See below for the local train map for the Pays de la Loire region to help you plan your cycling holiday in France.
Pays de la Loire is a region in the west of France. Brittany is to the north-west, Normandy to the north, the Loire Valley wine region to the east, and Nouvelle-Aquitaine to the south (see here for that train map).
The capital of Pays de la Loire is Nantes, and the region is integral to several major cycling routes. It's where the Nantes-Brest Canal starts, and where the EuroVelo 1 Atlantic Coast route and the Velo Francette pass. To the east of the region is the fabulous and under-rated Sarthe cycle network, while the south of the region is home to the Vendee, where the 2018 Tour de France started. The EuroVelo 6 Loire Valley route starts at the coast of Pays de la Loire and snakes its way east through Angers (also in Pays de la Loire) before passing over into the 'Loire proper'.
Nantes is linked to Paris by TGV, which goes via Rennes and accepts fully assembled bikes. There is also good network of local TER trains and inter-regional Intercites trains that link stations in the region and farther afield. For example, from Nantes there is a local TER train to Angers and further east along the Loire.
To find local trains that will take bikes, it's often easiest to just use the local TER websites.
If you use the SNCF website - you can tick the 'travelling with a velo' box or just do a regular search, which will show up a symbol on trains that take bikes. Intercites trains that accept bikes will appear with a bike symbol on a normal search, but not all TERs will. But know that you CAN take bikes on all TER services even if the SNCF website does not have a bike symbol.
You may need to use the map below to piece together shorter local hops on TERs in order to avoid trains that won't take bikes. This may involve a few station changes. Search each leg separately as the SNCF system can't always handle too many multiple changes.
See also the TGV section here for workarounds on how to arrive in these areas from out of the region.
You can click here or on the map for a higher quality downloadable PDF.
Bike hire and accommodation
You can use our bespoke bike hire service to find bike hire in this region.
You can find accommodation by searching here.
You can search self-guided and guided rides here. Let me know via here if you need help.
