Route Napoleon

[grantmac]

next France trip is already in the planning and we´d like to go south. I have read about the above route but have no clue as to how to best set something up. Is it like the NC 500 and you plan your route as you wish or are there some other recommendations, route, things to see etc. I looked on Google and find a lot of route variances. Not looking for accommodation but jus some tips from those that have experience
thks

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I have cut all the hotel recommendations out, putting them into a standalone thread:

Route Napoleon - Places to stay along its length

Done it many times Castellane is the ideal base for a few nights as it’s right on the Route Napoleon

www.ukgser.com

Richard

 

[brut33]

I've never got round to doing this route, it looks like a really great trip as done by various members on here.

My initial thoughts would be
planning on doing it south to north so the sun is on your back. Other than that I've no knowledge of the route except for seasonal weather issues during the colder months.

No doubt someone will be along soon with firsthand knowledge and I'll be watching with interest if you don't mind me reading over your shoulder.

 

[Flintlock]

We did bits of it a few years ago - ride report here might be of use

Destination Alps ( and some other places along the way) - Adventure Bike Rider Forum

 

[Deleted account 250722001]

I have already posted up the .gpx but it looks like a link is needed...
With it it is simple to use GE or other to see what accom/ eating places/hotels/places to visit etc close to the route.

 

[N111BJG]

I had a solo drive back from Turin earlier this year & did a bit of Route Napoleon & Route des Grandes Alpes

You might be tempted to stay at Logis Havvah Hôtel Gap because it is cheap. Well its cheap for a reason, I wouldn't recommend it.

 

[TIJ650]

next France trip is already in the planning and we´d like to go south. I have read about the above route but have no clue as to how to best set something up. Is it like the NC 500 and you plan your route as you wish or are there some other recommendations, route, things to see etc. I looked on Google and find a lot of route variances. Not looking for accommodation but jus some tips from those that have experience
thks

Been a while since I’ve been on and heard can get busy. Lot of tight bends and can get tiring depending on bike type etc. I wouldn’t want to negotiate with beach bars.
Just head Grenoble > Gap > Cannes and enjoy.

 

[Tinytim]

I've only ridden it from north of Castellane after travelling west from the RdeGA and joining it at Barreme then riding north to Gap. Wasn't overly impressed at all. Seemed like a busy trunk road but that's only my little opinion.

 

[er-minio]

Been a while since I’ve been on and heard can get busy. Lot of tight bends and can get tiring depending on bike type etc. I wouldn’t want to negotiate with beach bars.

Hmmm... not really.
It's fairly fast and flowing.


Grant, Castellane, as suggested above is a great starting point (and a nice place to stay).
I ride the Napoleon usually when I ride down to Italy, depending on how many miles you want to cover per day (fairly easily doable in a day) you can also stay a bit more north and stop around Barcellonette.

I normally go all the way south, but there is also an excellent variation that goes towards Mount Ventoux. I shared a post about that route a few months ago...
Trying to open my Basecamp but keeps crashing... hold on.

 

[TIJ650]

Hmmm... not really.
It's fairly fast and flowing.


Grant, Castellane, as suggested above is a great starting point (and a nice place to stay).
I ride the Napoleon usually when I ride down to Italy, depending on how many miles you want to cover per day (fairly easily doable in a day) you can also stay a bit more north and stop around Barcellonette.

I normally go all the way south, but there is also an excellent variation that goes towards Mount Ventoux. I shared a post about that route a few months ago...
Trying to open my Basecamp but keeps crashing... hold on.

I love the road (if weather holds) and last done on 1200 Bandit and was a hoot. There are a few steep mountain switchbacks and could imagine being tiresome on wrong bike or fully laden etc.
Got my knuckles wrapped yesterday for even suggesting one might consider speeding up over a mountain trail………so trying to understand my audience
Do seem to keep shit/ sugaring with you though

 

[er-minio]

There are a few steep mountain switchbacks

I guess it's a matter of habit.
I grew up riding on Appennini and Alps, the Route Napoleon is fairly fast flowing, to me, compared to a lot of other routes down south.

For Grant, restarted the Mac, Basecamp seems to work.
Bog standard Napoleon route, this is my track by car last summer:

Barcelonette is near Lac Serre Poncon, that is this:

The variation towards Ventoux is this one (ignore the straight line) done a couple of times by bike. It's awesome:

 

[adventuredon]

I guess it's a matter of habit.
I grew up riding on Appennini and Alps, the Route Napoleon is fairly fast flowing, to me, compared to a lot of other routes down south.

For Grant, restarted the Mac, Basecamp seems to work.
Bog standard Napoleon route, this is my track by car last summer:

Barcelonette is near Lac Serre Poncon, that is this:

The variation towards Ventoux is this one (ignore the straight line) done a couple of times by bike. It's awesome:

Barcelonette we did stay at The Grand Hotel that was on one of the squares and fairly nice.

LE GRAND HOTEL BARCELONNETTE - Updated 2024 Prices, Reviews, and Photos

Book Le Grand Hotel Barcelonnette, Barcelonnette on Tripadvisor: See 157 traveller reviews, 86 candid photos, and great deals for Le Grand Hotel Barcelonnette, ranked #3 of 6 hotels in Barcelonnette and rated 4 of 5 at Tripadvisor.

www.tripadvisor.co.uk

Blurb here from when I did something similar on my new GS https://free-me.com/4countries.htm

 

[Wapping]

Not looking for accommodation

Note, everyone.

 

[er-minio]

Going around that area there is another couple of routes in the mercantour park that are fairly nice.
We outlined them in another thread with Wapping, let me find the link.

Update, here: https://www.ukgser.com/community/threads/provence-gorges-and-bends.382018/

 

[grantmac]

Thanks Richard. Indeed good to separate the info into Route recommendation, which was the jist of my original question, and accommodation recommendations which is linked and of course welcome

 

[Wapping]

The Route Napoleon is, within the French psyche, iconic.

It is worth doing to scratch the itch or to tick off a bucket list, but (when doing so) it is also definitely worth taking in some of the detours off, rather than sticking religiously to the official route. These detours add to the time taken but, as Mr Michelin says: Worth it.

 

[ChasF]

Historically, the route napoleon runs from Gap to Grasse. I remember trying hard to keep up with a couple of gendarmes back in 1985. We were two up on a R80ST.

 

[Wapping]

Historically, it runs the other way….. unless Napoleon was very lost

 

[ChasF]

Historically, it runs the other way….. unless Napoleon was very lost

True enough.

 

[er-minio]

@grantmac Route samples from the usual er-minio cam to get an idea of the road:

This is just north of Castellane (I think going north, this should have been filmed on my way back to London):

while the second video is still the Napoleon crossing Col de Val Ferriere. Noticeably wider and it goes through a valley (towards the end of the video) where the road goes straight/boring for a fair bit:

(this second video might be still uploading as I post this)

 

[leadfarmer]

La Prairie de la Rencontre by the lac de Laffrey