Bike Riding
We highly recommend Florian and Cedric at Bourgogne Randonnees (see brochure in the apartment). Mention our name and they will look after you. They are very friendly chaps, with a great command of English as well as French.
They hire bikes at around 20 Euros per day and will help you plan your trip. You can find them on the street you walk down from the station (Avenue du 8 Septembre). They are on the right, just before the ring road at number 7.
Their telephone number is +33(0)380220603.
Great bike tours from l'Appartement Rose
BEAUNE TO CHAGNY VIA SANTENAY
The best introductory day trip is to wander through lovely villages and towns down to Santenay along a very well designed bicycle path – Route des Grands Crus de Bourgogne – that only shares with small agricultural machinery. There are very few cars. You will pass through the villages of Pommard, Volnay, on to Meursault (for morning coffee) and thence to Santenay via Puligny-Montrachet (see lunch suggestion below).
From Santenay you can proceed south till you meet up with the Canal Centre. Turn left onto D113a and left again onto the tow-path towards Chagny. There you can get yourself and your bike back to Beaune on the train for about €3.50. The bike in carriage is labelled ‘Velos’. You need to cross to the other side of the station from the road using either the pedestrian tunnel with steps or ride down the hill and bob under the rail bridge and up the other side. Don’t forget to validate your rail tickets prior to boarding the train.
A good place for lunch is the Cafe le Terroir in the main square in Santenay. Make sure you get there well before 1:45 pm or you will miss out. The phone number is 0380206347. This is open every day for lunch, but closed on Thursday and Sunday (and Wednesday in winter) for lunch (1200 noon to 1:45 pm) or dinner (7:00 to 9:30 pm).
If you would like a reasonably-priced dining treat, book at the Restaurant Montrachet (rated 1-Hat by Michelin) for the menu de jour. At around €32 per head this is exceptional value. For bookings, phone 0380213006. This restaurant is located in Puligny-Montrachet. You could make this a part of your bike touring day, or head down in your hire car.
There is no obvious eating place in Chassagne-Montrachet, though there is a lovely park if you want to take your sandwiches.
The Chagny train departs to Beaune at the following times: 1247, 1347 (not Saturday or Sunday), 1425 (not Sunday), 1447, 1624 (not Saturday or Sunday), 1658 & 1724.
BEAUNE TO GEVREY-CHAMBERTIN VIA NUITS-SAINT-GEORGES
Take the train (with your bikes) to Nuits-Saint-Georges (make sure you catch the LOCAL train, because other trains do NOTstop at Nuits – check the timetable). Ride to the main street from the station then walk through the pedestrian mall, buying your filled baguette along the way.
Head north towards Chambolle-Musigny and you will pick up the Route des Grands Crus de Bourgogne. Follow this minor road north towards Dijon via Morey-Saint-Denis to Gevrey-Chambertin. Turn around here and scorch back to Beaune with the wind at your back, stopping in Morey for lunch in the park.
When you get back to Nuits, either head up into the hills for the ride back to Beaune (that is where the scenic route takes you, but it involves some uphill grunting), or pile your bikes back onto the train.