India, July 3 -- Every summer, the Tour de France unfolds not just as the world's greatest cycling race, but also as a slow traveller's dream. On July 5, a peloton of elite cyclists will embark on one of the most gruelling endurance tests in sport. The backdrop? Anything but brutal. Spanning 21 stages and 3,320 kilometres of tarmac, the route cuts through France's most scenic trails-sweeping coastlines, sleepy villages, verdant valleys, and winding alpine roads.

While the athletes race against time, the rest of us are invited to explore at leisure. Whether you're following the Tour from stage to stage or catching it in just one stopover town, this is your ticket to seeing France through both sport and summer bloom.

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