Aspremont - Tourette-Levens // villages near nice

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Distance: Nice - Aspremont - Tourette-Levens - Nice 50 km
Climb: 700 m+
​Main routes: M714, M14, M719, M19
Close to: Col de Chateauneuf-Vielleville, Saint-Blaise, Levens, Mont Chauve d'Aspremont
Level of difficulty: Easy-Moderate
Season: Spring, Summer, Fall
Tip: You can extend the tour and do an app. 70 km loop by following the road further North in Aspremont and cycle through Saint-Blaise/Levens before you hit the road M19 back to Nice. It is a very scenic loup! You can add more climb by including Col de Chateauneuf-Vielleville or Mont Chauve d'Aspremont. From this area you can also continue to the climbs further into the back country of Nice, e.g. Lucéram, Col de la Madone d'Utelle or Col de Turini.

One of the things that I love about living in the Nice area is that you only have to bike for a short time, before you reach small villages in the hills around Nice that have been there for ages and have an authentic Provence feel to them. Aspremont and Tourette-Levens are some of them. In a few hours, you can visit both of them in this 50 km loop from Nice.

Like Rome, you can go to Aspremont by quite a few ways. I would not say that all roads lead to Aspremont, but there are 3 entrance points to the village and it is at the center of a web of connecting smaller mountain roads. At the map-shot below Aspremont is where you see the icon from a photo taken when I rode the tour one day in June.

An easy way from central Nice is to follow the Promenade des Anglais towards West until you reach a city area called Magnan. Turn right and follow the main road: Boulevard de la Madelaine. You start cycling towards the mountains through a residential area. Soon you no longer feel like being in one of the biggest cities of France.

You will reach a creek and follow this for quite a while until you follow the road going uphill towards a hill-top area called Saint-Pancrace. You reach route d'Aspremont and do a left turn*. There will be signs that direct you to Aspremont at this point. Follow the smooth road and enjoy the view towards the Var valley.

*Tip to the climb-lovers: Nearby you can try out one of the local challenges, Mont Chauve d'Aspremont (834 m), which you can climb by making a right turn in the same intersection.

You will soon see Aspremont rise from the hills - it is a very pretty village that has reached towards the sky since Medieval times. Make sure to make a stop at the village square. The fountain in Aspremont is a popular meeting spot for cyclists, who are happy to chat with fellow cycling lovers. On the other side of the community house, you can grab a coffee at the café. On days where the café is closed, you can also go to the supermarket where the friendly owner is happy to serve a coffee and some pattiserie.
 
To go directly to Tourette-Levens from Aspremont, find the road that goes a slight bit more uphill from the parking area in the mid of the village. You do not have to climb much before you enter a valley and can slide down to the next village.

It is a stunning landscape here with rolling forest green hilltops and a peak through to the sea - enjoy it!

As you reach the main road in Tourette-Levens, make a right turn. You can follow this road all of the way back to Nice by a long and nice decent of the easier kind. You will travel through the outer areas of Nice; Falicon and Saint-André-de-la-Roche before you follow the Western river bank of Paillon river to downtown Nice.

Voila - 2 villages in a few hours ride! C'est magnifique <3

Tina Baltzer
Lifesparkz Bike Tours