Vélizy-Villacoublay is a modern town on the plateau south-west of Paris, between the forests of Meudon and Verrières, best known for two very different things: one of the biggest shopping centres in the region and a military air base. The base at Villacoublay is where French leaders and foreign heads of state usually land when they come to Paris, and you may hear a government jet coming in low over the trees.
The town itself is mostly office parks, housing estates and wide avenues, and it makes no claim to charm. As a finish point, though, it has real advantages: it sits right on the main road back into Paris, it has every service you could need, and it is surrounded by green. The forest of Meudon, just north, is a large wooded area of oaks and chestnuts with ponds and paths, and the Bièvre valley to the south is a pocket of village houses, mills and meadows that feels far from the city.
The ride in from the Gâtinais and the Milly forest is the reverse of the day's beauty. You come up from the south through farmland and woods, then onto the fast roads around Saclay and Versailles, and finally into the suburbs. The N118 is a quick, busy dual carriageway with speed cameras and a lot of traffic at peak times, so if you have the patience, the back roads through Jouy-en-Josas and Bièvres are slower but much more pleasant, dropping into the little valley and climbing out of it in a few good bends.
It is worth knowing that Versailles is only a few kilometres west. If you finish early, the palace and the park are a short hop, and the long avenues and the scale of the place are a striking last stop. Meudon also has its own history: the observatory on the hill was built on the site of a royal château, and the sculptor Rodin lived and worked there, and his house and garden are now a museum.
Fuel, cafés and food are everywhere, the shopping centre has everything if you need gear or a quick meal, and the tram and train links to Paris are good if you are dropping the bike off. Arrive outside peak hours and the last part of the ride is painless; arrive at six on a weekday and it is a lesson in filtering.