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How To Enjoy The 2020 Tour de France

  • Ron 

With the 2019 Tour de France having just wrapped up, we thought it was a perfect opportunity to provide some general tips for how to best enjoy the event as both a biking fan and a travel enthusiast looking to explore France. It’s never too early to plan for the future. Ultimately, the key to making the most of this trip will be doing a decent amount of planning in advance – which isn’t as difficult as you may think!

The first and most important thing to remember is to book your accommodation well in advance to avoid filled-up hotels or overpriced room rates (which can often surround major international events). In fact, some experts even recommend booking your mid-summer trip as early as November of the preceding year – which speaks to why now is a good time to start thinking about all of this. As to where you’ll want to stay once you get to France, you’ll want to base it to some extent on the Tour routes, which are announced in October. If you want to have an authentic experience on your trip (and avoid the bigger tourist swarms) we’d recommend looking into smaller accommodation options like hostels or bed and breakfasts along the way. This is a great way to interact with locals, which can actually be particularly difficult during an event that brings in so many people from abroad.

If you are interested in watching the race closely, the mountain regions can be the best places to do so. When on flat ground, the cyclists speed by the viewers in the blink of an eye, whereas on the steep summits bikers will slowly ride past, and will be easier to catch up to if you’d like to catch them farther along the route. Plus, by these stages, the race will most likely be single file, or at least close to it. Although the route changes every year, the two mountain ranges in France that can be in the race are the Alps and the Pyrenees, and you can always look at past routes to get an early idea of likely strategic vantage points. Given the option, it’s probably wisest to watch from the penultimate or final climb, because the very top will likely be incredibly crowded. And of course, be sure to take advantage of the stunning scenery surrounding these parts of the Tour. If you have time, consider arriving a day or two early, so that you can do some hiking or sightseeing before the race arrives.

As for following the race itself beyond just catching the cyclists when they pass by your area (or as you chase them around the country, as some enthusiastic fans do), there’s still plenty you can do from half a country away. For one thing, you can rest assured that the Tour will be on television and available through streaming services throughout its duration. Additionally, popular betting platforms add cycling to their various sports offerings during the summer, such that you can always look online and figure out which competitors are likely to win, who’s doing better or worse than expected, and ultimately which cyclists you ought to be tracking. In other words, you can essentially keep as close an eye as you want on the competition.

Our last piece of advice may seem obvious, but it’s still one we can’t skip over: Be sure to check the weather both before and during your trip, because things can change unexpectedly, especially in mountainous regions with higher altitudes. Be prepared for rain or shine, and in particular be on the lookout for extreme heat so that you can dress and adjust accordingly. Europe just recently experienced a record-breaking heat wave, and even if you’re not attending this year, this could easily repeat next summer and in future years. So be sure to pack lots of sunscreen, extra water bottles, and your favorite hat or sunglasses. You’ll only enjoy watching the Tour if you’re comfortable!

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