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The Chain Gang Cycle Tours Established 1997
  • Call us on +44 1392 66 22 62
  • Home
  • Our tours
    • Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017 France
      • Alsace
      • The Bordeaux Winetrail
      • Burgundy
      • Champagne
      • The Dordogne
      • Languedoc
      • The Loire Valley
      • Normandy
      • Provence
    • Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017 Italy
      • Tuscany
      • Umbria
  • Tour dates
  • What to expect
  • About us
  • Blog
  • Contact us
Book now
The Chain Gang Cycle Tours Established 1997
  • Umbria, Uncategorized

Orvieto – A ‘Wow’ moment on our Umbria Bike Tour

Well-earned beer in the Piazza, in front of the Duomo of Orvieto, Umbria

Last month I asked Chat GPT to tell you a bit about our first day of cycling on our Umbria bike tour. My turn now, and I want to tell you a bit about Orvieto. We arrive in Orvieto at…

  • Bernard Dugdale
  • March 29, 2024
  • Company, Cycling, Cycling Holiday Review, Dordogne, France, Hotels

The Best Food On Any Chain Gang Tour, Le Petit Relais in Calès

Homemade foie gras at Le Petit Relais, Cales

One of the joys on our Dordogne tour is a little hotel in the middle of nowhere, in Calès, Le Petit Relais. It’s owned by Karine and Olivier. The village has a population of just 166, according to the National…

  • Bernard Dugdale
  • March 26, 2024
  • Champagne, Company, Cycling, Uncategorized, Wine

Our New Champagne Tour

Friday, watching the horses in the Montagne de Reims, Champagne

If it isn’t already a Tour Operator maxim, never to let anyone look behind the curtain, then it probably should be. So let’s have a little peak together! I’m very proud of our new Champagne tour. I thought it was…

  • Bernard Dugdale
  • March 25, 2024
  • Champagne, Cheese, Company, Cycling, France, Wine

Champagne Bike Tour – Photo Gallery

Wednesday, in the Montagne de Reims, Champagne

In September 2023, Roberto Peixoto joined us from Brazil on a bike tour through Champagne. I won’t tell you much about the new tour here, I’ve done that elsewhere. I just want to showcase Roberto’s Photo Diary of our week…

  • Bernard Dugdale
  • March 11, 2024
  • Cycling, Company, Italy, Tuscany, Wine

A Wonderful Find In Tuscany

Greg has found the good stuff, Tuscany

Talking to a mucker recently, I was reminded of one of my favourite places in Tuscany, Le Cantine, in Greve-in-Chianti. But first impressions were not so good! On our very first tour of Tuscany, years ago, we’d arranged to visit…

  • Bernard Dugdale
  • February 26, 2024
  • Company, Cycling, Food, France, Loire Valley, Uncategorized

Beautiful Food On a Loire Valley Tour

3. Eating With The Chain Gang in the Loire Valley

I can’t believe we haven’t done this before. Among Hung and Leah’s photos on our Loire Valley tour last June, there were a lot of photos of food. Some French regions are particularly noted for their distinctive food – Burgundy,…

  • Bernard Dugdale
  • February 25, 2024
  • Cycling, Loire Valley, Uncategorized

A Memorable 7 Days In The Loire Valley

Chateau and Abbey of Montreuil Bellay

Last June we ran a large group in the Loire Valley, a lovely mix of returning Chain Gangers and future returning Chain Gangers (does that make sense?). June is a great time to visit the Loire Valley, because the season…

  • Bernard Dugdale
  • February 23, 2024
  • Uncategorized

Our Bike Tour of Umbria starts in Tuscany: Sovana, Pitigliano, and Sorano

The spectacular skyline of Pitigliano, Umbria tour

I asked Chat GPT to produce a blog post for me, about the 3 beautiful little towns of the Maremma, where we spend the first two days of our Umbria tour. I’d be very interested to know what you think!…

  • Bernard Dugdale
  • January 26, 2024
  • Cycling, Dordogne, Food, France, Uncategorized

Photos From Our Dordogne Bike Tour

Almost at Beynac, Dordogne Bike Tour

I’m always delighted to receive photos from Chain Gang tours – especially if I woz there. Last year I was lucky enough to accompany a Dordogne bike tour with, among others, Rob Thomas, who sent me an album of photos.…

  • Bernard Dugdale
  • January 18, 2024
  • Cycling, Uncategorized

Spectacular News For Our Friends At Kostüme

Kostume Kai and Sunny Womens Bib Short Top

You might remember, I told you about a new venture by a friend of mine, Ed Bartlett, who set out to merge his twin loves of art and cycling with a new clothing label, Kostüme. They’ve had some great reviews…

  • Bernard Dugdale
  • January 17, 2024
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