WHERE TO RIDE FROM NICE – VENCE
Take the piste cyclable west and then climb the side of the Var valley and over to the pretty artists’ town of Vence. Fill up with water at the fountain before tackling this climb that’s a favourite with locals. On the top of the Col de Vence there are beautiful views over all the coastal towns, but once you drop off the back (and climb ever so slightly higher), you’ve left civilisation behind, and you’re out in the wilderness.
Bouyon is a good stop for water, and Le Broc has a boulangerie and café, and then you descend back down the Var. If you want to dial the difficulty down, keep on going on the piste cyclable to the coast; otherwise, take the mapped route up to Aspremont for one more climb and a back-roads descent into Nice.
key kit
Fleurette Jersey
The Col de Vence is south facing and the rocky landscape reflects the heat all year around. From spring through to the end of summer, take a Fleurette to handle the furnace that is the Fournaise.
2 - RENT AND RIDE
Travel light and book your bike. We offer a range of rental bikes, the R5 Cervelo road bike and the Aspero Cervelo gravel bike along with titanium road bikes from French marque Leon. Each bike is complete with pedals, tool bag and rear light while, if needed, each rental can also include Specialized shoes and helmet.
3 - THE CAFÉ
Located on the Old Port, our café is the prefect pre and post-ride meeting place. With some routes that begin almost outside, excellent coffee and a full range of our clothing collections for men and women. There are weekly rides as well if you’d like to discover riding on the Cote D’Azur with like minded companions.
When the ville of Nice decided to use #nicecyclingparadise to promote the grand depart of the 2020 Tour de France, there was definite method in the madness. If Paradise Lost has over ten thousand lines of verse, this cycling paradise found has almost as many routes, roads, stretches, views, climbs, cols, lacets, stops and starting points. Enough at least to satisfy even the most discerning cyclist.
NISSA ALL-ROAD
Linking two classic Alpes-Maritimes cols via a gravel ridge-line ride on a loop that takes you from portside to the heart of the mountains and back again.
MONT CHAUVE
Mont Chauve, known as Nice’s ‘bald mountain’, proves that nature constructed one of the best viewpoints the city has to offer.
BONETTE
Join the climb directly from the village and get ready for a day of zero flat riding by climbing and descending both sides of the mountain,.
Braus & Turini
Time to get serious. A ride that includes two of the majestic cols from our Montaignes a la Carte series and typical of what makes riding from Nice such an intoxicating mixture of pleasure and pain.
Esterel & Adrets
The Esterel national park stretches between Saint Raphaël and Théoule-sur-Mer. Stay close to the coast and, early in the year, watch out for the mimosa flowers on the descent back towards Cannes.
Éze & Madone
One of the classic rides of the region, which takes in two legendary climbs and hits you with a 10% slope right at the start. Ride out from our Café in Nice, take on the challenge and return to claim your badges.
Mortola
Ride a portion of the famous F1 Grand Prix course in Monte Carlo, and then climb out towards Menton, the last town in France, and over the border. It may be short but it includes two countries and into one principality.
Duranus & Saint Blaise
Head up the valley to where three rivers meet, climb higher still and take the time to look around. For those who are looking for some serious up, take in the Madone d’Utelle, from our Montaignes a la Carte series.
GILETTE & BONSON
The back country of Nice opens up behind the coast and this ride provides easy access.
OUR BADGES
To celebrate the local climbs and the roads we ride, we’ve created a badge for each of our local cols, collected together in our Montagne à la Carte series. The hard part of collecting your badge is climbing the col.
