? It finished on a motor racing circuit in Nogaro, meaning teams have a long old time to sort their leadout trains.  After a sleepy day out all hell broke lose on the finishing circuit with a series of high speed crashes. Jasper Philipsen was one of the few sprinters to still have a lead-out man at his disposal and when that lead-out man is of the quality of Mathieu van der Poel he was always going to be very difficult to beat. So it proved with Australian Caleb Ewan chasing him down hard but unable to come around him.  Philipsen's win handed him the green jersey too .

Stage five: Pau to Laruns (162.7km)

The first proper mountain, and the first sorting out, as early as stage five

The first Hors Categorie climb of the race came on stage five, the Col de Soudet, which is 15.2km at 7.2%, before the Col de Marie-Blanque and its steep gradients. It certainly ignited the GC battle!  

A break that at one point contained 37 riders was never allowed more than a few minutes, but that proved unwise for Jonas Vingegaard and Tadej Pogačar behind. Ultimately, with the break already splintering on the final big climb – the Col de Marie-Blanque – Jai Hindley (Bora-Hansgrohe), riding his first Tour de France, attacked. 

With Hindley time trialling the largely downhill 18km to the finish, Vingegaard attempted to chase him down – and put time into Pogačar as he did so.

Picking up strays from the early break on the way, Vingegaard got to within 34 seconds of Hindley, but it wasn't enough to stop the Australian from taking the stage win, and the yellow jersey .

Stage six: Tarbes to Cauterets-Cambasque (144.9km)

While in the Pyrenees, why not tackle a few more mountains?

A day of aggressive racing in the Pyrenees towards the first summit finish saw Jonas Vingegaard (Jumbo-Visma) take the yellow jersey but Tadej Pogačar (UAE Emirates) win the stage .

Having had his team set a blistering pace on the Col du Tourmalet, Vingegaard attacked with 4km until the summit. Only Pogačar could follow him as yellow jersey holder Jai Hindley dropped back to the peloton

Having joined up with super domestique Wout van Aert over the top, the group of favourites were towed up the first half of the final climb before Vingegaard attacked. Once again Pogačar followed and with two kilometers to go the Slovenian counter-attacked.

He clawed back nearly half a minute by the line, making the race for yellow a three horse race between those two and Hindley in the process. 

Stage seven: Mont-de-Marsan to Bordeaux (169.9km)

Bordeaux is always a sprint finish

Renowned as a sprint finish town, Bordeaux didn't disappoint the hopeful fastmen –except perhaps for Mark Cavendish, who had to concede victory to hat-trick man Jasper Philipsen, despite a very strong charge for the line from the Manxman .

With Cavendish hunting that elusive 35th record stage win, and having won here last time the Tour came visiting in 2010, many eyes were on the Astana Qazaqstan rider, with on-form Philipsen (Alpecin-Deceuninck) who has won twice already, starting as favourite.

The day began with Arkéa-Samsic's Simon Gugliemi forging what turned out to be a solo break that lasted 130 kilometres. He was joined by Pierre Latour (TotalEnergies) and Nans Peters (Ag2r-Citroën) halfway through the stage, the trio forming a purposeful triumvirate of home riders.

However, with the sprinters and their teams on the hunt and few places to hide on what was a hot day crammed with long, straight roads, the break served only as a placeholder for the day's main action in Bordeaux.

A technical finish with roundabouts aplenty, first Jumbo-Visma (in the service of GC leader Jonas Vingegaard) and then Alpecin-Deceuninck took the race by the scruff of the neck in the final. Philipsen enjoyed a marquee leadout from team-mate Mathieu Van Der Poel, but when Cavendish turned on the afterburners at around 150m and leapt forward, the whole cycling world held its breath.

That 35th stage win had to wait for another day though, with Philipsen sweeping past in what was yet another command performance from the Belgian.

Stage eight: Libourne to Limoges (200.7km)

Three categorised climbs in the final 70km could catch people out

Mads Pedersen powered to victory up a punchy finish on stage eight of the  Tour de France , managing to hold off green jersey  Jasper Philipsen  in the process.

Pedersen, the Lidl-Trek rider, now has two Tour stage wins to his name, in a finish which mixed pure sprinters and punchier riders. Alpecin-Deceuninck's Philipsen was third, with Wout van Aert (Jumbo-Visma) in third. To prove how mixed the top ten was, however, Tadej Pogačar (UAE Team Emirates) finished behind the likes of Corbin Strong (Israel-Premier Tech) and Bryan Coquard (Cofidis).

On a day which could have been one for the breakaway, the race was controlled expertly by Jumbo, Trek and Alpecin for their options, and so the escapees were never allowed much time. Sadly, stage eight turned out to Mark Cavendish's last - the Astana-Qazaqstan rider crashed heavily and was forced to abandon .

Stage nine: Saint-Léonard-de-Noblat to Puy de Dôme (184km)

The Puy de Dôme is back, and is vicious

In a north American showdown it was Canada that came out on top as  Michael Woods  beat American rival  Matteo Jorgenson  to the win atop the legendary Puy de Dôme.

Jorgenson had gone solo form a breakaway with 40km left to race. However, on the slopes of the Puy de Dôme where the gradient remains over 105 for more than four kilometres, Woods closed the gap and came around Jorgenson with just 600m left to go.

In the final kilometre, of what had been a blisteringly hot day with temperatures north of 30 degree Celsius, Tadej Pogačar managed to drop Jonas Vingegaard but the Jumbo-Visma captain dug deep to minimise his losses and came across the line eight seconds down.

Stage 10: Vulcania to Issoire (162.7km)

Five categorised climbs over this Volcanic stage

The breakaway had its day in Issoire, as Pello Bilbao (Bahrain Victorious) won beneath the scorching sun in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region. 

After a frantic start, the mood finally settled and a 14-rider move went clear. Krists Neilands (Israel Premier Tech) launched a solo bid with around 30km remaining, but was caught in the closing moments by a chasing group led by Bilbao. The Spaniard then policed attacks in the finale, before sprinting to his team's first victory at this year's race. 

"For Gino," Bilbao said afterwards, dedicating his win to his late teammate, Gino Mäder .  

Stage 11: Clermont-Ferrand to Moulins (179.8km)

The flat finalé hints at a sprint, but it could be a break day

After a difficult previous day that was hot and hilly, the bunch allowed the break to go very quickly, with Andrey Amador, Matis Louvel and Daniel Oss quickly gaining three minutes. They were kept on a tight leash though, with the sprinters' teams eyeing a bunch finish. And this they delivered, with Jasper Philipsen winning a fourth stage after a tricky finale.

Stage 12: Roanne to Belleville-en-Beaujolais (168.8km)

Hills return, with some steep, punchy ones towards the end

Just like stage ten, Thursday's stage 12 was a fast and frenetic affair on the road to Belleville-en-Beaujolais. A strong group of puncheur type riders eventually got up the road after the breakaway took more than 80 kilometres to form. Ion Izagirre (Cofidis) came out on top at the finish, soloing to the line after a big attack on the final climb of the day. 

Stage 13: Châtillon-Sur-Chalaronne to Grand Colombier (138km)

Welcome to the Alps, here's an hors categorie climb

Michał Kwiatkowski took an impressive solo victory on the summit finish of the Grand Colombier. The Polish rider caught and passed the remnants of the day's breakaway which included Great Britain's James Shaw to grab his second-ever Tour stage win. Behind the Ineos rider, Tadej Pogačar attacked and took eight seconds back on Jonas Vingegaard in the fight for the yellow jersey. 

Stage 14: Annemasse to Morzine Les Portes du Soleil (151.8km)

Five categorised climbs, four of which are one and above. Ouch.

Carlos Rodríguez announced himself on his Tour de France debut on stage 14 with a career-defining victory in Morzine. While all eyes were on Jonas Vingegaard and Tadej Pogačar, the Spaniard broke free on the descent of the Col de Joux Plane and descended as if on rails to the finish. 

Stage 15: Les Gets Les Portes du Soleil to Saint-Gervais-Mont-Blanc (179km)

Back to a summit finish, there is no escape at this Tour

The breakaway had its day at the summit of Saint-Gervais Mont Blanc. After dedicating his career to domestique duties, the victory went to Wout Poels (Bahrain Victorious), who launched a late attack on the steepest slopes and held off Wout van Aert (Jumbo-Visma) to the line.

Stage 16: Passy to Combloux ITT (22.4km)

A time trial! But not a flat one

Stage 16 brought the fewest time trial kilometres at the Tour de France in 90 years. On the uphill test to Combloux, Jonas Vingegaard proved the strongest , and by quite a way, too. The Dane's winning margin of 1-38 over Tadej Pogačar left him in the driving seat to taking his second Tour title.

Stage 17: Saint-Gervais-Mont-Blanc to Courchevel (165.7km)

Back to  the proper mountains, and there will be no let up on the final Wednesday

The Queen stage brought a career-defining victory for Austrian Felix Gall (AG2R Citroën), but all eyes were on the GC battle, and the demise of Tadej Pogačar. The UAE Team Emirates rider cracked on the slopes of the Col de la Loze, losing almost six minutes to Jonas Vingegaard, and slipping to 7-35 in the overall standings.

Stage 18: Moûtiers to Bourg-en-Bresse (184.9km)

Two category four climbs on the road to a chicken-themed sprint

Denmark's Kasper Asgreen put in one of the best performances of the race to grab his first-ever Tour victory . The Soudal Quick-Step rider was part of a four man breakaway that managed to hold on all the way to the line by just a handful of seconds ahead of the peloton.

Stage 19: Moirans-en-Montagne to Poligny (172.8km)

Another sprint, maybe, or a heartbreaking chase which fails to bring the breakaway back

Matej Mohorič of Bahrain Victorious took an emotional victory in Poligny after a chaotic day of racing. The Slovenian rider launched an attack with Kasper Asgreen and Ben O'Connor on the final climb of the hilly stage before beating his breakaway compatriots in a three-up sprint for the line. It was Mohorič's third-ever Tour victory.

Stage 20: Belfort to Le Markstein Fellering (133.5km)

One last chance. Six categorised climbs, will it shake up the GC?

The race might be very near Germany at this point, but Belfort remained French after the Franco-Prussian War, unlike the territory the penultimate stage travels into. 

This is the last chance saloon for all teams and riders who aren’t sprinters, especially those with GC ambitions. However, it is not quite the task of the previous Alpine days, with the six categorised climbs not the most testing. Still, there will be a lot of people trying to make things happen.

Stage 21: Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines to Paris (115.1km)

The classic Parisian sprint. Lovely.

This will be the last time the Tour heads to Paris until at least 2025, so make the most of those shots of the Arc de Triomphe and the Champs-Élysées. The classic procession will happen for the first 55km until the race hits the Champs for the first time 60km in. From that point on, anything goes, although that anything will probably be a bunch sprint.

Thank you for reading 20 articles this month* Join now for unlimited access

Enjoy your first month for just £1 / $1 / €1

*Read 5 free articles per month without a subscription

Join now for unlimited access

Try first month for just £1 / $1 / €1

Adam is Cycling Weekly ’s news editor – his greatest love is road racing but as long as he is cycling on tarmac, he's happy. Before joining Cycling Weekly he spent two years writing for Procycling, where he interviewed riders and wrote about racing. He's usually out and about on the roads of Bristol and its surrounds. Before cycling took over his professional life, he covered ecclesiastical matters at the world’s largest Anglican newspaper and politics at Business Insider. Don't ask how that is related to cycling.

• Tom Thewlis

Gaia Realini takes an early lead over her rivals in the general classification

By Joseph Lycett Published 28 April 24

Coffee connoisseur Adam Becket delves into the storied yet mysterious relationship between cycling and the original energy drink

By Adam Becket Published 28 April 24

Visma-Lease a Bike rider broke his collarbone, sternum and several ribs in a high speed crash at Dwars door Vlaanderen

By Tom Thewlis Published 24 April 24

Danish rider underwent surgery to repair broken collarbone; too early to know whether Tour de France return will be possible

By Tom Thewlis Published 16 April 24

With Jonas Vingegaard, Remco Evenepoel and Primož Roglič hitting the deck at Itzulia Basque Country, all three now face battle to get their seasons back on track

By Adam Becket Published 9 April 24

British rider crashed during recon of opening stage time trial last weekend and injured his right hip

By Tom Thewlis Published 3 April 24

Cavendish will ride Presidential Cycling Tour of Türkiye later this month, Astana Qazaqstan confirms

By Tom Thewlis Published 2 April 24

Dutchman starts his 2024 road season at Italian Monument on Saturday

By Tom Thewlis Published 15 March 24

US star grabbed his first ever Grand Tour win at last year’s Giro d’Italia

By Tom Thewlis Published 8 March 24

The American could step into the leaders yellow jersey on Tuesday evening after stage three’s team time trial in Auxerre

By Tom Thewlis Published 5 March 24

Useful links

• Tour de France
• Giro d'Italia
• Vuelta a España

Buyer's Guides

• Best road bikes
• Best gravel bikes
• Best smart turbo trainers
• Best cycling computers
• Editor's Choice
• Bike Reviews
• Component Reviews
• Clothing Reviews
• Contact Future's experts
• Terms and conditions
• Privacy policy
• Cookies policy
• Advertise with us

Cycling Weekly is part of Future plc, an international media group and leading digital publisher. Visit our corporate site . © Future Publishing Limited Quay House, The Ambury, Bath BA1 1UA. All rights reserved. England and Wales company registration number 2008885.

• Vuelta Femenina

A Beginner's Guide to the Tour de France

All you need to know about the biggest race in the world, from how the race works, and where you can watch all the action

Will Newton

Race news editor.

• Share on Facebook
• Share on Twitter

Velo Collection (Michael Steele) /Getty Images

The Tour de France is a bike race cut above all others

The biggest bike race on the planet, the Tour de France , is the pinnacle of the cycling calendar, but what is this race, why is it so famous and how on earth does one win it? If you’ve ever found yourself asking one of these questions then worry not, for this Newcomer’s Guide is going to help you decrypt and decipher this summer’s ‘Big Loop’ around France…

Ask somebody to name a bike race and nine times out of ten that person will reply, ‘the Tour de France’. Ask that same person to explain the Tour de France and you’ll be lucky to be given a coherent sentence devoid of ‘ums’ and ‘ahs’. You see, while the Tour may be one of, if not the most, watched sporting events in the world - with 3.5 billion viewers annually - it’s also one of the most confusing with a rule book almost as long as the route itself.

This confusing aspect of the Tour can be an obstacle to many, so to ease you in we’ve put together this handy guide explaining the basics behind the race - from what is the Tour de France, to how does one win it. Whether you’re a complete newcomer or perhaps an annual Tour watcher, there’ll be something in this guide for you and something that will finally give you an answer to - at least one of - your many questions about the race.

Velo Collection/Getty Images

The Tour is made up of 21 mini races called ‘stages’ - complete them all in the fastest cumulative time and you’ll be crowned the overall winner

What is the Tour de France?

The Tour de France is what’s known as a ‘stage race’, which is a collection of smaller races - or stages - ridden consecutively across a set period of time. In the case of the Tour, this time period encompasses three weeks, or 21 days (23 if we include the two rest days where there’s no racing). There are only two other stage races on the cycling calendar that last for three weeks and those are the Giro d’Italia and Vuelta a España. Together with the Tour, these races are known as the ‘Grand Tours’.

As its name suggests, the Tour takes place in France - although this comes with some caveats. While the majority of the three-week race takes place within mainland France, some stages do occasionally pass through neighbouring countries, like Italy, Spain, Switzerland and Belgium. The race is also known for hosting ‘Grand Départs’ - the term for the celebratory opening stages of the race - in foreign countries. For example, in 2023 the race began with three stages in the Basque Country, an autonomous community of Spain. The 2024 edition, on the other hand, will start with three stages in northern Italy taking in the cycling rich regions of Tuscany, Emilia Romagna, Lombardy and Piemonte.

With the race taking place across France, and across some other European countries, terrain can wildly differ between stages. Some stages stick to the flatlands along the coasts, while others head deep into the mountains. Several stages may also take the form of a ‘time trial’, where riders compete to set the fastest time over a set course after a staggered start. This changing of terrain between stages, and also within stages, is what poses the main challenge to the riders and ultimately dictates who wins the Tour de France overall, but more on that later!

Why is the Tour de France so famous?

Velo Collection (TDW)/Getty Images.

The maillot jaune is the most iconic jersey in all of cycling

The Tour is the oldest of the three Grand Tours, with its debut edition taking place way back in 1903. It’s also the race which inspired the likes of the Giro and the Vuelta. At 120-years-old, it’s the oldest still-running stage race on the international calendar. There are one-day events which are older, but no professional, multi-day stage race is older than the Tour de France - one of its many claims to fame.

Born from a newspaper marketing scheme, devised by French journalist Henri Desgrange, the first Tour took place in an attempt to boost sales of L’Auto - a nationwide daily newspaper dedicated to sport. This inaugural race only featured six stages, but with each stage covering ~400km it quickly made its way around the perimeter of France. Due to the length of these stages and the comparatively poor technology of the time riders often had to race through the night.

Home favourite Maurice Garin, a man affectionately known as ‘The Little Chimney Sweep’, won this first ever Tour de France, writing his name into cycling’s history books in the process. The race was a sudden hit so Desgrange decided to bring it back the following year, and then the next one, and the one after that. Before long it soon became the go-to event for masochists across Europe to attend and shed blood, sweat and tears over. This blood, sweat and tears made for great stories back in the day and now, fantastic TV.

The race’s longevity and the fact that it has been the site of some of sport’s greatest stories aren’t the only factors which make the Tour so famous, however. In recent decades the race has become truly global with riders from all six of Earth’s major continents not just taking part, but winning too. This globalisation of the Tour has helped it to expand to all four corners of the globe and reach billions of people.

According to the Tour’s organisers, ASO, around 12 million people line up along the route every single year, cheering on their heroes from the roadside. This figure pales in comparison to the race’s total viewers though, which is estimated to be as high as 3.5 billion annually. This mind-boggling figure makes the Tour de France the most watched sporting event in the world, more so even than the World Cup (3.3 billion), Summer Olympics (2 billion), UEFA Champions League (380 million) and Super Bowl (96.4 million).

How does one win the Tour de France?

Velo Collection (TDW) /Getty Images

Egan Bernal on his way to winning the Tour de France in 2019

To put it simply, only one rider can win the Tour de France. This is the rider who, once all is said and done, has completed all of the stages in the lowest cumulative time. They’re declared the overall, or general classification (GC), winner and they get to stand on the top step of the podium in Paris at the end of the race, receiving all of the plaudits - and prize money.

But there’s never just one rider who leaves the Tour as a ‘winner’, and this is where things can get quite confusing. First of all, a ‘stage winner’ is crowned at the end of every stage - this is the rider who simply crosses the finish line first. Some riders win multiple stages throughout the three weeks but get nowhere close to winning the race overall, while the overall winner could go the entire three weeks without ever winning a stage. Are you still with us?

And then there are the different coloured jerseys, individual prizes and team prizes. These are handed out to riders at the end of every stage to denote the rider who’s currently leading each respective classification, but they’re not officially ‘won’ until the three weeks is up and the riders cross the finish line on the final stage. Let’s go through each of those in turn now, from the iconic yellow jersey to the lesser-known combativity prize.

Yellow Jersey - The famous maillot jaune , or yellow jersey, denotes the leader of the general classification. As explained above, this is the rider who has completed all of the stages in the lowest cumulative time. This is the biggest prize in the Tour and something that every rider dreams of wearing, although only a handful ever will.

Green Jersey - The maillot vert , or green jersey, denotes the leader of the points classification. Points are accumulated at each stage finish, with a rider being awarded a certain number of points based on their finishing position. The higher they finish, the more points they score.

Different stages have different weightings of points on offer at the finish, with flatter stages offering more and mountain stages less. Points can also be scored at ‘intermediate sprints’ which are placed within a stage, usually around the midway point. In the Tour there’s one intermediate sprint per road stage (so not during time trials).

Polka-Dot Jersey - The maillot à pois , or polka-dot jersey, denotes the leader of the King of the Mountains classification. Like the green jersey, this is a points-based classification where riders score points for being one of the first few over the tops of hills/mountains. Only categorised hills/mountains count towards this classification and the number of points awarded depends on this categorisation.

Hills/mountains are ranked based on their difficulty and assigned either Cat-4, Cat-3, Cat-2, Cat-1 or HC ( hors categorie ) status. Cat-4 climbs offer fewer points, because they’re the easiest, while HC climbs offer the most points, because they’re the toughest. The winner of this jersey can be someone who’s specifically targeting the classification, but it can also go to the overall Tour winner by virtue of them often being at the front of the race day in, day out.

White Jersey - The maillot blanc , or white jersey, denotes the leader of the Young Rider classification, which - like the yellow jersey - is a time-based classification. It’s restricted to riders that are under the age of 26 when the Tour begins. From those riders who are eligible, the one who has completed the stages in the lowest cumulative time wears the jersey.

Team Prize - This prize is awarded to the winner of the team classification, which assesses teams by adding the times of their three best-placed riders each day - in other words, their first three riders across the finish line on each stage. The team with the lowest accumulated time over the three weeks wins. Unlike the classifications explained above, no jersey is awarded to the leaders of this classification - instead members of the leading team wear a yellow number on their backs.

Combativity Prize - The prix de la combativité , or combativity prize, is awarded to the rider who most animates the day’s racing. This is a subjective classification and one that is decided by the race officials. The winner is given a red number to wear the following day, which is then passed onto the next combativity prize winner. A Super Combativity award is also handed out at the end of the three weeks and goes to the rider who has animated the entire race, rather than just a single stage.

Where can I watch the Tour de France?

Now you know what the Tour de France is all about you’re probably itching to start watching it. Fortunately, the 2023 edition is just around the corner with the opening stage set to take place on Saturday, July 1st. Following the Grand Départ in the Basque Country, Spain - which encompasses three stages this year - the race will head to France and take on stages in the perilous Pyrenees and infamous Alps before drawing to a close with a traditional final stage in Paris on Sunday, July 23rd.

We’ll be showing live coverage of every single stage, start-to-finish, in RaceTV on the GCN App. We’ll also have the daily Breakaway show for you to tune into before and after every stage, where our panel of talking heads discuss the upcoming day’s racing and break down the action afterwards. It’s going to be an incredible three weeks of action and a race that you won’t want to miss, so make sure you have an a ctive GCN+ subscription . There’ll also be a ton of additional stuff for you to get your teeth stuck into during the Tour on the GCN App. As well as live coverage of the race, we also have articles covering all of the action, stage-by-stage previews, daily polls and quizzes and much, much more. Scroll through our Home and Racing feeds now to start getting involved with all of that fantastic, additional content.

Tour de France

• Dates 1 Jul - 23 Jul
• Race Length 3,401 kms
• Race Category Elite Men

Latest Videos

1 The Perfect Bike, Rusty Drivetrains & Narrow Bars | GCN Tech Clinic

2 Is A Cyclist's Body A Healthy Body? | GCN Show Ep. 589

3 More Hot Tech From America’s Biggest Bike Show

4 Pogačar Dominates Liège And A Popular Winner Of Flèche | Racing News Show

5 Intense Interval Blast | 15 Minute Indoor Cycling Workout

Will is a Racing News Editor at GCN

Related Content

​​Tour de France bikepacking with Marcel Kittel

Marcel Kittel is a legendary sprinter and an experienced pro, but how did he cope when Conor Dunne took him bikepacking?

Neilson Powless: Tour de Suisse performance will define my Tour de France role

American returns from break to begin march towards the Tour de France

Romain Bardet: The first part of the Tour de France is the hardest

French rider takes aim at the Tour de Suisse and talks motivation and retirement possibilities after 2024

Chris Froome’s Route d'Occitanie performance will help shape Tour de France role

Four-time Tour winner builds up July with final stage race prep

Subscribe to the GCN Newsletter

Get the latest, most entertaining and best informed news, reviews, challenges, insights, analysis, competitions and offers - straight to your inbox

Tour de France Route Notes

Having looked at the route stage-by-stage here and here some more thoughts and notes on the 2024 Tour de France routes including an explainer on the Col de La Bonette and the Cime de la Bonette.

Tour of France? Once again the route skips much of northern and western France. Sports-wise the race is all the better for it as the south has more varied terrain, or put the other way around, much of the north and west is flat. But as the cliché goes “the Tour de France is also a tour of France” and missing out on these areas once again is notable.

2025 looks set to compensate with a start in Lille, France’s most northerly city and then it’s said the race will cross to Brittany but presumably with pavé and probably the Mûr-de-Bretagne climb. We could also see the Tour de France Femmes starting in Brittany too, according to local newspaper Le Télégramme .

Déjà vu If the Tour tries to visit all parts of mainland France at least once every few years, there’s a certain familiarity with the route, ASO’s races can visit the same places several times. It’s obvious that the race will return to Pau as a big city close to the Pyrenees; Tarbes is smaller, Toulouse is further away. But the added déjà vu comes knowing the Paris-Nice, Critérium du Dauphiné and Tour de France Femmes routes. More than ever these races host some racing first and then the big show comes to town next year. Last March’s Paris-Nice had St. Armand-Montrond, St. Paul-Trois-Chateaux as well as the Nice finish of course, all of which are in next summer’s Tour. Last summer’s Dauphiné had a finish in the Ardèche which could host the final of the Tour de France Femmes in 2025 and so on. Look to next year’s Paris-Nice and Dauphiné routes for clues on the Tour in 2025.

Always two, never three The “Prudhomme dogma” of never having more than two consecutive sprint stages is a real thing so when the race visits a flat area it can have two sprints but there has to be a gravel or cobbled stage, or a time trial… or a transfer out to the mountains.

Short Transfers A year ago ASO said the 2023 edition had short transfers as a deliberate idea, both to please teams tired of long journeys before and after each stage, and an ecological gesture too. Does 2024 continue this? Yes because there’s no flight or big transfer to Paris is the obvious point. Probably yes again for the daily journeys, and it looks like there will be instances where teams and the rest of the caravan are in the same hotel for more than one night.

Le gravel 32km of gravel is plenty in a 199km stage, much like 55km of Paris-Roubaix is cobbles. Just as plenty happens on the tarmac sections in between the pavé on the way to Roubaix, Stage 9’s tarmac sections could count for plenty. While Paris-Roubaix’s cobbled sections often end by joining a large road, the Troyes gravel sections regularly eject riders onto a farm backroad that’s narrow and twisty, especially the later sectors.

San Paris, a precedent? Now that the Tour isn’t finishing in Paris, could a finish outside of Paris become a regular thing? Sure, as the race isn’t bound to finish in Paris, even if the final stage is very photogenic. If yes, perhaps real question is where. Tour boss Christian Prudhomme was quick to praise Nice as a worthy location – of course – but he has a point, the race probably has to end somewhere special rather than a ski resort or a provincial market town.

Paris will always be Paris The Champs Elysées are being reworked, the idea is to make a more pleasant boulevard rather than the highway it is today. Works are expected to finish in time for the Olympics but there’s talk of a second phase after. Paris needs a special avenue for military parades so the Champs are likely to be remain race-able… at least once the works are done, these could be the excuse to move the race.

Nothing new? If the map looks different without Paris, the race doesn’t seem to have any new innovation or rule-tweaking. There was talk that Stage 7 could be a team time trial and if this was the case, maybe they could have used the rules tried in Paris-Nice back in March? But no, a standard solo TT. The special 3-2-1 bonus sprints remain for a handful of stages but are probably not going to define much, the UCI rules limit them to 3-2-1 seconds.

The only difference is the waiver for the Tour de France Femmes having two stages in a day, this requires a waiver of UCI rule 2.6.010. “Split” or “half” stages used to be a thing but were banned because of the hassle, riders especially got tired of them with the Tour sometimes having three stages in a day as a ruse to bank more hosting fees and in 1978 the peloton went on strike. This was back in the day when the Tour wasn’t the business juggernaut as we know it today and where hosting fees are handy but not game-changing for the race.

Crowd control The changes come elsewhere with a plan to rope off more of the mountains to keep the crowds back. Put metal barriers in place and it seems many people avoid them and walk to parts of the mountain without barriers. But a rope is a compromise, a physical block but not as imposing. And if the crowd swells, as if further anticipating problems, all motos except the TV camera could be halted under a new “Super pool” protocol. One incidental factor that could help further is the route: a lot of the Alpine climbs are more remote. Last summer’s climbs like the Joux-Plane are much closer to bigger population centres.

Gold or green? We often see sprinters bail on the Giro d’Italia once the mountains arrive, some will even have their flights home booked long in advance as the third week offers few rewards. Could we see the same here because those with ambitions for the Olympics might be tempted to get out while they’re still fresh. Not that the Paris course suits all sprinters and team size is limited these elements come into consideration but still, the likes of Jasper Philipsen, Mads Pedersen, even Christophe Laporte could bail.

Stage 11: Puy Mary or Pas de Peyrol? Puy Mary is a mountain and the Pas de Peyrol (“Peyrol step”) is the mountain pass on the way up.

Stage 19: Col de la Bonette or Cime de la Bonette? This is again a mountain pass vs nearby peak issue. The Col de la Bonette is the mountain pass that sits at 2,715m, only the Agnel and Iseran are higher in France. Cime in French means summit – like cima we see in the Giro – and here it relates to a nearby mountain peak. As you can see on the map above there’s the col and then just to the south of this, a small road that climbs to 2,802m as it rides around peak, this is the road we label the Cime de la Bonette but it’s not a pass. To avoid tripping up just call it La Bonette .

Prudhomme… président? Christian Prudhomme’s speech reached a peroration with him citing Philippe De Gaulle and punching a fist in the air as he proclaimed that the Tour de France is special because it rallies people together. Reading this here will be a bit dry, but in the moment it could have been the end of an election rally. Who knows if Prudhomme has any electoral ambitions, more likely he wanted to stir the crowd which includes many mayors and other elected figures during a fractious period for politics in France and beyond and the Tour is something they can unite around.

16 thoughts on “Tour de France Route Notes”

“The only difference is the waiver for the Tour de France Femmes having two stages in a day, this requires a waiver of UCI rule 2.6.010.” Some things never change I guess? A different group of “convicts of the road” to be exploited. Not OK for men, but just fine for women. Really? Looks like the women need a rider’s union with cojones as much as the men do.

I’ve always thought M Prudhomme was a decent public speaker. In an ideal world you’d need other skills to be a politician, but recent history seems to suggest otherwise…

At least Prudhomme also has a track record of organising a massive, successful event on an annual basis. Whereas the populist politicians only seem capable of organising the fragmentation of society. On this basis I think he’s be a much better politician than most!

“UCI rules limit bonus sprints to 3-2-1 seconds”. I would love to know why (and how) this rule was arrived at, what reasons, concerns and debates existed on the issue, and to have the rule debated again publicly.

Are they riding the ring around La Bonette or just the lower one, it looks quite a nice surface on the street view be a shame to not use it all

Hopefully there are fewer cojones in the women’s pro peleton.

Sorry, that was meant as a reply to Larry

Ever ridden with any women pros? You’d be surprised I think 🙂 Then there are the Spanish women footballers!!! I wouldn’t mess with them!!!

for sure, look what’s happened to the last guy who tried to kiss one

He was rightly removed from his position for sexual assault. It took far too long for the authorities to do this. Would you like your boss to kiss you whenever they feel like it?

There is more than one race on the calender and what has caught my interest at the moment is what WVA might do at the Giro. I am also hoping that Pogacar returns to finish the job at Leige.

Exactly this. The sport can’t move on from the obsession with the Tour. Cycling exists the other 49 weeks of the year…..

I’m happy there are guys like MVdP and WVA to prove one can make a pretty good career (and living) without TdF being an obsession. I’d love to see either or both make winning all 5 Monuments a goal:-)

I agree. WVA’s monument haul is not too impressive, and he’s far more likely to have success chasing those (and could do all five, possibly) than he is trying to win a grand tour at his weight.

Small typo @inrng, “Sans Paris” would be much better here – even if we won’t be very far from Italy 😉

I’d like to see that kind of final stage more often in the future, as the traditional one has close to no interest in my opinion, sportswise at least. Nice nearly always provides thrilling finishes in PN, I can’t imagine it otherwise at the next TDF, even after 3 weeks of hard racing. Might even make things more spectacular, if the GC guys aren’t cooked (which they weren’t in the past few years…).

I’d be glad if that could make ASO think about some changes – Grenoble, Pau, Saint-Etienne, Annecy, Lyon and others would make perfect candidates for a final stage too, not too small nor too far from the high mountains, and offering some challenging terrains.

But there’s the symbolical / political / VIP side of things to consider of course, and Prudhomme has proven to be caring a lot for the Tour’s legacy and traditions, one might even say he’s posing as a “gardien du temple” (even if not always acting so).

On that matter (as well as on the topic of Prudhomme’s political stature and ambitions) there’s been an excellent yet frustrating article in last summers’ “Pédale” magazine (in french, don’t know if there’s a translated version made avalaible for english readers).

It shows how much political of a position it is to be at the head of the TDF, which we already knew, and how good Christian Prudhomme is at the job, as we might have guessed, in the old french “à la Chirac” fashion : drinking, eating, chatting how much is needed to make sure everyone is feeling considered.

What’s frustrating is, that the man is so good at it, always humble and better at praising “la grande histoire du Tour” than talking about himself, that you ultimately don’t know what are his ambitions like, apart from being a fellow servant of the TDF’s legacy. It could be very well so, but who knows 🙂

Since it’s my first comment here I’d like to thank you @inrng for all the work you have put in this blog so far, it’s always well-informed, wit-spirited and full of hinsights, a very interesting and pleasant read all year long.

Great comment, please speak up again!

Comments are closed.

Tour de France 2021: The Route

The 2021 Tour de France kicks in hard with two punchy finishes. Stage 1 serves a 3 kilometres at 5.7% hilltop finish near Landerneau and stage 2 ends at the Mûr de Bretagne, which made its first Tour de France appearance in 2011 with a Cadel Evans victory. Since then Alexis Vuillermoz (2015) and Daniel Martin (2018) were also successful at the 2 kilometres climb at 6.9%.

Both stage 3 and stage 4 are likely to see bunch sprints before the 5th stage provides the first real test for GC contenders: a 27.2 kilometres ITT on undulating terrain.

Stage 6 travels to Châteauroux, where Mark Cavendish took the spoils in 2011, before stage 7 serves a 250 kilometres long transition stage. The last 100 kilometres are packed with short energy-sapping climbs.

La Grande Boucle ventures into the Alps in the second weekend. Stage 8 goes to Le Grand Bornand, a ski resort where Alaphilippe soloed to victory in 2018. In fact, the finale is a carbon copy with the Col de Romme and Col de la Colombière and a flying descent to the line.

Stage 9 finishes uphill in Tignes. The 2019 Tour de France would have finished there, but landslides in Val d’Isère decided differently. The 21 kilometres finish climb is preceded by three huge intermediate climbs.

Week 2 The 10th stage travels from Albertville to Valence, host of the Tour de France twice in the past six years. On both occasions the fast men had it their way – André Greipel in 2015, Peter Sagan in 2018 -, which is also the most likely scenario in 2021.

Arguably, the 11th stage is the most anticipated race of the 2021 Tour de France. The route takes in a double ascent of the Mont Ventoux without finishing at the top of the Beast of the Provence. Instead, the riders drop down into Malaucène, which lies at the foot of the famed mountain.

Following stage 12 – a virtually flat race into Nîmes – the race heads over to the Pyrenees, but without entering the mountain range just yet. Stage 13 finishes in Carcassonne, where the fast men are likely to shine, before stage 14 traverses the lumpy foothills of the Pyrenees to finish in Quillan, just shy of the high mountains that the riders penetrate that Sunday. Stage 15 takes in four intermediate climbs before a downhill finish into Andorra la Vella.

Week 3 The first day of the final week of action is bound to see a successful breakaway. Stage 16 serves three huge climbs before a flat finale with an uphill kicker inside the last 8 kilometres, while stage 17 is quite the opposite with Pyrenean climbing packed inside the last 65 kilometres. After the Col de Peyresourde and Col d’Azet-Val Louron the riders tackle the Col du Portet, which is a 16 kilometres climb at 8.7%, last used in 2018 (Nairo Quintana victory). Summit finish!

The final mountainous test of the 2021 Tour de France – stage 18 – takes in the Col du Tourmalet to finish uphill in ski resort Luz-Ardiden after an ascent of 13.3 kilometres at 7.4%.

The 19th stage travels north on flat to undulating terrain – sprinters or attackers?- before the final GC battle comes in the form of a second time trial. Stage 20 takes place in the vineyards of the Bordeaux region and adds up to 30.8 kilometres.

Obviously, the last stage travels into Paris, where a bunch sprint is next to certain.

Tour de France 2021: route, profiles, more

Click on the images to zoom

• Race Previews
• Race Reports
• Race Photos
• Tips & Reviews

Live: 2024 Vuelta Femenina Stage 1

Saris bones 3: comprehensive car bike rack review, double-header of racing in gracia orlova as huys & jeffers take maiden wins today, marta lach triumphs at festival elsy jacobs à garnich, checking out the 2024 vuelta femenina team time trial.

Email: [email protected]

Tour de France 2022 route review: “As usual there’s always something for everyone in the route”

The route for the 2022 Tour de France was announced today in Paris, with the organisers announcing a challenging course that will take in the Paris-Roubaix cobbles, La Planche des Belles Filles and a return to L’Alpe d’Huez.

We spoke to Team BikeExchange’s Head Sport Director Matt White and General Manager Brent Copeland to get their thoughts on next year’s route.

Stressful First Week The prestigious Grand Tour will start in Copenhagen, Denmark with a 13km time trial followed by three flat stages before the peloton reaches France for a hilly stage four. The rumours of a cobbled stage were confirmed at the presentation with stage five taking in 20km of pavé before the riders tackle the longest day of the race on day six.

White: “My first thoughts are that it’s going to be a very stressful first week, the devil will be in the details, obviously, but the stages in Denmark will be flat and exposed and windy. Then there’s a pretty crucial pavé stage on stage five, with 20km of cobbles.”

Copeland: “The first week is going to be really challenging with wind going through Denmark, Calais and Dunkirk before we get to the cobbles on stage five, it’s going to be a tough week.”

Short and Intense The 109 th edition of the race will see a return to the famous L’Alpe d’Huez along with stages in the Vosges, the Alps and the Pyrenees. The organisers have favoured shorter mountain stages in 2022, which should make for intense and aggressive action.

White: “The other thing that stood out to me was that besides the stage to L’Alpe d’Huez, a lot of the mountain stages are short and very flat in the first half, so there will be a very intense and compact second half to these stages. This will make it hard for the breakaway, and two  and with an action-packed couple of hours on each stage.

Balanced Route A lengthy 40km time trial on the penultimate day will be crucial for the general classification, but the 2022 parcours offers up something for everyone with a well-balanced route across the 21 days of racing.

White : “All-in-all, it’s a well-rounded Tour. 53km is quite a lot of time trialling, I don’t remember the last time we had a 40km individual time trial, it’s been a few years, but as usual there’s always something for everyone in the route.”

Copeland: “You will have to have luck on your side and get through that first week, then the rest of the route looks really interesting, really balanced out, a lot of climbs, short stages, but a very long time trial. It’s going to be a fantastic Tour, like every year.”

Photo Courtesy of Getty Sport.

Related articles

Double stage and success for canyon sram..., marlen reusser must continue to take a..., team sd worx wants to continue the..., scandinavian training should help koster in upcoming..., share article, latest articles.

Official games

2023 Edition

• Stage winners
• All the videos

Tour Culture

• Commitments
• key figures
• Sporting Stakes

"Maillot Jaune" Collection

• The jerseys

"Tour de France Cycle City" label: soon 150 towns and 10 countries in the loop?

Tourtel twist to continue to add zest to the tour....

D-100: ITALY TURNS YELLOW

Discover the official Tour de France 2024 mobile...

2023 rankings

Stage 1 | 06/29 Florence > Rimini

Stage 2 | 06/30 cesenatico > bologne, stage 3 | 07/01 plaisance > turin, stage 4 | 07/02 pinerolo > valloire, stage 5 | 07/03 saint-jean-de-maurienne > saint-vulbas, stage 6 | 07/04 mâcon > dijon, stage 7 | 07/05 nuits-saint-georges > gevrey-chambertin, stage 8 | 07/06 semur-en-auxois > colombey-les-deux-églises, stage 9 | 07/07 troyes > troyes, rest | 07/08 orléans, stage 10 | 07/09 orléans > saint-amand-montrond, stage 11 | 07/10 évaux-les-bains > le lioran, stage 12 | 07/11 aurillac > villeneuve-sur-lot, stage 13 | 07/12 agen > pau, stage 14 | 07/13 pau > saint-lary-soulan pla d'adet, stage 15 | 07/14 loudenvielle > plateau de beille, rest | 07/15 gruissan, stage 16 | 07/16 gruissan > nimes, stage 17 | 07/17 saint-paul-trois-châteaux > superdévoluy, stage 18 | 07/18 gap > barcelonnette, stage 19 | 07/19 embrun > isola 2000, stage 20 | 07/20 nice > col de la couillole, stage 21 | 07/21 monaco > nice, tour culture, grand départ florence émilie-romagne 2024, grand départ lille-nord de france 2025, 2024 tour de france finale in nice, riding into the future, all the news, official tour operators, history of tour de france, accessories.

Receive exclusive news about the Tour

General Ranking

> Withdrawals

Accreditations

Privacy policy, your gdpr rights.

2-FOR-1 GA TICKETS WITH OUTSIDE+

Don’t miss Thundercat, Fleet Foxes, and more at the Outside Festival.

GET TICKETS

BEST WEEK EVER

Try out unlimited access with 7 days of Outside+ for free.

Start Your Free Trial

Powered by Outside

Tour de France

Pyso: tour de france 2020 route review, a radical millennial tour de france: what gus would do (gravel), what the organizers have done (epic climbs), and what bobby thinks about all of this (make it fresh but keep it classy)..

Heading out the door? Read this article on the new Outside+ app available now on iOS devices for members! >","name":"in-content-cta","type":"link"}}'>Download the app .

The 2020 Tour de France has a brand new format, and current and former professional riders have strong opinions about it. Bobby and Gus are fired up.

“It’s as far from old-school parcours as I’ve seen,” Bobby says. “It’s the Millennial Tour.”

Bobby & Gus break down the 2020 Tour de France route including their disappointment with the race organizer, ASO, for only offering one day of racing for professional women . “It’s nothing more than a criterium on cobbles,” Bobby says.

They weigh in whether long stages still have a place in the Tour, for both riders and fans, and Bobby offers up his feelings about the individual time trial on the penultimate stage.

And they debate the merits of gravel, time bonuses, and mountain stages, while Gus wants to give non-climbers a chance to win the Tour. 

This episode of PYSO is supported by Saris. Learn more about Saris and their bike trainers here.  

Got questions for Bobby and Gus? Send them over to [email protected] . If they answer your question you’ll get a pair of PYSO socks.

Popular on Velo

>", "path": "https://velo.outsideonline.com/road/road-racing/chloe-patrick-and-cade-bickmore-snag-sprint-wins-on-penultimate-day-of-the-tour-of-the-gila/", "listing_type": "recirc", "location": "list", "title": "chloe patrick and cade bickmore snag sprint wins on penultimate day of the tour of the gila"}}'> chloe patrick and cade bickmore snag sprint wins on penultimate day of the tour of the gila, >", "path": "https://velo.outsideonline.com/road/road-racing/lidl-trek-wins-opening-stage-of-la-vuelta-feminina-despite-final-corner-crash/", "listing_type": "recirc", "location": "list", "title": "lidl-trek wins opening stage of la vuelta feminina despite final corner crash"}}'> lidl-trek wins opening stage of la vuelta feminina despite final corner crash, >", "path": "https://velo.outsideonline.com/gravel/gravel-racing/valtteri-bottas-uci-gravel-world-championships/", "listing_type": "recirc", "location": "list", "title": "f1’s valtteri bottas is going to the uci gravel world championships"}}'> f1’s valtteri bottas is going to the uci gravel world championships, >", "path": "https://velo.outsideonline.com/road/road-racing/carlos-rodriguez-wins-tour-de-romandie-dorian-godon-takes-tricky-final-stage/", "listing_type": "recirc", "location": "list", "title": "carlos rodríguez wins tour de romandie, dorian godon takes tricky final stage"}}'> carlos rodríguez wins tour de romandie, dorian godon takes tricky final stage.

Tour de France cycling tours in 2024: behind the scenes of cycling’s biggest race

Are you considering a Tour de France cycling tour for 2024?

Wondering whether to go DIY or opt for a Tour de France tour package?

Or perhaps you’re just intrigued as to what it takes to plan a trip to the world’s biggest cycling event?

This interview with Clément Cicuto, Sports Tours International’s General Manager for Europe, digs into the detail of planning the best Tour de France cycling tours.

Clément has been organising Tour de France holidays for Sports Tours International since 2011. His vast experience of the event means he has a ton of fascinating insights to share on everything from how to pick the best hotel for the stages you want to see, to what being a premium Tour de France tour operator means in practice.

1. Why are Tour de France cycling tours so special?

The Tour de France is the world’s most famous bike race and watching it live is a magical experience. There’s simply nothing like seeing the icons of the sport at a summit finish or on the streets of Paris, in real life.

Of course there are lots of ways you can watch the spectacle, but if you want a really special experience of the Tour (the kind of unique experiences that are normally reserved for the pros), you need to go with an official Tour de France operator. I explain more about official operators for Tour de France tours 2024 below .

1.1 Experience the tour like a pro

One of my favourite memories of a recent Tour de France trip was in 2015. We arrived at the mountain top finish and, as usual, it was a tiny area full of people and buses.

Our clients were cycling to the finish that day; we saw them come over the finish line, take photos on the podium and then be directed to the special hospitality area amongst all the dignitaries and sponsors, just hours before the peloton arrived. When we went to the buses, ours was parked amidst all the team buses, bikes and riders.

Our clients were so happy to be able to speak with the pros and get some really special photos – you don’t get closer to the action than that!

1.2 Once-in-a-lifetime experiences

There’s nothing like the feeling of the buzz on the coach at the end of the day, after everyone’s had a really unique and special experience. It’s an honour to be providing these outstanding experiences to our clients.

2. What kind of Tour de France bike tours will you offer in 2024?

We offer Tour de France official tours and we try to cover all of the key stages of the Tour de France each year. We offer both Tour de France spectator tours and trips where you can ride and watch.

You can find all of our trips on our website, here.

2.1 Grand Depart

The Grand Depart in 2024 will start in Florence, pass through Piedmont and end in Emilia Romagna. Stages 1 to 3 are Florence to Rimini, Cesenatico to Bologna and Plaisance to Turin. This is the first time the Tour has started in Italy, which makes catching the Tour here a particularly unique experience. Expect incredible scenery, picturesque villages, and passionate supporters.

Sports Tours International is offering a four night tour that includes access to the Relais Etape mid-stage hospitality area on Stage 1, access to the Izoard finish hospitality area on Stage 2 and access to the Village Depart area on Stage 3 .

Check out the four-night spectator tour  – sporting weekends don’t get much better.

The Tour de France’s most memorable moments are often in the Alps.

We’re particularly excited to offer a trip that will take our cyclists from the Alps all the way to the finish in Nice. It includes four mountain stages, including stage 19 (Embrun to Isola 200 via the Cime de la Bonnette) and stage 20 (Nice to Col de la Couillole with a mountain top finish at Col de la Couillole) which are set to be key moments in the race. Our guests will also enjoy final day hospitality at the stage 21 time trial between Monaco and Nice. More details here.

2.2 Finish in Nice

Due to preparations for hosting the 2024 Olympic Games, the Tour de France will not finish in Paris this year. It’s the first time in its 121 year history that the Tour hasn’t finished in the Paris region!

Instead, Le Tour will finish with a time trial in Nice. It’s the first time since 1989 that the Tour has finished with a time trial that has the potential to topple the leader.

We offer a three day weekend trip with Tour de France hospitality access on Saturday (Izoard Finish) and Sunday (Grandstand Finish). More details here .

Surely every serious Tour de France fan has to experience this unique event?!

2.3 Bespoke and custom getaways to the Tour de France

And finally, we also offer bespoke experiences – whether for a small group or 100 people.

Usually groups come to us knowing when they’d like to go and how many people the trip is for.

We’ll come up with an outline for what we can suggest. That might include a stage in an official Tour de France car, a Tour de France helicopter experience, access to the start village and stage finish or VIP finish hospitality.

We can also create special packages that put together different trips and experiences. There are some great options for those that aren’t riding too.

You can find full information about each trip on our website .

3. What does it mean to be an official Tour Operator of the Tour de France?

There are six official Tour de France Approved Operators for the UK. Of these only two are Diamond tour operators (the rest are gold, silver or bronze level). Of course Sports Tours is at the Diamond level and this means Sports Tours International gets the first choice for experiences for our clients.

3.1 Approved Operators

We often find there’s quite a lot of confusion about what being an approved operator means.

The answer is that the Approved Operators get priority access to Tour de France experiences that non-Approved operators can’t get.

VIP Hospitality

Approved Operators can book VIP hospitality areas at the stage starts, finishes, and along the racecourse.

An example is the Izoard VIP access area. It’s usually within 200m of the finish and centres around big food and drink trucks parked in a great spot with a VIP viewing area. There will also be a terrace, tables, chairs, free food, beer, champagne – and of course a TV to follow the race. Our clients will be mixing with the sponsors, dignitaries and organisers.

There are also other hospitality experiences such as a high quality four course meal with wine, with the professional riders passing within the last five kilometres of the stage.

Riding closed roads

Approved Operators can also get permission to ride on the race route ahead of the pros when the road is closed to the general public and cross the finish line.

We also offer clients the experience of meeting the Tour de France organisers at the Flamme Rouge marker, with 1 kilometre before the finish. They then escort us with the official car across the finish line just three hours or so before the pro race crosses.

Podium photos and other extras

Approved Operators can receive permission to take photos on the official podium.

There are also additional extras such as the option to ride in the Tour de France official car.

Our clients often tell us that these experiences make their trip unforgettable.

They mean that our clients can do a lot more with their day – for example they don’t need to get to the race four hours early to make sure they can get a spot by the barriers.

It also means they’re not caught out by last minute changes to the road closures. For example when the police in Tignes made a last minute decision to close the road the night before, it sadly meant many people were caught out – but not guests with an Approved Operator.

3.2 Diamond level Approved Operators

Of the Approved Operators, only two are diamond level Approved Operators in the UK – and we are one of them.

This means we have unlimited access, and first call on the experiences mentioned above.

For example if there are a limited number of spaces at the hospitality area at a summit finish, like Alpe d’Huez that’s always really popular, we get first call on the places; this means our clients don’t miss out on the best bits of the Tour.

So if we get a request for a bespoke trip for 20 cyclists that want to be at the top of Alpe d’Huez on race day, our premium status means that we should be able to accommodate that. In contrast, the non-diamond operators might get given less tickets to an experience or be asked to pick a different stage finish. The diamond level operators get priority.

3.3 Weekly contact with ASO

During the ten months between October and the start of the Tour de France, we have weekly contact with ASO to discuss arrangements for the Tour. Sometimes it’s group briefing calls, sometimes it’s calls with our contacts directly.

They are really helpful in providing huge amounts of detailed information that we need to make sure our trips run smoothly for our clients. For example which routes we should take to the Tour de France hospitality areas, exactly where the premium operator parking is at the finishes, maps and addresses.

They also suggest things that could be a great experience for our clients and help us ensure our clients have a more amazing experience than they expected.

4. What makes your Tour de France cycling holidays special?

We work really hard to make sure we offer the best tour de France cycling tours on the market. Our motto is “our experience makes yours” and we really believe this is true.

Our staff have a huge amount of knowledge and experience of the Tour de France – well over 50 years experience if you combine it together! It’s not just the hosts and guides our clients meet, but the people that our clients don’t always see – people like me!

I have been planning Tour de France trips for Sports Tours for fourteen years now and in total Sports Tours have been running Tour de France tour experiences for over twenty years (that’s twenty years of feedback to hone what we offer!).

I think this really makes a difference in the end product. The route changes each year and it’s only because of my and my team’s personal knowledge of the logistics for the Tour and connections that we can get the best accommodation and experiences for our guests.

The fact that we’re based in France and speak the language means we can have a very close relationship with the organisers and hotel owner. We have our own local knowledge of how things work in France that can really make the difference.

Finally, our guides are all passionate cyclists who love the Tour and looking after our guests. They make our guest experience unforgettable and deliver a first class service.

4.2 Support

We think we have the best logistics out there – we’ve got a fleet of minibuses and vehicles with bike racks and trailers, driven by French people that know their country and the race extremely well.

4.3 Diamond level Approved Operators

I’ve said a lot about the benefits this status has for our clients, so I won’t repeat that. However it does give us flexibility to ensure we can increase our numbers even when other operators have sold out their trips.

We try and incorporate each of the different VIP experiences described above within one of the four day three night Tour de France holiday packages. Usually it will be a different experience each day.

4.4 Larger numbers brings benefits for our clients

Every year we bring more than 500 clients to the Tour de France. We can do this because we’re diamond level Approved Operators and because our knowledge and planning means we can flex our team to ensure we still deliver the highest quality, unique experiences.

One of the reasons that it’s good for our clients that we have lots of clients, is that it means we can afford that diamond level operator access that provides the unique experiences. We can also justify services that other operators with less clients can offer. For example we can have more guides on the road with different speed riding groups. Or if we know we have a group of Spanish cyclists we’ll make sure we have a Spanish host.

We have more staff so we can be more flexible, for example if someone wants to spectate instead of ride or ride a longer or shorter route.

Finally, our clients tell us that they love the opportunity we provide them to meet other cycling fans from all over the world during their trip. The diversity of the countries our clients have come from makes for lots of interesting conversations and sometimes even lifelong new friends!

4.5 Based in the UK

We’re based in the UK, with an office in France and Ireland, and have all the necessary licences to operate in France, which many of our clients find reassuring.

We offer ABTA bonding too, just in case things go wrong. For example our clients won’t lose their money if the event doesn’t take place for some reason.

Take a look at all of our Tour de France trips on our website .

5. How does your Tour de France trip planning process work?

Planning our Tour de France bicycle tours is always a challenge because the route is different every year.

The upside for our clients is that it means they can book a trip with us every year and it will always be unique.

5.1 Finding the hotels

The first step in our planning process is to find the perfect hotels for our trips.

This is one of the most complicated areas to sort out because we can’t wait for the course to be announced to book the accommodation. If we did that, it would be too late and all the best places would have gone!

So we have to work on rumours of where the Tour de France route will go next year. We often have to take some risks and book hotels without having certainty on the route. It can be a bit stressful, but it’s mitigated by our extensive experience of planning these trips and we’ve never gone wrong yet.

We get calls ahead of time from our friends on the ground – for example our local French guides, hotel partners and contacts at tourist offices in the host towns. They tend to have the best knowledge about what’s likely to happen with the route and this means we can book the best accommodation before everyone else!

There’s more information on what we look for in our hotels, below .

5.2 Experiences

Once we’ve sorted out the hotels, we consider what hospitality and experiences we can build into the trip to ensure it’s really special for our clients.

We plan the best daily rides and climbs our cyclists can do to get to the Tour de France event. We flex these depending on our clients’ level of experience and fitness. We also plan unique activities for when it’s the Tour’s rest days.

Some clients ride, some don’t. If they ride, it’s up to them how far they go as we can accommodate non-riders in our support vehicles. Often it’s between 10 and 100km each day, but it’s up to them. We always have e-bikes available too so they can always jump on an e-bike if they’re not as fit as they thought! Our mechanics are always on hand to help with any bike problems.

5.3 Transport and suppliers

After accommodation, it’s time to arrange all the logistics, transport and transfers.

We work with suppliers like bike rental companies, we book restaurants and plan Tour de France merchandising for our clients.

We also prepare a detailed staffing plan to ensure we’ve got the best team on hand throughout each trip.

5.4 Itineraries

With these things in place we then create a detailed itinerary. The version clients see on our website is the brief version of the itinerary. We send a really detailed version to our clients about three weeks before the trip.

5.5 Working hand in hand with ASO

Everything we do is against the backdrop of the weekly calls and meetings we have with ASO. These start in October when the route is announced and continue all the way to the Tour itself. We have an excellent relationship with them and this means we can ensure the experiences we offer are the best, that the transport is slick and our itineraries create a unique trip our clients will remember forever.

6. How do you choose the hotels for your Tour de France holidays?

Picking the right hotels is key to the success of our trips.

6.1 Location, location, location

We look for a central location compared to the Tour de France route. This avoids our clients having to check in and out of a new hotel every day, which is not very relaxing and it’s very time consuming.

We also look for hotels that are accessible from an international airport, have lots to see around them, great views and good guided ride options.

6.2 Good quality

Our ideal hotels are good quality 3 or 4 stars with a secure room for the bikes. We aim to choose hotels that are family run as we find they offer a more authentic experience. The owners also often have a better understanding of what we need in terms of food and they’re great at connecting with our clients.

We also make sure our hotels offer an excellent breakfast and evening meal. In the morning it’s important for getting a busy day off on the right note and in the evening it’s got to be somewhere that’s good for a celebration!

6.4 Pro teams

Sometimes we are able to book our clients into the same hotels as a Tour de France pro team, which is really exciting.

We’re always on the lookout for where the pros will be staying and sometimes we get tips from the hotel owners that they’re going to get a pro team. Also in some towns we know which teams were allocated which hotels the previous time the Tour visited and usually they get allocated the same hotels again. It’s one of the benefits of booking with us – that we are so familiar with the history of the Tour and use this to maximise our clients’ experience.

Likewise, on normal years when the Tour visits Paris, everyone always loves the Mercure Hotel we stay at the Arc de Triomphe. It’s 200m from the Tour de France which is perfect.

7. How to go to the Tour de France: DIY versus a Tour de France package trip?

It can be tempting to plan your own Tour de France cycling trip. That can work well if you’re happy to just watch a stage and don’t mind making getting there, waiting, watching and going home the sole focus for your day.

However if you’re looking to get more from this great annual sporting event, an organised Tour de France trip is the way to get the perfect trip.

There are so many things that you can do on a tour with an Approved Tour de France Operator that you can’t do alone. It’s the things I mentioned above , things like having accreditation to ride the race route on closed roads, getting access to VIP areas and hospitality, having everything planned with the right information from the organiser which you can’t find online and having great hotels that are well-placed for the route.

A trip might only be three nights away in July, but you’re getting the benefit of a year’s worth of planning – and our twenty years of experience before that!

8. Where can people find more information?

You can get more information about Sports Tours’ many Tour de France cycling trips on their website .

Clément and the team would also be very happy to answer any questions – just contact them at +44 (0)161 703 8161 or [email protected] .

A huge thank you to Clément for sharing such an insightful behind the scenes look at what goes into planning a Tour de France trip.

Have you been on a Tour de France bike tour?

If you’ve been to France to spectate the Tour de France, let us know how it went in the comments below!

For those coming into France by plane, you might find this website useful – it shares an overview of all flight routes worldwide.

Got a question for Sports Tours International?

Fill out this form and Sports Tours International will reply (within 24 hours wherever they possibly can!)

We will use this info to send the enquiry to Sports Tours International. Our privacy policy explains more and here’s a reminder of our disclosure policy and terms and conditions.

Got a question for Clément?

Fill out this form and we will send it to Clément. We aim to get you an answer within 24 hours wherever possible!

We will use this info to send the enquiry to Clément and/or their team. Our privacy policy explains more and here’s a reminder of our disclosure policy and terms and conditions.

Clément Cicuto is General Manager for Europe at Sports Tours International . He’s in charge of creating, planning and implementing all the company’s events in France. He’s been planning Tour de France (and L’Étape du Tour de France) trips since 2010 and loves the challenge, excitement and variety they offer. Based near Paris, he’s close to the Tour’s organisers and grateful to them for their continued support that ensure Sports Tours can offer such fantastic experiences to its clients.

The contents of this website are provided for general information purposes only. It is not intended to amount to advice and you should not rely on it. You should carry out your own due diligence and take professional advice. We make no representations, warranties or guarantees, whether express or implied, that the content on our website is accurate, complete or up to date. If you use any information or content on this website, download from, or otherwise obtain content or services through our website, it is entirely at your own discretion and risk. Epic Road Rides Ltd disclaims all liability and responsibility arising from any reliance placed on the information and content on this website. Find out more here .

4 Responses to “Tour de France cycling tours in 2024: behind the scenes of cycling’s biggest race”

Looking for dates around 7/9-15/2023

We’ve been in touch – have a great trip!

I would like to get information about doing a closed road tour of 2024 TDF stage 3 on July 1, 2024 before the professional riders. Do you provide this type of tour? Do you also provide the bikes and what is the cost?

Hi Michelle, thanks for this, I’ll send you an email now. Best wishes, Clare

Leave your comment

Click here to cancel reply.

• Name (required)
• Mail (required) (will not be published)

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed .

Privacy Overview

Tour de France Femmes 2024: News & Route Preview

Stay up-to-date with the latest news, and route details for the tour de france femmes 2024. get all the updates on the highly anticipated women's cycling event..

The Tour de France is the most well-known cycling race in the world. Winning the overall yellow jersey – and sometimes even just a stage – of the prestigious event is enough to cement your status as one of the best in the sport. After decades of being practically ignored by race organizers, the women’s peloton not only have their own version of the race, the Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift, but are also proving why they deserve the spotlight as well. 

Tour de France Femmes 2024 in numbers:

• Total distance: 946.3km 
• Total distance climbed: 10,700m 
• 3 countries visited: Netherlands, Belgium, and France. 
• 4 mountain ranges: the Ardennes, Vosges, Jura. and Alps. 
• 2 summit finishes 
• 3 sprint finishes 
• 1 time trial 

When is the Tour de France Femmes 2024?

The 2024 Tour de France Femmes has its first Grand Depart when the race begins in Rotterdam Aug. 12, shortly after the completion of the Paris Summer Olympics. The first three days of the race will wind its way through the Netherlands, before transitioning into Belgium, then France on the fourth day. The third edition of the race will end Aug. 18 with a thrilling summit finish atop the iconic Alpe d'Huez.

Tour de France Femmes History

Although this is only the third year the Tour de France Femmes has officially existed, women racers have competed in a version of the Tour de France since the 1950’s.   

After a one-off women’s race in 1955, it would be nearly 30 years until a female-led Tour de France race was held. Beginning in 1984, the Tour de France Féminin ran around the same time as the men’s race, albeit with fewer and somewhat shorter stages. That race lasted until 1989. For the next two years, two other women’s stage races blazed through France, although under different names, such as the Grande Boucle Féminine Internationale and Tour Cycliste Féminin, and without a direct connection to the men’s race.   

In 2014, the La Course, a one- or two-day event held in conjunction with the men’s race by the Tour de France organizers, began. The race brought a much-deserved spotlight back to the women’s peloton, but teams and fans alike believed the race didn’t really show off what the competitors were capable of, as the stages weren’t difficult enough. La Course lasted until 2021, when it was replaced by the current iteration of the race, the Tour de France Femmes.   

The first Tour de France Femmes was held in 2022, directly after the men’s race, with eight stages of intense racing. Annemiek van Vleuten (Movistar) won that first edition enroute to sweeping all three women’s Grand Tour stage races and the women’s world road race title that same year. Truly one of the most dominant seasons in cycling history.   

In 2023, van Vleuten would finish fourth, while the 2022 runner-up Demi Vollering (SD Worx) ascended one step up the podium. Vollering made her mark on the race during a dominant performance up the feared Col du Tourmalet. Kasia Niewiadoma ( Canyon-SRAM ) won the polka-dot Queen of the Mountains jersey while placing third overall for the second year in a row and riding a variety of Canyon road bikes . Find out which Canyon road bikes our pro riders ride during their races . 

Canyon/SRAM bikes 

Who are the main 2024 Tour de France Femmes contenders?

Last year’s winner Vollering will be back in 2024, looking to defend her yellow jersey, while Niewiadoma looks to finally move up to the top step of the podium this August. 

Vollering’s teammate Lotte Kopecky, last year’s second-place finisher, green jersey winner, and current road-race world champion, could aim for overall victory this year as well. Will we see an internal team struggle like the Jumbo-Visma dysfunction at the 2023 Vuelta? 

Juliette Labous (Team dsm-firmenich) will be looking to be the first French winner of a Tour de France (men or women) since Bernard Hinault. Multiple-time world champion Marianne Vos (Visma-Lease a Bike) is always a threat whenever she pins on a race number and could contend again for the green jersey she won in 2022. Ashleigh Moolman Pasio (AG Insurance-Soudal-QuickStep), Elisa Balsamo (Lidl-Trek), and Cecilie Uttrup Ludwig (FDJ-SUEZ) will be aiming for stage wins and podium spots. 

The Tour de France Femmes Route

The balanced route gives the sprinters, climbers, and puncheurs each their moment in the spotlight. At the end of the three weeks, we'll finally find out the winners of the prized Tour de France Femmes jerseys – yellow for the overall winner, polka-dot for queen of the mountains classifications winner, green for the winner of the points classification, and white, won by the best-placed rider under the age of 23 in the general classification. 

This 77-mile, pancake-flat route will give one talented sprinter her chance to wear the yellow jersey during the early stages. It’s highly unlikely a breakaway will succeed on this stage or the main contenders will want to risk getting involved in what promises to be a mad dash for the finish. 

Riders will be doing double duty on this stage, racing two stages. The first is a flat, 41-mile route that returns riders to Rotterdam. Strong winds could be a factor, but this promises to be another spotlight for the green-jersey contenders. 

The second of two stages on this day, this 4-mile time trial won’t be long enough for any of the true diesel-powered specialists like Canyon-sponsored Chloe Dygert to put any real time on the field, but could shuffle the deck a bit at the top of the standings. 

This 76-mile stage brings the peloton into Belgium, traversing some of roads used in the famed Classics races and including eight categorised ascents. The hilly terrain will increase the chances of a successful breakaway or solo escape. The short, but steep, climbs will make this one of the more lively stages of this year’s Tour. 

• Bemelerberg (twice), 1.3km long with an average gradient of 4.9% 
• Cauberg, 0.7km long with an average gradient of 8% 
• Geulhemmerberg, 1.1km long with an average gradient of 5.1% 
• Mont-Theux, 2.8km long with an average gradient of 5.6% 
• Côte de la Redoute, 1.6km long with an average gradient of 9.4% 
• Côte des Forges, 1.3km long with an average gradient of 7.8% 
• Côte de la Roche-aux-Faucons, 1.3km long with an average gradient of 11% 

A mostly flat, 93-mile route that brings race into France. While riders must contend with five short climbs, none of them should be difficult enough to create any significant gaps. The uphill lead-in to the Amnéville finish will be interesting. Will the main contenders watch as a puncheur grabs the stage win or will they attempt to assert control over the race before the peloton enters the mountains? 

• Côte de Hotte, 1.2km long with an average gradient of 7.9% 
• Côte de Saint-Pancre, 1.5km long with an average gradient of 3.9% 
• Côte de Fermont, 1.5km long with an average gradient of 4.6% 
• Côte de Briey, 1.1km long with an average gradient of 4.4% 
• Côte de Montois-la-Montagne, 1.7km long with an average gradient of 6% 

Four categorized climbs over the second half of the 100-mile stage should animate the day’s racing. 

• Col du Mont de Fourche, 3.2km long with an average gradient of 5.9% 
• Col de Ferriere, 2.6km long with an average gradient of 4.7% 
• Côte de Laviron, 5.7km long with an average gradient of 4.1% 
• La Roche du Pretre, 5.5km long with an average gradient of 5.6% 
• Côte des Fins, 1.8km long with an average gradient of 6.9% 

The peloton finally arrives in the mountains for this 103-mile stage. Competitors won’t have time for a refreshing sparkling beverage on the 12km (7.5-mile) climb up the Col de la Croix la Sierra, as they rocket toward the day’s denouement. The last 30km (18 miles) of the route is essentially all uphill, climbing nearly 700m to the 1,285m Le Grand-Bornand finish. 

• Col de la Croix la Sierra, 12km long with an average gradient of 5.1% 
• Côte de Bois d'Ariod, 2.4km long with an average gradient of 4.6% 
• Côte de Cercier, 4km long with an average gradient of 4.9% 
• Col de Saint-Jean-de-Sixt, 5.4km long with an average gradient of 5.1% 
• Montée du Chinaillon, 7km long with an average gradient of 5.1% 

It all comes down to this 93-mile stage. After the relatively short Col de Tamié climb and descent, the peloton has a relatively flat 50km (32-mile) pedal before the day’s fireworks begin at the foot of the monstrous, 1,924m Col du Glandon, the highest point of this year’s Tour. Expect the main contenders’ teams to begin duking it out here, hoping to score a knockout blow before the iconic 1,850m Alpe d'Huez climb and finish. 

• Col de Tamié, 9.5km long with an average gradient of 4% 
• Col du Glandon, 19.7km long with an average gradient of 7.2% 
• Alpe d'Huez, 13.8km long with an average gradient of 8.1% 

Expectations leading to the race?

This year’s Tour comes directly on the heels of the 2024 Olympics, held in Paris. After falling short of a gold medal, many athletes will be looking for solace in a yellow jersey, which means the competition should be intense. 

Canyon riders to watch

Kasia Niewiadoma (Canyon-SRAM), will be gunning for the yellow jersey again this year after finishing on the podium the last two years. Neve Bradbury (Canyon-SRAM), who won a Zwift Academy challenge to earn her professional contract in 2020, will also be looking to add to her palmarès and could be wearing the white jersey at the race end. Current world time-trial champion Chloe Dygert (Canyon-SRAM) may also participate. 

How to watch the 2024 Tour de France Femmes

There’s no better way to experience the 2024 Tour de France Femmes than attending the race live. But for those of us who can’t afford to take more than a week off work to attend a bike race and drink exquisite French wine, these networks will be broadcasting the stage race, either through daily highlights or start-to-finish coverage. 

• Eurosport (Europe) 
• NBC Sports (USA) 
• SBS (Australia) 

Discover our Road Bikes

Did this article help?

Thank you for your feedback

Robert Annis

Robert Annis is an award-winning outdoor-travel journalist. As an experienced writer and sport enthusiast he writes content that is inspiring with focus on road biking. You might have read Robert's articles in Bicycling, National Geographic, Outside, Travel + Leisure, Inside Hook, AARP, Midwest Living, Sierra, Hemispheres, Departures, Lonely Planet, Afar, Los Angeles Times, Chicago Tribune, RV Magazine, and Hidden Compass.

Related Stories

Home Explore France Official Tourism Board Website

• Explore the map

9 beautiful stops on the 2020 Tour de France route

Inspiration

Cycling Tourism Sporting Activities

Reading time: 0 min Published on 29 November 2023, updated on 15 April 2024

Postponed until August 29, the Tour de France kicks off its 3,470 kilometer (2156 mile), 21 stage loop in Nice, the capital of the Côte d'Azur, finishing on Paris' Champs Elysées on September 20. From Provence to Auvergne, the Alps to the Pyrenees, from Lyon to Occitanie, the Tour de France cyclists compete against the backdrop of some of the loveliest scenery in France. Break away from the pack with us and put pedal to the metal to discover the treasures of these French regions. On your mark, get set, go!

Nice, a beautiful starting line for the Tour de France 2020

The world's favorite bike race begins where the blue of the sky meets the blue of the Côte d'Azur : the Bay des Anges is the the background and the Promenade des Anglais is the route. From Nice, the cyclists will loop three times around the countryside, crossing 156 km (97 miles) at full speed. This leaves spectators plenty of time to wander through the picturesque alleys of Old Nice, or explore one of the cliffside villages high above the Côte d’Azur.

• Prepare your trip to the Côte d'Azur
• Find out more about Nice, Côte d'Azur

Heading to Sisteron on the route Napoleon on the Tour de France

On to the third stage: heading to Sisteron, in Provence, from Nice, the cyclists' journey is scented with the aromas of Grasse, the city of perfume . You absolutely must visit the Musée International de la Parfumerie before checking out the legendary Route Napoleon, the route the emperor took on his return from Elba. Snaking through gorges, forests, and small Provençal villages, it's a view so pretty (and so Provence) it might make the racers forget about the Tour. Certainly, it takes their breath away, from the moment they arrive at Sisteron and they see the citadel perched above the Durance.

• Prepare your visit along the Route Napoleon with Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur Tourism

From Gap to Privas, crossing Provence

Beautiful Gap, the fortified medieval city, passes as the lovely capital of the Southern Alps. The fifth stage of the race flits through the olive orchards and fragrant lavender fields . From one side, you spy a Provençal market. Further down, a charming arbor to catch your breath. Before you know it, you've reached Montélimar, the gate of Provence and the kingdom of nougat. Privas, capital of the Ardèche, is just 30 kilometers (18 miles) away. Take your time here; the green city provides a warm welcome to wanderers, on bike or on foot.

- Prepare your trip to Provence

From Pau to Lauruns, the foothills of the Pyrenees

In the foothills of the Pyrenees, Pau is a royal stage. In this lovely mountain town where King Henry IV was born in a turtle shell, according to tradition. The delicate château is the perfect spot to visit before heading up the mountain. For the cyclists, this part of the race is a veritable up-and-down dance to gain moment in the mountain passes. Luckily, non-racers can loop through France's southern mountains more tranquilly, between cirques and green alpine pastures. In the Ossau Valley, just a few kilometers from Pau, the mountains reign surpeme.

• Prepare your visit to Pau

In Auvergne, climb volcanoes

The 13th stage of the Tour de France 2020 transverses the Massif Central in Auvergne, climbing the summit of Puy Mary. This volcano , a vestige of the largest strato-volcano in Europe, will surely take your breath away. Every inch of this 1,783 m (5849 ft) sleeping giant is classified as a Grand Site de France (Great Site of France). From the height of this verdant pyramid, the views are exceptionnal—all the way to the Alps' Mont Blanc, on a clear day!

- Prepare your trip to Auvergne

Lyon's bouchons are the perfect stop

While the Tour de France cyclists are known for their good speed, they'd be forgiven for rubbernecking a bit in Lyon's bouchons , the traditional bistros of this foodie city. As the capital of French gastronomy, Lyon is home to scores of their unique bouchons, haute cuisine spots, and the newly-opened Cité de la Gastronomie. Many of these serve local delicacies, so the cyclists will have a true lyonnais feast to look forward to when they reach the foot of the Croix Rousse! After spotting the athletes, duck into the famed spinners' traboules and secret passageways (stone towers leftover from Lyon's silk-spinning past), charming squares and picturesque alleyways.

• Prepare your trip to Lyon

Climbing the Alps

From Grenoble, the capital city of the Alps, the peaks are an embarassment of riches. Before reaching Paris, the Tour de France 2020 hits up Méribel, in the heart of the region of 3 valleys, to experience high-altitude beauty. The 17th and 18th stages in the mountains make cyclists' and spectators' pulses climb as high as the mountains, but, the Alps offer more than enough relaxation hubs to bring it back down. Who will win the maillot jaune (yellow jersey)? Find out on the Champs- Elysées podium in Paris on September 20!

- Prepare your trip to the Alps - Read more about Savoie Mont Blanc

Champs-Elysées: the finish line

And just like that, we're in Paris. When they spot the sprawl of the capital and the wide boulevard of the Champs-Elysées, the Tour de France competitors always feel a tingle of excitement as the finish line races towards them. Cheers and applause await as the cyclists whizz between Paris' prestigious monuments and landmarks. Of course, you can visit those too!

• Plan your trip to the Paris Region

Find out more:

• Tour de France
• Tour de France Facebook
• Tour de France Twitter
• Tour de France DailyMotion
• Tour de France Instagram
• Biking in France Itinerary

And don't forget, have a chance to win a trip to the Tour de France arrival in Paris next year in 2021 by participating to our competition , ends 30. September 2020!

More info here.

By Redaction France.fr

The magazine of the destination unravels an unexpected France that revisits tradition and cultivates creativity. A France far beyond what you can imagine…

Paris Region is the home of major sporting events!

Tour de France : Final stage of glory in Paris

Get in touch with nouvelle-aquitaine in south west of france.

Biarritz-Basque Country

Loire Valley, Champagne and beyond, The perfect blend

Alsace and Lorraine

Cycling, a new key to the Coastline

Along La Loire à Vélo

Loire Valley

Discovering the most beautiful beaches of the Pays de la Loire, by Natigana

#ExploreFrance

Atlantic Loire Valley

Fly, Walk, Pedal - Get Moving on the Côte d'Azur

Côte d'Azur

Tour de France 2022 – The Essential Preview

All you need to know about the route, contenders, and storylines for the 109th edition of the Grande Boucle

When the route for the 2022 Tour de France was revealed last October, Tadej Pogačar , winner of the past two editions, was thrilled to see such a testing but balanced route. "It's pretty great," said the Slovenian. "From the first stage to the last stage, we have everything: sprints, echelons, cobbles, big climbs, small climbs and time trials.”    

Ten days out from the Grand Départ , Pogačar remains the favourite for the 109th edition of the Tour de France, with all his rivals still trying to find a weakness in his armour and a way to defeat him during the three weeks between Copenhagen and Paris.  

Pogačar's multitude of talents and his ability to race aggressively appear perfectly matched to the route of the 2022 Tour de France.

The first week of racing has been described as a series of Classics, and Pogačar’s victories at Strade Bianche, Liège-Bastogne-Liège, and Il Lombardia, along with his aggressive ride and fourth place at this year’s Tour of Flanders, indicate he could gain time on many of his rivals even before the first mountain stage.

Tour de France 2022: Results and news Tour de France 2022 route revealed Tour de France 2022 - Analysing the contenders

The 2022 Tour also returns to La Planche des Belles Filles, where Pogačar cruelly snatched victory from Primož Roglič in 2020, and then heads into the high Alps with tough mountain finishes on the Col du Granon and at L’Alpe d’Huez. There are then further mountain finishes at Peyragudes and Hautacam in the Pyrenees.

The route, however, is bookended by time trials, with a short 13.2km opener in Copenhagen and a rather more pivotal 40.7km test in Rocamadour ahead of the procession to Paris on July 24. 

Only Jacques Anquetil, Eddy Merckx, Miguel Indurain and Chris Froome have won three consecutive Tours. The 2022 race is arguably Pogačar’s Tour to lose but history has taught us that anything can happen during the three weeks of the Tour de France.

It will be up to Roglič and his Jumbo-Visma co-leader Jonas Vingegaard - along with Ineos Grenadiers' trio of Adam Yates, Dani Martínez and Geraint Thomas - to find a way to defeat Pogačar, while a host of other contenders hope for a miracle.

The Tour de France 2022 Route

The 109th Tour de France starts on July 1 in Copenhagen, Denmark and ends in Paris on Sunday July 24 after 3328km of racing. As Pogačar suggested, the 21 days really do include every aspect of bike racing.  

For the first time since 2017, the Tour begins with a city-centre time trial in the capital, followed by two flat stages across the country from Roskilde to Nyborg and then south from Vejle to Sønderborg. The riders will fly to France on Sunday evening after stage 3 and enjoy an extra rest day before starting the real lap of France.

Copenhagen is arguably the best bike city in the world, where 1.4 million people a day travel by bike - more than in the whole of the USA. The Danish capital will celebrate cycling during the Grand Départ, with a party atmosphere expected for the opening time trial.

The 13.2km city-centre course includes 18 corners and visits the Little Mermaid and other landmarks but Filippo Ganna (Ineos Grenadiers) will have little time to enjoy the views as he dives through the corners at close to 54km/h. The world time trial champion is the favourite to win and so pull on the first yellow jersey but could be challenged by Stefan Küng (Groupama-FDJ), Wout van Aert (Jumbo-Visma) and other time triallists willing to take risks in the corners.

The overall contenders will also be fighting for every second, with Roglič hoping to gain a psychological advantage on Pogačar, while everyone else tries to limit their losses on the two Slovenians.

The opening road race stages of the Tour are always tense, crash-filled affairs and stage 2 to Nyborg should be no different. The road along the northern coast will be spectacular, as will the final 18km on the Great Belt Fixed Link bridge that connects Zeeland with Funen. If the wind is blowing, then positioning will be vital to avoid crashes in the peloton, while echelons could form on the exposed roads and on the long bridge to the finish.

The 182km third stage should be a calmer affair and a sprint finish, with Fabio Jakobsen (QuickStep-AlphaVinyl), Caleb Ewan (Lotto Soudal), Sam Bennett (Bora-Hansgrohe), Jasper Philipsen (Alpecin-Fenix), Peter Sagan (TotalEnergies) and their respective lead-out trains to clash in a high-speed finish.

Racing returns on Tuesday July 5 with stage 4 near the northern French coast via an inland loop between Dunkirk and Calais. The 171km stage includes several hills and the Cap Blanc Nez climb on the white cliffs just 10km from the finish.

Things get far more serious for the overall contenders on stage 5, which includes 11 sectors and a total 19.4km of Paris-Roubaix cobbles. They come in the second half of the 153.7km stage and could, like in previous years, cause crashes, significant time gaps, heartbreak and glory for the winner.  

“It can go terribly wrong or it can go okay. You won’t win the Tour here, but you can lose the Tour,” Pogačar predicted after his reconnaissance of the route.

Alps, Pyrenees, and a final TT

After tackling the cobbles a 220km hilly stage in Lorraine lies in wait before the first summit finish of the race – the stage 7 test up to Super Planche des Belles Filles.

La Planche des Belles Filles was first climbed in the 2012 Tour de France when Chris Froome won the stage and Bradley Wiggins took the yellow jersey, and last in 2020 when Pogačar broke Roglič's heart. This year is again a ‘super’ Planche des Belles Filles finish, with the line atop the very peak of the mountain after an additional gravel track.

Two hilly transfer stages during the weekend take the Tour to Lausanne and Aigle in Switzerland before the second Monday rest day and a climb into the high Alps. Stage 10 is short at 148.1km but ends with a 19.2km climb to the summit finish on the Megève runway, where Sepp Kuss (Jumbo-Visma) won a stage at the 2020 Critérium du Dauphiné.

Stage 11 is much tougher and includes the spectacular Lacets de Montvernier before the mighty Col du Télégraphe and Col du Galibier. The stage ends for just the second time in Tour history with a mountain finish on the Col du Granon. It is a breathtaking 2413m high and saw the battle royal between Greg Lemond and Bernard Hinault in 1986.

Stage 12 is held on Bastille Day and will be a celebration of France as well as Grand Tour racing. The 165km stage returns to the Col du Galibier via the easier side and then climbs the Croix de Fer before celebrating the 70th anniversary of a finish on L’Alpe d’Huez and  Fausto Coppi’s victory in 1952. The legendary hairpins will surely be packed again with fans from around the world as the likes of Thibaut Pinot (Groupama-FDJ) and Romain Bardet (Team DSM) fight for a French stage win.

The Tour route heads out of the Alps via Saint-Etienne and a finish on the Mende Plateau, where Steve Cummings famously won on Mandela Day for MTN-Qhubeka in 2015. Another long, hot transfer stage takes the peloton onto Carcassonne for the third rest day, with the Pyrenees in view as the riders try to rest up.  

Stage 16 to Foix in the foothills seems perfect for a breakaway before the back-to-back mountain-top finishes in Peyragudes and then Hautacam. Four passes are packed into the second half of the 129.7km stage 17, which finishes like in 2017 on the spectacular mountain runway finish at Peyragudes that featured in the James Bond movie Tomorrow Never Dies.

The final mountain stage of this year’s Tour comes on stage 18, and includes two Hors-Catégorie climbs – the Col d’Aubisque and the finish up to Hautacam - plus the mid-stage Col de Spandelles (10.3km at 8.3%). The 13.6km final climb up to Hautacam will be the last chance for the pure climbers to gain time before Saturday’s 40.7km time trial across the Lot department in Southwestern France.

Who knows who will have survived to this point and who remains in contention for overall victory and podium places. The time trial will decide the final placings, with the 1.5km climb up to the line on time trial bikes the final moment of drama in this year’s race.

As per tradition, the final stage around Paris on Sunday evening is a celebration of cycling, with only the sprinters and their lead-outs focused on the final sprint up the Champs Elysées. This year’s final stage 115km stage is preceded by the first stage of the Tour de France Femmes, marking a symbolic but historic handover as the women’s cycling makes a huge step forward.      

Riders to watch

Tour de France technical director Thierry Gouvenou carefully designs the race route but, as the saying goes, it is the riders who make the race.

We have entered the Pogačar era and the 23-year-old Slovenian could add a third title to his palmarès as he strives to join the greats of the sport with five victories.

Can anyone beat him on a course that seems perfect for him? It will be a tall order but there are plenty of real contenders even in the absence of Egan Bernal and a number of riders who have recently caught the COVID-19 virus.  

The Critérium du Dauphiné and the Tour de Suisse traditionally reveal who is and who is not on form for the Tour de France but modern training methods and altitude training camps are changing riders’ approach to July.

Pogačar opted to spend longer training in Livigno and then dominated the five-day Tour of Slovenia before a week of recovery in the Slovenian mountains. He seems to have worked hard and warned he has improved year on year.

"We’ll see if being as good as in 2021 is enough this year. I feel stronger, I’m leaner, have more power and feel psychologically more confident," he told La Gazzetta dello Sport .  

Pogačar will also have a team to back his ambitions in 2022 after a series of astute signings by UAE Team Emirates. Despite recent COVID-19 cases, the core of the team should include Brandon McNulty , Rafa Majka , Marc Soler and George Bennett , plus key riders for the flat stages.  

Jumbo-Visma arguably have a team to match UAE Team Emirates and have the luxury - or potential headache - of having Roglič and Vingegaard as joint team leaders. That could spark some internal rivalry but also means more options if one of them loses time in the first week.

Roglič seemed to roar back to his best to win the Dauphiné after a knee injury in the spring, while Vingegaard appeared the strongest, on form and equally as ambitious. Both are excellent time triallists and so will be a threat to Pogačar until the very end of the Tour. 

Jumbo-Visma will be chasing stage victories and the green points jersey with Wout van Aert and are convinced they have not bitten off more than they can chew. The Belgian will surely win a number of stages and could even wear the yellow jersey early on, adding to Jumbo-Visma’s success but perhaps also complicating a shot at overall victory. The balance of power at Jumbo-Visma will be one of the stories to watch in July.

Ineos Grenadiers lowered their expectations but not their ambitions after Bernal’s terrible training crash in Colombia earlier this year. They have Dani Martínez, Adam Yates, Tom Pidcock and Geraint Thomas but the Colombian struggled in Switzerland last week, while Yates and Pidcock were hit with COVID-19.  

Thomas seemed set for a domestique role after struggling with injury and COVID-19 during the winter but emerged as the strongest to win the Tour de Suisse. Could it be his year after all? If it isn’t, then a victory by Ganna in the opening time trial and a few days in the yellow will be some kind of consolation.

The spat of COVID-19 cases left a question mark over Aleksandr Vlasov , with Sergio Higuita ready to deputise at Bora-Hansgrohe after finishing runner-up at Suisse. Julian Alaphilippe (QuickStep-AlphaVinyl) is also struggling to be at his best after his nasty crash at Liège-Bastogne-Liège. 

Indeed, beyond the battle royal between Pogačar, Roglič and Vingegaard, and Ineos Grenadiers, there is a real opportunity for a podium finish. Ben O’Connor (AG2R-Citröen) emerged to take a deserved fourth place in 2021 and impressed at the Dauphiné, while fellow Australian Jack Haig will lead Bahrain Victorious alongside Damiano Caruso in the absence of Mikel Landa. Enric Mas (Movistar) has been a quietly consistent presence in recent years and is a threat if he can avoid crashes.

A Frenchman has not won the Tour for 40 years and it seems unlikely this year, with Pinot and Bardet targeting stages. David Gaudu leads Groupama-FDJ’s overall hopes but will surely lose time in the time trials.

The sprinters and baroudeurs

Of course, the Tour de France will be more than just a GC battle for the yellow jersey. There are perhaps four or five sprint opportunities and perhaps as many stages suited to breakaways.

Baroudeur and breakaway riders to watch should include Mathieu van der Poel (Alpecin-Fenix), Quinn Simmons (Trek-Segafredo) after his exploits at the Tour de Suisse, Alexis Vuillermoz (TotalEnergies), Neilson Powless (EF Education-EasyPost), Matej Mohorič (Bahrain Victorious), plus Bauke Mollema and Giulio Ciccone (Trek-Segafredo).  

Van Aert will have to beat pure sprinters such as Jakobsen, Ewan, Philipsen and a resurgent Bennett and Sagan, to win the green jersey because of the big points haul awarded to stage winners.

There will be no place for Mark Cavendish if Jakobsen stays healthy and the Dutch rider can count on Michael Mørkøv and other teammates for a quality and well-executed leadout. Everyone else will have to find more speed and better technique if they want to beat Jakobsen and so win the sprints at the Tour.

Of course, everyone will line up in Copenhagen on July 1, hoping to make it to Paris on July 24 and celebrate being part of the biggest race of the season.

Thank you for reading 5 articles in the past 30 days*

Join now for unlimited access

Enjoy your first month for just £1 / $1 / €1

*Read any 5 articles for free in each 30-day period, this automatically resets

After your trial you will be billed £4.99 $7.99 €5.99 per month, cancel anytime. Or sign up for one year for just £49 $79 €59

Try your first month for just £1 / $1 / €1

Get The Leadout Newsletter

The latest race content, interviews, features, reviews and expert buying guides, direct to your inbox!

Stephen is the most experienced member of the Cyclingnews team, having reported on professional cycling since 1994. He has been Head of News at Cyclingnews since 2022, before which he held the position of European editor since 2012 and previously worked for Reuters , Shift Active Media , and CyclingWeekly , among other publications.

Giro d’Italia 2024 - Analysing the contenders

La Vuelta Femenina 2024 – Analysing the contenders

Itzulia Women

Most Popular

Latest on cyclingnews.

Tour of the Gila: Marlies Mejias Garcia wins stage 2 as Stephens retains race lead

Tour of the Gila: Scott McGill wins men's stage 2 Inner Loop Road Race

Lizzie Deignan gets green light to race La Vuelta Femenina

Gravel's newest star Torbjørn Røed leaves road behind with Unbound in mind

• Xbox Game Pass
• Xbox Series X News
• Xbox One news
• Xbox 360 news
• Xbox Series X Reviews
• Xbox One Reviews
• Xbox 360 Reviews
• Accessory Reviews
• Other Reviews
• Walkthrough Guides
• PlayStation
• TheXboxHub Team
• Showcase your skills
• Chat with us
• Competitions

Tour de France 2023 Review 

Where do Nacon and Cyanide Studios go with their Tour de France video game franchise ?

It’s a question we’ve been considering for years, having taken in every annual iteration for the last decade or so, disappointed by the most minimal of changes with each new version. In fact, over that time of playing these official video games of the greatest cycle race in the world, we can probably count the number of really significant changes on one hand. 

Although significant new features are the least of the problems. This, as a series, has only ever seen the smallest of graphical changes, and it very much feels like the audio is ripped across from one to the other with each new release. Gameplay rarely changes either. Copy and paste has been the friend of Nacon and Cyanide in the past.

Basic game modes are extremely familiar too – although we understand that only so much can be done with a ‘cycling’ game. Jump on a bike, ride it. With the niche that is being worked with, you can forgive that. 

And so we come to Tour de France 2023 in hope. Hope that the roadbook has been ripped up, new ideas have been implemented and visual changes are plentiful. 

With fear of spoiling the review, those amendments are extremely minimal once again. But, and whisper it, I think that after all these years, things are slowly coming together for Nacon, Cyanide and the Tour de France games. It’s not anywhere near a GOTY contender and it’s still not even the best ‘cycling’ game on the market – hi, Lonely Mountains: Downhill – but the small improvements and feature additions that have been implemented could well make this the best TDF game yet. The bar ain’t that high though and it probably says more for what has come before it, than what is on offer for 2023. 

If you have ever played one of these games before, you’ll know what to expect. If you haven’t, it’s fairly simple. Tour de France 2023 will task you with riding the official route of the 2023 Tour de France, taking charge of the official teams and riders as you go. Whether you focus on one rider, or work your way through the team, issuing instructions as the race dictates, pretty much all your cycling needs and directeur sportif dreams are included. 

Riding tempo, sprinting, chasing down the breakaway as you stay safe in the peloton; Tour de France 2023 works okay as a bike racer. Chugging down energy gels will ensure that glycogen levels stay high too, with you needing to keep an eye on these throughout. Just keep away from the dreaded bonk and life will be fine. If anything, it ensures this doesn’t turn into a full-on button mashing affair.

Taking in stages in real time is more than doable, but it must be said that anyone running entire stages and races at standard speed should be seen as a glutton for punishment. There’s a reason the devs allow for fast forwarding through stages to prime moments, or the opportunity to skip to the end of stages entirely. We’ve never been fans of complete stage skips, but the fast forwarding of the action is an utter godsend. Don’t be afraid to use it. 

Utilisation of tactics and strategy is all part of bike racing and Tour de France 2023 allows for this replication in the virtual world. Yes, you’ll need to become one with the plethora of in-race menus and sub-menus, but once you understand what is needed to ‘enthuse’ your team, all is good. 

The full Tour route is front and centre of this game, but there are other Monuments and Classics also available. Again, there’s nothing particularly new in terms of previous franchise titles, but it’s always appreciated to be able to race elsewhere. The Critérium du Dauphiné, Paris-Nice, Liège–Bastogne–Liège, Paris-Roubaix, the Vlaanderen Classic and Giro di Como are in house. There are even the World Championships at Imola, Dusseldorf and more to take in. Rarely does anything separate these once in-race, but at least these give the chance to test your riding skills over a variety of terrains, including the dreaded cobbles. 

There are also inclusions of Pro Team and Pro Leader modes. As the name suggests, these let you take control of a ‘Team’ or a ‘Pro’, with a faint whiff of Ultimate Team stylings seeping through. It’s not nearly as in-depth as that, but at least you’ll get to create a team of has-beens and whip them into shape over multiple events and seasons, all in hope of eventually coming out on top. Away from the main race events, these could be seen as reasonable feature additions, but again, little has changed from years gone by. 

And then there are the time-limited Challenges of the Moment. 

For us, the short, sharp challenge options found in the most recent Tour de France games have always allowed for a bit of excitement; some quick time wasting opportunities when full stages and 21-race long events are out of the question. 

Tour de France 2023 comes with two options this year – Race of the Moment and Downhill of the Moment. Both are time-limited and running on an ever-rotating schedule (which is fully dependent on Cyanide continuing to support things going forward), as you put your skills to the test and compete against others around the globe for leaderboard bragging rights. Whether it be a few stages in which you are left to post your fastest time, or the ‘A’ button sprint mashing of the Downhill descent one-off events, these once again prove to be highly addictive. Personally we’d like more depth to them, as once a time is set and some points have been thrown onto a leaderboard, it’s very much a one-and-done. But for the competitive cyclists, it’s the closest thing you’re going to get to some multiplayer Tour de France fun. 

However you play, control-wise and Tour de France 2023 is okay. But you may find that actual control of a rider and bike can feel extremely twitchy. You’ll constantly find yourself bumping and grinding other riders too, coming to complete standstills as barriers come into play. But it’s nowhere near as bad as previous games in which riding through spectators and barriers was commonplace, so credit must go to improvement in that area. Never did I think that falling off a bike could be so much fun. 

And Tour de France 2023 actually looks fairly decent as well. Stages are well-created and backgrounds can be detailed – to an extent. It’s a shame that standard cookie cut riders continue to be front and centre though. This is no more true than in the poorly presented, pretty laughable, podium cutscenes that feel at least five years out of date. In fact, they are nearly bad enough to put you off playing entirely as not a single rider looks like they do in real life. Surely some kind of visual representation of our lycra-clad cycling gods should be the next step the series takes…

But that said, there are new bikes and it seems licenses have been established for a number of brands. Cervelo are in place, as are Canyon, Ridley and Specialized, with the Tarmac SL7 sitting in S-Works trim. Yet big names are very much in the minority with generic non-brands still featuring. That may not bother a non-cyclist, but it’s the nerdy detail that is sometimes key to success.

And then we get to the audio and sound. We’re not really sure what we can say about this aside from the fact that it rarely, if ever, excites. It feels phoned in, ported direct from previous games, with just a smattering of new lines included. Ultimately, cycling is a tricky one to get right audibly, and it’s here where Tour de France 2023 utterly fails. Don’t get me wrong, there’s some good detail in the directeur sportif and commentary breakdowns on occasion, but we’ve been left shocked at the repetition and inconsistencies rather than buoyed by the info provided. 

So we leave unshocked by what has been delivered in Tour de France 2023. Again, we are slightly disappointed that we’re once more playing the same game that we have for years gone by. Yet, in there somewhere, this one finally feels like it has just enough about it for cycling fans, or those intrigued by the brilliance of the greatest bike race in the world, to consider jumping in. 

Much like in the real world, as Tadej Pogačar and Jonas Vingegaard look to repeat the racing of the last few years, Tour de France 2023 continues to run the tried and tested route. However, whilst that real world racing constantly excites and wows, the virtual replication again struggles to reach the summit in the lead. 

Tour de France 2023 is probably the best Tour de France game so far, but don’t expect this one to go ripping up the race. It’s still nothing more than a mid-peloton domestique.

• Tour de France 2023
• Xbox Series X
• xbox series x reviews

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed .

Follow Us On Socials

Our current writing team.

Join the chat

You might also like related recommended to you, edifier g2000 gaming speakers review, dead island 2: sola review, aery – cyber city review, sokofrog review.

Texas MS 150 Bike Tour Returns To Aggieland

Texas A&M University will once again serve as the finish line for thousands of cyclists riding in the Texas MS 150 when the 40th annual charity bike tour concludes Sunday on Houston Street between Kyle Field and Aggie Park.

The two-day event benefiting people with multiple sclerosis — a condition that damages the body’s nervous system by eroding the protective coating of nerves — will run April 27-28, with a variety of routes beginning in Houston and Austin before converging in La Grange and again in College Station. Texas A&M Transportation Services is advising drivers to anticipate multiple road closures and potential delays beginning early Sunday as the riders make their way through campus.

A section of Lamar Street starting at the bell tower will be closed to drivers throughout the day, while Houston Street will remain closed from George Bush Drive to Joe Routt Boulevard. Riders will make their way down Olsen Boulevard and Old Main Drive before passing the Memorial Student Center and Kyle Field on their way to the finish line. A map of the route through campus, as well as accompanying road closure and parking information, can be found at transport.tamu.edu/ms150 .

Visitors planning to watch the participants finish are invited to park in one of the three nearby garages: Gene Stallings Boulevard Garage and University Center Garage will both charge a flat $10 entry fee, while West Campus Garage charges an hourly visitor rate. Additional parking information is available on Transportation Services’ event parking page .

The National Multiple Sclerosis Society’s Bike MS, which encompasses the Texas MS 150 and a variety of other charity rides across the country, traces its roots to 1980, when the first MS 150 was held in Minnesota. Today, it is the largest fundraising cycling series in the world. Participants in this year’s Texas MS 150 have already raised nearly $7 million to fight multiple sclerosis, with an overall fundraising goal of $9.425 million. More information about the Texas MS 150 and Bike MS is available at events.nationalmssociety.org .

Media contact: Tad Fifer, Texas A&M Transportation Services, [email protected]

Related Stories

Texas A&M Hosts US Paralympics Cycling On The Road To Paris Summer Games

More than a quarter of the athletes competing in Bryan were military veterans, many of whom suffered injuries during combat deployments.

Texas A&M Designated Silver Bicycle Friendly By University League Of American Bicyclists

By Melissa Marie Maraj, Texas A&M University Transportation Services The League of American Bicyclists has honored Texas A&M University with a Silver Bicycle Friendly University award in recognition of the institution’s achievements in promoting and enabling safe, accessible bicycling on campus. “We are pleased to once again be…

Q&A With Tour de France Cyclist, Texas A&M Grad Chad Haga

2010 Texas A&M graduate Chad Haga shares his journey from Aggieland to cycling's biggest stage.

Recent Stories

New Electric Vehicle Fast-Charging Stations Installed On Texas A&M Campus

The DC fast chargers are available for public use in Lot 47.

Sixth Annual Aggie PITCH Awards McFerrin Cup, Cash Prizes

Twenty Aggie-led startups competed in the only university-wide business pitch competition.

Is Your Dog Aggressive? A Texas A&M Vet Explains ‘Rage Syndrome’

This and other forms of canine aggression may be unexpected, but owners can learn how to recognize and respond to the signs.

Subscribe to the Texas A&M Today newsletter for the latest news and stories every week.

La Vuelta Femenina 2024: Route, How to Watch, and Favorites

Demi Vollering, Kasia Niewiadoma, and Gaia Realini will battle for the red jersey on the challenging eight-stage tour across Spain.

Gear-obsessed editors choose every product we review. We may earn commission if you buy from a link. How we test gear.

As of this Sunday, April 29, we’re officially in Grand Tour season, as the eight-stage Vuelta Femenina kicks off with a 16-kilometer team time trial in Valencia, Spain.

Last year’s race covered just over 740 kilometers over the course of its seven stages. It was won by Movistar’s Annemiek van Vleuten , who, with the win, became the first woman to win all three of the major women’s stage races (the Vuelta, along with the Tour de France Femmes, and the Giro Donne). She beat SD Worx’s Demi Vollering but just nine seconds. Trek-Segafredo’s Gaia Realini rounded out the podium in third.

But van Vleuten retired after last season, meaning there’s no chance for a repeat winner. And given the variety of winners we’ve seen in the women’s peloton this spring, this race is truly up for grabs.

This year’s race adds a stage, making it eight in total. All of them stick exclusively to Spain’s northwest and northcentral regions.

It kicks off with what should be a blistering team time trial over 16 lake-flat kilometers. From there, the second stage will take riders from Buñol to Moncofa over 118 hilly kilometers, including just one Category 3 climb. As that climb comes 40 kilometers from the finish, expect a bunch sprint.

The third stage is a 131-kilometer medium mountain stage that will take riders from Lucena to Teruel and feature another Category 3 ascent. Stage four covers 142 kilometers from Molina de Aragón to Zaragoza and is mostly downhill from start to finish.

The 113 kilometers of stage 5 are where the peloton first gets into proper mountains, with a pair of category 2 climbs—one of which provides the day’s summit finish—on the menu. Stage 6 is the opposite of stage 4, taking riders on a daylong gradual uphill from Tarazona to Laguna Negra, ending with a category 1 summit finish that very well could determine the race’s overall winner.

Stage 7 could be the last chance for the sprinters to leave their mark. However, the final 500 meters of the day’s 126 kilometers ramp up to 10%, so look for a punchier rider to take the win there.

The Vuelta Feminina will end with an 89-kilometer ride from Distrito Telefónca to ValdesquíMadrid. The ride features a pair of category-1 climbs, the last of which leads to the race’s final finish line.

Complete information on each stage can be found here .

How to Watch

The Vuelta Feminina will be broadcast in the US via Peacock , which costs $5.99 per month or $59.99 per year. In Canada, the race will be broadcast via FloSports , which costs $12.50 per month or $150 per year.

Live Stream Schedule - All times Eastern (EDT) 04/28 - Stage 1 Valencia > Valencia - 9:45 a.m. - 11:45 a.m. 04/29 - Stage 2 Buñol > Moncófar - 9:30 a.m. - 11:30 a.m. 04/30 - Stage 3 Lucena del Cid > Teruel - 9:30 a.m. - 11:30 a.m. 05/01 - Stage 4 Molina de Aragón > Zaragoza - 9:30 a.m. - 11:30 a.m. 05/02 - Stage 5 Huesca > Jaca - 9:30 a.m. - 11:30 a.m. 05/03 - Stage 6 Tarazona > Vinuesa - 9:30 a.m. - 11:30 a.m. 05/04 - Stage 7 San Esteban de Gormaz > Sigüenza - 8:30 a.m. - 10:30 a.m. 05/05 - Stage 8 Distrito Telefónica. Madrid > Valdesquí - 6:00 a.m. - 8:00 a.m.

Riders to Watch

While the final roster for the race is yet to be final, several confirmed names promise another competitive edition. Among the riders targeting the general classification are Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift champion Demi Vollering of SD Worx-Protime, Gaia Realini of Lidl-Trek, who graced the podium last year, and the consistently impressive Kasia Niewiadoma of SD Worx-Protime. With the absence of retired defending champion Anemiek Van Vleuten and Vollering showing signs of wavering form this season, the battle for the coveted red jersey appears wide open.

Other riders to watch are the 2024 Tour of Flanders champion Elisa Longo Borghini of Lidl-Trek, Canyon//SRAM’s Ricarda Bauernfeind , and Mavi García of Liv Alula Jayco.

.css-1t6om3g:before{width:1.75rem;height:1.75rem;margin:0 0.625rem -0.125rem 0;content:'';display:inline-block;-webkit-background-size:1.25rem;background-size:1.25rem;background-color:#F8D811;color:#000;background-repeat:no-repeat;-webkit-background-position:center;background-position:center;}.loaded .css-1t6om3g:before{background-image:url(/_assets/design-tokens/bicycling/static/images/chevron-design-element.c42d609.svg);} Racing

Highlights & Lessons From the 2024 Spring Classics

A Comprehensive Guide to the 2024 Giro d’Italia

Wout van Aert Is Back to Outdoor Training

Nairo Quintana Will Focus on Stage Wins at Giro

Kopecky Won’t Be Racing the Tour de France Femmes

UAE Team Emirates Secures Isaac Del Toro’s Future

MvdP and Tom Pidcock Eat Humble Pie at LBL

Pogačar Dedicates Liège Victory to Urška’s Mother

2024 Sea Otter Classic Fuego XL Race Results

Liège-Bastogne-Liège 2024 Results and Recap

How to Watch Liège-Bastogne-Liège

Tour de Romandie 2024 : à quelle heure et sur quelle chaîne voir la course ?

L'édition 2024 du tour de romandie se tiendra du mardi 23 au dimanche 28 avril et sera à suivre en direct et en intégralité sur la chaine l'équipe. retrouvez ici toutes les informations sur la diffusion..

Le Tour de Romandie 2024 est la grande étape de préparation avant le Tour d'Italie qui aura lieu du 4 au 26 mai.

L'épreuve débute ce mardi 23 avril par un prologue extrêmement court autour de Payerne (2,28 km), suivi de trois étapes en ligne, un contre-la-montre individuel et se conclut avec une étape en circuit à Vernier pour la cinquième et dernière étape.