Note that IGN’s Top 200 series is simply an enlargement of the 250k enlargement and with the addition of shading. Unfortunately they don’t show cycle paths as Michelin Regional maps do, despite having a more detailed scale, so they don’t really compete with Michelin as far as cyclists are concerned, nor do they show steep gradients. The IGN Régionaleseries maps show a similar level of detail and very usefully highlight points of interest along the way and also show contour lines. So if you want to stick to established roads and cycle tracks on a road bike or a hybrid bike and cover large distances, Michelin's Regional mapping is an excellent choice (though if you want to get down to the level of mountain biking on the smallest of tracks that is another matter). They showed an excellent level of detail with traffic-free cycle paths and also a good network of minor roads. The IGN Top 200 have a pink-backed ‘ Régionale’ series (subtitled Routière et Touristique), while Michelin 200 have an orange-backed Regional series.Īround a decade ago I did a large tour over several weeks from Paris to France’s south coast and back again relying solely on Michelin's Regional style mapping and managed quite happily (though GPS would no doubt have helped in the odd place where I got confused, but I always eventually got back on the right track). In other words, they are more suited to long-distance touring.īoth IGN and Michelin produce what are clearly styled as ‘road maps’ at respective scales of 1:250,000 and 1:200,000. Small-scale maps show much more territory than equivalent-sized large-scale maps. Go here for a searchable collection of Michelin maps. See here for the full collection of IGN maps (in English). It also has comprehensive coverage of French road maps at a range of scales. Michelin is also a long-established household name in France due to its instant association with the tyre manufacturer. IGN (its full title being Institut National de l’Information Géographique et Forestière) is the French equivalent of the UK’s Ordnance Survey, so it has the benefit of tremendous resources and authority. These are the two main map brands battling it out for supremacy on the shelves of bookstores and tabacs (corner stores) across France. So here is our guide to getting the best out of French road maps – and where to find them in paper format or online. Often it comes down to personal preference and many people of course use a combination of both paper and digital. However it's not a case of the ‘either/or’, rather that both options have pros and cons. Another plus is that paper cycling maps don’t run out of batteries, or lose a signal at the most inconvenient of times. There’s nothing like sipping your favourite tipple in a pavement cafe and using a paper map to ponder the nicest route to take. You can’t have the pleasure of spreading out a map on your electronic device as you can with paper. But paper cycling maps still have their place. įor many people cycling in France today, navigation and mapping means following maps on a smartphone or GPS device. See here for cycling with a GPS in France IGN’s map of ‘Greenways and Cycle Routes of France’. Lost on the Via Rhona: Fortunately, this man had lucked out, meeting Elodie – one of the cycling experts at the Vaucluse tourist board – en route. If you would like to find out more about the alignment of a particular right of way please contact the Definitive Map team.Here is an overview of IGN and Michelin maps for cycling in France – and how to choose the best one for your cycling holiday. Please also note that just because a path is not shown on this map does not mean that a right of way does not exist, as there may be paths that have been used by the public for many years and so have acquired public rights, but that are not recorded on the Definitive Map. The data on this map is for information only, it is not an extract of the Definitive Map and should not be relied on for determining the position or alignment of any public right of way.
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