Utrecht Tour route - Le Grand Départ - 1st stage Le Tour De France 2015

Cycling through the city centre of Utrecht and being cheered on by a few hundred thousand people: what a powerful feeling that must be. On 4 and 5 July 2015, Utrecht will be the cycling capital of the world. The second stage of the Tour de France can already be tried out now.

This bike tour follows the beginning of the second stage of the Tour de France, starting at Croeselaan. For a peloton of about 180 people, cycling through the center of Utrecht is quite tight, but rest assured: the agreement is that the official starting shot will only be fired at Goylaan. Until then, cycling will be neutralized. The cyclists will stay together and will not speed past at 45 kilometers per hour or faster. It even gives them the opportunity to look around.
Via the Vondellaan and the Bleekstraat, the tour takes you past all the beautiful places that the Utrecht city centre has to offer: from the Oudkerkhof and the Ganzenmarkt to the Janskerkhof and the Maliebaan. There is even cycling under the Dom Tower. It seems that Tour boss Prudhomme finally chose Utrecht when he heard the Domcarillon playing the Marseillaise...

The bike tour heads west, to Leidsche Rijn, the largest new construction site in the country. It is not yet known where the second stage will end. However, the Tour de France is not called Tour de France for nothing, so there is a very good chance that the professional peloton will head south after Leidsche Rijn.

This bike tour continues in a north-westerly direction, to Breukelen. After the historical city centre and the new construction of Leidsche Rijn, it is time for lambs, apple blossom, pollard willows and happy cows: the countryside.

The first village is Haarzuilens, best known for De Haar Castle. After Haarzuilens, hamlets and Breukelen follow, and then it continues along the meandering Vecht, in the direction of Maarssen. There is plenty to see along the way: from passing boats to country estates with the characteristic tea houses. Gradually, the 112-metre-high Dom, icon of the city, comes into view again.