Hendaye to Roscoff or Santander

[Pipyork]

Hi all,
I’m starting to plan to ride “La Velodyssee” in May 2025 from Roscoff down to Hendaye.
Has anyone got experience of catching the train from there back to either Roscoff or alternatively to Santander,(to catch the Plymouth ferries)?
The Roscoff option seems to be a faff of changes in Paris, uncertainty about booking the bikes onto the train and it only goes as far as Morlaix which would result in a night time 30 mile ride into Roscoff.
The Santander option is a long journey on a couple of slow local trains and I heard that bikes can travel without reservations?
Any advice and opinions would be greatly appreciated.
Cheers, Pip

[MrsHJ]

I just used the Santander Plymouth ferry on the way back although it’s years ago I did that. I cycled to Santander.

I do use the train plus bike most years in France (and live near Plymouth) so for that section I’d say you’d be fine for Hendaye to Paris then Paris to Morlaix and then cycle to the ferry. You’ll almost certainly have to overnight in Morlaix as the Plymouth ferries leave mid afternoon. This year my train route was Nimes-Bordeaux-Paris-Morlaix. The good thing about hendaye and Bordeaux trains is that they go into Montparnasse so no need to cycle across Paris as the Brittany trains also use Montparnasse.

NB I redid a lot of the velodysee last year from Arcachon ish to Roscoff and definitely enjoyed it. I got the train down to Narbonne and worked my way back- canals to Bordeaux then across country to the Atlantic and up the velodysee cutting off a few of the very wiggly bits. Loved it.

[DevonDamo]

Has anyone got experience of catching the train from there back to either Roscoff or alternatively to Santander,(to catch the Plymouth ferries)?

I did part of the route from Hendaye to Bilbao by train. I did a few stops on the Euskotren E1 train which runs between San Sebastian and Bilbao. The full journey would take you around 4 hours for around £6. And the Euskotren E2 will get you from Hendaye to San Sebastian, although I didn't use that. These Euskotrens are a frequent service, with bike space. It's very relaxed - a bit like a long-distance tube train, with toilets - so providing you're not on a packed rush hour train, you can pretty much put your bike wherever you choose. (I'd highly recommended doing an overnight stop in San Sebastian.)

From Bilbao, you could either get a ferry to Portsmouth, or continue on to Santander for the ferry to Plymouth. Rather than using public transport, I opted to cycle from Bilbao to Santander, as it's a lovely route and very easy if you do one overnight at one of the many seaside/surf towns en route. I think the only options for public transport were buses, but I've heard these are very good and you can take your bike, although you may have to do a bit of packing/wrapping.

Re. the Roscoff option: the ride from Morlaix is a doddle: mainly downhill on quiet roads or cycle paths. And Roscoff and neighbouring St Pol de Leon are very nice places to visit in their own right.

And I really enjoy crossing Paris between stations by bike - you can usually cobble together a nice route making use of bike paths and going through parks etc.

Out of your available options, my choice would be taking the train from Hendaye to San Sebastian. Spend the night in San Sebastian, then take the train to Bilbao. Cycle to somewhere like Laredo and do an overnight before continuing to Santander, making use of the two passenger ferries at Santona and Somo.

[Pipyork]

Thanks very much for taking the time to share your experience MrsHJ & DevonDamo, I appreciate it.
Decided to do the train/ride back to Santander which I’ve realised will work well for the Thursday ferry home too .
Cheers, Pip

[DevonDamo]

Thanks very much for taking the time to share your experience MrsHJ & DevonDamo, I appreciate it.
Decided to do the train/ride back to Santander which I’ve realised will work well for the Thursday ferry home too .
Cheers, Pip

Good choice, but I've just remembered one other issue I had with that route. From Bilbao, you might opt to follow the coastal route, which will take you across some wooden boardwalks over 'Playa de la Arena' beach. This appears to be a great route, however.... After crossing the beach, the route goes via a footbridge over the mouth of the river Barbadun. You then have to turn up 'Vias Verdes Paseo Itsaslur' to follow the very nice coastal path. But here you'll be confronted by a very long, steep climb up a set of concrete steps. There is a gutter alongside the steps, which theoretically could be used to wheel your bike, but I found there was often insufficient clearance for my panniers, and I ended up; having to lift the bike - I do a fair amount of weightlifting, and this was on the limits of what I could manage. So do your research and find a route to avoid this. I'd encountered these steps on my outward journey and made a mental note to avoid them on the return, however I ended up using Google Maps for navigation which, unbeknownst to me, switched from my 'avoid the steps' route back to using the steps, and by the time I realised, it was too late.

[northerncyclist]

Bilbao to Santander lovely ride........Opposite side of river from the Guggenheim...... cycle to Vizcaya bridge on designated cycle lanes and enjoy the cheap crossing....... then cycle to Via Verde de Itsaslur...... At Laredo you can get a small boat on the beach to Santona if you want to.....At Maliano you can ride on cycle paths and a wide, quiet industrial road around the airport to Santander........ Santander is a great place on a bike.

I dont know a way to avoid the steps and yes they are steep but personally I would say go for it if you are okay offloading your bags to carry the bike. The reward is well worth it.

[DevonDamo]

Bilbao to Santander lovely ride........Opposite side of river from the Guggenheim...... cycle to Vizcaya bridge on designated cycle lanes and enjoy the cheap crossing....... then cycle to Via Verde de Itsaslur...... At Laredo you can get a small boat on the beach to Santona if you want to.....At Maliano you can ride on cycle paths and a wide, quiet industrial road around the airport to Santander........ Santander is a great place on a bike.

I dont know a way to avoid the steps and yes they are steep but personally I would say go for it if you are okay offloading your bags to carry the bike. The reward is well worth it.

You're right - removing the luggage and carrying it up those steps separately would have been an eminently more sensible strategy, but by that time the red mist had come down, and I was determined to only do that long climb once. Taking the time to ferry your luggage and bike up separately would be a lot kinder on your body. And you're also right about the subsequent reward being worth it: an absolutely lovely ride on a traffic-free path around scenic and historically-interesting cliffs, going through a few tunnels to boot. (Which reminds me - whilst in San Sebastian,you can ride through Europe's longest cycle-only tunnel, and on the route from Bilbao to Santander you can use the long tunnel in Mioño - search for Bo. de la estación, s/n, 39709 Mioño.)

I'm also with you on recommending the Laredo-Santoña Ferry, with the only proviso being that this involves traversing a soft, sandy beach in Laredo, which might be another place to take your luggage off and carry your bike separately to avoid your chain/cogs being coated in grinding paste. But with regards to the final stint into Santander, I reckon the ferry from either Somo or Pedreña is the way to go. It's less than a fiver and allows you to keep to the coastal route, avoiding all the city traffic and arriving right in the middle of Santander, close to the ferry and all the nice cafes/restaurants etc.

[bretonbikes]

Hi all,
I’m starting to plan to ride “La Velodyssee” in May 2025 from Roscoff down to Hendaye.
Has anyone got experience of catching the train from there back to either Roscoff or alternatively to Santander,(to catch the Plymouth ferries)?
The Roscoff option seems to be a faff of changes in Paris, uncertainty about booking the bikes onto the train and it only goes as far as Morlaix which would result in a night time 30 mile ride into Roscoff.
The Santander option is a long journey on a couple of slow local trains and I heard that bikes can travel without reservations?
Any advice and opinions would be greatly appreciated.
Cheers, Pip

If you plan on the Roscoff ferry then I've put together a short guide for the first section through Brittany - it'll be some help especially the 'cheats' for detouring Nantes... - https://www.bretonbikes.com/homepage/cy ... n-brittany

As for the train it's great to Morlaix but you'll probably need to bus to Roscoff. To be honest unless you are hell-bent on doing it all I'd just miss out the section and start from Morlaix - that first bit is probably the least interesting of the whole ride...

[simonhill]

Probably too late now, but I'd rather ride the other way. Get the difficult transport out of the way with no time pressure.

Aiming for a particular ferry at the end of a long ride is a bit of a risk.

I think the wind is more favourable heading north certainly in the latter part of the ride.

[albal1]

I,ve ridden Santander to cherbourg in 2017. That was when prices were reasonable. A quick glance at the ferry from Santander to Plymouth, X2 with cabin (without window) in may 2025.
£351!



I,m currently looking to get a ferry Poole -cherbourg. April 2025.
Ride to irun. Cycle/train back to cherbourg.

[bretonbikes]

Probably too late now, but I'd rather ride the other way. Get the difficult transport out of the way with no time pressure.

Aiming for a particular ferry at the end of a long ride is a bit of a risk.

I think the wind is more favourable heading north certainly in the latter part of the ride.

You also get to save the best bit til last...

[ronstob]

Dear Pipyork,
My wife and I (both 70) are intending to do exactly what you are planning in the late summer. We are reasonably fit, experienced touring cyclists but like you are very concerned about that "last bit" from Hendaye to Santander. Especially as at first glance it looks pretty hilly if not mountainous! Have you had a chance to flesh out your plans for this last stretch? We would be very interested in hearing what you intend to do.