Cycling London to Paris is a bucket list experience for many British cyclists. Some choose to do it under 24h as a sportive challenge and many others decide to enjoy every minute of it and making it a small trip.
This challenge gives you maximum flexibility and can be adapted to suit all tastes, budgets, levels of fitness and bikes. The appeal of this adventure is also that it can be done within just a few days, making it a serious options for all of us with normal jobs, families or other commitments! Whatever your choices end up being, there is a profond sense of satisfaction from reaching Paris by bike just by the power of your legs.
After towing with a few ideas on what to do other the Easter bank holiday week-end, we decided we will set off from home, in London to the Eiffel Tower in Paris. I was excited just thinking about it and swiftly started planning the logistics (you will see a bit later that there are quite a few aspects to consider!). I am now sharing the adventure and some tips. I hope you found this article inspiring and that I am looking forward to hearing about your experience of cycling the iconic London to Paris route.
This is quite a long article, packed with anecdotes and practical tips if you are looking at the cycling London to Paris yourself. You can click on the links below to directly reach the sections that interest you the most (or you can read it fully too :-))
- How I cycled London to Paris in 3 days
- Planning your route for cycling London to Paris
- How much does it costs?
How I cycled London to Paris via Calais (450km, 3 days)
Day 1: London to Folkestone (UK) + Calais to Saint-Omer (France)
We set off on Friday morning at 07am and because it just felt wrong to set off towards the Eiffel Tower without even seeing Big Ben, we started with a small detour via the center of London. The roads were quiet, but our progress was still fairly slow because of the red lights, crossing the capital was not really pleasant and it is with relief we entered Kent and started cycling in the countryside.
It was a beautiful day, we followed the “Pilgrim Way” and saw little cars, mainly hikers and cyclists. Some climbs were quite sharps but we didn’t take much rest as we had to make it on time to the coast to make the crossing to France. After 6h30 of ride, we reached Folkestone and celebrated with a Fish and Chips! The first part was over… but not the first day!
For me a London to Paris cycling adventure should include a detour via my home town Saint-Omer. This deviated our route slightly and increased our total mileage of roughly extra 40km. This doesn’t seem a lot but at the end of a already long day it was not really exciting to have to get back on the bike at 6.00pm. But it was definitely worth it for staying at mum’s for one night and being treated as heroes :). Thankfully the road was pancake flat which was a relief after the Kent hills. My sister joined us for the last hour of the ride and this gave me a big boost, desperately needed after already 140km that day.
Day 1: 8h30, 183km / 113miles, 1700m elevation gain (See part 1 and part 2 on Strava)
Day 2: Saint-Omer to Amiens
On the morning on the second day the first thought that crossed my mind was “I don’t want to cycle today”. The second thing was “I don’t really think I have the choice, I decided to do this.” But we got up and after a good breakfast we felt much more ready to tackle the day.
Day 2 ended up being my favorite as we cycled solely on the countryside, we pass many farms, fields, wind power turbines and very small villages. We barely saw any red lights! The sky was blue, the temperature was a lovely 22C. It was also fun to cycle in home soil as I didn’t do much cycling as a kid and realised that it is a great area to do so with plenty of quiet roads!
The route was relatively easy, with some flat sections but many small inclines and descents and the surface was great. Adnan and I will race up each other to the top of each climb laughing. In high sight it was probably not the best idea for the rest of the day but it was so much fun!).
We knew we had plenty of time to cycle the distance and that we didn’t need to stress. We took the time to stop for a nice lunch in a small town after the half mark point, and did another stop by a lake.
We actually stopped in Sourdon, south of Amiens as we wanted to stay away from the big cities. We stayed in an amazing B&B “Le Colombier” with birds singing as the only background noise! Dinner was served -a delicious magret de canard aka duck- around the communal table and we were treated as heroes by the other guests (“You left London yesterday and will be in Paris tomorrow?“), do you start to see a pattern there ;-)?
Day 2: 6h, 142km / 88 miles, 1200m elevation (see it on Strava)
Day 3: Amiens (Sourdon) to Paris
The last day featured “only” a bit more than 100km and we had a giant breakfast (with crepes and croissant). The legs didn’t even complain when we got up, it was business as usual now.
It was Easter Sunday and the roads were really quiet, families were gathering in their garden and we could occasionally smell some barbecue going on. The downside was that most places to eat were closed. We didn’t think about that and when we finally stopped for lunch we had to content ourselves with a bakery which lucky was still open. The capital and its suburb was in sight.
How did it feel to reach the Eiffel Tour? Well, maybe not as overwhelming as I imagined. The last 20km through the suburbs and in the heart of the capital were dreadful. I got really anxious about the traffic and about us having an accident so close from the goal.
It was therefore with relief I saw the Eiffel Tower and dismounted the bike ; but I only fully appreciated the accomplishment at the restaurant, once we had parked the bikes, showered and were getting some nice food :-D. A cycling trip to Paris isn’t complete without the mandatory picture of you, your bike and the Eiffel tower so we fully indulged.
Day 3: 5h40, 122km / 75miles, 1000m elevation (See it on Strava)
I loved the trip, though I recognise that a big part was due to the amazing weather we had the all time, it would probably have been really different if it was pouring rain.
Total: 20h of riding, 450km / 280miles
Planning your route for cycling London to Paris
Most (all?) people choose to cycle from UK to France. I assume the reason is mainly gastronomic, with the mandatory celebration meal being more looking forward to if you finish in the French capital (but who am I to judge after all, I am probably quite biased!). There are 2 main routes to cycle London to Paris and you can choose depending on your budget, time available, fitness or even on your touristy preferences.
Our road took us through the south East of England, cycling through Kent, crossing the English Channel and arriving in the north of France in Calais. After a detour to Saint-Omer which most wouldn’t do, we headed off towards Amiens before cycling south straight to Paris. Plan 3 or 4 days for this route in-order to achieve it comfortably as you will cover around 385km/ 240miles.
One other route (and probably the most popular) goes from London directly south to Newhaven where you board a 6h ferry for Dieppe, in Normandy. On this route you will total 250km / 156miles. This is the shortest route and therefore the one used by cyclists attempting to cycle London to Paris under 24h.
For an overview of the many alternatives, I recommend checking the excellent london2paris.co.uk website.
Choosing the route that fits you
Whatever the route you take, don´t be overly ambitious and assess properly your level of fitness. This is a long journey and you want to enjoy it! Things may go wrong you may get a puncture or decide to stop for an hour to let the shower rain pass. I have found that more than 5h in a day on the saddle starts to be uncomfortable and more than 6h or really long day, but everyone is different.
Take the B routes and allow for detours. No matter how much planning you do, you may encounter road works or realise that a road is too busy or in too bad condition to be ridden on. Be flexible and remember, safety first.
Crossing the English Channel
If you choose to cycle via Calais, crossing the English channel with the ferry is probably the most “romantic” option but will take you around 2h30min so it can eat a bit of time. Bringing a bike cost around 30Euros. Ferries depart from Dover and cross to Calais or Dunkirk. More tips on taking your bike on the ferry here.
A less known option is to book a bike Shuttle Service. Leaving from Folkestone, you can book a spot on a van crossing the Channel using the Eurotunnel service. Your bike travels at the back, you travel at the front of the van. The crossing including border controls takes about 1h30min and only costs 20GBP per bike and cyclist: a bargain! This is the option we choose. the only downside is that there is only one crossing a day so you can’t really afford to miss it… allow plenty of time.
Bringing your bike with the Eurostar
If you decide to cycle only one way you will have to find a way to cover London-Paris or Paris-London with transportation. The Eurostar seems the most straight forward option but it comes with its drawbacks: You have to use EuroDespatch service to book your bike on the Eurostar. This can only be done by phone and it’s a good idea to give them a ring before booking your Eurostar ticket to check they still have space. Bringing a fully assembled bike comes at a steep cost (see budget section below). On the day you need to drop your bike off 2h before the departure of your train, an important detail when planning your trip.
How much does it cost?
When planning a trip, keeping cost down is often a consideration. My trip was a bit special as I took the opportunity to visit my family and therefore we ended up being guests for free. However, the below should still give you a good idea of the budget for such a trip!
- Transportation:
- EuroShuttle to cross the English Channel with the bike: 20GBP for the bike AND the cyclist
- Eurostar back to London: the big cost! Bringing the bike with Eurostar Despatch 55GBP per bike + Cost of the single 110GBP per person (Easter Monday!)
- Food:
- Simple Lunch: Fish and chips in a Pub in England, Croque Monsieur and salad in a French Brasserie, around 15Euros per person
- Fueling your ride: I bought the snacks I use on every of my training rides as I know my stomach could deal with them (Tribe energy bars and some electrolyte gels)
- Pastries: You can treat yourself for only 10Euros in a French boulangerie
- Dinner: around 35 euros per person (Dinner at the B&B, Pizzeria in Paris).
- Accommodation:
- Staying at mum and the sister was free so we treated ourselves to a lovely B&B for our only paid night. 80Euros for a double room
If you fancy cycling adventures, we may also enjoy A week-end of cycling and hiking around Isle of Wight (UK), cycling the Tour de Yorkshire (UK) or my race report of 300km sportive Vatternrundan (Sweden)
