Montpellier à vélo

On this Mediterranean Cycle Route stage, keep towel and bathers at the top of your pannier! For lunch, taste local shellfish accompanied by a Muscat de Frontignan wine, the perfect reward for tackling this watery scenery. Towards Montpellier, the route meanders between lagoons and beaches. Make a detour to Saint-Pierre de Maguelone Cathedral, the Gardiole Range in the background covered in typical garrigue scrubland. Then head for the lighthouse at Palavas-les-Flots. Next, the great pyramids of La Grande Motte call, man-made reflections of the grand Pic St-Loup rock inland. At the port-resort of Le Grau-du-Roi, why not try some nautical sliding sports, witness a Camargue bull run or savour local produce?

Enjoy the Camargue’s environment further on this stage of the Mediterranean Cycle Route. Cycle beside the Canal du Rhône à Sète, then across a plain dotted with lakes and irrigation canals and crisscrossed by tracks leading to traditional ‘mas’ (farms). Some of the cyclists you encounter will be finishing their journey along ViaRhôna. At the level of Fourques, you can head to Arles with its amazing Roman and Romanesque legacies. Saint-Gilles, at the foot of the wine-producing Coteaux des Costières, has a fine medieval centre. Discover Beaucaire, with its river port, before crossing to Tarascon-sur-Rhône, its imposing fort dominating the opposite bank.

From Béziers’s port, the Canal du Midi à Vélo route directs you back to the Med. From Roque Haute bridge, you can easily access Portiragnes Beach by bike to enjoy a refreshing dip. Also stop to admire Le Libron’s curious adjustable aqueduct and Agde’s circular lock. Agde Cathedral, with its bell-tower dominating the Hérault River, calls on visitors to explore the ancient city below, built from black basalt. The Canal du Midi merges with the Etang de Thau lagoon at the level of Les Onglous lighthouse. From Marseillan-Plage, Le Lido Greenway sticks to the Mediterranean, leading you to Sète and its museums. How long will you resist the call of the sea for a swim along this stretch?

It is advisable to request written authorization to cycle across these parts from VNF, the managing authority, in accordance with Article R4241-68 of the French Code des Transports.

The final stage on the GTMC à VTT route offers some nice surprises. The first part of this stage is enjoyable as well as beautiful, taking you from Montagnac to Castelnau-de-Guers. You’ll ride along lovely paths, between pine woods and vines, with views to the Etang de Thau lagoon on one side and the Mediterranean on the other. The GTMC adopts part of a local route entitled "Terroir d’Art et de Nature de Montagnac", dotted with sculptures and statues. It’s then a very gentle ride along vineyard paths, quiet country roads, and cycle tracks. You can take your time now, taking in the vine-covered terrain and the ancient city of Agde, crossed by the Canal du Midi, before you join the Med along the only stretch of volcanic shoreline in the Languedoc.

On this last really sporty stage of the GTMC, you go slaloming along alternating tracks and paths taking you down the final southern slopes of the Massif Central. You then plunge into an ocean of vines as you ride to the lovely little town of Pézenas, closely linked to the great 17th-century French dramatist Molière. There are lovely views over to the Pic de Vissou, guardian hill at the centre of the French county of Hérault, plus panoramas across vine-covered plains to the Med, and even to the Pyrenees on clear days. What with the vines and olive trees, the lovely stone villages and the wineries, you really feel you’ve reached the South of France!

On this last really sporty stage of the GTMC, you go slaloming along alternating tracks and paths taking you down the final southern slopes of the Massif Central. You then plunge into an ocean of vines as you ride to the lovely little town of Pézenas, closely linked to the great 17th-century French dramatist Molière. There are lovely views over to the Pic de Vissou, guardian hill at the centre of the French county of Hérault, plus panoramas across vine-covered plains to the Med, and even to the Pyrenees on clear days. What with the vines and olive trees, the lovely stone villages and the wineries, you really feel you’ve reached the South of France!