I’m back! & How To Get a City Bike in Tours

Sorry I haven’t written in a while, Mr Bear was on vacation and I took a little break from the blog too. After some snowy days, we finally got some sunshine last week! We took advantage and did a part of the Loire à Vélo cycling route.  The part we did was easy/fun, even for a novice like me.

Before living in France, I stopped riding bikes by the time I was 12.  I was never used to riding around cars either, so that took some getting used to – especially in roundabouts! In the last town we lived, there were no cycling lanes, so when I’d get scared I’d just ride on the sidewalk. And don’t even get me started on London – I can barely remember that cars come from the other side when I’m walking. 😛

But Tours is pretty good for cycling! Not sure about bike rentals for tourists, but if you have an address here, it’s really easy to get a city bike. The program is called Velociti.

To get a bike you just need to:

1. Go to the transport office in downtown, put down a deposit check for 300 euros.
2. Provide a proof of address that is less than 3 months old. If you live with someone else and bills aren’t in your name, you can bring a bill and a signed letter from them saying you live there.
3. An ID – passport etc.

Bike rentals are 7 euros per month if you don’t have a transport card, and 3 euros per month if you do. The minimum subscription is 3 months – but still it’s a dealio!

Armed with 2 city bikes, Mr Bear and I took to the countryside. Next time I will post a little review and some tips for the Loire à Vélo. 🙂

à tout!

Mrs. B.