Paris / Massy Veloscenic : Paris to Mont-Saint-Michel cycle route

🚲 Stage description and details:

While awaiting the complete reopening of the square in front of Notre-Dame Cathedral, where the spot indicating point zero for all roads in France is located, your temporary official starting point is Place Louis Lépine.

For the first three kilometres, you have to cycle along roads. Take particular care along the stretches around Place Saint-Michel (until July 2024), along Rue de Rennes and at the intersection on Place du 18 Juin in front of Montparnasse Tower, given heavy traffic and roadworks. Once past Montparnasse Tower, a cycle lane guides you without interruption from the ‘‘urban forest’’ of Place de Catalogne to the Porte de Vanves, then on to Massy via the Promenade des Vallons de la Bièvre, a 12km stretch of greenway removed from motorized traffic.

Within inner Paris (or Paris intramuros), you’ll spot several signposts bearing the Veloscenic logo (including a couple on Place Saint-Michel and Place de Catalogne, already indicating our final destination, the Mont Saint-Michel!). It’s still useful to follow your progress via an app, downloading the gpx tracks for the stage. (See our article on Finding your way along the Veloscenic cycle route). From Malakoff, our cycle route follows the path of the Promenade des Vallons de la Bièvre, so it’s entirely along a greenway, making for easy cycling. It’s signposted all the way along with the Veloscenic logo. 

💡 At Massy, the cycle route divides into two alternative routes: via Versailles or via Limours. Wondering which to choose? See the paragraph on the matter under our frequently asked questions.

⭐ Don’t miss:

• The enchanting bookshop, Shakespeare and Company, to unearth the perfect book to provide you with even more excitement on your cycling adventure!; 
• The Saint-Germain-des-Prés Quarter: for its cafés, bookshops and jazz clubs famously frequented in the postwar period by France’s most celebrated artists and intellectuals; 
• The Odéon Quarter: with its lively lanes (on foot, go and look at the delightful Cour du Commerce-Saint-André) and art-house cinemas; 
• The Jardin du Luxembourg and the monumental Fontaine de l’Observatoire;
• The Panthéon and Place de la Sorbonne;
• Tour Montparnasse: enjoying one of the finest views of Paris from its rooftop, perched 209m in height. Also explore a quarter that has kept its authenticity by wandering around the Marché de la Création de Montparnasse and along the charming Rue Daguerre.
• The Domaine Départemental de Sceaux: an aristocratic estate created for Louis XIV’s great minister Colbert, the grounds designed by the celebrated André Le Nôtre and still providing delightful vistas; 
• The Domaine Départemental de la Vallée aux Loups: an estate which includes the Maison de Chateaubriand (a great French writer and politician) and an arboretum boasting beautiful collections of trees.

🍴 Food and drink en route:

• Paris: see our list of markets. We suggest the Brancusi organic market in the Montparnasse Quarter, Saturdays 9am to 3pm.
• Sceaux: with many food and drinks shops whose owners have been awarded prestigious Meilleur Ouvrier de France or Maître Artisan accreditation, plus Wednesday and Sunday morning markets on Rue Houdan.
• Châtenay-Malabry: markets on Tuesday and Friday mornings on Rue Jean Longuet.

💡 Bring up Accueil Velo accredited restaurants by clicking on the 🍴 icon on the map. De-select "only show accueil velo accredited services" to view further possibilities.

🔧 Repair Service:

Consult the list of all the bike repairers along or near the route. 

🚆 Train stations nearby:

• From Gare Paris – Montparnasse :   
  • Regional TER line Paris – Versailles – Rambouillet – Epernon – Maintenon – Chartres 
  • Line Paris – Dreux – Argentan – Surdon – Briouze – Flers – Granville (plus Pontorson - Le Mont Saint-Michel in tourist season)
• From Gare de Sceaux: crossrail RER B line to Paris
• From Gare Parc de Sceaux: crossrail RER B line to Paris or to Saint-Rémy-lès-Chevreuse

💡 Also see our section on reaching the veloscenic cycle route, including conditions for taking a bicycle on board trains.