Originally Posted by
John Martin
I'm going to start another thread to address a new issue. The idea of renting a bicycle has one major problem -- getting the bike back to the starting point. I see two solutions. First, a loop route. Return the bike to the rentor at the same place. Secondly -- as pertains to riding the Rhine River valley -- I've found a shop that will deliver the bike to the southern end and reclaim it at the north end. (There may be others that will do that but I haven't found them yet.) If you have opinions re that, look for a new thread entitled "Europe Loop Route".
You can also close the loop by train, rather than by cycling. Most regional trains ("ter" trains) in France have places for bikes. These regional trains
usually allow you to roll on your bike for free. BTW, the same is NOT true for TGV and some other rail services in France.
The following site allows you to search for trains. A small bicycle pictograph shows whether a specific train accept bikes.
https://www.sncf-connect.com/app/en-en/home/search
A few questions:
How long do you want to go for?
Do you speak French at all?
Are you only interested in the Rhone valley?
When do you want to travel? Please note that the Rhone valley can get quite hot, so for multiple reasons, I would urge you to avoid July & August.