The Loire Valley is one of the most popular regions in France for cycling holidays, with numerous options available whether you prefer to bring your own bike to France and 'go it alone' or to book a place on an organised Loire Valley cycling holiday.
Not surprisingly most of the 'pre-planned' routes focus on visiting castles, enjoying the countryside and seeing the river and towns. Typically a distance of about 25-35 miles a day is covered, on countryside that is not too challenging (there are no mountains here in the Loire Valley!) Most tours will also take in a couple of Loire vineyards en route.
If you look at our Map of the Loire Valley you will see that one main route pretty much stands out - that between Blois / Cheverny / Chambord in the west and Amboise or Tours to the east, with Chenonceau and Chaumont among the highlights in between. This route passes the greatest number of castles in the shortest possible distance!
Want to cycle further each day or stay for longer? A slightly longer cycling tour in the Loire Valley might continue to Chateaux Villandry, Azay le Rideau and Ussé to the west of Tours.
Alternatively a cycling tour might focus on the western part of the Loire Valley following the river between Saumur and Tours, with highlights also including the lovely Abbey at Fontevraud, Chinon, Langeais, Ussé, Villandry...
Again distances are quite small and if your focus is more on cycling and less on seeing inside lots of castles then it would be very possible to cycle the whole distance between Angers and Blos in a week - indeed, continuing all the way to the Vendee coast would not be too difficult either, since the countryside is so flat.
The advantages of a guided cycling tour are that they will organise your meals and hotels, and usually provide bikes, maps and support. The disadvantage is that they will cost more! The choice also depends on how social you are - you might see a group cycling holiday as a lovely may to meet new people with similar interests, or you might be horrified at the thought of spending a week with complete strangers...
Loire Valley cycling article kindly provided by road bikes - a great place to get some training advice before you start your trip!