2020 Terrys’s Italian Adventure
Italian Adventure
10 days | 21st July to 30th July 2020
ON SALE
- 10 Days
- 6 Dinners
- Custom Van
- Custom Service
- Intermediate to Experienced
- 3 & 4 Star Hotels
Duration: 10 Days
Dates: July 21, 2020 to July 30, 2020
Start: Milan Malpensa Airport, Italy
Finish: Milan Malpensa Airport, Italy
Group Size: 5 guests - 1 staff
Price: See Pricing Schedule Here
Single Supplement: See Pricing Schedule Here
Note: All trip costs are per person, not including airfare and based on two persons per room. If travelling alone we will match you with a person to share. Alternatively, you may choose to have a room of your own by paying the single supplement.
Note: It is a requirement of Bikestyle Tours that you have Travel Insurance for your trip.
TRIP HIGHLIGHTS:
- Custom itinerary
- Ride along the fabulous lake Como, where the Northern mountains plunge into the deep waters
- Bucket List climbs: Passo dello Stelvio, Mortirolo, Monte Grappa, Gavia, Passo Giau, Madonna del Ghisallo and Sella Ronda Loop
- Stay at 3 and 4 star hotels along the way
- A professional guide to support you throughout
RIDE RATINGS
Our trips allow you to choose a suitable ride each day. Alternative ride options are available on most days. We use a consistent ride rating to help you choose your ride. We rate each ride on various factors; distance, total climbing, intensity and altitude. The table below is a guide to our ride rating system.
Unfortunately, we can’t forecast the weather when designing our rides, but your trip leader will advise you on any precautions.
| Distance | SHORT: less than 30km |
| MEDIUM: between 30km and 80km (depending on the total climbing). | |
| LONG: more than 80 km | |
| Ascent | Total climbing (ascending) for the day, anything over 2000m is a big day |
| Intensity | Some rides may have time constraints. Our rides vary from EASY, MODERATE to HARD. |
| Altitude | Some of our rides may go into alpine areas where thinner air affects your intake of oxygen. |
PRICING: Pricing for private groups is based on agreed minimum numbers of participants being met. Final invoices for all trip participants will be adjusted based on the confirmed participants. Participants confirm by way of paying their trip deposit. Final invoice amounts may be adjusted according to the pricing schedule at the time of final invoicing (90 days prior to trip departure date).
DEPOSIT: $1500 Australian dollars per person.
A reservation is not confirmed until a deposit for the trip is received.
PRICING: TWIN SHARE PER PERSON
5 people: $6500 per person twin share
4 people: $7050 per person twin share
3 people: $7800 per person twin share
SINGLE SUPPLEMENT FOR SOLE USE OF ROOM (SINGLE) PER PERSON
Cost $850
FINAL PAYMENT: Due 24th April 2020
CANCELLATION POLICY:
If for some reason you have to cancel your place on the trip, the following deductions will apply.
- From payment of deposit to 120 days prior to trip departure date: Loss of 50% of deposit
- Between 90 and 120 days prior to trip departure date: 100% loss of deposit. This may be reduced to 50% of deposit if a replacement person is found to take your place on a trip.
- Less than 90 days prior to trip departure date: 100% loss of trip payment.
Tour cost is per person twin share and includes:
- Services of 1 experienced tour guide
- 1 support van
- Rental bike (Cannondale Synapse Carbon Fibre)
- Transfer to and from Malpensa Airport
- 9 nights quality accommodation
- Buffet breakfast daily
- Dinner on 6 nights
- Wine during welcome and farewell dinners
- Mechanical assistance with your bike
- Ride maps and GPS files
- Full printed itinerary, cap and musette bag
BIKE HIRE IS INCLUDED IN THE PRICE OF THE TRIP
Note: All bike hire costs include 2 water bottles for you to keep. We also provide a saddle bag with a spare tube, pump, tyre-levers and multi-tool. The pump and saddle bag with its contents must be returned with the hire bike at the end of hire.
Custom Italian Cycling Adventure
Bikestyle Tours has been running trips to Italy for over 15 years, back then it was following the charismatic Marco Pantani and Mario Cippolini at the Giro d’Italia. In 2020 your Italian Cycling Adventure features the best rides and locations we have visited over the past 15 years.
You’ll experience the very best riding in Italy, great pizza, pasta, gelato, coffee and the best hot chocolate. It is a popular trip for the cuisine, scenery and all things that are very, very Italian.
Our trip starts in spectacular style with a ride round Lake Como before we transfer to Bormio for 4 amazing days of riding on some of the highest mountains passes in Italy. Once we have conquered the Stelvio, Gavia and Mortirolo we will make our way into the Dolomites for 4 more days of spectacular scenery and one of the best loops in the world, the Sella Ronda loop.
Detailed Itinerary
Buongiorno
Our trip starts with your guides meeting you at the Milan Malpensa Airport at 10 am. After a short transfer to Lecco, we will assemble our bikes and head out on a short warm-up ride. Our first ride in Italy will be something special, we’ll ride to the shores of Lake Como and follow its shoreline to the spectacular village of Bellagio. Boutique shops, delicious “pasticeri” sweet biscuits, gelati and of course coffee, we’ll make a stop and wander through the stone pedestrian alleys.
We leave Bellagio and ascend another of Italy’s famous climbs to Madonna del Ghisallo, a small chapel which holds the shrine to cyclists. After visiting the cycling museum we will descend down to Lake Como’s shoreline and back to our hotel. Tonight we will enjoy a welcome dinner so you can meet your guide for the trip. Most importantly, have your questions answered by your helpful staff.
Passo del Stelvio
We will leave Lecco this morning and make our way into the Italian Alps to start our ride up the famous Passo del Stelvio starts in Bormio. You will have seen and heard about this mountain pass through its popularity with cyclists, bikers and motoring enthusiasts.
The Passo del Stelvio is 21.5km long to the top of the pass, which at 2,757m, is the highest paved road in the Eastern Alps with fabulous views across to Switzerland. The original road was built in 1820-25 by the Austrian Empire to connect the former Austrian province of Lombardia with the rest of Austria.
After riding the Stelvio and enjoying a warming hot chocolate at the summit, we will return to Bormio to celebrate our experience of this extraordinary ride.
Passo Gavia
If you're are feeling up to the challenge make our way up Passo Gavia, if not we head out on one of our favourite rides from Bormio.
Making it to Passo Gavia from Bormio the easier of the two Gavia Pass ascents, measuring 25km and averaging 5% to 2,621m. The only really challenging section is around the 20km mark, where the gradients reach double digits before easing off for the last few kilometers of the climb. Besides the views across the mountains, the picture-perfect switchbacks and the too lakes “Nero” and “Bianco” are beautiful.
After another amazing day on the bike, we can relax in one of Bormio’s many restaurants for dinner.
St Moritz
Another day in Bormio and another great climb to tackle. Today we cross into Switzerland and visit the luxurious alpine resort of St Moritz.
Our 85km ride will see us leave our hotel by bike and make our way up the Passo Foscango, it is a gentle climb of 4.5% average gradient over 24km up to Livigno. From Livigno, we have a further 18km of climbing up Passo Bernina where we can enjoy the descent most of the way down into St Moritz.
We will enjoy lunch in St Moritz before returning to Bormio by van.
Piccolo Stelvio
We can have a sleep in this morning after a few big days on the bike. We still have plenty of big days ahead of us so today we will take things a little easier and ride the Stelvio’s little bother, the “Piccolo Stelvio”.
“Piccolo Stelvio” is a twisty climb (16 switchbacks) off the road heading to Livorno. If you are adventurous, you can ride around the turquoise waters of an alpine lake on the gravel road. After our ride, we can descend back into Bormio for lunch. After lunch, we can arrange to visit one of the local Thermal Baths and soothe those legs!
Tonight, you are free to explore Bormio and have dinner in the village.
Mighty Mortirolo
We depart from Bormio today. We’ll have gravity on our side, descending down the valley. You’ll barely need to pedal for the first 30km of today’s course. Our easier option can continue to Tirano and meet up with our transport. It might well be the fastest (and easiest) 45km you’ll ever do, a fun ride.
Our challenge today is The Passo della Foppa, or the Mortirolo as it is better known, is considered to be the toughest mountain one can climb in Italy. Our ascent from Mazzo di Valtellina is 12.8 km at an average of 10.1%. Beware an average though as the middle 5 km of the climb maintains an incline of greater than 12%. Once at the top we’ll continue to Ponte di Legno and meet up with our transport.
This afternoon we’ll make our transfer into the Dolomites for the next two nights is a bike-friendly hotel in Arabba with many great climbs nearby.
Sella Ronda Loop
Today we take the opportunity to ride one of the classic rides in the world, the Sella Ronda. While the actual loop is only 52km it includes more than 1,850m of climbing with four major passes, the Pordoi, Sella, Gardena, and Campolongo.
This will be a memorable part of the trip as it is definitely one of the world’s great rides. Don’t forget to stop at the top of where the Coppi monument is.
It is a tough ride but the scenery at this time of year is fantastic. The first climb up is the longest, Passo Pordoi, therefore the hardest, but the other 3 passes are well spaced so most people find this an enjoyable and not too difficult day on the bike. We will have a day to remember, so enjoy the ride and don’t forget your camera!
The four passes of the Sella Ronda are:
- Passo Pordoi – 2,239m
- Passo Sella – 2,214m
- Passo Gardena – 2,121m
- Passo Campolongo – 1,875m
After the ride, we will return to our hotel in Arabba with time to relax in the village and back at the hotel.
Passo Giau
We have another great climb ahead of us today, Passo Giau. The climb is a regular feature at the Giro d’Italia and is ranked by most as one of the harder climbs in the Dolomites. The 10.12km climb at 9% average is renowned for the consistent gradient which rarely drops below 7%.
The hard work will all be worthwhile as you will be treated to one of the best 360-degree views of the Dolomites. Once we have had time to enjoy the amazing view we will descend and make the short trip back to our hotel in Arabba.
Monte Grappa
We have saved one of the best rides for last, today we’ll ride the slopes of Monte Grappa.
Cima Grappa rises from the plains to a height of 1775 meters. It was a World War 1 battleground and has great significance for the Italian people, particularly the “Alpini”. It is a wonderland for cyclists, offering nine paved routes to the summit, one of which is considered the third hardest climb in Italy. Fare il Grappa, to do Grappa, is the obligatory climb and right of passage of every local cyclist. The northern route is possibly an easier ascent, but the variable gradient and some downhill make you wonder when you’ll see the top.
From the top, there is a side road that takes you up to the war monument with great views across the Veneto plains. After reaching the summit, we’ll descend to Bassano del Grappa for the afternoon.
We may even indulge in the local drink, simply called Grappa at our farewell dinner.
Arrivederci
This morning our trip finishes back where it all started, in Milan. Our final transfer to Malpensa Airport arrives by approximately 2 pm.
If you’re planning your departure from Milan today, your earliest departure for a domestic connection is 4 pm and for international flights is 5pm. There are also trains that depart from the airport station taking you into the centre of Milan.
We bid farewell and we trust that you have had an enjoyable time visiting spectacular Italian regions, ticking some famous climbs off your bucket list. Safe onward travels and we look forward to seeing you again one day.