Paris-Tours 2026 takes the peloton from Chartres to Tours across 216.2 kilometres of northern and central France, beginning beneath the monumental presence of Chartres Cathedral before travelling south toward the Loire Valley. The character of the race changes dramatically in its final phase, where vineyard tracks, narrow roads and short climbs disrupt the otherwise fast journey toward Tours.
Around the Peloton follows the 2026 route through the history and landscapes encountered between the two cities, from the agricultural plains of Beauce to the villages, vineyards and architectural heritage of Touraine. The result is a journey through rural France that ends on the Avenue de Grammont, continuing a cycling tradition whose origins reach back to the nineteenth century.
Paris-Tours has spent more than a century travelling south through the centre of France, but the landscape that defines the race today is concentrated into its final hour. The opening country is broad and agricultural, shaped by grain fields, small…
