I’m hoping to make a trip from the US to cycle in the French mountains with a buddy. Of course I’d love to hit the most iconic climbs like Mount Ventoux and Alpe d’Huez amongst others . It appears there are a number of outfitters that cater to people interested in this sort of thing. I’m curious what the forum’s experiences have been? What is the value and need of guided vs unguided trips? How challenging for non French speakers would it be to navigate an unguided trip? Are there some favorite and/or reputable businesses/companies that people would recommend? Thanks for any input others can provide!
I worked for Trek Travel a few years ago and they provided really great experiences for all of their trips. I know their “Classic Climbs: The Tour” trip, in particular, was really highly regarded. 
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I think you can get by without speaking French, although doing a bit of Duolingo or similar so that you at least have a basic grasp of the language and can say a few words would be appreciated and will make it easier. Route planning is easy enough, as is booking hotels or Airbnbs.
Main pro of paying somebody to organise it is really the transport logistics. If you want to tick off iconic climbs in multiple areas (Ventoux, Alps, Pyrenees) that’s quite a bit of moving around. Which either means hiring and returning multiple bikes, or bringing your own and then renting a big enough car to fit them in or on (along with whatever bags or boxes you transport them in). Limits route options as you need to finish each ride where you started it. And with those big climbs your daily mileage doesn’t tend to be that big. A company who can move your bags from one hotel to another while you’re following an A to B route instead of a circular one means you can cover a lot more ground and spend more time riding and not driving, packing and unpacking (or hiring and returning) bikes, etc.
I think if you were long on time and tight on budget you could do a great self supported trip spending a decent amount of time in each area before moving on. If you want to tick off as many iconic climbs as possible in a relatively short time frame then a company to help with logistics is the way to go. I’m not sure you actually need a guide, ride routing and navigation is so easy these days and there’s so much info online about the climbs you’re looking at. And if you’re reasonably competent with bike maintenance you don’t need a support vehicle either. But they’re nice to have if you can afford them.
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id be interested in learning of other expeditions. I have already reached out to https://www.france-bike-trips.com/ and looks decent enough, but not sure id prefer staying central somewhere for a few days or move everyday like their trip is
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France is pretty easy for tourists, especially if you have a car and a bit of camping gear. I usually just drive their alone with my daughter without a plan and we always find something. The Haute Savoie and Haute Alpes departments are stunning and you will find beautiful cycling everywhere but if you are on a tight schedule and want to do all the epics a tour might be worth it because what seems like a short distance can take many hours driving
That’s really helpful, thank you!
A buddy of mine went to France (mostly around Chamonix) over the summer a week before his non-cyclist wife arrived. He rented a small van and an e-bike, and did not hire a guide. He was able to easily find places to stay for the nights both in and out of campgrounds and just looked up routes on line. He used an e-bike so he was able to see as much as possible each day without being destroyed.
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I did Trek Travel: Classic Climbs. It was great. We were told at the beginning of the trip that Alp D’Heuz had to be done but compared to the other climbs we’d do it wasn’t going to be amazing and they were right. That said, Trek Travel did it right and made it easy and all the big climbs are checked off my bucket list.
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How long do you have?
Will you be bringing your own bikes?
Yes we are bringing our bikes. We are comfortable with all maintenance. We have 7-10 days.
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If you can afford it, always go with a supported tour. Personally - I’m there to ride long days. Which means I don’t want to mess around with the bike, figure out my cooking, drive, etc. I just want to ride, eat and drink.
I used https://alpcycles.com/ for my Haute Route package this year and they did not disappoint! They do group tours a few times a year, check with them on the timing if you’re interested. They’re based in Bozel, in the three valleys, and are very familiar with the French alps.
If you can’t, or you just don’t want to, you absolutely can make it work by yourself.
I did Ventoux and AdH 5 years ago with some friends. We used https://www.445cyclingtours.com to organize and support the rides. Great guys.
I loved climbing AdH. It’s beautiful and so iconic.
We regularly go on holiday to France to cycle and there are so many more beautiful climbs than the Alp! The Alp is a one way road to a village with a lot of traffic…
My top 3:
Mont Ventoux (from Bedoin)
Galibier (from Valloire)
Col de La Bonette
If you could still change…I would go to the Dolomites in Italy! The Sella Ronda is incredibly beautiful! So much more beautiful than the climbs in France. The Sella Ronde includes the following passes: Campolongo, Pordoi, Sella, Gardena,
Top 3:
-Sella Ronda
-Passo Giau
-Passo Manghen
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Not the most beautiful col but definitely the hardest I ever did but close by there are the stunning col de Cayolle and my favourite d’Allos (as well as the also famous col de Vars)
Funny you that you mention the Col de Cayolle. I wanted to say that one too, but I thought it was too unknown. When we were on holiday at Barcelonette (during the Tour in 2015) we also rode the Allos and Cayolle. The Cayolle even twice because it is so beautiful with different landscapes.
Bram Tankink once said that the Cayolle is in his top 3 of most beautiful Tour cols.
Last year we spent a week at Embrun and did the Vars from Guillestre. I thought that was one of the least beautiful we have ever done. Many bleak ski villages and few real views.
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I can only speak for Alpe d’Huez, but I rented a bike from Cycles et Sports in Le Bourg d’Oisans. Did it all online, and had no issues picking up the bike day of. The shop was super friendly and even threw in a water bottle for free. This was back in 2019.
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Both the Cayolle and Allos are very beautiful but last summer the road up the Allos had been partially washed away and was closed for all traffic. For cyclists however there was no problem going up, so it was very peaceful and quiet without any of those selfish di☆☆head motorcyclists that always ruin everyone else’s experience… I went up both twice, Allos both times cycling and Cayolle once cycling and once by car with my daughter.
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My France experience is limited to one single trip, but I definitely agree on Alp! It is iconic, so it was nice to say I did it, nice to sit on our patio drinking spritzes while riders roll by, nice to check out the village … but other cols were far better!
Bonette was a beast without even doing the cime , and I wouldn’t go as far as to describe the top 1/3 as beautiful (desolate comes to mind 
), but I am super glad to have done it. I was glad we didn’t have to go up the cime, though looking back at it, I would have liked to have ticked it off. It is quite the test, especially if you’re already tired, but there is a huge sense of accomplishment over And the descent towards Nice was out of this world!
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Another vote for Trek Travel and their Classic Climbs trip. I just love that I don’t need to think about ride logistics (snacks, routes, etc) and there’s no stress about whether my bike is arriving in one piece
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Also did a Trek Travel trip here (Epic Climbs of the Tour). It was a great week of riding, and I’d describe this as “turnkey”. Pay money, show up, ride, and it’s all taken care of for you. Worth it IMO.
As an additional bonus met a few people I’ve kept in touch with. Great experience.
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