You would really want to speak at least some french, france is a country that is famous for having a very low bilingual % and the people there who are for the most part nice (but principled) will be much nicer if you speak to them in french.
It’s pretty common for the bakeries to refuse your requests based on their perceived subject matter expertise, for example I once asked for a sandwich heated up when I stumbled into a bakery in light snowfall day in ARA and the nice lady who knew me well at this point took a moment to ponder the implications of my request and the impact it would have on her bread and the cheeses and various meats before politely saying no, in english you would have no chance of getting your sandwich warmed up.
You also have to understand that much of france is rural where there are many elderly peoples who do not speak any english whatsoever. If you want to be out there touring remote mountain passes, you are bound to run into issues such as the need for food, water, directions to a bike shop, asking someone to call you a taxi and speaking french is going to be crucial
Regionally it’s quite simple.
Go to Nice until you don’t have any money left, you don’t need a touring company and you don’t need to go to huez, it’s still winter there in the american spring wheras Nice, well the weather is always nice.
Desolate in a beautiful kind of way, reaching the Cime was something else, I think it required my hardest single rate of effort perceived. I thoroughly enjoyed and remember my climb up Bonette. I would definitely do it again but perhaps base myself along the ss21 (if that’s possible) in Italy on the road to Cuneo
I did wonder how it would be coming up from the Nice side, it seemed steeper, though I was also quite tired at that state. I remember getting to the bottom in Saint Etienne where we had the last stop before the final kicker to Auron, and seeing dozens of shattered riders scattered everywhere. Bonette took its toll!
French Alps are easy to do your own thing, there are plenty of climbs everywhere. I usually just find myself a nice Airbnb and explore the surrounding area, plenty of locations from where you’ll have access to at least a week of riding. From St Jean de Maurienne for example you can ride Croix de Fer, Lacets de Montvernier, Madeleine, Telegraphe / Galibier, Glandon, Karellis, Mollard and probably a few more. That’s more than enough for a week and saves you the hassle of moving around the country.
I’ve never booked an organized trip, but spoken to people who did while I was riding there. Personally I would consider these aspects the upsides:
You’ve got other people to ride with
They will take pictures of your suffering and carry drinks and food up the climb for you in a car
If you’re looking to tick off as many climbs as you can, they’ll organize multiple rides per day and shuttle you around, so you don’t waste time riding to and from the well known climbs.
That’s actually a really good suggestion. I guess from there you could even do the Alpe d’Huez doing the marmotte route but starting and finishing in St Jean instead of Bourg d’Oisans but with the added benefit of also doing the Col de la Madeleine and the other cols you suggested
