What our discerning cycling guests had to say about their Tour de France cycling vacation with PB
The Ride was rich…the conversation with Paul was the “real gold”!
Bridget’s level of care & attention to detail was impressive!
Spectacular scenery, delicious food and some never ending climbs…
Very hard to beat grey hair & experience…
Thankyou for making our tour so memorable!
Darren – Australia
Dear PB (Bridget & Paul)
Thanks for an awesome experience at TDF. I really appreciated the local knowledge and care taken in selecting lunch and catering the rides distance/elevation to the groups ability. The tour was a good balance between spectating and riding. If you could control the weather I’d suggest delaying the heat wave to help the aussies coming from winter (haha) 🙂
Had an awesome time at the Tour de France with Practice Bicycle Tour’s Bridget and Paul. I was especially impressed by the small group tour format, consisting of riding in the alps, eating delicious food and spectating then transiting back to Annecy. PB generously share their local knowledge and I would highly recommend to those looking for a bespoke, personal holiday experience!
Kate – Australia
Loved all the rides, scenery etc was incredible. Food & places we ate at were great. Accommodation for 2 Star was very good. I personally had difficulty opening with small food items on rides with sweaty hands. Overall I loved the whole experience.
Phil – Australia
Staying in same location makes it a real holiday
Appreciate the ability to move times around the as the tour times change
Coffee stops were very much appreciated to break up the rides
Restaurants lunches were fantastic
Like the variety of stages, prefer mid-mountain as more relaxed atmosphere
It was an great week of riding / spectating / eating without the long car trips between stages and hotels. Bridget and Paul were excellent tour operators with insightful knowledge of everything cycling and about the alps region. I would highly recommend.
Dean – Australia
Hi there,
Could you please pass on my thanks to Paul and Bridget for the great TDF ride day yesterday, I really enjoyed it and it was great to meet everyone, I’d definitely been keen to join again in the future.
Many thanks again, I had a fabulous time
Steph – UK
Thanks for the fantastic photos Bridget & Paul. You have been absolute troopers the last few days. It couldn’t have been easy being ill and still trying to entertain. We appreciate it so much and have loved every second with you both. The food was spectacular and the riding was fun. You guys really do have a great thing going on.
Anne & Len – Australia
If you ever want to tour France, Portugal, Italy or Australia via bicycle I would highly recommend the 1st Class Practice Bicycle Tours Company first hand.
Grace – USA
I truly enjoyed my week with you guys. As I said at the last dinner I was not sure if I would like cycling every day for a week as normally I’m a bit of a weekend only guy.
The Tour de France week was great in every respect, the rides, the Tour, the meals and especially the company!
Simon – Australia
A great week. We are so lucky to have found Practice Bicycle Tours. Paul and Bridget were incredible hosts, Loved every minute of the tour!
Lenny – Australia
Thanks Practice Bicycle Bike Tours – Amazing! Great shots to remember the Tour de France trip. Thanks again for a very well organised and professional tour. Great routes, climbs, food, wine, company and weather.
Kevin – Australia
Paul and Bridget
Thank you for sending the wonderful video. It is a great momento of our experience and we’ve certainly shared it with others who’d appreciate it. I’ve watched it several times and each viewing brings a tingle of joy.
Carrie and I had a great time and truly appreciate all that you did to make our week together so special. Something we’ll always treasure.
I appreciate your flexibility toward different rider strengths and possible ride options. That was something that was apparent in your tour description and attracted me. To me, that’s your biggest challenge with any group – dealing with its range of skills and capabilities. You do a great job. Your concern for the safety of your group is greatly appreciated.
The Hotel choice was great. Breakfasts were good. I know that you were concerned that our early morning breakfasts were scaled back and placed on the reception counter. But, I think they did a good job to accommodate our needs and it didn’t bother us. We were just happy to have something available to us at such an early hour.
We enjoyed all of our meals together as well as rest stops. We appreciate the importance you give them and the planning involved. They’re a big part of the experience!
I recognize the challenges of viewing the Tour. Our three TDF days worked out beautifully. Lunch spots were great. Changing/shower facilities were appreciated.
Thomas and Lorene were great in their roles as drivers and providing support. Always there with cheerful personalities offering drinks, snacks or whatever assistance they could provide.
Hired bikes were great.
Best wishes until we have the opportunity to pedal together again. We’ll never watch a stage of the TDF again without being reminded of our friends in Annecy.
David & Carrie – USA
We have done 2 TDF tours with Practice Bicycle and the Volta ao Algarve in Portugal they cycle at what ever pace you are capable of and take you to amazing viewing points and scrumptious eating spots. We hope to return to France and do more cycling with them next year. They really know their stuff.
Annie – Australia
Hi Paul & Bridget
Just wanted to say thanks for dropping in the extra TDF water bottle for my daughter, her school project on the TDF was a huge success, with all the goodies I got along the way for her. Also thanks for a great week, we are still talking about the great times we had on the morning rides at home, the old Weetabix just aren’t the same as a chocolate croissant in the morning though.
Hope to ride with you again.
Craig – Australia
Back in chilly Sydney and just wanted to THANK YOU AGAIN, for all the effort you guys put in to make our trip so great. I especially appreciated your help with the gluten free food – it is such a pain in the butt, and I was prepared to eat nothing but salad all week in order to avoid any fuss, but thanks to you I enjoyed all sorts of delicious meals. Please also give our thanks to Olivier – we didn’t really say goodbye to him and I really enjoyed his company in the minibus – he was able to answer all my questions about cows, funny roofs etc…Happy cycling.
Wendy & Len – Australia
So many great memories…
Thank you so much for the DVD of our Tour de France experience. A great compilation that we have watched endlessly. So many great memories and still hard to believe that we were there. Paul has a new bike. I am still happy to be his soigneur. We really, really enjoyed our time with the group. It was so superior travelling with a small group and we had such a nice mix of people. And special thanks to the Non-Cycling Team – what an amazing job they did!…
Thanks again for everything!
Gail & Paul – Australia
Dear Bridget and Paul,
We just wanted to say how much we loved the whole Tour de France week with you both – brilliant in all ways.
The attention to detail, the huge variation in each of the day’s riding through such beautiful country and amazing little villages was just fantastic – culminating in that most amazing descent on the last day. (not so good on the time trialling Paul) but just loved the climbs.
Again thank you both so much for an amazing experience and all the little extras that didn’t go unnoticed right down to the musette bag of goodies, a lovely surprise!
Jen cannot thank you both enough for the amazing support you gave her which we both incredibly appreciated.
The week was an unforgettable experience both in riding and the thought that went into each day’s lunch experiences.
Take care and very best wishes from us both
Jeremy & Jenny – Australia
On this Tour de France trip my wife and I we were accompanied by our 3 teenage children. All who have some level of cycling experience. We certainly had reservations if one of the TDF trips would be appropriate and how they would cope.
The support, encouragement and assistance provided by the Practice Bicycle Team for the teenage children was outstanding! The support and advice offered by Paul and Bridget during rides and conversations between rides in preparation was very good. All the children achieved more than they otherwise would have and made the experience a very enjoyable one. Our eldest daughter Nikki has now commenced learning French and is making plans to return next year during the term 3 holidays for another cycling adventure
Dean, Pam, Nikki, Tegan & Ryan – Australia
Bonjour mes Amies
We arrived home well rested after 2 days in Hong Kong! Bikes arrived safely too! How did the Tour de Suisse go?
We were very envious!!
Thank you both for looking after us so well, again we had a fabulous time, and the surprise Fine dining experience…. Michelin star*! Can’t wait to see how you are going to top that next time?
See you both in Adelaide in January for the Tour down Under, take care and we’ll be in touch soon.
A Bientot
p.s Everyone here who watched the Tour is raving about Annecy! They all say the views shown of Annecy and the lake was spectacular.
Catarina & John – Australia
Tour de France, amazing
Thanks so much Bridget & Paul, had a ball will be odds on for next year. Best holiday in a long time! Just to keep you updated i am filling the spots for our Private Tour. Thanks again for such a wonderful time over in Annecy.
Keiran & Sarah – Singapore
What a day to remember at the Tour de France!
“Time trial day was a treat!! Practice Bicycle Tours had secured a large house on the course with as much wine and food as you wished. The chef served us many popular French foods and wine. Between the champagne and cheering for Lance, Cadel and Stuey the day went much too quickly.
So here I am back in Australia looking at the photos of us all on the summit of mountains with snow caps as the back drop. It would not have happened without the professional and personal attention of Bridget and Paul, first class service and lots of fun!
Many, many thanks and see you next year.”
Ange – Australia