Walks · Beaune · France
By bicycle on the Voie des Vignes, from Beaune to Santenay
twenty-two signposted kilometres among the vine rows of the Côte de Beaune, through Pommard, Volnay, Meursault and the Montrachets, with the motorhome parked in Beaune
The Voie des Vignes is the way to see the Côte de Beaune without driving and without worrying about one glass too many: you leave the motorhome at the Beaune stopover, hire a bicycle at the Bouzaize park and ride south among the vine rows, on small lanes and chemins de vigne signposted in both directions. You pass through Pommard, with its château and the view, Volnay, Meursault, with its château and wash houses, Puligny and Chassagne-Montrachet, the villages of the great whites, down to Santenay, with its thermal baths. It is 22 kilometres, with little climbing, and the stops in the villages make the day. To get back you ride the same way, or take the train from Meursault.
Getting there
- The motorhome stays at the municipal stopover on avenue Charles de Gaulle, in Beaune; from the stopover to the Bouzaize park, north-west of the centre, it is a little over a kilometre on foot
- The Bouzaize car park has sixty free places, and nobody says whether a motorhome fits
- You leave Beaune by the Bouzaize park and follow the Voie des Vignes signs
Practical information
On the surface the two official sources do not say the same thing: the Beaune tourist office speaks of a road reserved for pedestrians and bicycles, France Vélo Tourisme of shared roads. Expect the winegrowers' tractors and cars.
Duration an hour and a half one way by bicycle, according to France Vélo Tourisme; with the stops in the villages and the return, the whole day. There and back it is more than forty kilometres
Price free; bicycle hire from 19 euros a day
When to go from April to October
Suitable for families with children who already ride on the road, and small children in a child seat or trailer; Bourgogne Evasion's electric bicycles are for riders at least one metre fifty tall
Booking bicycle hire is booked online, and in winter booking is recommended
Contacts
Where it is
Beaune · Borgogna
Notes
- The Bourgogne Evasion hire shop, at the Bouzaize park, with 500 bicycles of which 150 are electric: bicycle 20 euros a day, electric 45, child's bicycle from 4 to 12 years 15, one-wheel tag-along from 5 to 7 years 15, trailer 15, child seat from 5 to 22 kilos 10 euros. A helmet is given to all children under 12, and it is compulsory. The price list does not give the year
- Opening hours: in summer every day from 9:00 to 18:00; from 1 November to 31 March, according to the website, every day except Sunday. The tourist office, on the other hand, gives it as open until 31 October 2026, and says nothing about the winter: before November, phone ahead
- Bourgogne Randonnées, on avenue du 8 Septembre near the station: electric bicycle 39 euros a day, bicycle 19, children's equipment 15. In 2026 it is open from 17 March to 1 November
- The return: Meursault is on the Beaune line; Santenay-les-Bains is on the regional line between Montchanin and Chalon-sur-Saône, which passes through Chagny: for Beaune you change there. Check the timetables and the rules for bicycles on the train before setting off. Bourgogne Evasion also collects bicycles, for a fee
- The villages, from the north: Pommard, with its château and the view; Volnay, on the hill, where the Saint-Vincent Tournante is held on 30 and 31 January 2027; Meursault, with its old fortified château and wash houses; Puligny-Montrachet and Chassagne-Montrachet, with the fine winegrowers' houses; Santenay, with the casino, the thirteenth century church of Saint-Jean and the Mont de Sène, 521 metres, above the village
- The markets along the way: Beaune on Wednesday and Saturday mornings, Meursault on Friday morning, Santenay on Thursday morning in summer
- From Santenay the greenway continues to Nolay, 14 kilometres on an old railway line
- To the north, from Beaune to Nuits-Saint-Georges and Dijon, there is a provisional bicycle route, unofficial and not signposted, that passes by the Clos de Vougeot: take care at the entrance to Beaune
- In November ride on dry days, setting off early, because the light goes before five o'clock
Photo: Mark Gorzynski, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0
Photo: MalcolmCroft, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0
Photo: Florian Pépellin, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0
Photo: Florian Pépellin, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0
Photo: Gilles Guillamot, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0
Photo: Benjamin Smith, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0
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