My wife has a conference in Pisa coming up so we are making a vacation out it. I will be leaving before her and starting my journey on Oct.5 in Paris where I will be staying with a friend for the weekend. I need to meet my wife on Oct 14 in Venice. If I stay in Paris for the weekend and leave on Monday that gives me most of a week to go ride my bike somewhere. I'll be on my own so I'd like to go somewhere that I can ride 2-6 hours during the day and then be able to explore and eat. I'm pretty simple and would rather stroll somewhere scenic stopping at bakeries than go to a museum.

Option 1 is to go to Bagnols-en-Foret in southern France where another friend lives. I was there last year and the riding is fantastic but there is nothing else going on where she lives. I don't know how to say "boonies" in French but that is where she is. Her and her family are great but they will mostly be working or at school.

Option 2 is to go anywhere kind of in between Paris and Venice. I have never been to Switzerland or Italy.



A few points:
Once in Europe I'd prefer to take the train. The airlines really hate my S&S bike and brake something each time I fly now.

I have been to Paris many times over the years to see friends. I don't feel like I'm missing out on anything by not staying longer. My buddy will have to work and his kids will be at school and staying at their mom's after the weekend. But he actually lives in Argenteuil now and if someone says that there is awesome riding right there then I'd stay for the week.

I'm not interested in going to southern Italy on this trip. We will be going to Rome next year for a couple weeks. (Having family in the foreign service makes for great traveling.) When my wife gets to Italy we will have a couple days in Venice, Florence and Pisa. I will have 2 days in Pisa while she is at the conference to ride.

The riding I'm looking for will be anything from smooth road to rowdy gravel/non-DH singletrack. Since it is all new to me I don't mind riding basically the same route everyday if it is magical.


We made a last minute decision to go on this trip and I need to make a decision fairly soon. All input is welcome. If nothing else typing this all out helped organize things in my mind.

Thanks