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cjr
I go over every year and cycle down from Calais the day before. I stay south west of Lille in a cheap and cheerful Ibis that seems to be pretty relaxed about me taking my bike in my room and the blatant cramming of extra stuff from the breakfast bar in to every available pocket in the mornings.
On the day I get up early and do a loop involving several of the secteurs before it gets too busy. It’s great as you get to ride past the camper vans and people are super friendly. If you leave it too close to the race itself you end up weaving in and out of locals carrying beer and barbecues which is a little less safe or fun.
I then head back to the Abbatoir secteur immediately after Orchies. A few hundred metres in there is always a marquee selling food and beer and with a big screen. You can drink beer, eat frites and watch the start of the race with the locals here (including popping out to watch the juniors if you’re early enough), find somewhere nearby to watch the race when that goes by and then go back to watch the end on the screen. By this point everyone’s pretty drunk and if hanging out with pet dogs dressed in Quick Step jerseys and getting hugged by total strangers for cheering when Van Avermaet wins seems like your thing then you will enjoy this.
There’s pretty much zero point trying to ride the cobbles in the immediate aftermath of the race as it’s too busy and you will inevitably hit a drunk local. It’s also worth remembering that by the final secteurs the race has blown the peloton completely open and riders will continue to come through in small groups for nearly an hour (if you want to convince anyone how tough pro cycling is get them to watch these guys covered in dust and occasionally blood struggling to just to get to the finish).
If you want to ride the secteurs uninterrupted I would consider staying another day. It’s a slightly odd experience as it’s deathly quiet compared to the day before but you can hit everything at pace for extended periods. There’s also no one to watch you embarrassingly fall off when you are reminded that you don’t have pro cyclist handling skills (not that this ever happened to me, obviously).
I honestly wouldn’t watch at Arenberg or Carrefour as it can be hard to see with the crowds and you’re a bit stuck.
Have fun whatever you decide!