Enjoy the lakes
Varenna, Lago Como
Lago Como
Trenino Rosso
Italian Alps
Passo Stelvio
Kaltern
Group dinner
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| Day 1 Pallanza
We’ll meet at the hotel at 2 p.m. for a brief orientation, then you’ll have the remainder of the afternoon to assemble/fit bikes and relax at one of the many outdoor cafés. Enjoy the view from our lakeside hotel, a stroll along the shoreline promenade or join us for a short ride along Lago Maggiore. Welcome dinner together.
Pallanza, located on Lago Maggiore, is unmistakably Mediterranean in atmosphere, with palms and oleanders lining the lakeside promenades. Pallanza is home to the famous botanical gardens of Villa Taranto, which has over 20,000 species of plants.
Day 2 Varenna, Lago Como
Ride 59 miles/2,500 feet
We’ll ride along the shorelines of three of the most beautiful Italian lakes. We’ll begin with a short spin to where we’ll board the ferry across Lago Maggiore. We’ll follow the eastern shoreline before riding east into Switzerland—please bring your passport.
We’ll ride along Lago Lugano to the ferry across Lago Como and to our nearby lakeside hotel in Varenna—there’s a great view from our hotel terrace overlooking the lake. Varenna is arguably the nicest village on Lago Como, shaded by pines and plane trees and almost completely free of souvenir shops. Dinner on your own.
Ride Option: 13 miles/1,500 ft. Ride to the famous Madonna del Ghisalo chapel—a shrine devoted to cycling with mementos of the most famous riders of the Giro (jerseys and bikes) overlooking Lago Como. From Bellagio, it’s a very scenic climb (7 miles/1,661 ft.) up steep switchbacks along a beautiful mountain road.
Day 3 Bormio
Ride 37 miles/2,500 feet
Our ride today is 75% downhill! We start the day with a short, one-hour transfer by train or van to Tirano where we’ll enter Switzerland and board the Trenino Rosso del Bernina (Red Swiss Train—the steepest cog railway in Europe) as it winds its way along a stunning route through the mountains on the way to St. Moritz.
We’ll disembark at Passo Bernina at 7,638 feet. Following a three-mile descent, we head back for Italy via Passo Forcola di Livigno (7,595 ft.) before descending nine miles down the valley to Livigno and onward to our next two short cols, the Passo d'Eira (7,244 ft.), lunch at the café at Passo Foscagno (7,516 ft.) and then a glorious descent of 15 miles/3,491 feet to Bormio. Tonight, we’ll enjoy the local Valtellina cuisine at our dinner together.
Day 4 Bormio Loop Ride/Spa
Ride Options: 0-32 miles/4,563 feet
Climb the famous Passo Gavia (16 miles/4,563 ft.) or Bormio 2000, both of which were ridden in the 2004 Giro d'Italia, or take an easy ride to some of the scenic mountain villages lining both sides of the valley. Hike in the nearby high alpine valleys, enjoy a massage or wellness treatment at the thermal baths near our hotel or simply relax—the choice is yours! Dinner on your own.
Bormio, located at the base of Passo Stelvio and Passo Gavia, hosted the 1985 World Alpine Ski Championships and is now one of Europe's largest summer skiing areas. It’s a thermal spa center where you can enjoy thermal baths and massages. Bormio still retains cobblestone streets and frescoed palaces from the 15th and 16th centuries.
Day 5 Kaltern/Passo Stelvio
Ride Options: 62-84 miles/5100-6,304 feet
Today is the day you’ve been training for, the Passo Stelvio (12 miles/5,304 feet)—one of the highest mountain passes in Europe and part of the 2005 Giro d'Italia! Enjoy descending the switchbacks (17 miles/5,993 ft.) to the valley floor in Prat as you enter the Sud Tyrol, where German is the prominent language.
We’ll continue down the valley on bike paths along apple orchards and take in views of hillside castles, including Reinhold Meissner Castle, before ending our day with a final easy climb to Appiano—a town dotted with more than 40 castles and manor houses. It’s only a few more miles to our hotel in Kaltern, a charming village on the famous wine road of the Alto Adige region. Dinner together.
Day 6 Kaltern Loop Ride/Wine Tasting
Ride Options: 0-20 miles/2,789 feet or more
Relax by the pool at our hotel, take a walk or enjoy a leisurely ride along the vineyards. If you still have the legs, take a ride up Passo Mendola and/or a loop ride along Alto Adige's famed Weinstraße (wine road) along apple orchards, vineyards and the shores of Lago di Caldaro. If you’re interested, join us for wine tasting in the afternoon. Final celebration dinner together.
Day 7 Tour Conclusion
Our tour ends after breakfast. Transfer to Bolzano for your mid-morning train departure home.
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