Cycling the historic Canal du Midi in France:
From Toulouse to Sete
Voila! We finally found the perfect bike trip for everyone! The Canal du Midi across southern France. This easy, historic and picturesque bicycle trip offers a dream vacation for anyone who can pedal a few miles on a flat path. The canal is one of the most unique UNESCO World Heritage sites. Its bike path (once a donkey towpath) winds 240 very easy kilometers (150 miles) past delightful medieval villages, ancient Roman sites and rolling French vineyards.
If you have ever dreamed of trying out a bike trip—for a day, a weekend, or a week—this is the perfect first (or fiftieth) adventure for you. Best of all, there are a number of companies who will organize your hotels, rent bicycles to you and carry your luggage along the way (see resources at the end of this blog). Of course, for those on a budget, you can also camp or stay in the many gites (homestays) and hostels along the way.
Our own adventures along the canal began from our short-term home in Carcassonne in southern France (see Car Free in Carcassonne). This famous two thousand year old city sits directly along the Canal du Midi, about a third of the way between the beginning of the bike path in Toulouse and its official end near Sete on the Mediterranean. Since the train from Toulouse to Sete parallels the canal, it is very easy to bike a short one or two day section, and then return to your starting point by train, if you don’t have time to cycle the whole route.
Barely five days after we arrived in Carcassonne in March, we pedaled right out our front door, passed over the ancient Pont Vieux bridge under the watchful eye of the turrets of the medieval castle above us and turned right onto the gravel canal bike path, heading towards the Mediterranean. We did not get far. In the first ten kilometers, Lorenz, the ever passionate engineer, had to stop and examine six locks (including a double one), several hand hewn spillways and irrigation canals, at least four lovely carved stone bridges, and the astounding Fresquel aqueduct over the rushing Fresquel River. Oh no! I despaired. At this rate, we’d be lucky to bike twenty kilometers by the end of the day.
Luckily (or unluckily), a cold spring rain started to drizzle, then get heavier, inspiring us to cycle quickly to the picturesque town of Trebes. Sun and rain alternated throughout the afternoon as we wended our way below the rolling Black Mountains, through quaint, hillside villages and past imposing turreted chateaux, historic mills and a nonstop series of beautiful engineering and architectural wonders along the canal.
Lorenz’s back tire blew out just as we reached the Ouvrages de l’Argentdouble—an architectural marvel of eleven beautiful stone arches designed to divert overflowing water from the canal. What bad luck, I muttered under my breath as Lorenz patched up the tire rim with a 5 Euro bill. We hobbled the bikes along, grumpy and tired, through the pouring rain to our homestay in Homps for the night.
The next morning, we detoured over the rolling countryside to Lezignan-Courbieres, where we found a small but extremely capable bike shop to replace the tire. Hurray, for a much sunnier day, I grinned, as we returned to the canal and whizzed along the well packed gravel path, delighting in the budding green vineyards spreading over the hills above us.
As we pedaled into the seventeenth century village of Le Somail, set above a collection of picturesque barges moored along the canal banks, we realized that we were not the only ones enjoying the sudden balmy weather. Colorful cafes with equally cheerful umbrellas provided shade for large happy, ice-cream eating French families, out for a sunny weekend excursion. Couples sipped wine and dined on fresh seafood below the historic stone buildings built for the once busy canal trade
Passing the junction of the Canal du Midi with the canal to Narbonne, we whizzed along a flat, open plain. Unexpectedly, the easy trail ended. It took us almost an hour to pedal a few kilometers as we pushed and bounced our bikes along the horrible muddy track through the historic city of Capestang. A scenic, high section of potholed trail followed as we pedaled through Poilhes. At least we had breathtaking views of the rolling vineyards below!
By the time we arrived, sweaty and hot, at the Roman village on the hilltop above us, (the Oppidium d’Enserune,), the archaeological site was already closed. Disappointed and tired, I huffed and grumbled along for the next few kilometers. Then suddenly, the canal disappeared through the dark Malpas tunnel. Never a dull moment on this trail, I mused, as we clambered up and over the pick and axe hand-built tunnel to take photos of one of the great French engineering achievements of the seventeenth century.
Finally, we reached the seven thousand year old city of Beziers. Water thundered above and below us as we gazed in awe at the nine Fonserannes locks dropping through a cascading water staircase to join the Orb River. With the sun spreading crimson on the horizon, we gasped at the jaw dropping scene of the Beziers cathedral looming above the skyline. The amazing vistas were not over, we realized as we walked our bikes through a intricate series of walkways and elevators to reach the ancient hilltop cathedral and our room for the night—in the converted dungeons at the stunning Hotel du Prison overlooking the river and plains below.
The next morning, we pedaled over the beautiful seven- arched Orb aqueduct which carries the canal water twenty one feet above the Orb River—probably the most photographed and celebrated architectural wonder of the canal. Slowly, the scenery along the canal changed, flattening out into marshy wetlands before approaching the Mediterranean coast. At the popular seaside resort of Agde, we worked our way through a network of busy local streets lined with hotels and restaurants, before rejoining the rather bumpy canal track on its way to the sea. Ahead we caught glimpses of the end of the canal, its banks lined with barges and pleasure boats as the famous cross-France waterway spilled into the large brackish lake of the Bassin de Thau.
We still had another delightful, sandy, beachy sixteen kilometers (ten miles) to pedal along the long narrow sandspit from the canal’s end to its Mediterranean entrance at the top of the Bassin. Clambering over the dunes, we ran on the sand and dipped our feet into the Mediterranean, before finishing our journey at the scenic hilltop town of Sete, perching above the sparkling Mediterranean.
But wait! We still had one more section of the canal to bike: the first 105 kilometers from Toulouse to Carcassonne. So, on a lovely sunny April day a few weeks later, we took the train to Toulouse. We spent a whole day poking around this fun, hip and yet ancient city, where wood-and-brick-faced medieval houses rubbed shoulders with the Airbus factory and its many modern airplane and science museums (guess what Lorenz wanted to see?). The next morning, we pedaled for miles uphill out of the city, following a well paved trail along the canal. With a heavy wind against us, the ride was surprisingly tiring. Our efforts were rewarded, however, as we tied our bikes up that night for our stay on an historic barge in Gardouch. As we climbed the gangplank onto the converted red and white boat that had once plied the canal carrying goods from the Atlantic to the Mediterranean, we stepped back into an earlier era of slow boat travel. Of sunset meals on the wide deck. Sleeping to the sound of water lapping at the side of the boat. And waking to the sun streaming in through the round porthole above our bed.
The next day, we reached the highest point on the canal at Port Lauragais. At the obelisque, we had to stop and pay homage to the canal’s brilliant sponsor and designer, Pierre Paul Riquet. Then suddenly we were whizzing downhill to the Mediterranean. In Castelnaudry, we stopped for raspberry sorbets along the large quays which once accommodated hundreds of barges. By now the canal was open to boat traffic (boats are only allowed to pass through the locks between April and October). And we spent a good half hour watching one of the boats dropping forty feet through the series of four wooden water bays at the Saint Roche locks.
For the rest of the day, we pedaled under avenues of stately white plane trees, wending our way past old stone lock-keepers’ houses with large lawns, where we could picnic and watch the lazy boat traffic. In the distance, the Black Mountains spread hazily, forming a lovely backdrop for the rolling fields punctuated by quiet, lonely stone farmhouses or the occasional sleepy village. As we pedaled over one final bridge, Carcassonne’s turreted castle beckoned us home. We had only pedaled 300 kilometers but it felt like the trip had lasted for ages. Maybe it had! For over that brief distance, we traveled through thousands of centuries of history.
Companies offering bike rentals and tours along the Canal du Midi
Relax Bike Tours (CanalVeloService), Beziers, France
https://www.relaxbiketours.com/
Specializes in private, customizable Canal du Midi bike tours. Offers high-quality Giant bikes, luggage transfers, GPS navigation, and detailed roadbooks.
Abicyclette Voyages
www.abicyclette-voyages.com/en/cycling-adventure-vacation/canal-du-midi
Provides various cycling packages along the Canal du Midi, ranging from weekend getaways to week-long tours. Routes include Toulouse to Sète, with options suitable for different fitness levels.
Le VélOtrement, Toulouse, France
levelotrement.com/en/cycle-the-canal-du-midi/
Offers e-bike rentals, all-inclusive cycling holidays, luggage transfers, and return trips via minibus. Provides flexible options for one-way rentals and bike deliveries.
Safran Tours
www.safrantours.com/en/major-routes/canal-du-midi
Specializes in family-friendly cycling tours along the Canal du Midi, with options ranging from 4 to 7 days. Offers accommodations, route maps, and logistical support.
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You might also love reading our book, Breathtaking: How one family cycled around the world for clean air and asthma about our family’s cycling adventures around the world–through 24 countries across Europe, Asia, the South Pacific and North America–to raise $65,000 for clean air and asthma.