NEWSLETTERS | 10/09/2026 | By Sophie Baker | 13 Minutes Read
If you've been daunted by the thought of cycling the Raid Pyrenean but still want to experience an epic journey traversing this remarkable mountain range in the south of France, now you can! We've crafted this epic tour so you can now ride the most famous climbs and passes of the Pyrenees, plus many more glorious climbs across eight days of cycling.
Yes, you read that right: 8 days of cycling!
The style of this holiday is slightly different to our others. It is very much a cycling challenge and like our raids - everyone will ride the same, set route each day. However, on this tour, the daily distances and metres of ascent are more manageable than those found on raids. The cycling still offers a significant challenge, and we've designed the route so it's tough but manageable for fit, regular road cyclists. But more on that ...
This cycling challenge has them all! You'll 'enjoy' (depending on how you choose your fun!) some incredible climbs along this Pyrenean cycling journey. Of course, we've included all the big name climbs you'd expect to tick-off - Col d'Aspin, Col du Tourmalet, Col d'Aubisque, Col de Jau, amongst others - but also many lesser-known passes that we're certain you'll appreciate. We're expert at seeking out hidden-gems and weaving them into routes so they sit alongside classic climbs, which makes this a truly spectacular route.
The stats? They're big: 890km with 17,200m of ascent so pretty punchy! However, with the riding spread across eight days, the average daily distance is 112km with 2,151m of average daily climbing, which is less than all our raids. This makes it a great choice if you haven't ridden a cycling challenge before, but it's also a significant test if you've already completed a raid, and you're looking for your next goal!
How about the support on offer? Well, it's of the impressive calibre for which we're known. We provide extensive training to our guides every year, so they're highly skilled. Two of them will accompany you, each with one of our fully-equipped support vans. They'll be on hand to offer all the nutritional, mechanical and moral support you need along the route. We're very proud of our remarkable team - they're all fantastic human beings and passionate about what they do and while this is a group holiday, they're adept at treating you as an individual.
So when can you go? We're running three departures next year:
7th - 16th June
16th - 25th June
13th - 22nd September.
You might also like to know that when developing new itineraries, we now keep sustainable travel options very much in mind. For this reason, we've ensured that the start and end hotels on this trip are not far from railway stations, if you'd prefer to travel independently.
James has been quietly crafting this tour for some time so we're delighted to be able to launch it for 2027. We're certain you're going to love it! We'll be retiring our Italian Dolomites & Stelvio trip at the end of this year but you can now conquer the iconic Stelvio on our Stelvio & Eastern Switzerland trip. In the Dolomites, we've taken all the best bits of our previous itinerary and and woven them into this new gem - it's a cycling holiday in the Dolomites and then some!
We had two goals when designing the new tour: to cram in as many iconic passes and breathtaking locations as possible, and to optimise every day for time in the saddle. We've created a holiday that includes more classic climbs and passes of the region, so even if you've already ridden in the Dolomites, this trip is peppered with some beautiful rides that you might not have explored with us yet. Both the 'classic' and 'challenge' routes comprise the finest road cycling on offer in this spectacular mountain range, and we're really proud of the routes we've designed.
This holiday is packed with magnificent, bucket-list climbs! You can take on the big names for which the Dolomites are famous: Passo Campolongo, Pordoi and Giau, for example. But the beauty of the trip - and we think what makes it extra special - is you can ride all the Sella Ronda climbs from both directions across the week, as well as other stunningly beautiful passes. The daily routes include the most incredible riding from the heart of the Dolomites, but also extend to the east and west of the region, so you're rewarded with a constant backdrop of sensational Dolomitic scenery throughout the week.
This is one of our classic, flexible pace cycling holidays so you can choose from a number of options each day with varying levels of challenge, depending on how much you want to ride. Over six days, you can cycle at your own pace, and likely find other riders who want to ride at the same pace as yourself. Alternatively, enjoy the breathtaking landscape of the Dolomites cycling solo if that's what you prefer. It's entirely up to you!
The tour starts and ends in the same hotel, in Calalzo-di-Cadore. It's well-known to us as we use it on our Slovenia & Monte Zoncolan tour, which might be of interest if you wish to dovetail two of our tours together. Combining the Ultimate Dolomites with our Slovenia road cycling holiday would make a fantastic two week trip! We've also chosen this location as it's well-served by public transport, if you'd prefer to travel independently to and from the hotel.
We're well-known for the unrivalled support we offer on our tours and this holiday is no different. As ever, you'll have the benefit of two hands-on Marmot guides (who also have a great sense of fun!), each with a fully customised support van equipped with everything you need on the road. It's their mission to not only support, but also to empower you, helping you to achieve your goals, whatever they may be.
We're offering four departures next year and we've avoided the busiest mid-summer weeks, enabling you to cycle on quieter roads. The dates are:
13th - 20th June
4th - 11th July
29th August - 5th September
12th - 19th September.
This classic, flexible-pace cycling holiday has been a firm favourite with our clients for many years but we've decided to give it a revamp - now it's even better! Across six days of cycling, it perfectly captures the unspoilt beauty and charm of the region, and enables you to enjoy the wonderful and unique experience of cycling in the French Pyrenees.
We've given the daily routes an upgrade, optimising the flow of the tour from one day to the next. Needless to say, we've retained the legendary Tour de France climbs and stage endings that everyone wants to conquer, and we've also added some tremendous rides which are less well-known but no less stunning - you can thank us later!
You'll relish the tranquility of cycling the Col de Port, Col de Menté, and Port de Balès, taking in the serene Pyrenean countryside of peaceful meadows and grazing livestock. If you're up for more, choose from punishing gradients like those on the Col de Péguère - nicknamed the 'Wall of Péguère' for a reason! As for the iconic cols from the cycling world, there's a comprehensive menu: the mighty Tourmalet, exquisite Aspin, the sublime Peyresourde, pleasant Portet d'Aspet (east), and the magnificent Aubisque. The 'challenge' routes also include optional extras such as Luz Ardiden, Superbagnères and the notoriously testing Hautacam.
The variety of route options make this tour the perfect choice if you want to cycle with a partner or friends with varying abilities or different experience to your own. To understand what's on offer, the stats might help ...
You'll ride an average of 82km with 1,610m of climbing each day. If you've been on any of our other tours, this means the daily average is on a par with the 'classic' routes on our Pyrenean Foothills holiday for daily kms, and similar to our Catalonia & Girona tour for daily average metres of ascent.
Strap in for this one! The daily average comes in at a whopping 117km with 2,752m of ascent - now that's a lot of climbing! If you ride all the 'challenge' route options, it would compare with those on our Classic Cols of the Southern Alps trip for daily kms, and our Slovenia & Monte Zoncolan or Stelvio & Eastern Switzerland tours in terms of climbing. In comparison to our raids, the 'challenge route' daily average kms are slightly less than those on Raid Alpine, and the average daily ascent is just less than on Raid Pyrenean.
What's more, on every day there's a third route option, so you've got tons of choice, and you're free to decide what you're going to ride each day.
People often say they're surprised by just how beautiful the French Pyrenees are. You'll be captivated by the varied landscape throughout the week, which ranges from serene, floral pastures, to hillsides laden with broom, to magnificent, rugged peaks which extend as far as the eye can see. Experiencing all this from the saddle is an absolute joy.
You'll start your holiday in the charming medieval town of Foix, with its labyrinth of streets nestled beneath its imposing hilltop castle. There are frequent trains from Toulouse, making it easy to reach if you're travelling independently. You'll also stay in a couple of lovely spa towns on this cycling holiday, including elegant Luchon. If you feel like a day off the bike, it's the perfect place to explore, with its wealth of hiking trails, thermal baths, and even paragliding on offer - if you're up for an alternative adventure! For the final two nights, we stay in Lourdes, the preeminent Catholic pilgrimage site. As a result of the millions of annual pilgrims it welcomes, the town is well-connected to rail transport with high-frequency rail links, making it very convenient if you wish to travel by train.
There are five departures for this tour next year, so you've got plenty of opportunities to get involved! The dates are:
9th - 16th June
5th - 12th July
31st July - 7th August
20th August - 27th September
22nd - 29th September.
All our new tours are sure to be extremely popular, so we'd advise that you don't hesitate to get in touch if you're keen to get involved. Our team can pencil-in your name for a few days, before asking you to pay your deposit. We understand that you'll need to research travel options and other logistics before commiting, so we want to be as helpful as possible - we hope you find the new TRAVEL & TRANSFERS and ESSENTIAL INFO buttons on each holiday webpage useful. Finally, our FAQs page contains a wealth of infomation, so do hop over there if you haven't already.
Since publishing our 2027 itineraries and departure dates at the end of July, we've already filled over one third of our available places! If you're interested in coming cycling with us as a group of friends, we suggest you get in touch as soon as possible. This gives you the best chance of securing the dates and tour you want as our places will continue to fill up - our busiest time for bookings is between September and November. Just let us know if you're interested and we can take it from there.
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