Cycletours Holidays Buiksloterweg 7a, 1031 CC Amsterdam, The Netherlands

Tel +31 (0)20 521 84 90 · Fax +31 (0)20 627 90 32 · information@cycletours.nl · www.cycletours.com

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Your Bike & Barge Tour

Provence - Camargue

(From Aigues Mortes to Avignon)

Tour code: FVC 2013

Cycletours Holidays Buiksloterweg 7a, 1031 CC Amsterdam, The Netherlands

Tel +31 (0)20 521 84 90 · Fax +31 (0)20 627 90 32 · information@cycletours.nl · www.cycletours.com

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Aigues Mortes – Avignon

A beautiful trip from the Mediterranean to the famous ‘pont d’Avignon’. You will visit Avignon and

Arles with their cultural and architectural highlights and cycle through the landscapes that

inspired Van Gogh. Along the way you will discover picturesque Provencal villages, vineyards

and fields of lavender. You will start your tour in the stunning nature of the Camargue. Cane

fields, salt lakes, horses and flamingos will be the background of the first part of your week.

Sunday: Aigues Mortes; boarding at 6 pm

When you arrive on board the ship you can put away your luggage in your cabin and then enjoy

a cup of coffee or tea. This is also a good moment to become acquainted with the guide, skipper

and crew and of course your fellow passengers.

Monday: Aigues Mortes, round tour, 45 km.

Aigues Mortes is ideally located for a nice roundtrip through the Camargue.

Tuesday: Aigues Mortes – Gallician, 60 km.

A nice ride through the Camargue; western Europe’s largest river delta. It is a vast plain

comprising large lagoons (or étangs), cut off from the sea by sandbars and encircled by reed-

covered marshes. You will cycle through cane fields and salt lakes and you might see wild

horses, flamingos and bulls. Through the picturesque sea-side village of Saintes Maries de la

Mer you will cycle to Gallician.

Wednesday: Gallician - Arles, 15 km.

Only a short tour is planned for today, so you will have enough time to visit Arles, where Van

Gogh produced over 300 paintings and drawings. The town still has some beautiful Roman ruins

which you can visit.

Thursday: Arles - Vallabrègues, 50 km.

From Arles you will cycle to Les Baux de Provence in the Alpilles, with its arid limestone peaks

separated by dry valleys with lavender and olive trees. Les Baux de Provence has a spectacular

position in the Alpilles, set atop a rocky outcrop, crowned with a ruined castle. Today’s route

also brings you to St. Remy de Provence, the village where Van Gogh lived during his mental

illness.

Friday: Vallabrègues - Villeneuve les Avignon 53 km.

Today you will visit the Pont du Gard, the best preserved Roman aqueduct of Europe. The

aqueduct was constructed by the Romans in the 1st century AD and formerly carried an

estimated 200 million liters (44 million gallons) of water a day to the fountains, baths and homes

of the citizens of Nîmes. The Pont du Gard was added to UNESCO’s list of World Heritage Sites

in 1985. The description on the list states: "The hydraulic engineers and ... architects who

conceived this bridge created a technical as well as artistic masterpiece."

Cycletours Holidays Buiksloterweg 7a, 1031 CC Amsterdam, The Netherlands

Tel +31 (0)20 521 84 90 · Fax +31 (0)20 627 90 32 · information@cycletours.nl · www.cycletours.com

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Saturday: Villeneuve les Avignon

Today you will cycle a nice route north of Avignon, following roads with low traffic through

vineyards. At Roquemaure you will cross the Rhone and along the Rhone you will return to

Villeneuve.

Sunday: Villeneuve les Avignon

End of trip after breakfast.