Do you love the long climbs that have written the history of cycling? Do you prefer the adrenalin of Alpine trails or grinding out kilometre after kilometre along dirt tracks on a gravel bike? Are you riding around on the hunt for the region’s best food and wine specialities? Whatever your idea of cycling, Italy offers numerous opportunities to give free rein to your passion for bikes. In this section, we’ve put together some of the best cycling destinations in Italy – designed especially for you!
Road bikes: the great climbs
Road bikes rhyme with the Giro d’Italia. If you love road racing, you simply have to tackle the climbs that have written the history of the Giro at least once in your life. Stelvio, Gavia, Mortirolo, Giau, Pordoi, Falzarego, Muro di Sormano, Ghisallo, Poggio: the list could go on, but with a bit of willpower and a good plan of attack you could experience unforgettable emotions that will stay with you for the rest of your life – one ride after the other, one climb after the other.
Recommended Italy Bike Hotels destinations: Bormio and Stelvio, Lake Como, Lake Maggiore, Dolomites, Liguria
Off-Road: (renewed) adrenalin
Not just the Alps. For those who love riding a MTB surrounded by nature or venturing out on the best European trails, then we’ve got some unusual destinations to recommend – without taking anything away from the sublime beauty of Alpine landscapes. Discover Finale Ligure, the mecca of freeriding, or perhaps the breath-taking trails that drop sheer to the sea and are part of the Elba Marathon world championships. Still not enough? What about an off-road adventure towards the Eternal City or to discover the mountains of Abruzzo?
Recommended Italy Bike Hotels destinations: Liguria, Elba, Rome and the Apennines, Abruzzo
Gravel: discovering dirt roads
Let’s start by saying that gravel doesn’t exist, because there are many different interpretations of what it means. Whatever you think, there are regions in Italy that come closer to the concept of gravel that is part of the common imagination. Just head out onto the dirt roads of Tuscany, the gravel tracks of the Marecchia Valley in Emilia Romagna or the hills of the Langhe or Roero to understand that (sometimes) gravel really does mean cyclable dirt tracks, breath-taking panoramic views and breaks for food, coffee and top-quality wine before, during and after a ride!
Recommended Italy Bike Hotels destinations: Tuscany, Adriatic Riviera.
E-Bike: cycling tastefully
Let’s just say something before we begin; one of the best things about cycling is being able to satisfy any culinary whim you may have at the end of your ride – professionals aside, most people can and should give it a go. If you think cycling means, above all, discovering the history and food and wine traditions of a place, then take note of these little gems: polenta with tench on Lake Iseo, Valeggio tortellini on Lake Garda, Castelluccio lentils in Umbria, puccia (typical local bread) in Puglia or cicchetti (small snacks similar to tapas) and a glass of Prosecco in Veneto.
Recommended Italy Bike Hotels destinations: Lake Iseo, Lake Garda, Umbria, Puglia, Veneto
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