Provence Biking Adventure
St. John's Wood Women's Club
May 3-7, 2011

Price	$2,000 ($1,800 after discount)
Single Supplement	600 USD (always optional)
Length	Five Days & Four Nights
Activities	Biking
Registration	Book This Tour
Guides	Allan and Giovanni
Bike Rental	25 Euros per day

Provence is a land of rugged landscapes, sun-drenched fields, and charming hilltop towns. The intense colors and pleasant climate at one time drew the best painters in the world, including van Gogh, Renoir, Matisse, Cézanne , and Picasso. The cuisine is local: seafood and lamb; fresh fruits and vegetables such as melons, apricots, and olives; and the wonderful wines of the Côtes de Provence.

Provence, in the southwest of France, is also a renowned bicycling area. The many small side roads allow us to bicycle side by side, taking in views of Lavender fields and passing through small farming villages. We cycle across flat valleys with occasional climbs to hilltop towns. France is probably the premier bicycling country in the world, thanks to the scenery, the hospitality, and the policy of paving even the smallest country road. And because we have a support van and three route distances each day, this tour is designed to accommodate all cyclists - from advanced riders to those who haven't been biking for years!

Our five-day trip is centered on the town of Avignon, located on the banks of the Rhône River and during the 14th century the actual seat of the Pope and Catholic Church. We visit nearby towns including Saint-Rémy-de-Provence, Gordes, Venasque, and Châteauneuf-du-Pape. We spend time in a farmer's market, tour an olive oil factory, stop at a fig farm and goat cheese farm, and taste at several wineries - all on our biking routes. As always, we have three biking routes each day (short, medium, and long) and a support van that is always there if you need it.

Arrival and Departure
The tour date coincides with flights on flybe airways (previously BA Connect), which flies directly from Southampton in the UK to Avignon Airport. We realize Southampton is not super convenient but the ease of flying into Avignon directly is well worth it, we assure you! We recommend the group to arrange private bus transportation to and from London and Southampton. Avignon Airport is located on the outskirts of the city and we will start biking immediately from the airport itself. The flight details (subject to change):

Southampton - Avignon: Tuesday, May 3, 9:15 - 12:15
Avignon - Southampton: Saturday, May 7, 10:55 - 12:00
Current price: GBP 169 round trip

Please note the return flight was changed in February to be 3.5 hours earlier. Those taking this flight home will not be able to do a final morning ride. Those returning later will have the option to do a morning ride on the fifth day.

Bicycles
We are bringing our Italian guide Giovanni Ramaccioni and his fleet of bicycles up from Umbria for this tour. Giovanni is a wonderful guide who leads our Provence trips as well as though in Italy and his fleet of 21-speed bikes is perfect on the roads of Provence. You can bring your own seats and pedals if you are an experienced cyclist. Total Rental Cost for the tour: Euro 100 (translated into dollars at current exchange rate) or E125 if you bike on the last day.

St. John's Wood Women's Club
This is a Private Adventure being organized by Zephyr Adventures for the St. John's Wood Women's Club. Zephyr Adventures has been operating for 13 years and ran an Umbria Bicycling Tour in 2010 for the SJWWC. The minimum group size needed to run this tour is 10 and the maximum participation is 26 people. If the group size reaches 14 people (as it did last year), everyone receives a 10% discount off the $2000 trip price. To reserve your space requires a USD 500 deposit, payable by credit card on a secure form on this website. If we do not reach our minimum of 10 people by March 31, we will refund your deposit. Please book online now to reserve your space. Final payment is due by check 60 days prior to departure.

Accommodations
We stay four nights in four different towns, allowing us to cover more ground in a 3/4 loop around our base town of Avignon. The hotels are excellent and it is really worth clicking on each website to see a few photos. On our first night we stay at the Hotel Le Castelet des Alpilles in the town of St. Remy-de-Provence. St. Remy is a wonderful walled town of 10,000 people, big enough to offer excellent sights and shopping but small enough to explore on foot. We then cycle to Les Imberts and our hotel Le Mas de la Senancole. Our modern hotel centered around a beautiful swimming pool might entice you to stay put for the afternoon once you arrive. We are then on to the Hotel Montmirail, a huge chateau just outside Vacqueras, one of the premier wine towns in the region. Finally, it is back to Avignon and a stay in the center of the city at the Hotel du Palais de Papes.

For More Information
Please see our Provence Frequently Asked Questions or Itinerary pages or contact us for more information.