E-MOUNTAINBIKE City Escape Paris – powered by Haibike

Does Paris have more to offer than haute couture, the Louvre and blissfully buttery croissants? On our E-MOUNTAINBIKE City Escape Paris powered by Haibike we took flight down exciting and fresh Parisian trails, uncovered a new side of this cosmopolitan capital, and can confirm that there’s an imminent French Revolution inbound. Have a read to find out just why this city is so hot for two wheels. On y va!

What is the E-MOUNTAINBIKE City Escape series?

With the E-MOUNTAINBIKE City Escapes powered by Haibike, we visit the most exciting cities in the world and bring you inspiration, insider knowledge and the best tips and tours for each city. Our goal is to offer inspiration for a new generation of bikers and open up the possibility of a new lifestyle, all in cooperation with Haibike. We discover new perspectives and show you exciting ways to experience cities around the world, whether you’re a tourist or a local!

Each E-MOUNTAINBIKE City Escape Guide inspires in its own unique way. Get to know new facets of global cities, meet interesting locals and get the best insider tips, including local phrases, dos and don’ts, cafés, bars, restaurants and bike shops. In every City Escape, we also introduce you to the bikes on which we explored the city.

Fancy a tour through Barcelona, Zurich, Vienna, Lisbon, Frankfurt or Berlin? You can find our previous E-MOUNTAINBIKE City Escapes and lots of insider tips and insights into each of the cities we’ve visited here.

Enjoy the following 6 parts:

• 1/6 A city that almost has it all – Paris, the brand
• 2/6 The next French Revolution – Paris rediscovers the bike
• 3/6 Paris as seen from the saddle – Test ride and sightseeing in the city of love
• 4/6 Shredding in Paris – A handful of trails
• 5/6 Escape essentials – Cafés, bars, restaurants, dos and don’ts in Paris
• 6/6 Escape faster – Our electric whips in detail

1. A city that almost has it all – Paris, the brand

When it comes to branding, Paris is in a league of its own. From cuisine to fashion and modern art, Paris is where it’s at. But how is it possible to define Paris’ own brand and just how did it become so cosmopolitan?

Show me your house and I can tell you which city you live in – Parisian architecture is unmistakable and unarguably charming. Picture a narrow line of cafés with wrought iron balconies that stretch up to mansard roofs, and you know you are in Paris. Long, manicured avenues that escort you from historic site to historic site, and monuments that litter the cityscape, perfectly positioned to set the tone for each neighbourhood. Unlike cities such as Barcelona where each district has its own definite style, Paris appears to have been cut from one single block. It’s no coincidence either: throughout history, the city has had to rebuild itself from the ground up more than once.

To understand the roots of its uniform image, you have to take a short trip back in time to when Louis XIV was around. A pivotal figure in French history, Louis was all about adding pomp and splendour to Paris, ambitiously plotting to turn it into the most influential city in the world in the Middle Ages. It was already the capital of France and one of Europe’s biggest cities, but it lacked wide, opulent boulevards, so he pulled down the once-imposing city walls to create more space for these thoroughfares. After the French Revolution at the end of the 18th century, Napoleon took over the reins, steering Paris down a course of rapid industrialization. From a picturesque labyrinth of historic houses and courtyards, it morphed into an underworld-like city with tight, dark, dangerous lanes. Modernisation was brought back to the table by Napoleon III, who pursued a vision of prosperity that would feature fresh air, liveability and wealth. With George-Eugène Haussmann by his side in the role of Prefect of the Seine, Paris would undergo a ‘gutting’ over the next two decades. The city was razed to the ground, with entire neighbourhoods demolished and reimagined – more space, more greenery and more affluence. It involved planting trees, building canals, bridges, residences, and a new citywide sewage system (less glamorous, but arguably necessary). A vision of uniformity was brought to the city, with the systemic building of decently proportioned neoclassical apartment blocks in creamy stone, while benches, road lighting, columns and even fences were positioned around the newly planted trees. Infrastructure got an overhaul too, with the creation of new avenues – like the Champs-Élysées – that fed uniformly in and out of the city. Each gap in the traffic would lend itself to the grand reveal of a monument, a church, a train station or other historic site. If it sounds like an expensive undertaking, that’s because it was, sinking Paris heavily into debt. Wondering whether it paid off? Judging by the hordes of sightseers that swoon over the aesthetic of Paris, we’d lean towards the affirmative.

Sure, Paris can rely on more than just its own good looks – it has those of all its residents too. As what is probably the world’s most famous catwalk, each person is a billboard for high fashion. The last time I remember having my clothes so minutely examined was during my military service (which I never did). Fashion is a full-time job here. Whether grabbing breakfast, nipping to the pharmacy, or taking the bus, a Parisian will rarely be seen in scruffy jogging bottoms and with unkempt hair. From colours to textures, an outfit should match – but it doesn’t have to come with a remortgage. Your choice of clothes and accessories is simply a reflection of your personality – Parisian chic is at times classy, at times modern, and every so often a little bit sporty. Our scuffed up sneakers immediately singled us out as tourists, and while you can argue it’s all a bit superficial, the desire to capture a certain aesthetic runs deeper – we’d go as far as to say it’s a philosophy. Paris thrives on a sort of citywide etiquette that feels like a way to explore all the senses – something to appease the eyes here, the palate here, an audio delight here, then something for your mood. It can be exhausting, but mainly fascinating. And that’s what makes Paris so, well, like Paris.

Every second person we have ever spoken to in Paris has said the same thing: je suis parisien/parisienne. While factually this could be disputed (19% of the French population live in the metropolitan area of Paris), it’s clear there’s an innate sense of Parisian pride regardless of how many kilometres outside of the city you live. There are more than 2 million living in the heart of the city, and more than 11 million in the region of Île-de-France. It’s the city with the highest living costs in the world and the highest population density in Europe. For comparison: Berlin is eight times bigger, but home to only one fifth of the population. Paris is also wholly multicultural: after France, the bulk of the 11 million Paris residents come predominantly from Algeria, Spain and Portugal, with another 40 nationalities represented. And the tourists? You’re talking more than 16 million each year, making Paris the world’s preeminent city destination.

On a cultural stage, Paris sings from its own songbook. Known for its avant-garde cuisine, the hedonism of shows at the Moulin Rouge and Lido, admired for its sights and 130+ museums, and what’s worn at Paris Fashion Week – it’s a big hitter. Western culture would not be what it is today without Paris. Wondering if it is still as relevant today? Look at the number of artists, writers and current-day intellectuals that roam its streets and there’s your answer.

‘Paris is everything one could wish for’ swooned the composer Frédéric Chopin back in 1831. Does it hold true today? We shifted into gear to check out the city.

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2. The next French Revolution – Paris rediscovers the bike

Strictly 30 km/h, Paris wants to cut the number of accidents, decrease the volume, and protect the planet. By doing so, its bike friendly credentials are rocketing, but not everyone is on board. Armed with baguettes under our arm, we saddle up on our ebikes for a cruise around the romantic city. Eiffel Tower stop, mandatory. On y va!

There used to be something embittered about those who voluntarily chose to ride around Paris. A sense of apprehension each time you closed the door behind you, a sense of going into battle through les couloirs de la mort – alleyways of death – that sandwich you, the poor rider, between buses and lorries. Fortunately, tides are changing with mayor Anne Hidalgo’s five-year Plan Vélo initiative, which has encouraged thousands of residents to get on their bikes.

Since August 2021, speed limits have been cut to 30 km/h across almost all of Paris. Rolled out with some leniency at first, the speed limit is taking hold and shiny new road signs adorn the landscape. Clearly, Paris mayor Anne Hidalgo is sticking to her principles in her second six-year term in office. In one of her speeches, she proclaimed the need to rid the city of cars and reclaim the space. So what’s she doing about it? Reducing car parking space by more than 60,000 spots and making the remaining ones more expensive, plus the creation of new bike lanes, including one along the banks of the Seine River, meaning you can in theory enjoy a relaxed ride across the whole city. In 2020 alone more than 52 km of pop-up bike paths appeared alongside designated bike parking zones and brand new green spaces. It’s an ongoing project and new bike routes are continually being hastily drafted, altered then discarded. On some streets, like the Rue de Rivoli that passes the Louvre, cars must give total priority to cyclists and pedestrians. The citywide roll-out of 30 km/h speed limit is the jewel on Hidalgo’s project (although we should mention there are certain exceptions, including the Champs-Élysées, which keeps its 50 km/h limit). And it’s not an original idea either – cities like Grenoble and Lille have been France’s pioneers on this front.

Word has it that around 60% of central Parisians are in agreement with the new speed limit, with the majority of its two million residents (of which only one third even own a car) seeing it as a sign of progress for the capital. It’s only outside the city limits that opinions start to differ: in the Greater Paris Area more than 50% of the 10 million residents oppose the new speed limits, arguing that it will make it more difficult for them to reach the city and therefore leave them excluded. But at the end of the day, the question arises of which of the two groups suffers most from the traffic and associated consequences?

The project’s goals were clearly defined: 50% less noise, 25% fewer accidents, and more space for cycling. According to city officials, the 30 km/h speed limit has brought noise down by three decibels, which residents should perceive as half of what it was previously. There’s naturally opposition to Hidalgo’s work, with many calling the plan thoughtless and unrealistic, arguing that the infrastructure is more akin to spaghetti than sense. If you take statistics from the environmental research institute Cerema as gospel, CO2 emissions at 30 km/h are more than 20% higher than at 50 km/h and the traffic jams remain the same with average speeds still being measured in the city at 11 km/h. Is the 30 km/h speed limit purely symbolic? Not at all. Average speeds are not indicative of the speed spectrum and the extremes – for those on bikes, the lower speed limit defuses the danger of critical traffic junctions. It’s just a shame that ebikes with their Europewide 25 km/h limit are still set to pull the short straw as the rest of the traffic flows at 30.

While Parisians get used to the new status quo, they’ve got some learning to do when it comes to harmoniously coexisting with other road users. As we pedalled through on our ebikes, we noticed the occasional lack of empathy from riders and e-scooters, or trottinettes, with many of these more vulnerable road users unsettling the traffic with a slalom approach and disregard for red lights. As bike couriers sped by at a hair’s breadth from pedestrians at crossing, they responded with clenched fists and French passion.

At the busiest times of the day, we count more bikes than cars on the roads. Thanks to the rise of ebikes, long commutes to work, school or university are no longer out of the question. As the city’s identity shifts, so, too, does that of the typical bike commuter: Paris used to be the reserve of hardcore fixie riders who braved the traffic, but now there’s a more functional, utilitarian approach thanks to the work of the mayor. When speaking to locals, you pick up on how the increase in cycling has connected them to their city, the environment and the people. After a stressful day, they choose to go and ride their bikes to clear their head. This aspect, especially in a city like Paris, which is known for its disgruntled residents, definitely should not be undervalued. If bikes allow people to let off steam instead of barking at neighbours and scowling at strangers, please, ride your bikes. For Parisians, the word velo would work just as well as its anagram love #Velosophie.

We bump into many Parisians for whom cycling has simply become part of their day to day. Not (just) a hip pastime anymore, it’s a welcome way to escape the everyday grind of metro, boulot, dodo, or tube, work, sleep. Clocking our bikes as she takes our order, Elise, a waitress, tells us excitedly how she rides at least 10 km each day to clear her head. Later, when we ask for directions, someone else points out their favourite route – the one that they always ride with friends when they visit from out of town. You set off from Montmartre, follow the Seine and picnic in one of the many parks before pulling up at one of the open air events in the city. With each conversation, it becomes clear that two wheels are cementing themselves in the psyche of Paris for both young and old. After years of roadblocks, it’s finally starting to flow. Hidalgo, keep it up.

As a city that’s known for its past, Paris is rolling towards the future with aplomb. Plan Vélo is still largely a plan and battling with some teething trouble, but unlike other global cities, Paris is making clear, decisive steps towards a future with better urban mobility and shaping up into a livable, human-centred city. In the next chapter, we explore Paris from the luxury of its new bike lanes.

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3. Paris as seen from the saddle – Test-rides and sightseeing in the city of love

The city of lights, love, myths – and now bikes. Thanks to new laws that have passed, the perpetual traffic jams that once dominated the cityscape are now being slowly substituted by a virtually constant stream of bike riders. We saddled up on ebikes to explore the new bike-friendlier lay of the land, scope out the execution of the Plan Vélo and take a ride with two Parisians in a study of the city’s swoon-worthiness.

It’s 9 am on a clear, fresh morning with very little traffic and even less smog. For a city of this size, it feels remarkably clean. Little cafés receive the first of their daily baguette deliveries and people begin to tuck into breakfast. Nostalgic French classics like Édith Piaf’s La Vie En Rose play gently in the background. This is the Paris of picture books, right in front of us. Tour guide and local resident Stéphanie fits the bill, with the requisite penchant for gold jewellery, fine cuts of meat and wine, and a mesmeric French twang to her English. A food blogger and startup wunderkind, she’s keen to share her expertise and show us the unmissable spots in her beloved city.

We meet at her first recommendation: Hoxton, a laidback hotel that’s become the go-to for breakfast, lunch or dinner, business meets in the courtyard or catching up with friends in the cosy interior. Our bikes take their place in the bike cellar while we breakfast. The sun floods the room, which hums smoothly with well-selected tunes and the noise of the barista grinding and tamping our coffees. The croissants are still fresh. This is exactly the right place to start the day.

The roads are virtually empty as we ride through them, staying alert to absent-minded pedestrians who stroll unawares onto the streets. Stéph’s list of must-visits makes for a great ride and features the Marché des Enfants Rouges, one of the oldest markets in Paris, which she says is ideal for a quick lunch with friends or colleagues. A covered market with a host of traders, the North African food is amongst the best you’ll find and despite having just finished breakfast we find some space for a plate of Moroccan food in our stomachs. We lap up the flavours as well as the friendliness as more locals appear keen to give us tips for the city.

A visit to Paris wouldn’t be complete without some art and 2.5 million visitors a year cannot be wrong. For us, it’s the Pompidou, which is more of a cultural complex than one single traditional museum as it houses the Musée National d’Art Moderne, the Bibliothèque publique d’information, the IRCAM institute of research into music and sound, as well as cinemas, lecture theatres and theatre. Even today its unconventional architecture splits opinion, looking more like a factory with eye-capturing coloured pipes and technical fittings on the façade. Inside, there’s a vibrant, arresting colour scheme with red stairways, white air vents, blue air conditioning pipes, green water pipes and yellow electrical fittings.

Stéph is adamant that our ride must feature a stop on the Pont Notre-Dame bridge, looking out over history. This 22-hectare inner city island is the birthplace of Paris. There are nine bridges that link the Île de la Cité in the middle of the Seine River with history and the rest of the city. You’ll find the famous Cathedral of Notre-Dame here, which is back in scaffolding since more renovations began in 2019. There’s also the former royal residence, the Palais de la Cité, the former royal chapel, Sainte-Chapelle, as well the police headquarters and the former city prison, Conciergerie, whose most famous inmate was Marie-Antoinette.

Whatever the time of day, navigate from here onto the newly laid bike paths towards the Parc des Buttes Chaumont. There’s an insider tip that’s not so hidden these days, but still worth a visit: Pavillon Puebla. It’s Stéph’s favourite place to ride with friends and escape the grey of the city. Grab a place in a hammock and order a pizza or wait until later to enjoy the Pavillon’s cool tunes each evening under the colourful light bulbs. For us, it’s lunch number two and a promise to come back later.

Not seen enough? Nor have we. We get a second opinion and call Sokat, an old friend who has the day off to show us the western part of the city. Breaking up her daily routine, this outdoor lover excitedly leads us out through the city’s most recognizable sight – the Arc de Triomphe de l’Étoile – and onto a bike on the 70-metre-wide Champs-Élysées that whisks us safely towards the Bois de Boulogne park. Two and half times bigger than Central Park in New York, here’s where Parisians get their hit of fresh air – picnic rugs and slacklines positively encouraged.

While arguably a bit cliché, Sokat is unashamedly pro-Eiffel Tower for anyone visiting Paris. Not only is it the tallest building and symbolic of Paris, but also represents France’s national identity and welcomes around seven million visitors annually. As we roll up, we count around half that number fawning over the 324-metre-high architectural feat, capturing it for posterity by snapping at least 5,000 images per second. With no room to dismount, we crane our necks and try to stay upright and keep our feet firmly on the pedals, as we maneuver our way through the throng.

For those with time on their hands and enough juice left in their battery, ride along the Seine or the Rue de Rivoli (exclusively for delivery vehicles and bikes) towards the Louvre. Opened in 1739, the historical Louvre palace, which houses a collection of more than 380,000 artefacts across more than 72,000 square metres with almost 10 million visitors annually, is one of the world’s biggest and most visited art museums in the world and therefore a mandatory visit. Unfortunately, we have to skip our date with Mona Lisa because we can’t take our bikes inside. We are learning that this – in the absence of safe bike parking – is the biggest drawback to the big city and where Paris still has work to do.

After picking up unanimous cues from Stéph, Sokat and other Parisians, we are directed to the front steps of the Sacré Cœur Basilica to admire the sunset from the top of the hill Montmartre. Sunrise is special up there, too, so the best thing to do is avoid the rush hour with a croissant in hand. Don’t expect to have this spot to yourselves, though, it’s a popular Lonely Planet destination.

Would we recommend a sightseeing tour of Paris by bike? Absolutely. No travel tickets, fewer queues, and conducted at your own pace. Saddle up, helmet on and set off on one of the growing number of bike paths – easier to navigate, safer to ride and faster to boot. Where once was a solid line of hooting cars, you’ll be shaken alert by a cacophony of bike bells instead.

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4. Shredding in Paris? – A handful of trails

Paris is food, fashion and culture. But can it also be mountain biking? We headed towards the suburbs to see if the sprawling French capital’s charm had spread far enough to include some trailworthy hotspots?

Our local guide Pierre meets us at Gare du Nord and we board a train (bikes included) heading northwards to forêt domaniale de Montmorency, direction Saint-Leu-la-Forêt. When the train pulls up to a local ordinary-looking station, Pierre signals at us to disembark and get on our bikes. After three days riding in the city, we’re impatient to get between the trees and go straight into turbo mode. Allez, to the forest!

Within 10 minutes, we’ve entered another world, one where there are more trees than people in the million-strong city. This gives us a sense of freedom that we’ve been hungry for. Little gives away just how close we are to the city, there’s not even a hum of railways or motorways to be heard. No cafés either, nor grumbling locals, boulevards, or 30 km/h speed limit. We head to the first trail with bird song and the whirr of our motors as our backing track. With the Haibikes, we’re whopping and grinning even on the run-in on a narrow singletrack that cuts through the forest to a sandy clearing. From here, there are two or three trails and we follow the tyre tracks blindly. There are no roots or rocks, just sand, which gives us the right amount of drift and that thrill of finding the sweet spot to keep it upright.

The trail winds through the woods with some sweet berms and nicely shaped kickers coming after a few corners. Some of the features are so well-made that they wouldn’t look out of place in a bike park. It’s only a small hill with 190 metres of vertical, but the pedal assist lets us do multiple laps of the forêt domaniale de Montmorency before we high five Pierre and call it a day. From here, we’re heading south to the Gâtinais Français Natural Regional Park, where we’ve heard rumours about the Fontainebleau trail network – reputedly world’s apart from where we’ve just ridden in the north.

It takes a little more than an hour to reach Fontainebleau by train or car from the centre of Paris. Much like the feeling we’d had in the north in the forêt domaniale de Montmorency, the French capital feels like a distant memory. Huge rock formations dominate the forest. After a short climb, the trail we have picked is able to test us with its drops and steep sections. But you can tell that it’s a location for all riders: cruise-y, smooth-flowing singletrack that’s taken to another level on an ebike. This forest is a maze of unofficially dug trails – without the help of locals (or even apps like komoot or Trailforks), we wouldn’t ride half as much good stuff as we do. (Fortunately, in the next chapter we supply you with some of the français trail lingo to get locals on your side to share the good stuff).

On the way back, we make a detour to Versailles. No bikes are allowed inside the grounds of this castle, but we can’t miss a stroll around the 63,000 square metre estate that was the royal residence of the French king Louis until the French Revolution that broke out in 1789.
The baroque building – more than half a kilometre on one side – is considered the pinnacle of palatial architecture in Europe and set the tone for the rest of the continent between the 17th and 19th centuries. We do a quick orbit of the Pièce d’eau des Suisses pond that’s 13 hectares in size and built in 1679 to supply water to the castle. These days it’s a popular spot for Versailles locals and we feel that we have had our fill of this verdant wealth and are ready for the greyness of the city once more.

PIt may not have long Alpine descents, but Paris is a do-it-all riding location. Dig deeper than the city of lights and you’ll find scenic spots all around the city that are awash with classic woodland trails that can suit all abilities – particularly those with pedal assist. Bring your best mates and an adventurous attitude and you’ll easily get the best out of this iconic city.

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5. Escape Essentials – Cafés, bars, restaurants, dos and don’ts in Paris

Bike-Shops

Veloactif
Where? 39 avenue de Pierre Brossolette, 92120 Montrouge
Web veloactif.com

OVELO
Where? 24 Rue du Mistral, 91140 Villejust
Web ovelo.fr

Where to sleep

Expect long days and short nights, so seek out a little sanctuary to catch your breath and rest your aching feet. Check out this edit of Downtown-approved accommodation, where we’d happily order a glass of wine before light’s-out:

Hotel Amour Paris
Where? 8 Rue de Navarin, 75009 Paris
Web hotelamourparis.fr

Hoxton Paris
Where? 30-32 Rue du Sentier, 75002 Paris
Web thehoxton.com/paris/

Where to eat

Bouillon Julien
Where? 16 Rue du Faubourg Saint-Denis, 75010 Paris
Web bouillon-julien.com

Septime
Where? 80 Rue de Charonne, 75011 Paris
Web septime-charonne.fr

Saturne
Where? 153 Rue de Lourmel, 75015 Paris
Web restaurant-saturne.fr

Marché des Enfants Rouges
Where? 39, rue de bretagne, 75003 Paris

Perruche
Where? Printemps De L’Homme, 2 Rue du Havre 9ème étage, 75009 Paris
Web perruche-restaurant.com

Pink Mama
Where? 20bis Rue de Douai, 75009 Paris
Web bigmammagroup.com/en/trattorias/pink-mamma

Where to find the best wine

Septime Cave
Where? 3 Rue Basfroi, 75011 Paris
Web septime-lacave.fr

Le Dauphin
Where? 131 Ave Parmentier, 75011 Paris
Web restaurantledauphin.net

Servan
Where? 32 Rue Saint-Maur, 75011 Paris
Web leservan.com

Hotel Amour
Where? 8 Rue de Navarin, 75009 Paris
Web hotelamourparis.fr

Where to enjoy a cool beverage

Echo
Where? 95 rue d Aboukir, 75002 Paris
Web echo-paris.com

Hoxton Paris
Where? 30-32 Rue du Sentier, 75002 Paris
Web thehoxton.com/paris/

Café de Flore
Where? 172 Bd Saint-Germain, 75006 Paris
Web cafedeflore.fr

Dos

• Cruise the city by bike to tick off the tourist spots (it’s worth it)
• The forests you can see from the top of the Eiffel Tower? Go and ride your bike there – Fontainebleau is a must
• Street food at the Marché des Enfants Rouges
• Fall in love with the view of Paris from Montmartre/Sacré-Cœur
• The Louvre
• The Jardin de Tuileries and the Jardin du Luxembourg
• Fresh croissants, from literally anywhere
• A meal at Pavillon Puebla, day or night
• Wine and conversations at the bar of your choice
• Embrace street culture at a pavement café
• Revise your high school French before setting off

Dont´s

• Skip the tourist and traffic congested Champs-Élysées
• Leave your bike unattended
• Feed the birds
• Drive
• Ride without lights in low light conditions
• Expect to get by without any French (c’mon, at least merci)

French for beginners

Salut – Hi
Bonjour – Hello
Bonsoir – Good evening
Comment ça va? – How are you?
Ça va bien, merci. – I’m well, thanks
S’il vous plaît (form.) – Please
Merci beaucoup – Many thanks!
De rien – You’re welcome
Excusez-moi – Sorry
Vas-y, Allez-y – Go on
Oui – Yes
Non – No
Attention – Watch out
Au secours! – Help
Je ne parle pas (beaucoup de) français – I don’t speak (much) French
Savez vous où sont les trails? – Do you know where the trails are?
Pouvez vous m’emmener sur les trails? – Can you show me the trails?
L’addition s’il vous plait. – Can we have the bill please?
Un croissant et un café s’il vous plaît – One Croissant and a coffee, please
Une tournée s’il vous plaît – Another round, please

6. Escape faster – Our electro vehicles in detail

The Haibike AllMtn 12

We settled on the Haibike AllMtn 12 as the ideal rig for Fontainebleau’s jumps and the forêt domaniale de Montmorency’s sandy trails. The power of the Yamaha PW X2 motor with a 600 Wh battery is best described as extraordinaire, lending us the strength to muscle up the steepest ramps before dropping into the short, sharp, fast trails. On the downs, the 160 mm from the FOX 38 Factory fork and RockShox Super Deluxe Select rear shock gave us sufficient traction. Teamed with the high front end and formidably powerful Shimano XT four-piston brakes, less experienced riders will get a sense of confidence that even Louis XIV would be jealous of. Back in the city and off the trails, the Haibike AllMtn 12 cuts a fine figure on the fashion catwalk that is Paris. The full carbon frame, finished in a lush red with Haibike’s signature design language, had all eyes on it as we pedalled down the crowded Champs-Élysées.

The Haibike Trekking 10

With 6,100 roads that intersect 13,000 times, Paris is ripe for exploring. We selected the Haibike Trekking 10 for this role: thanks to Haibike’s typical rotated construction for the Bosch Performance Line CX motor, the 625 Wh sits low on the downtube, creating a notably lower centre of gravity for a more stable, cruise-y ride that lets you lean with speed into the corners. That laissez-faire attitude is topped up by the confidence of the 2.4″ Schwalbe Super MotoX tyres, while the 100 mm front suspension from the SR Suntour MOBIE45 fork smooths out the roughest cobbles in the city. When the sun sets, the striking Skybeamer front light is a welcome feature on the bike.

The Haibike Trekking 9

The petit frère of the Trekking 10, the Haibike Trekking 9 shares many of the same genes, including space for both the rotated Bosch Performance Line CX motor and 625 Wh battery in the downtube. This lends the bike that same balanced handling and fast-feeling character that lets it keep pace with the Haibike Trekking 10 as it winds through Paris’ narrow streets. Unlike the 10, the Trekking 9 doesn’t have the Kiox display and instead relies on a more basic Intuvia display. Extra comfort over the cobbles comes from the SR Suntour MOBIE25 fork with 100 mm travel and chunky 2.4″ Continental Contact Cruise tyres. Panic stopping for pedestrians is efficiently covered by the power of the Shimano MT410 two-piston brakes. A clean-looking bike, its bright red accents add a touch of chic.

Fancy a tour through Barcelona, Zurich, Vienna, Lisbon, Frankfurt or Berlin? You can find our previous E-MOUNTAINBIKE City Escapes and lots of insider tips and insights into each of the cities we’ve visited here.

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Words: Julian Lemme Photos: Valentin Rühl