![\"Jenny](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/image00001-9ead-rotated.jpeg\")
\n\t\tAll the gear\u2026 (Picture: Jenny Forsyth)<\/p>\n
\t\t
\n\t\tAll the gear\u2026 (Picture: Jenny Forsyth)<\/p>\n
Kitted out in my finest cycle gear, I\u2019ve gone for the full Tour de France<\/a> look. The idea of cycling along the Loire had me packing my finest padded pants from the middle aisle in Lidl<\/a> and a rogue athletic shirt that\u2019s been hanging in the wardrobe, still with tags on, for years.<\/p>\n But I\u2019m clearly a few spokes short of a wheel when it comes to competitive racing. <\/p>\n Physique aside, my trusty steed is an e-bike, just the ticket for effortless rides even on hills. There\u2019s also my telltale pannier with the company logo of Cycling For Softies<\/a>. Well\u2026 the clue\u2019s in the name.<\/p>\n Though I like to dress as if I\u2019ve got a Strava record to defend, this type of cushy holiday is what my cycling dreams are made of. <\/p>\n The concept is you turn up, rent your bike, and the hand-holding begins. <\/p>\n Staying in boutique hotels, your itinerary is set \u2013 right down to inclusive breakfasts and pre-paid dinners each night \u2013 your luggage is whisked between hotels each day and, should anything go wrong, you can call the local rep for help. I\u2019m almost embarrassed to describe myself as a cyclist.<\/p>\n \t\t\t\tBest of Metro Deals\t\t\t<\/p>\n Get exclusive\u00a0discounts\u00a0with\u00a0Metro Deals<\/a>\u00a0\u2013 save on getaways and spa days.\u00a0Powered by Wowcher<\/p>\n Bannatyne Spa: Spa day for two with treatments, lunch & prosecco \u2014\u00a0save up to 57%\u00a0off.<\/p>\n Get deal now<\/a><\/p>\n Mystery Escape: Hotel stay with return flights from as low as \u00a392pp \u2014\u00a0save on worldwide holiday packages.<\/p>\n Get deal now<\/a><\/p>\n Beach Retreat (Lanzarote): 4* Lanzarote beach holiday with flights \u2014\u00a0save up to 58%.<\/p>\n Get deal now<\/a><\/p>\n As well as dispensing with a heavy backpack, you can also let go of any navigation responsibilities, because it\u2019s all handled by a GPS app downloaded on your phone before the holiday.<\/p>\n Download the route for each day, start pedalling, and the bossy voice kicks in, reminding you regularly where you need to turn and noisily sounding the alarm when you go off track.<\/p>\n In the spirit of eco-friendly travel, my sister-in-law Joanne and I set off early on a Friday morning on the Eurostar<\/a> from London<\/a> to Paris<\/a>. <\/p>\n It\u2019s easy to slip into the holiday spirit when you\u2019re surrounded by groups of friends popping Champagne corks and wearing the obligatory berets or Disney<\/a> mouse ears. <\/p>\n In Paris, we crossed by Metro to Montparnasse and caught a second train to Saint Pierre des Corps \u2013 our gateway to the Loire river.<\/p>\n Perhaps we\u2019d been lulled by that party spirit on the earlier train. This time, we cracked open a red wine and sat chatting amongst ourselves. Or so we thought. <\/p>\n Suddenly, from across the aisle, a lady roared: \u2018You\u2019re talking too slowly\u2019. <\/p>\n Giggling, I wondered if perhaps she hadn\u2019t been able to follow our conversation. \u2018I mean loudly,\u2019 she continued. Oops. <\/p>\n Arriving at Chinon, a beautiful medieval town set on the banks of the Vienne River, we checked in at the three-star Hotel Diderot and began our culinary adventure tour with a superb dinner. <\/p>\n Though the holiday company is called Cycling For Softies, it could just as easily be called Cycling For Gourmands. <\/p>\n \t\t Our first night\u2019s dinner \u2013 pre-booked as part of the package \u2013 was a \u20ac58 meal at Restaurant Nemrod, which is listed in the Michelin Guide. <\/p>\n Smoked salmon with buckwheat blinis, red mullet with langoustine sauce and baked onions, and shared plates of chocolate brownie plus spiced apples with speculoos ice cream had us sighing in appreciation \u2013 and also considering how much cycling we might need to cancel out the calories.<\/p>\n The following morning, our guide, Chris, appeared for our briefing. <\/p>\n This involved showing us around the bikes, making sure they were the right height, giving us a bit of guidance about how to use the GPS and advice on immobilising and locking the e-bikes and recharging the batteries. <\/p>\n \u2018The idea is you won\u2019t have to hear from me while you\u2019re here, unless something goes wrong,\u2019 he said. <\/p>\n I can\u2019t tell you how happy that backup made me. The last time Joanne and I had cycled near the Loire \u2013 more than 20 years ago \u2013 we had no motors and no tools in case of crisis.<\/p>\n When my brakes locked, we flagged down a passing man with a van, who cheerfully agreed to take my bike to the next village. <\/p>\n And so, despite having the worst French, I trustingly set off with him while my husband and his sister looked on. \u2018And that was the last we ever saw of her,\u2019 Joanne is said to have joked at the time.<\/p>\n Our first day\u2019s ride took us just 22km from Chinon to Montsoreau, which is listed as one of the \u2018prettiest villages in France<\/a>\u2019. <\/p>\n It definitely lives up to the hype, with chic shops, a chateau made famous by Alexandre Dumas\u2019s novel The Lady of Montsoreau, which now houses a contemporary art museum and, as we discovered on Sunday morning, a small but perfectly formed market.<\/p>\n Oysters, cheeses, rotisserie chickens\u2026 what more could you want?<\/p>\n After crossing the river, the flat path through the forest opened up in front of us, and we relaxed into the ride. <\/p>\n As well as clicking through the gears, e-bikes give you the \u2018softies\u2019 option of moving from eco to tour, sports and even turbo modes, so that even the steepest of hills seems like only a minor challenge. <\/p>\n Cycling alongside the sparkling river, pretty villages, grazing deer, vineyards and stately homes, puts you almost in a trance. <\/p>\n \t\t There\u2019s just you and the bike, the rhythm of the pedals and nothing to worry about except where your next coffee, wine, or baguette might come from.<\/p>\n The extra loop we\u2019d added gave us our first taste of how e-bikes eat up the hills. <\/p>\n Veering away from the main path, we were suddenly forced into low gear and turbo mode \u2013 giving huge thanks for our electric boost. <\/p>\n The path takes you through rolling hills and open fields to the beautiful village of Fontevraud L\u2019Abbaye, a prison in Napoleon\u2019s day but now a sprawling historical site and exhibition centre. <\/p>\n Stopping at a caf\u00e9 for spinach tarts and coffee, we got chatting to another visitor who considered it a must-see. <\/p>\n \u2018Eleanor of Acquitaine \u2013 what a woman,\u2019 he said, launching into a long list of her heroic deeds before spending her last days here. <\/p>\n \t\t We slunk out of town, hoping he wouldn\u2019t notice we\u2019d denied Eleanor her dues by doing the full tour.<\/p>\n Wheeling in for our first night \u2018on the road\u2019, we checked in at the four-star Hotel Marine de Loire. <\/p>\n We didn\u2019t feel we\u2019d cycled far enough to take advantage of the massages on offer there, but spent a happy hour in the spa and even took a dip in the outdoor pool. <\/p>\n In the evening, we got a further taste of the local wine \u2013 the Chinon \u2013 with a delicious tasting session in the hotel, then enjoyed more excellent food at Ververt \u2013 another Michelin Guide restaurant. <\/p>\n The hotel breakfast, served in a beautiful room with Martha\u2019s Vineyard-style d\u00e9cor, was the best of the tour. <\/p>\n \t\t Retracing our pedal strokes towards Savigny-en-V\u00e9ron, we set out on the longest route of the trip \u2013 a whopping 46km to Azay-le-Rideau. <\/p>\n It\u2019s almost entirely flat but, this being a tour for softies, we were warned to take advantage of a local Carrefour to buy supplies before heading through the forest, where \u2013 quelle horreur! \u2013 there might not be a shop for an hour or so. <\/p>\n Although I suspected we could last the distance, we obligingly pulled in, bought sandwiches and submitted to the cashier\u2019s demands to search all our bags. I\u2019m not sure if this is usual in France, or if we looked like suspicious cyclists.<\/p>\n Again, following our GPS guide\u2019s advice, we stopped for a tour of Ch\u00e2teau d\u2019Uss\u00e9, known as the Sleeping Beauty castle, as it is believed to have inspired Charles Perrault\u2019s famous fairytale.<\/p>\n You could spend nearly every hour of the day visiting ch\u00e2teaux on this trip, but the sight of those famous turrets looming in the middle of the countryside made it impossible to pedal past. <\/p>\n Apart from the grand grounds and centuries of artwork, the chateau has taken its Sleeping Beauty backstory and run with it. <\/p>\n \t\t As well as all the Maleficent-style merchandise in the gift shop, there\u2019s a mock-up version of the tale in one of the high corners of the castle. <\/p>\n Expect models of \u2018the most beautiful princess\u2019, a wicked witch at her spinning spindle and that handsome prince leaning in for his (non-consensual) kiss. <\/p>\n Bizarrely, the Disney Cinderella song Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo was playing in the background. But, like the fact that Perrault also took all the credit for a story told orally for years before he wrote it down, that\u2019s a small detail.<\/p>\n Arriving in Azay-le-Rideau, we checked in at the Le Grand Monarque, a four-star hotel originally built in the 18th century but recently restored. <\/p>\n Bikes parked, it\u2019s an easy walk around this beautiful, stone-filled town, which has a centrepiece of \u2013 you guessed it \u2013 a stunning chateau. <\/p>\n Chateau of Azay-le-Rideau is an early nod to feminism, as although it was built by Gilles Berthelot, his wife Philippa Lesbahy is credited with directing most of the work while he was away on business.<\/p>\n \t\t For our last day of riding, we motored up steep hills, through forest tracks and past the wine-growing area on the 36km journey back to our starting place, Chinon. <\/p>\n Having ignored the GPS guidance to stop off at a museum devoted to dried pears, we arrived in time to spend time wandering the town and relaxing back at Hotel Diderot.<\/p>\n Bikes and helmets parked and locked for collection, we had one last treat in store: dinner at Les Ann\u00e9es 30 in the heart of the village. <\/p>\n We\u2019d thought Nemrod would be impossible to beat, but the set menu (\u20ac39-54 including a cheese course we definitely didn\u2019t need) was to die for.<\/p>\n It felt strange, on the last day, to be dressed in civvies rather than cycling pants as we made the same journey in reverse back to Blighty. <\/p>\n This time, there was no animal calamity hold-up, no shhh-ing on the train and just time to enjoy a Croque Monsieur in the Paris sunshine. <\/p>\n \t\t I\u2019ll admit the French favourite seemed something of a step down after all those Michelin-approved meals we\u2019d been eating. <\/p>\n Which is part of the reason why, with a milestone birthday coming in the next few years, I\u2019m already planning another \u2018softies\u2019 cycling tour.<\/p>\n Jenny Forsyth\u00a0was a guest of Cycling for Softies,\u00a0but don\u2019t expect us to sugarcoat anything \u2013 our reviews are 100% independent.<\/p>\n She went on the four-night\u00a0Chateaux of the Loire\u00a0package<\/a>, which starts at \u00a3715 per person, including B&B accommodation, bike rental with e-bike upgrades available, luggage transfers\u00a0and route information via the RideWithGPS app.<\/p>\n Four nights half board (breakfast and dinner) starts at \u00a31,130. <\/p>\n Cycling for Softies is offering \u00a3100 M&S vouchers when you book before 31 January, plus up to \u00a3200 off April departures.\u00a0<\/p>\n Please note that\u00a0the Loire trips restart in April 2026.\u00a0<\/p>\n Arrow Arrow Arrow![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/image00008-1b15-rotated-e1768407959113.jpeg\")
\n\t\tOne of many gourmet meals on the trip (Picture: Jenny Forsyth)<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/image00013-a4fe.jpeg\")
\n\t\tThe market in Montsoreau (Picture: Jenny Forsyth)<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/View-of-Chinon-from-the-castle-France-shutterstock_645159526-2235.jpg\")
\n\t\tBeautiful Chinon from the castle above (Picture: Cycling For Softies)<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/image00026-49ad-rotated-e1769791337737.jpeg\")
\n\t\tWine tasting at Hotel Marine de Loire (Picture: Jenny Forsyth)<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/image00025-0146-rotated.jpeg\")
\n\t\tJenny with her cycling partner, Joanne Perry (Picture: Jenny Forsyth)<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Ch_teau-dAzay-le-Rideau-5324.jpg\")
\n\t\tThe magnificent Azay-le-Rideau (Picture: Cycling For Softies)<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Chinon-Diderot-4289.jpg\")
\n\t\tCharming Hotel Diderot (Picture: Cycling For Softies)<\/p>\n
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