Cycling Routes in Monaco — 2 of Our Favourites

Starting at Riquier train station, turn left under the railway bridge onto Boulevard de l’Armée des Alpes. Continue for about 4 blocks then turn right at the next junction after the Total garage, it’ll be signposted for “Grande Corniche” and Observatoire de Nice”.

From this point you leave the traffic of Nice behind and start climbing up above the city; it’s a steady climb for about another 13km with the highest point being 535m.

The views as you climb are just fantastic; the first few kilometres see Nice dropping away over your left shoulder until it’s like a toy town beside the sea, then you head into a forested area where now and then you get glimpses through the trees into the Vallée du Paillon and the hills beyond. Once you’ve passed the Observatoire the road opens out and every twist and turn reveals stunning scenery of the undulating coastline meeting the deepest blue sea. This ride will definitely take longer than scheduled if you stop to take as many photos as we did.

Once you reach the Col d’Eze you can congratulate yourself on having done the hardest part at our favourite lunch stop, L’Auberge de la Croix du Pape, where you can dine like a king for under 20€! The food here is excellent, the terrace is beautiful and we’ve always had a very warm welcome from the owners; they offer a lunchtime menu of 3 courses for 19,90€ or 2 courses for 14,50€ (except Sundays) - 2 courses is plenty if you want any hope of getting back on the bike.

Our next stop is La Turbie, an ancient town with a history that can be traced back as far as the Romans. The enormous tower that you’ll see long before you reach the town is the Trophée des Alpes, or the Trophy of Augustus, a Roman relic from 6BC. Just after you pass the entrance to the old part of La Turbie there is a small turnoff that leads to a viewing point - from here you can see the port of Monaco in all its glory.

From La Turbie it is blessedly all downhill, the roads are in pretty good condition and there are few junctions, so you can pick up some speed as you whizz round the smooth mountain bends. At around the 25km mark you’ll see a turnoff to the left where you can opt to take a small detour to the medieval village of Roquebrune Cap Martin - if you look up you’ll see the ancient chateau dominating the hillside with the village nestled beneath.

Shortly after the turnoff you’ll come to a junction and a set of traffic lights, turn left in the direction of Menton and continue along Avenue de Verdun until you come to a roundabout by an Esso garage. Turn right here and follow signs for “Les Plages” until you arrive at the seafront of Cap Martin, where you’ll turn left and see the promenade stretching out in front of you all the way to Menton. There is plenty to see in Menton and loads of lovely places to stop for a drink, so consider taking a bike chain in case you want to explore a bit.

After such a delicious lunch and a long lazy descent down to the beach it would be torture to kick the legs back into gear at this point, which is why we’re kindly offering you two easier returns options. You’re welcome.

If you want to take the easiest possible route then simply about-face and head back along the coast, following signs for Nice. You’ll enjoy a whistle-stop tour of all the beach resorts along the way and it is mostly pretty flat. There will be heavier traffic though and lots more junctions to slow you down, so this is definitely the more leisurely option.

If you still have a bit of climb left in your legs then head back via Cap Martin and take the D6007 after the peninsula, this is known as the Moyenne Corniche and is the road that runs in between the Grande Corniche and the coast road. It’ll have more traffic than the Grande Corniche but not so much as down at the coast. There’s still a fair old climb involved but once you’re past Eze Village it’s plain sailing all the way back to Nice via the port.

We love this ride for many reasons and we’re not alone, you’ll see many fellow cyclists out on the corniches at all times of the year.

• DISTANCE: 60KM
• TOTAL ELEVATION: 1597M

• Map: https://maps.google.com/maps?q=http:%2F%2Fwww.mapmyfitness.com%2Froutes%2Fkml%2F506863242%2F

The Col de la Madone is one of the most famous climbs in the Alpes-Maritimes, used as a benchmark for many Tour de France athletes as to how they would perform on the hardest stages of the tour. I’m not sure if this is supposed to motivate or scare you but I can confirm that you don’t need to be a world class cyclist to reach the famous summit!

There are a number of starting points but we set off from the seafront at Menton, turning north-west at the outdoor swimming pool and up Route de Gorbio. Start off by following signs to Gorbio through the town centre and then pick up signs for Sainte-Agnes as soon as you see them. Once you’re on the road to Sainte-Agnes you’ll see green and while cycling signs for the Col de la Madone.

There is no easy warm-up on this ride, you start climbing straight away and you don’t stop until you reach the col. No flat or downhill bits to catch your breath, just up and up and up. Fortunately the scenery is stunning and the road surface is exceptionally good; there is also very little traffic other than fellow cyclists.

As the road winds round the mountains you get alternating views of the sea dropping away beneath you and the medieval village of Sainte-Agnes perched on a mountainside above you. This quirky little place holds the title of “highest coastal village in Europe” - it may be a few kms inland but it qualifies due to the fact that you can still see the sea from its elevated position at almost 800m.

On reaching Sainte-Agnes take a hard left and continue up in the direction of Peille. I was under the impression that we were nearly there by this point and started to congratulate myself on not finding it as hard as I expected. I breezed along the next stretch thinking that it was actually a bit of a cruise and we would probably see the col around the next bend.

However, this is the part when you have to remind yourself that there’s probably a reason why even Lance Armstrong says it’s quite hard. It suddenly gets really steep. And carries on being really steep. For quite a long time.

Another thing to mention about this route is that there is barely any shade the whole way, and it can get a bit sunny in the South of France. By this point I was wilting under the strong rays of the sun and the intense heat that was coming up off the asphalt and being radiated off the white limestone rocks that tower over one side of the road. Apparently the view from up here is absolutely marvellous but I couldn’t see an awful lot through my veil of sweat and tears.

Finally, we rounded the final bend and made it up to the col; a glorious wide open plateau with sweet cool breezes and majestic views of the mountain ranges disappearing into the distance. After a breather and a few photos we got back on our bikes and started the descent to Peille, never have I been so happy to be going downhill.

The descent to Peille is a delight, not only because it is not an ascent (unless you’re coming from the other direction obviously) but because of the fantastic views and colourful flora that line the road. This side of the col is far less steep than the other, making the ride down a pleasant freewheeling cruise that passes a number of small pretty villages. If you’re planning to stop en route then I recommend Peille, a labyrinth of narrow cobbled streets with lots of historic architecture and a friendly atmosphere.

After Peille you continue along the D21 past Cantaron and Drap, both nice towns if you want somewhere to stop for a quick break. Once you get past Drap you’ll notice the traffic becoming heavier and this culminates in the chaos that is La Trinité, getting busier and busier as you approach Nice. This route will bring you on to the Avenue Joseph Raybaud, from where you can choose whether to head back to where you started at Riquier or continue south to the seafront; there are a couple of intersections where you may find it safer to dismount and use the pedestrian crossings.

Distance: 45km
Elevation gain: 1600m
Highest point: 937m