Tour de France

The famous, demanding hairpin climbs in the Alps have played a great part in the Tour de France over the years. With the mountains bringing a great spectacle and fantastic views, it's easy to see why people head to the Alps year after year to witness this fantastic event.

In previous years the Tour de France has passed through a number of resorts, including Morzine and Alpe d'Huez, finishing on the Champs-Élysées, Paris. In 2018 cyclists tackled the 21 bends leading up to Alpe d'Huez in the 12th stage of the competition. The 175km route finished in Alpe d'Huez on Thursday 19 July, with Geriant Thomas of Team Sky emerging victorious. 

Inspired to tackle Alpe D'Huez?

After the excitement of 2018 the route for 2019 will not pass through Alpe D'Huez. However, our five Le Village chalets are the perfect base for anyone seeking to test themselves against the famous 21 bends. The roads around Alpe D'Huez are a popular training area for cyclists of all abilities, with professionals and amateurs alike flocking to the Alps for summer training.  

Self catered from £100pppn

Chalets Le Manoir, La Maison, Le Chapelle, Le Chateau and La Ferme are available on a Serviced Self catered basis for whole chalet bookings. 

A small welcome hamper will be delivered to the chalet with essential basics such as cleaning products, tea, coffee, milk, toilet rolls & tea towels. Linen & towels provided.

(minimum 3 nights stay)

Our prices do not include flights or transfers to resort but we would be more than happy to assist in arranging these.

Tour de France facts and figures

Get inspired by some of these brilliant Tour de France facts:

• The race was first organized in 1903 to increase paper sales for the magazine L'Auto. 
• The race alternates between clockwise and anticlockwise circuits of France 
• 250 different cyclists have worn the Yellow Jersey 
• Raymond Poulidor has claimed the podium more times than anyone else (finished 8 times in the top 3), despite never having worn the Yellow Jersey 
• The average cyclist will burn around 4,000 and 5,000 calories during each stage of the Tour. That’s 123,900 calories for the entire race, the equivalent of eating 252 McDonald’s double cheeseburgers. 
• Over the course of a Tour de France route, cyclists will sweat enough to flush a toilet 39 times. 
• Over 12 million spectators line the route each year, making it the largest sporting event in the world. 
• In 1919, there were only 10 finishers, the least of all time. 
• The winner of the 1947 Tour de France Jean Robic was known for taking water bottles filled with lead at the top of climbs to descend faster. 
• The fastest average speed of a Tour de France was 25.7 miles per hour (mph), set in 2005. In 1919, the average speed was just 14.9 mph.