Avignon & Provence: Holiday by bike along the Rhone

Get yourself to the glorious city of Avignon. Rent a bicycle (or, if you must, a car). Assuming you have gone for the two-wheeled option, check the weather forecast. If the wind has a northerly component, hop straight on a train for Orange; if it has an element of a southerly about it, start pedalling. And in the unlikely event that it is coming from due east or west, toss a coin.

The plan: Avignon is at the foot of a fantastic trail, mainly through vineyards on secondary roads, linking it with the intoxicating village of Châteauneuf-du-Pape and the lovely, surprising town of Orange. Easily the best way to cover the ground is to cycle one way, and travel the other on one of the regular, bike-carrying TER regional express trains.

Let us assume that a gentle breeze is wafting up from the Mediterranean, providing a benign nudge or two up some of the hills as you travel north. But before you start in earnest, pay your respects to the bridge of St-Bénézet - and hum the tune to Avignon's perfunctory pont as you head off, eastwards, along the outside of the city wall - which soon merges seamlessly with a great hulk of rock. Beyond it, go into the city through the Porte de la Ligne. This introduces you to a part of Avignon that few tourists see; a warren of narrow and peaceful lanes, enlivened only by the odd little dog. Take rue des Infirmières west to and through the Porte St-Lazare. Turn right to follow the city wall south, and you will be rewarded with a glimpse of the university - a grand old edifice made of stone the colour of Provençal honey.

Do not expect to be impressed with your short time on the Route de Lyon, but remind yourself that this follows part of the course of the Via Agrippa that the Romans built north from Avignon - as well, more recently, as being one of France's principal trunk roads, the N7. Now that it has been superseded by the autoroute network, the traffic has abated.

Once you get through Le Portet, aim for Sorgues, an amiable small town that is unlikely to detain you, except perhaps on Sunday mornings; the weekly market takes place from 8am to 1pm, and it provides an interesting excursion from Avignon. Follow the signs for the D17 to Châteauneuf-du-Pape and you will pass an innocuous looking carpark on your right; between the vehicles and bins is a fine mural - a naive, colourful representation of Provence.

The real thing, though, is more rewarding. Cross the Ouvèze (one of dozens of Rhône tributaries) and suddenly la Provence profonde opens up. You are soon drifting through vineyards, aiming for a village that Pope John XXII built. While the papacy was in residence in Avignon, the incumbents looked north for land (the Enclave des Papes is still a disconnected patch of territory north of Buisson). The 14th-century pontiff who founded Châteauneuf-du-Pape built a castle as a summer residence. Religious wars of the 16th century, and the German retreat in 1944 failed to wreck it completely, and the ruins still dominate the village; you can explore the château's appealing decrepitude.

More usefully - as far as the local economy is concerned - John XXII planted some vines. These now produce 12 million bottles of some of the mightiest reds in the world, as well as 700,000 bottles of decent, fruity whites. If the ground in some of the vineyards looks strangely pale grey, that is because the vines grow on land covered with smooth stones the size of a fist. These store the heat from the sun during the day, and release it at night, allowing the grapes to grow strong and mature.

Most of the domaines where the wine is produced welcome visitors, though most of them ask you to book in advance. A welcome alternative to advance planning is the Musée du Vin, which is on the road from Avignon as you approach Châteauneuf-du-Pape and run by a local producer, Cave Brotte. Indeed, peek through the door at the back and you may see bottling taking place. The museum is basically a clever piece of commercial promotion, designed to persuade you to buy from the property that owns and runs it. It is extremely well laid out and you can learn a lot, too; the museum has exhaustive prescriptions of which wines you should drink to accompany all kinds of foods, and even specifies the temperature at which it should be served. Unsurprisingly, the recommended wines are all from the area. You can taste some on the premises, or wander down any lane in the centre of Châteauneuf-du-Pape to be offered plenty of sampling opportunities.

Time to press on, though, in order to savour the pleasure of Orange - and one of the most perfect roads in Provence. The D68 climbs steeply from Châteauneuf-du-Pape and then strides off along a ridge, vineyards retreating to infinity on both sides. You will, though, keep glancing to the east - and the menacing mountain (at least for anyone tempted to cycle up it) of Ventoux. Even though the peak does not quite clear 2,000m, snow cover remains at the upper levels late into spring.

The regimented geometry of the vines is deliciously disrupted now and again by flashes of wild flowers, particularly poppies and stray lavender. The approach to Orange is a long, well-earned descent - with a reward at the foot. For now, don't fret about the Roman remains on a very grand scale that decorate Orange; get yourself to number 23 rue Victor Hugo, the arrow-straight main street. La Table d'Angelina is unlike your average tea room/restaurant, and is an essential stop. You enter what looks like a cave, filled with rustic furniture, a murmur of opera or jazz, and works of art on the walls. Assuming that the weather is fair (and you are in Provence, after all), wander through to the back yard. Here, the furniture - at least the wrought-iron chairs - is more rusty than rustic, which is all part of the appeal. All expense has been spared on enhancing the look of the surroundings, which means you gaze up at gently crumbling buildings, at least when your eyes and ears are not evaluating the other diners; during a long lunch, I did not detect any fellow tourists.

A restaurant stands or falls on its food and drink, of course, and happily this one stays upright. For a lunch stop, you may well be sated with a salad, well-dressed and presented, with goat's cheese, smoked salmon or mozzarella. Dinner is available only on Friday and Saturday nights, but this would be a good opportunity to sample a 2001 red or a 2004 white from Châteauneuf-du-Pape, both a reasonable €25 (£17) a bottle.

Assuming you are catching the train south, you could embark on some post-prandial shopping among the chic magasins that crowd the streets of the centre. But before you load yourself down, you have a double treat ahead.

Rue Victor Hugo leads directly to a startling Arc de Triomphe. The one in Paris is a newcomer by comparison: this celebrates the victory of Julius Caesar in the Gallic wars. Behind you, though, is an even greater piece of Roman construction: the Théatre Antique, which was clearly built to host the ancient equivalent of stadium rock gigs. At present, the builders are in (Messrs Eiffel, no less), which detracts from the amazing, wide-screen stage wall. But to sense the scale of the place, climb the hill that provides the natural tiering for the 9,000 seats: Coline St-Eutrope. Find the cute 19th-century theatre parked in the middle of a roundabout just west of the amphitheatre; close by is a rough staircase that takes you to the top. You find a series of exceptional views - of the Théatre Antique, of the appropriately rust-coloured roofs of Orange, and of the surroundings: the Rhône Valley carving its way north, the hills rising on either side and, once again commanding attention, that magnificent mountain. Mont Ventoux stands proud of the lesser terrain and, from here, looks inviting. How long did you rent that bike for, again?

TRAVELLER'S GUIDE

In Avignon, boulevard St-Roch - just west of Centre station - is the place to hire a bike. You can rent from Provence Bike at number 52 (00 33 4 90 27 92 61; www.provence-bike.com) or Holiday Bikes at number 20 (00 33 4 32 76 25 88; www.holiday-bikes.com).

In Châteauneuf-du-Pape, The Brotte Musée du Vin (00 33 4 90 83 70 07; www.brotte.com) opens 9am-1pm and 2-7pm daily (in winter, 9am-noon and 2-6pm), admission free.

In Orange, La Table d'Angelina, 23 rue Victor Hugo (00 33 4 90 30 28 36); open for lunch (and afternoon tea) daily except Monday; open for dinner only on Fridays and Saturdays.

Arc de Triomphe: open at all times, free entry.

Théatre Antique (00 33 4 90 51 17 60): open 9am-6pm daily in April, May and September; to 7pm from June to August; and to 5.30pm for the rest of the year. Admission is €7.70 (£5.50) for adults, €5.60 (£4) for those aged seven to 17.

INFORMATION STATIONS

Before your journey to Provence, you can consult the French Travel Centre at 178 Piccadilly, London W1J 9AL (09068 244 123, 60p per minute; www.franceguide.com).

The leading guidebook publishers, including Cadogan, Lonely Planet, Michelin and Rough Guides, produce excellent guides to the region.

Once you arrive in Avignon, head straight for the main tourist information office: a five-minute walk from Avignon Centre station, on the right along the main street, at 41 cours Jean Jaures (00 33 4 32 74 32 74; www.avignon-tourisme-com). From April to October, it opens 9am-6pm daily (except Sundays, 10am-5pm), with extended opening during the festival in July; in winter, hours are shorter. This office is mainly focused on the city, but can provide some information about the whole Vaucluse region and beyond. It is augmented by another office at Pont St-Benezet and a third outside the gates of the TGV station. (If you are transferring from Avignon Centre to a TGV train, you can travel between the two by bus - and even if you are not, the new station, to the south-west of the city, is a dazzling sight; it brings airport-style design ideas to the railway.)

Elsewhere in Provence, the tourism information network is well established; most towns (and popular villages such as Châteauneuf-du-Pape) around Avignon have helpful tourist offices - though unhelpfully for winter visitors, some of them are seasonal.

These are the contact details for some of the more popular locations:

Aix-en-Provence: an easy walk from the station along avenue Victor Hugo at 2 place du General de Gaulle (00 33 4 42 16 11 61; www.aixenprovencetourism.com).

Arles: south of the city centre on the boulevard des Lices (00 33 4 90 18 41 20; www.ville-arles.fr); because this is a long way from the railway station, there is an annexe at la gare that is open in peak season.

Châteauneuf-du-Pape: in the centre of the village, on place du Portail (00 33 4 90 83 71 08; www.perso.wanadoo.fr/ot-chato9-pape).

Les-Saintes-Maries-de-la Mer: on the seafront (00 33 4 90 97 82 55; www.saintesmaries.com).

Marseille: close to the Vieux Port at 4 la Canabiere (00 33 4 91 13 89 00; www.marseille-tourisme.com); it has a branch of the Fnac/Billetel agency chain, which can provide tickets for events. In addition, there is a tourist office annexe at the main railway station, Gare St-Charles.

Nimes: the complicated underlying system of local, departementale and regional tourism offices becomes evident here. The first one you come to, walking into the centre from the station, is the Maison de Tourisme at 3 place des Arenes (00 33 4 66 36 96 30; www.cdt-gard.fr), which gives information on the Gard departement. Further on, at the top end of the old town, is the city Office de Tourisme (00 33 4 66 58 38 00; www.nimes.fr).

Orange: the main office is on the western edge of the town centre, halfway along the cours Aristide Briand at number 5 (00 33 4 90 34 70 88; www.provence-orange.com). An annexe, directly opposite the amphitheatre, is open in July and August.

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