How to join a Wide Open Road holiday in Rome

Travel to and from our trips is for you to arrange either by yourself or via your travel agent. We attract customers from across the globe. We can happily suggest airports and travel options.

HOLIDAYS: Our Rome to Nice ride via Sardinia and Corsica, unsurprisingly begins in Rome. After Saturday night in a comfortable hotel, on Sunday morning we exit the hustle and bustle of Rome via a short rail journey to the suburbs.

AIRPORTS: Rome has two airports. Rome Fiumicino and Rome Ciampino. You can see details at http://www.adr.it. Travel to Rome from the UK is possible via budget airline http://www.easyjet.com from Gatwick, Bristol, East Midlands and Newcastle. The budget airline http://www.ryanair.com also connects Rome to Stansted and Dublin. Both these airlines travel to Ciampino which is not the main Rome airport. This airport is still fairly close to town and has taxis and shuttle buses. Most major, scheduled, airlines have flights to Rome Fiumicino - the main airport.

2006 JOINING "ROME TO NICE" AT ROME: In 2006 we will be meeting at a hotel in Rome on Saturday afternoon, 27th May. We stay in the suburb of Aventino and your twin-share hotel rooms will be available from 4pm. We suggest taking a taxi from the airport to the hotel. Negotiate the fare before getting in. This option is the easiest given that you will have luggage and a boxed bicycle. At Fiumicino airport there's a desk in the airport terminal which will arrange a transfer to Rome at a modest price.

How to leave a Wide Open Road holiday from Nice.

Travel to and from our trips is for you to arrange either by yourself or via your travel agent. We attract customers from across the globe. We can happily suggest airports and travel options.

HOLIDAYS: Our Rome to Nice ride via Sardinia and Corsica, unsurprisingly ends in Nice.

AIRPORTS: Nice has one airport - with two terminals. You can see details at http://www.nice.aeroport.fr/include/default.asp. Travel from Nice to the UK and Ireland is possible via budget airlines http://www.easyjet.com, http://www.ryanair.com and http://www.bmibaby.com.

2006 LEAVING "ROME TO NICE" FROM NICE: In 2006 we will be disbanding from a hotel close to Nice Port on Sunday morning, 11th June. We suggest taking a taxi from the hotel to Nice airport. This option is the easiest given that you will have luggage and a boxed bicycle. The hotel reception desk can arrange a taxi. MAKE SURE YOU KNOW WHICH TERMINAL AT NICE AIRPORT YOU WANT. There is a shuttle bus between terminals but this takes a little while and you wouldn't want to miss your flight!

How to join a Wide Open Road holiday in Bordeaux.

Travel to and from our trips is for you to arrange either by yourself or via your travel agent. We attract customers from across the globe. We can happily suggest airports and travel options.

HOLIDAYS: Our Bordeaux to the Alps holiday and Bordeaux-Alps-Tour de France holidays both start here.

AIRPORTS: For air travel the best airport is Bordeaux (BOD). You can also connect direct from Paris Charles de Gaul by train (CDG), the journey takes around 4 to 5 hours. There is also an airport at Bergerac, which is around an hour from Bordeaux by local train.

BORDEAUX AIRPORT SHUTTLE: When you arrive at Bordeaux airport, it's possible to take a shuttle bus (a "navette" in French) from outside the terminal to the main rail station. The hotel that we meet at is a 5 minute walk from the rail station. The rail station is usually the last stop on the shuttle bus.

RAIL TO BORDEAUX: Bordeaux has a major high speed rail (TGV) connection. You can see train travel at http://www.raileurope.com/ or at http://www.sncf.com/. We meet at a hotel which is a five minute walk from the railway station. Keep in mind that there is a rail station attached to Charles de Gaul airport in Paris and so it' s feasible to avoid dragging your bike and luggage into central Paris.

BORDEAUX AIRPORT: The budget airline http://www.bmibaby.com/ fly to Bordeaux from Birmingham and Manchester in the UK. http://www.flybe.com also connect Bordeaux with Southampton, Bristol, Norwich. There are also connections from Dublin via http://www.aerlingus.com. You can see details of the airport at http://www.bordeaux-airport.com/.

BERGERAC AIRPORT: The budget airline http://www.ryanair.com fly to Bergerac. Bergerac is around an hour from Bordeaux via rail. There are also connections via http://www.flybe.com. Travel from Bergerac to Bordeaux is not hard but is a fiddly option with bike and luggage.

2006 JOINING "BORDEAUX-ALPS" OR "BORDEAUX-ALPS-TOUR DE FRANCE" AT BORDEAUX: In 2006 your hotel rooms in our hotel close to Bordeaux railway station will be available from 4pm. There's a room in the hotel where you can store your bikes. Our mechanic will be on hand with tools and a high pressure pump, to help assemble your bike.

How to join a Wide Open Road holiday in Avignon.

Travel to and from our trips is for you to arrange either by yourself or via your travel agent. We attract customers from across the globe. We can happily suggest airports and travel options.

HOLIDAYS: We have offered a limited number of places for a holiday that comprises Avignon to Alpe d'Huez and then a week at the Tour de France. This gives the chance to ride the last part of Bordeaux to the Alps and to then stay on to see Le Tour.

AIRPORTS: For travel from the UK, the best airports are probably Avignon (AVG) or Nimes (FNI).

RAIL: Avignon has a major high speed rail (TGV) connection. You can see train travel at http://www.raileurope.com/ or at http://www.sncf.com/.

AVIGNON AIRPORT: The busget airline http://www.flybe.com fly from Southampton to Avignon.

NIMES AIRPORT: The budget airline Ryan Air http://www.ryanair.com/ fly to Nimes from London Luton, Brussels, East Midlands and Liverpool airports.

2006 JOINING "AVIGNON-ALPS-TOUR DE FRANCE" AT AVIGNON: In 2006 we will be collecting customers from Nimes airport. We will be at the airport at 14h30 on Monday, 10th July. Otherwise, please make plans to head to our campsite on the banks of the river Rhone at Avignon to meet us at 16h00 on Monday, 10th.

How to join or leave a Wide Open Road holiday at Grenoble.

Travel to and from our trips is for you to arrange either by yourself or via your travel agent. We attract customers from across the globe. We can happily suggest airports and travel options.

HOLIDAYS: Our Bordeaux to the Alps holiday ends at Grenoble. Our week at the Tour de France begins and ends at Grenoble.

AIRPORTS: For travel from the UK and Europe, the best airports are Grenoble (GNB) and Lyon (LYS). For travellers from further away, there are more international options via Paris Charles de Gaul airport (CDG).

GRENOBLE AIRPORT: The budget airline Ryan Air http://www.ryanair.com seem to be flying from London Stansted to Grenoble airport and vice versa. From the airport at Grenoble you can take a shuttle bus (a "navette" in French) which drops off at the main Grenoble bus and railway station.

LYON AIRPORT: Other airlines like http://www.easyjet.com service Lyon airport. From Lyon the company SATOBUS have regular buses that go both to Lyon town centre and to Grenoble http://www.satobus.com. Look for the kiosk in Lyon airport.

PARIS AIRPORT: If you are arriving or leaving via Paris, I'd suggest using the train station that is combined into Terminal 2 of Charles de Gaul airport. This saves carrying luggage and bikes through central Paris. You can see train travel at http://www.raileurope.com or at http://www.sncf.com.

2006 JOINING "TOUR DE FRANCE" AT GRENOBLE 15th JULY: In 2006 we will be collecting customers from Grenoble, for our holidays that include a week at the Tour de France. If you want collection, you should aim to plan your travel to arrive at Grenoble bus and rail station by 3pm, Saturday, 15th July.

If you cannot make our 3pm meeting time, you can get from Grenoble to the Alps via a public bus service. The timetable can be seen at http://www.vfd.fr/HorairesLignesRegulieres/3020.pdf. The last bus is around 6pm. We regularly use a hotel close to Grenoble rail and bus station and so if you cannot arrive by 6pm we can suggest a hotel that is very close to the bus stop.

2006 LEAVING "BORDEAUX-ALPS" - 16th JULY: In 2006 you spend Saturday, 15th July in a room in a hotel at Grenoble. The hotel is immediately opposite the Grenoble rail and bus station. On Sunday morning, 16th July, you need to plan your on-going travel.

2006 LEAVING THE "TOUR DE FRANCE" - 22st JULY: In 2006 you spend Friday, 21st July in a room in a hotel at Grenoble. The hotel is immediately opposite the Grenoble rail and bus station. On Saturday morning, 22nd July, you need to plan your on-going travel.

How to travel between the Tour de France and the Pyrenees

Travel to and from our trips is for you to arrange either by yourself or via your travel agent. We attract customers from across the globe. We can happily suggest airports and travel options.

HOLIDAYS: Our Pyrenees ride starts from St Jean de Luz (close to Biarritz). Our Tour de France holiday ends at Grenoble.

AIR TRANSFER: We suggest rail or bus travel from our Grenoble hotel to Lyon Airport. From Lyon airport take Air France to Biarritz. http://www.airfrance.com

RAIL TRANSFER: You can travel from Grenoble via Paris to St Jean de Luz. http://www.sncf.com

2006 TRANSFERRING "TOUR DE FRANCE" TO "PYRENEES":
There's an Air France flight at 08h40 that travels via Clermont Ferrand to Biarritz. This arrives at 11h35 and at the time I write this would cost 85 Euros plus Taxes. http://www.airfrance.com/

How to join a Wide Open Road holiday in St Jean de Luz

Travel to and from our trips is for you to arrange either by yourself or via your travel agent. We attract customers from across the globe. We can happily suggest airports and travel options.

HOLIDAYS: Our Pyrenees ride starts from St Jean de Luz (close to Biarritz).

AIRPORTS: The closest airport to the fishing village of St Jean de Luz is Biarritz (BIQ). Also within train travel are Paris (CDG) and Toulouse (TLS).

RAIL TO ST JEAN DE LUZ: High Speed rail travel (TGV) from Paris to St Jean de Luz is possible. Another possibility is to come by rail from Toulouse. You can see rail travel at http://www.sncf.com and http://www.raileurope.com.

BIARRITZ AIRPORT: The budget airline http://www.ryanair.com fly from London and Dublin to Biarritz. You can connect from Paris to Biarritz via http://www.airfrance.com.

TOULOUSE AIRPORT: Arriving at Toulouse requires a rail journey to get to St Jean de Luz. The journey is around 5 hours. The budget airline http://www.easyjet.com connects from Toulouse to Paris and to Gatwick. Irish airline http://www.aerlingus.com also connects Dublin to Toulouse. The airline http://www.flybe.com connects Toulouse to Bristol and Birmingham. You can connect via http://www.bmibaby.com to Toulouse.

2006 "PYRENEES": In 2006 we meet at a hotel at St Jean de Luz. St Jean is a short journey from Biarritz airport. St Jean has a rail station with connections to Paris and Toulouse. Please let us know if you are arriving at Biarritz and we will let you know if we can collect you by car on the afternoon of Saturday 22nd July. Otherwise it's a modest taxi ride to St Jean from Biarritz. If you arrive at St Jean by rail then we'll try and assist you with your luggage from the rail station.