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En route for the legendary "cols" of the Tour de France! Cross the French Alps from Lake Geneva to the Côte d'Azur on this fantastic eight day tour. From the Northern Alps and the Mont Blanc range right to the crystal clear waters of the Mediterranean Sea via some of the most mythical cols in the world of road biking: L'Iseran, Le Galibier, Le Lautaret, L'lzoard and many more... Road biking doesn't get any better than this!
There are projects that every ambitious road cyclist should dare to dream of. The east-west crossing of the Alpine arc from the Adriatic sea to the French Riviera on the Mediterranean coast is definetely one of them. Based on our great experience as an Alpine road cycling tour operator, we have designed a unique route that takes you through the natural heart of Europe`s most famous mountain range: the Intergal Crossing of the Alps. In total, the route is 2000 km long and offers some 40,000 m of climbing. Given these numbers, we have cut it up in three challenging parts of 6 to 8 cycling days each.
Along the route, you will enjoy countless national and regional Nature parks of varying and outstanding beauty: Triglav, Dolomites, Ortler, the Valais and Bernese Alps, Mont Blanc area, Vanoise, Ecrins and finally the French Maritime Alps. The route is an absolute must-do for "col-baggers" as it takes in the most famous mountain passes of the Alps but also lesser-known ones: Vrsic pass, Tre Cime, passes of the Dolomites and particularly the Sella Ronda, Stelvio, Gavia, Bernina, Maloja, San Bernadino, Gotthard, Furka, Susten, Colombière, Roselend, Iséran, Galibier, Izoard, Vars, Cayolle, Turini... and many many more.
We offer the Intergal Crossing of the Alps route in 3 separately bookable, fully-catered tours with support vehicle:
All three parts can also be ridden in a row. The ultimate challenge.
For those wishing to complete the Intergal Crossing of the Alps, you will not ride as far as Bergamo on Day 8 of Part 1, as a rest day is planned in Chiavenna before continuing with Part 2 (see the "Extension of the trip" in the detailed programme of the Part 1). A rest day is also planned in Thonon-les-Bains, to catch a breath between Parts 2 and 3.
Any questions regarding arrival and departure logistics? Please contact us, we are happy to help.
Each day you choose between two different routes with varying distances and altitude gain (2 and 3 wheels).
Itinerary start: Rendezvous with the organisation team is on day 1 at 9 am at Thonon les Bains SNCF railway station. On request we can book the previous night's accommodation for you in Thonon Les Bains. The "Kilomètre 0" of the Route des Grandes Alpes is located on the square in front of the town hall (Place de l'Hôtel de Ville) in Thonon-les-Bains. Worth a photo before the start of the tour!
Start of the crossing of the French Alps on the shores of Lake Geneva towards the Savoy Alps, in the footsteps of the Tour de France. With the idyllic Chablais and the Col de la Jambaz at 1,027 metres, we find the perfect conditions here to get our legs in the right mood for the effort ahead. Things then get serious in the Aravis with their sharp-edged peaks and impressive rocky outcrops: the first real challenge is the Col de la Colombière, where the coniferous forests give way to the picture-book Savoy alpine pastures for the first time. The ringing of cowbells dominates the soundscape here. After the pass, we head downhill to the ski resorts of Le Grand-Bornand and La Clusaz, where we move into our accommodation in the heart of the Savoy mountains.
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This morning, the first ascent is up the Col des Aravis (1486 m) with its perfectly laid out hairpin bends in the middle of the alpine meadows. From the pass there is a breathtaking view of Mont Blanc and its glaciated neighbouring peaks. We then enter the narrow valley of the Val d'Arly, which we leave shortly afterwards in the direction of the Saisies cross-country skiing area, where we cross the pass of the same name (1650 m). We now descend into the Beaufortain, a postcard landscape of chalets, alpine meadows, mountain forests and peaks. In the distance we can see the rocky spur of the Pierra Menta, symbol of the most famous ski mountaineering race in Europe. The village of Beaufort has given its name to the famous and highly prized cheese, the "Prince of Gruyère cheeses". A visit to the cheese co-operative is possible, during which you will also learn about the importance of cheese production for the local economy. A little further on, we are already on the ascent to the Cormet de Roselend (1967 m), whose reservoir awaits us with its turquoise-coloured waters. Last descent into the Tarentaise valley, one of the two main valleys of Savoie, under the gaze of the Aiguille des Glaciers, the highest point in the town of Bourg-Saint-Maurice. Overnight stay in Séez above the town.
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Today we connect the two largest Alpine valleys of the Savoy and French Alps - the Tarentaise (Isère Valley) and the Maurienne (Arc Valley) - by crossing the famous Col de l'Iséran at an altitude of 2,762 metres near the main Alpine ridge. On the way, we can enjoy countless panoramic views of the Vanoise National Park and pass through one of the most beautiful villages in the French Alps: Bonneval-sur-Arc, with its well-preserved stone houses. The further the descent leads into the valley, the higher the mountain giants rise to the left and right; a touch of the south blows here in the High Maurienne.
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A gentle start to the day on a mostly downhill stretch towards Saint-Michel-de-Maurienne. We take a beautiful balcony road through larch and pine forests to avoid the main road in the valley. The Vauban fortifications bear witness to the former strategic position of Modane, when Savoy alternated between French and Italian rule over the centuries. Further down the valley, Saint-Michel-de-Maurienne awaits us, where the most famous ascent of the Tour de France up to the Col du Galibier (2645 m) begins. First on the menu is the classic Col du Télégraphe, where we remain below the tree line. After a welcome flat section on which we cross the village of Valloire, the actual ascent to the Col du Galibier begins, surrounded by dry pastures and the stony but elegant peaks of the Cerces massif. From the top of the pass, the view of the Ecrins massif to the south is unrivalled in its beauty. We have the opportunity to savour this view on the entire descent to the Col du Galibier. All that remains for us to do is to continue our descent into the sun-drenched Le Monêtier les Bains. Overnight stay in Le Monêtier les Bains.
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We leave Monêtier and the Southern Alps unravel before our eyes: Larch forests, sun-browned stone villages and dry pastures with sheep and goat herds now dominate the landscape. Via the town of Guillestre, we reach the Queyras Regional Nature Park, which is located on the French side at the foot of Mont Viso (many regional products). The route then climbs towards the Col de Vars (2,109 m), with its larch forests and rocky mountains. The descent to Barcelonnette in the direction of our accommodation is exhilarating... All that remains is to crank up the last short climb to the small ski resort of Le Sauze.
The stage offers the option of choosing the route variant via the Col d'Izoard with its famous stone chaos of the Casse Déserte from Briançon (a must!). Optionally, those who still have plenty of energy left can take the legendary Bonette mountain road up to the col and on to the Cime de la Bonette at a very low altitude of 2,802 metres.
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Into the saddle and a quick visit to Barcelonnette, the city of Mexican villas! Then we head south, up a lonely and beautiful route to the Col de la Cayolle, which takes us deep into the Mercantour National Park. Wild mountains as far as the eye can see. This is wolf territory and people and their villages are few and far between in this remote area. From the pass, we descend into the Var valley, from where we start the ascent to the Col de Valberg a short time later. After all, there are 12 kilometres and 900 metres of ascent to overcome here. After this second difficulty, we reach our stage town of Beuil at 1,450 metres for our last night in the French Alps.
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Today, on the last day of our road bike tour, a long stage awaits us with the last, smaller passes and a lot of downhill kilometres to the Côte d'Azur. Early in the morning, we take advantage of the freshness of the coniferous forests on the mountain flanks to reach the Col de la Couillole after an easy 7 kilometres. What follows is probably the most beautiful descent of the week on a narrow, winding track down into the deeply incised Tinée valley. We should not underestimate either the Col Saint Martin or the Col du Turini (level 3). With the Col Saint Martin as the first difficulty, we have to climb 1000 metres in altitude for 16.5 km to reach the Vésubie valley. Here, the villages nestle against the steep slopes of the mountainsides and the surrounding area still bears the impressive traces of Storm Alex in 2020.
Although the level 2 and 3 routes separate shortly after Roquebillière, the remaining metres in altitude in the hinterland of the French Riviera have a freestyle character for both variants. On level 2, the Col de la Porte is the last climb up to the 1000 metre mark before we can happily lie down on the bends of the final descent to the sea after 7 exhausting days in the racing saddle. On level 3, the classic section of the Route des Grandes Alpes, the last real challenge awaits us with the 15 km climb to the Col de Turini at 1600 metres. From the top of the pass, the route heads southwards up and down the Turini-Braus and Castillon passes and finally down to Menton. We are gripped by a sublime feeling when we finally reach our destination after the exertions of the week. We round off this last day on the Mediterranean. Overnight stay and dinner in Menton.
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Itinerary end: The trip ends in Menton after breakfast. Individual departure or optional transfer with the support vehicle back to Thonon-les-Bains by Lake Geneva (arrival in Thonon between 3 and 4 pm depending on traffic). Please note: the seats are limited.
Distances and altitude gain are an indication only and may vary.
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