Tour de France returns to Morzine in 2022

It is no coincidence that Morzine has been chosen as the first rest day of the Tour de France, with its abundance of hotels and its perfect roads for training, Morzine is the ideal spot for a break, whether it’s in the middle of the Tour de France or for a week's cycling holiday. This is recognised by Morzine being awarded the “Terre de Jeux 2024” as it will be used as a preparation centre for cycling at the 2024 Paris Olympics.

Despite taking place in the Alps, Stage 10 of the 2022 Tour de France mostly sticks to the valleys, so is classed as hilly. 148km in length, Stage 10 starts from Morzine and heads for Thonon-les-Bains, on the shore of Lac Léman, before heading south towards Cluses and Sallanches. To finish the stage, the riders are faced with a climb to the line at Megève Altiport, a 19.2km climb at 4.1% gradient.

The Tour de France is steeped in history, and Morzine has been a part of the history numerous times since first hosting the Tour de France 47 years ago, thanks in no small part to Morzine’s proximity to the Col de Joux Plane. Morzine has been the finishing line numerous times, the last of which was in 2016 when the stage ran in reverse to 2022’s edition, starting in Megève and finishing in Morzine after completing the Col de Joux Plane. After a rainy day in the saddle, Ion Izagirre won this final mountain stage, one of the biggest of his career.

In its first visit to Morzine, the 1975 Tour de France Stage 17 Valloire to Morzine Avoriaz, was a 225 km (140 mi) won by Vicente López Carril. The overall winner was Frenchman Bernard Thévenet, but not without controversy. The early favourite was Belgian Eddy Merckx, who was attempting to win his sixth Tour de France title, however, during Stage 14, French spectators, who were angry that a Belgian might overtake the then-current record of 5 Le Tour wins held by Frenchman Jacques Anquetil, jumped out from the roadside and hit Merckx in the kidneys, causing him to fall and fracture his cheekbone. Thévenet overtook the lead during the episode and went on to win the overall. 

The 2006 Tour de France saw Morzine act as the finishing line of Stage 17 St.-Jean-de-Maurienne to Morzine, a 201 km (124.9 mi) mountain stage with 5 classified climbs; the Col des Saisies (Category 1) with an ascent of 6.4% over 14.9 km, the Col des Aravis (Category 2) with an ascent of 7.7% over 5.9 km, the Col de la Colombière (Category 1) with an ascent of 5% over 11.8 km, the Côte de Châtillon (Category 3) with an ascent of 4.9% over 5.1 km, and the Col de Joux-Plane (Highest Level) with an ascent of 8.7% over 11.7 km.

Stage 17 of the 2006 Tour de France, St-Jean-de-Maurienne to Morzine, was won by American Floyd Landis, a day after he had previously lost 10 minutes to the leader in Stage 16. This raised considerable questions, and after the mandatory stage winner’s drug test results came back, Landis was disqualified following both A Sample and B Sample returning Positive for banned synthetic testosterone, as well as three times the allowed limit of testosterone to epitestosterone ratio. This led to Landis being disqualified from Le Tour and banned for a further two years. The Stage 17 win was handed to Spaniard Carlos Sastre following the disqualification of Landis. 

Of course, Le Tour isn’t just about road cycling in Morzine, it’s a celebration of all things French - the scenery, the villages, the crowds. It sparks a carnival atmosphere around the route for days in advance, with spectators lining the streets and sometimes camping overnight in advance for the best spots. Preceding the peloton is the publicity caravan, a 20km long procession of upwards of 200 sponsored vehicles, throwing free items to the crowd in a bid to outdo their competitors and stir up a frenzied atmosphere. 
 

A regular feature of the Le Tour, Col de Joux Plane is a steep, challenging climb with spectacular views at the summit, followed by high speed turns and hairpin bends on the descent to the valley floor. 

Providing a stern challenge for any competent rider, the Col is an attractive route to tick off while cycling in the Morzine area. With loops starting and returning to the centre of Morzine, it’s definitely one to be conquered on your trip. 

With an overall average gradient of 8.5%, the climb from Samoens is 11.6km long. The steepest section is 12.5% gradient, and the final 5.5kms averages out at 9.5%. The elevation gain is 998m, and we can assure you, you’ll feel every single one of them on the ascent!
 

With a total of 25 cols within 50kms of Morzine, including Col de Joux Verte, Col de la Ramaz, there’s plenty of challenging routes to tackle during your stay in Morzine. Our partners Season Guiding will cater a trip around what you want to tick off, as well as offer their expert advice from years of living and riding in the Morzine area. 

MTB Beds have a number of bike-friendly accommodation options; fully-catered chalets, hotels and self-catered apartments so we can arrange any bike holiday you dream of. And with plenty of amazing food options around, either in town or prepared in house by our professional chefs, you won’t run short of calories to burn!

For guests that don't want to travel with their road bikes to Morzine, or fancy trying the latest model, our local partners, Torico in Morzine and Evasion in Les Gets, offer the latest model road bikes available for hire across multiple brands, such as our partners Specialized, as well as Cervelo and Scott. 

We often get asked, "How should we travel to Morzine with a bike?" Morzine is one of the most easily accessible alpine resorts in Europe. Morzine is approximately an hour and a half from Geneva airport, with flights costing around £100, including a bike. Alternatively, driving takes around 8 hours from Calais, so easily doable, especially if travelling in a group. Possibly the most relaxing route, travelling by train is becoming increasingly popular, allowing bikes on board for free. Get the Eurostar from London to Paris Gare de Nord and then head towards either Cluses or Thonon-Les-Bains, both about 40 minutes from Morzine, or travel to Geneva to catch one of the private transfer options run by our partners Skiidy Gonzales (Geneva transfers are included in Riders Week packages).