Take the Tour of France Via the Tour de France

Following the Tour de France is a traveler’s dream. What better way to see the country if not through the eyes of the multitudes of video cameras that are following the cyclists on their tour and via the Web site that reports on each location? It’s a virtual travel log without having to be on a bicycle yourself.

Today the Tour is on Stage 6 out of 21, having begun in Leeds, England on July 5th, ending in Paris on the Champs Elysées on Sunday, July 27th. I won’t be here for the finish line, as I’ll be on route to Nice that day (by train, not cycle), but I’ve been there before. In all honesty, it’s a disappointing grand finale as after one has stood in the crowd to get a good spot for an hour or maybe more, and then to watch them whiz by in a split second is frustrating, particularly if you’re trying to get a great photo of the winner and you miss the one moment…like I have!

Last year we did a smart thing and booked a table next to the window at “Le Drugstore” at the top of the avenue near the Arc de Triomphe so that we could have a nice meal while watching the cyclists flash by. It was a great way to see it as everyone else on the sidewalk was trying to accomplish what I never could achieve — one great shot of the winner.

Today during Stage 6, the cyclists are traveling between Arras and Reims (pronounced “ra~s” — howdoyousaythatword.com/), a total of 194km. The official Web site of the Tour de France has a special section at each stage titled “Tourist Attractions” so that one can learn more about the towns and the countryside in which it takes place. For example, Arras, a UNESCO world heritage site, was an important trade city in the Middle Ages and is now a major site for rock artists such as Prince and Sting! One can learn simple facts or more detailed information such as the fact that it has a population of 45,000 inhabitants and it’s specialties are sausage and cheese.

There is even a video about the town to help you decide if it’s a place you wish to visit or live. This is true for all the spots along the Tour de France route, as well as those in between the beginning and ending of each stage noting points of interest along the way and providing a ton of information about each of them.

Here’s the Tour de Fance route map, so have fun exploring France from your armchair, rather than your cycle!

    Stage 1      190.5 km    Leeds / HarrogateStage 2201 kmYork / Sheffield
    Stage 3      155 km       Cambridge / Londres
    Stage 4      163.5 km    Le Touquet-Paris-Plage / Lille Métropole
    Stage 5      152.5 km    Ypres / Arenberg Porte du Hainaut
    Stage 6      194 km       Arras / Reims
    Stage 7      234.5 km    Épernay / Nancy
    Stage 8      161 km       Tomblaine / Gérardmer La Mauselaine
    Stage 9      170 km       Gérardmer / Mulhouse
    Stage 10    161.5 km    Mulhouse / La Planche des Belles Filles
    Stage 11    187.5 km    Besançon / Oyonnax
    Stage 12    185.5 km    Bourg-en-Bresse / Saint-Étienne
    Stage 13    197.5 km    Saint-Étienne / Chamrousse
    Stage 14    177 km       Grenoble / Risoul
    Stage 15    222 km       Tallard / Nîmes
    Stage 16    237.5 km    Carcassonne / Bagnères-de-Luchon
    Stage 17    124.5 km    Saint-Gaudens / Saint-Lary Pla d’Adet
    Stage 18    145.5 km    Pau / Hautacam
    Stage 19    208.5 km    Maubourguet Pays du Val d’Adour / Bergerac
    Stage 20    54 km         Bergerac / Périgueux
    Stage 21    137.5 km    Évry / Paris Champs-Élysées

A bientôt ,

Adrian Leeds

The Adrian Leeds Group

Respond to Adrian: [email protected]

P.S. It’s today! Tune in to HGTV’s House Hunters International for the new episode “A Taste for Paris” on July 10, 2014 at 10:30 p.m. and 1:30 a.m. E/P. Corporate lawyer Emerald has a dream of creating a business hosting dinner parties for paying guests and is searching for the perfect Paris apartment with a well-appointed kitchen and large dining area. It’s my job to make sure Emerald doesn’t bite off more than she can chew in the pricy Parisian rent

P.P.S. There will be no FPI on Thursday, August 7, for annual vacation.