Venice – Sestriere via Dolomites
TRIP DETAILS:
Duration: 15 days, 14 nights
Dates: Thursday, 7th May – Thursday, May 21st
Start: Milan, Malpensa Finish: Milan, Malpensa
Accommodation: Selected quality 4 Star Hotels
Group Size: Maximum 40 people (5 Staff)
Cost: AUD$5,990 – Reserve your place now.
Deposit: USD* $915* – Reserve your place now.
*We charge for our trips in Australian dollars (AUD$).

Optional Extras:
Bike Rental $750 (Cannondale Synapse carbon fibre)
-Pre or post tour accommodation to extend your stay
-Travel Insurance (with a 10% Discount for Australian Clients)
-Car Rental Email us for details

Who is this trip for?
This tour offers an amazing variety of terrain, race viewing and cycling. As with all of our tours you’ll be guided by our expert team of ride leaders, drivers and guides. You will experience the excitement of the Giro d’Italia centenary edition and see stage starts, finishes, the team time trial and of course get to cheer the riders up close on the legendary climbs of the Dolomites and the Alps. This tour starts in Milan before moving to Venice for the early stages, then to the rugged beauty and legendary climbs of the Dolomites. From the Dolomites we travel east for a ride on Lake Como, the fast paced stage around Milan and the biggest mountain stage of the Giro over Col D’Izoard and Sestriere.

Highlights of this tour include:

• Challenge yourself on famous climbs including Italy’s Passo dello Stelvio  and Col d’Izoard in France.
• Visit some of Italy’s most beautiful towns including Venice, Bassano del Grappa, Bergamo and Milan.
• Ride through some of Italy’s most scenic countryside in the Veneto, Dolomites, the Alps and Italian Lakes.
• Opportunities for sightseeing including Venice Island and Italy’s fashion capital, Milan.
• Stay in a 4 star hotel with a history dating back 700 years in the mountain village of Castelrotto
• Witness the spectacular opening stage of the Giro d’Italia centenary edition , a team time trial along the shore of the Venice Lido
• Side Trips will incluse a visit to Gibi Simoni’s shop in Trento and the famous cyclists Chapel at Ghisallo incorporating the Museo del Ciclismo above Lake Como.

The trip is geared to suit anyone with an interest in cycling and experiencing the food, people and culture of Italy. We cater for cyclists of all abilities by providing riding options each day. On most days we offer two rides. All of our rides are escorted and they vary from “serious” to “relaxed”. We ride on quiet scenic roads and where possible we ride on the race course ahead of the race. This trip does involve some days in the mountains so there will be the opportunity to challenge yourself. As with all of our tours you’ll be guided by our expert team of ride leaders, drivers and guides, including ex pro riders who know the Giro d’Italia intimately. This tour also caters to people who do not ride bikes, but an interest in the Giro d’Italia is important as this is the main focus of the tour. We’ll do our best to make our non riding clients enjoy their experience of Italy and where possible will include visits to other attractions as well as visiting the race in our support vans.

For your convenience and comfort we start and finish our Giro d’Italia tours with a pickup and drop off at major airports. This means that you don’t have to bother with expensive and time consuming transfers to smaller airports such as Florence or Venice to start your tour.

Stages you will see:

• Stage 1, Saturday, May 9th, 21.5 km, Lido di Venezia, TTT
• Stage 2, Sunday, May 10th, 156 km, Jesolo – Trieste
• Stage 3, Monday, May 11th, 200 km, Grado – Valdobbiadene
• Stage 4, Tuesday, May 12th, 165 km, Padova – San Martino di Castrozza
• Stage 5, Wednesday, May 13th, 125 km, San Martino di Castrozza – Alpe di Siusi
• Stage 6, Thursday, May 14th, 242 km, Bressanone – Mayrhofen (AT),
• Stage 7, Friday, May 15th, 244 km, Innsbruck (AT) – Chiavenna
• Stage 8, Saturday, May 16th, 208 km, Morbegno – Bergamo
• Stage 9, Sunday, May 17th, 155 km, Circuit race in Milano
• R, Monday, May 18th, Rest day
• Stage 10, Tuesday, May 19th, 250 km, Cuneo – Pinerolo,
• Stage 11, Wednesday, May 20th, 206 km, Torino – Arenzano

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Detailed Itinerary

Day 1 Thursday, 7 May 2009
Our tour starts today with our staff meeting you as you arrive at Milan Malpensa airport and transferring your  to our hotel a short distance away. Our hotel is a modern 4 star property in a quiet location ideal for our test ride this afternoon and has great facilities including a heated outdoor pool. Once you are checked in we’ll assist you with getting your bike set up before heading off this afternoon into the surrounding countryside of which straddles the regions of Lombardy and Piemonte. It’s fairly flat around this region with the lakes to the north and a gentle rural landscape to the south, so it will be an easy ride with a perhaps a stop for a cup of wonderful Italian coffee. Tonight we will have a welcome dinner where you will meet your fellow travellers and where our staff will go over the plans for our 12 journey through Italy.

Overnight: Milan
Meals: Dinner

Day 2 Friday, 8 May 2009
After a good night’s rest we will travel from Milan to the Veneto, a region famed for its rich cities of art and of course the island city of Venice. It is a large area of varied terrain from the flat coastal plains to the soaring heights of the Dolomites, and is Italy’s most visited region by tourists. We will leave Milan early as it’s a long drive to Venice, but we will still have plenty of time to fit in a ride this afternoon. We will make our lunch stop in between the important cities of Vicenza and Verona at the wine town of Soave, one of the few places in Italy with fully intact medieval walls. After our ride we will travel to our home for the next 4 nights, Jesolo Lido, a popular tourist destination on the Gulf of Venice and the Adriatic Sea. Our hotel is ideally situated on the beachfront but only a short walk to the town’s shopping and nightlife area which is home to one of Europe’s longest pedestrian malls. Tonight we will enjoy a meal of local specialities in the hotel restaurant, which is a member of a local project to use only the highest quality locally grown and certified fresh produce.

Today’s riding:
After lunch we’ll take a 60 km ride out into the rolling hills through some typical Veneto countryside, visiting some of the very interesting little villages and towns including Montagnana, famous for its massive city walls with no less than 24 watchtowers.

Overnight: Jesolo Lido
Meals: Breakfast, Dinner

Day 3 Saturday, 9 May 2009
After enjoying a buffet breakfast on the hotel terrace overlooking the beach we will prepare for our first day at the Giro d’Italia. Today’s prologue is an unusual one to mark the start of the centenary tour, being a Team Time Trial along the Venice Lido. This will be a great chance to see the big stars of your favourite team riding in unison in this highly disciplined event on the shoreline of this narrow isthmus opposite Venice island. Sitting between the Adriatic and Venice Island, the Lido di Venezia is a 9km long sandbar island popular with tourists in the summer months and famous for the Venice film festival in September. Many grand hotels line the main road along the island, Gran Viale Santa Maria Elisabetta, which is incorporated into the 20.5 km route of the Team Time Trial. After the team time trial we will depart Venice Lido for dinner, before heading back on the ferry to Jesolo Lido. For those not wanting to see the time trial today there is the option of spending the afternoon exploring Venice Island. In the late morning we’ll head off on the ferry from nearby Punta Sabbioni to Venice Lido, passing through the Venice lagoon and its small islands with a great view of Venice as we approach the Lido.

Today’s riding:
We expect the prologue to be late in the afternoon so we take an early morning 65km loop to stretch our legs along the flat roads to the attractive seaside town of Caorle, returning to the hotel late morning. This will allow some time for sightseeing and race watching!

Overnight: Jesolo Lido
Meals: Breakfast

Day 4 Sunday, 10 May 2009
Today’s opening stage is from Jesolo to Trieste, so we can take it easy this morning and relax before wandering down to the stage start a short distance from our hotel. This will be the ideal chance to see the riders close up as they head to the sign in area. Being early in the race the pros will be fairly relaxed so it’s a good opportunity to get an autograph or some up close photographs. In the early afternoon once the race has departed we will head off on a local ride over the flat coastal roads used by the race today. The other option this afternoon will be to visit Venice Island and explore the canals and piazzas of this unique city. If you have never been to this magical city this is highly recommended as the best way to spend the afternoon. The best way to get to Venice is by ferry as we did yesterday to Venice Lido, only this time you’ll get the most splendid view of the city on the approach to St Marks Square. Tonight is free for you to dine in Jesolo Lido, or to remain in Venice for dinner, returning later this evening by ferry.

Today’s riding:
In the early afternoon once the race has departed we will head off on a local ride over the flat coastal roads used by the race today.  The ride will be out and back along the race route so we can make it a couple of distances from 60 to 100km.

Overnight: Jesolo Lido
Meals: Breakfast

Day 5 Monday, 11 May 2009
The stage for today is from Grado on the coast close to Trieste and the Croatian border, to Valdobbiadene to the north of Padova. We will move today from Jesolo Lido to our hotel in the small village of Cavaso del Tombo, 15kms from the finish of today’s stage. This area of the Veneto is scenic and known for two of Italy’s favourite drinks, the sweet sparkling wine Prosecco and the potent liquor that is Grappa. The second circuit begins with an ascent up the small San Pietro climb just out of the town before descending to the town centre for the finishing sprint. This will make it a great town for us to see a race finish today. After the race we can pedal the 15kms back to our hotel and have a relaxing evening and dinner, maybe sampling some of the local Grappa to finish off the night.

Today’s riding:
Those wanting a longer ride today can ride from our hotel in Jesolo Lido , picking up the race route along the way at Conegliano and travel all the way to the finish at Valdobbiadene, a distance of roughly 105 km.
For those wanting a shorter ride we’ll travel by coach to our hotel in Cavaso del Tombo, and then ride to pick up the race route making our way back to the finish in Valdobbiadene, where the race will pass through the town twice.

Overnight: Cavaso del Tombo
Meals: Breakfast, Dinner

Day 6 Tuesday, 12 May 2009
The Giro d’Italia gets serious today with the first mountain stage from Padova finishing with a mountain top finish at San Martino di Castrozza in the Dolomites. We will view today’s 165 km stage not too far from our hotel on the small climb of La Rosina, just before the town of Bassano del Grappa. This climb has been used in previous Giro d’Italia races and is a popular one with the local “tifosi” who will be out in force.  Along the way we’ll make a stop in Trento, where you will have the opportunity to visit the bicycle shop owned by Giro d’Italia winner Francesco Moser and dual Giro champion Gilberto Simeoni. Our home for the next two nights is Castelrotto (or Kastelruth as it is known by the German speaking locals), which is considered by many to be one of the finest villages in the region in a spectacular alpine setting.

Today’s riding:
This morning after breakfast we’ll have a leisure start to the day with a ride from the hotel to the historic town of Bassano del Grappa, which is well worth a visit, particularly in the historic riverfront area with a unique covered wooden bridge designed by architect Palladio, better known for the Palladian style of architecture that dominates the larger cities of the Veneto. From Bassano we can ride out to the small walled medieval town of Marostica, where we’ll join the race route and climb up to La Rosina to view the race. There is also a new cycling museum being built at La Rosina, so hopefully we will have a chance to visit on race day. After the race has passed we will move on towards Castelrotto in the Dolomites.

Overnight: Castelrotto
Meals: Breakfast

Day 7, Wednesday 13 May 2009
The finish of today’s stage of the Giro d’Italia is 20 uphill kms from our hotel, at Alpe di Suisi, a ski resort area that in the spring and summer transform into vast alpine pastures. Today’s Giro stage is not overly long at 125 km, but the last 25kms to Alpe di Suisi is an unrelenting climb and will be hard fought with possibly one of the main contenders making a move for the pink jersey, or maglia rosa.

Today’s riding:
Today you will have a choice of two rides.
The first will be to travel to nearby Selva di Val Gardena this morning after breakfast where you can ride perhaps the most beautiful ride in the Dolomites, the Gruppo di Sella. This ride, although only 63km in length, is a challenging ride covering no less than 4 peaks, Passo di Gardena, Passo di Campolongo, Passo Pordoi and Passo di Sella. It’s not quite as hard as it sounds but still a challenge and a beautiful ride with amazing scenery of the rugged peaks of the Dolomites.

For those not wanting to do the full circuit the second option will be an easier ride along the valley and up to one of the peaks, followed by a coffee break with a view and the reward of a fast downhill back to the valley. After our ride we’ll head back to Castelrotto in time to get to the village of Suisi, about 4 kms away where we will view the race on its final climb to Alpe di Suisi. After the race it’s a downhill run to Castelrotto with a dinner of hearty German and Italian cuisine in the hotel restaurant.

Overnight: Castelrotto
Meals: Breakfast, Dinner

Day 8 Thursday, 14 May 2009
Today’s 242 km marathon stage is Bressanone (Italy) to Mayrhofen in Austria via a fairly mountainous route with two decent, if not overly high passes to climb over. Tonight we stay in the city of Bolzano, an elegant city in the valley of Trentino – Alto Adige. Like all of the towns close to the Austrian border, Bolzano is known by two names, an Italian name (Bolzano) and also a Germanic name, Bozen. Our hotel in Bolzano is a family run hotel, the Scala Stiegl, close to the town centre, where you are free to dine tonight in one of the city’s many restaurants.

Today’s riding:
For our shorter option today we’ll ride off from the hotel after breakfast and make our way to the stage start in Bressanone, allowing time to see the race depart from this charming town late this morning. After the race departs there will be time to have a leisurely lunch and explore this beautiful town with its mix of Italian and Tyrolean architecture.

Our longer ride will go from the hotel to Brunico, about 30 km into today’s stage. This route will take you on a steep climb out of Castelrotto and over the Passo di Gardena, in the opposite direction from yesterdays Sella Ronda ride. From Passo di Gardena it’s a gloriously long downhill run into Brunico with a descent of over 1400 meters. Afterwards we will make our way to Bressanone for a distance of 110 km.

If you are wanting more there is the possibility to ride the mostly downhill 40 km to the hotel in Bolzano.

Overnight: Bolzano
Meals: Breakfast

Day 9 Friday, 15 May 2009
The stage for the Giro d’Italia today is from Innsbruck, capital of the Austrian Tyrol, to Chiavenna in the east of Italy, the second longest stage of the Giro d’Italia at 235 km. Today however we will have a break from the race and take opportunity to ride the most famous of all Italian passes, and one of the highest surfaced roads in Europe, the Passo dell Stelvio. For those not riding you’ll still get a great view with the chance to experience the Stelvio from the comfort of one of our vans. We should arrive in Bormio in time to catch the Giro d’Italia stage finish on television as it arrives in Chiavenna to our south. Tonight we are in the medieval town or Bormio, a thermal spa town since Roman times. Our hotel is a 4 star traditional hotel with a spa facility to help you recover from today’s ride.

Today’s riding:
We will leave Bolzano early to make a start to Prato where we will climb the long winding road to the summit of the Stelvio. At 24kms and an average of 7.4% with no less than 48 hairpin bends, it’s a climb that you take your time on! When you finally reach the summit you’ll be able to enjoy a hot coffee at the cafe before the exhilarating 22km descent to our hotel in Bormio.
The two options today will be to leave the hotel on the bike and ride the 80km to the bottom of the Stelvio. From here it is 24km up and 22km down into Bormio.
Or take the bus to the base of the climb. From here it is 24km up and 22km down into Bormio.
Please note that it is possible the road will be closed from the Prato side due to snow at this time of year, in which case we will drive to Bormio and tackle the climb from the Bormio side.

Overnight: Bormio
Meals: Breakfast, Dinner

Day 10 Saturday, 16 May 2009
As the race enters its second week the peloton will head out of the mountains over a hilly course from Morbegno to the city of Bergamo. From Morbegno the race will head east to Lake Como and along the scenic shore before heading south to Bergamo over the climbs of Culmine San Pietro and Colle del Gallo. Once checked in to our hotel we will walk or catch the funicular railway to the upper town, a spectacular setting for the finish of today’s stage. Bergamo has two centres, the “Città alta” (upper city), a hilltop medieval town, surrounded by 17th century defensive walls, and the “Città bassa” (lower city). The two areas of the town are connected by a funicular railroad. The Citta Alta is a lively area full of historic buildings, interesting shops and many bars and restaurants. Tonight we will have a special dinner at a restaurant in the Alta Citta with fabulous views over the city and plains of Lombardy.

Today’s riding:
As we’ve had a few tough days on the bike we’ll offer a pleasant 45 km recovery ride this morning following part of the Giro route along the shores of Lake Como from Colico to Lecco, where we will join the coach and travel to Bergamo.

For those wanting a longer ride there will be a longer ride over a 95 km route that will leave the lake shore at Bellano and follow the race route up to Culmine San Pietro, where you will view the race. This will allow you to ride down to Bergamo in time for the race arrival in the late afternoon.

Overnight: Bergamo
Meals: Breakfast, Dinner

Day 11 Sunday, 17 May 2009
The Italian city of Milan, the capital of Italian fashion and industry, is the host for the start of today’s stage of the Giro d’Italia. This morning we will ride to the Maddona del Ghisallo, last visited by the peloton in the 2006 Giro d’Italia with a race start from the summit to Milan on the final day. Madonna del Ghisallo is the patron saint of cyclists, and on top of this challenging climb high above Lake Como there is the small church which is a shrine dedicated to cyclists which contains an interesting display of cycling artefacts from Italian cycling history. There is now also a large modern cycling museum, Museo del Ciclismo, which is well worth a visit for anyone with even a passing interest in cycling and its colourful history. After our ride this morning we will travel into Milan by coach to see the stage depart from Piazalle Loretto in the historic city centre, which was the starting point for the very first Giro d’Italia on May 13, 1909. Piazalle Loretto also has a less auspicious place in history as the place where Musollini met his death at the end of WW2 by being strung up by a mob of angry partisans. From here the race will pass by many important Milan landmarks and finish after 10 laps of 15 km with an exciting sprint finish on Corso Beuno Aires. Tonight we will return to Bergamo for our last evening of the tour.

Today’s riding:
It is a 55km loop from the town of Lecco along the shores of the lake, through the town of Ballagio on the shores of Lake Como, up the climb to the Ghisallo and returning to the bus at Lecco. The climb is hard at the bottom and near the Church but the views are worth it.

Overnight: Bergamo
Meals: Breakfast

Day 12 Monday, 18 May 2009
We leave Lombardy behind today and move on to Piemonte and the Alps, where we stay in the small town of Bardonecchia close to the French border and the entrance to the Frejus tunnel that connects France and Italy. Today is a rest day for the Giro d’Italia so we are free to choose a ride without the pressure of the race. We will make a lunch stop in the small medieval town of Pinerelo and then head off on a 90 km ride via the ski resort of Sestriere, famous in recent cycling history as the scene of Lance Armstrong’s first mountain win in the 1999 Tour de France, giving him an unbeatable 6 minute lead and cementing his place in tour history.  Our hotel is a family run 4 star hotel with spacious park like grounds and a fine restaurant where we enjoy our dinner for the next two nights.

Today’s riding:
From Pinerelo we climb a total of 1650 meters to the summit at Sestriere, but it’s a gentle and scenic climb with an average of 3% with just a few steeper sections thrown in for interest. It’s a downhill run back to our hotel in Bardonecchia, with the option of travelling back in the coach to reduce the ride distance down to 55 kms today.

Overnight: Bardonecchia
Meals: Breakfast, Dinner

Day 13 Tuesday, 19 May 2009
It’s a big day for the Giro d’Italia riders today as the last day in the Alps before the race heads south to the flatter Ligurian coast. The stage starts in Cuneo and moves into France going over no less than five Cols before the fast downhill run to Pinerolo, where we began yesterday’s ride. Just as well that the riders had a rest day yesterday as this is not only mountainous, but is the longest stage of the Giro at 250 km. We will see the race today on the “Cima Coppi” for this year’s Giro, the legendary 2360 meter high Col d’Izoard. The Cima Coppi is named after the famous Italian cyclist Fausto Coppi and is awarded to the highest climb in each year’s Giro d’Italia.

Today’s riding:
From our hotel in Bardonecchia we will ride across the border to France and the town of Briancon, where the climb to the summit of Col d’Izoard commences. The race will be coming from the opposite direction so once we reach the summit we will travel a short way down to the steeper slopes and await the arrival of the race. Once the race has passed it’s a downhill run back to Briancon to watch the final moments on television and see who has the honour of finishing the day with the maglia rosa.

For our second and “easier” option we will ride across the border to France to Briancon and watch the race as it passes through town or on the lower slopes of the Montgenevre (1854m) returning to Briancon after the race passes by.

Thirdly you can leave the hotel on the bus and travel to Briancon from where you can climb up the Col d’Izoard for the race returning to Briancon after the race passes by.

Overnight: Bardonecchia
Meals: Breakfast, Dinner

Day 14 Wednesday, 20 May 2009
We’ll leave Bardonecchia this morning and travel east to Asti, an attractive town in the heart of Piemonte known mainly once again for the production of wine, this time the Italian sparkling wine of Spumante. Our aim will be to meet up with the race before the midway point as it passes through the feed station on today’s 206 km stage from Tireno to Arenzano. Feed stations are a great place to get a good view of all of the riders as they slow down to collect their musettes. They are also a good place to chat to some of the crew from the teams, learn a bit about the workings of a professional team in a Grand Tour and if you are quick score a souvenir water bottle or musette discarded by one of the riders. After we’ve enjoyed our ride over this relatively flat route and seen the riders pass through the feed station we’ll ride to our rendezvous point with the coach. From here we’ll head back up to Milan where we started our tour, arriving late in the afternoon at our hotel near Milan Malpensa airport where you will spend your last night of the tour. Tonight we have a farewell dinner to say goodbye to both Italy and your new friends.

Today’s riding:
We will join the race route on the outkirts of Torino and ride the 100km to meet the bus at the feed zone and see the race pass.
For our shorter option we will start near Asti and ride the race route for the 60km to meet the bus at the feed zone and see the race pass.

Overnight: Milan
Meals: Breakfast, Dinner

Day 15 Thursday, 21 May 2009
It’s been a great two weeks in Italy. You’ve ridden the famous passes and enjoyed the not so famous but equally beautiful back roads of Italy. But all good things come to an end and this morning we will transfer you to Milan Malpensa airport for your onward flights.

Meals: Breakfast

Tour cost: $5990 per person twin share and includes:

• Transport throughout by private luxury coach with custom bike trailer.
• Services of our experienced tour guides including an ex European pro cyclist.
• Transfer on arrival day from Milan Malpensa airport to hotel
• Transfer on final day from Bergamo to Milan Malpensa airport
• 14 nights’ accommodation in quality 4 star hotels with private facilities.
• Buffet breakfast daily
• 3 course evening meals on 11 nights
• Mechanical assistance with your bike
• Sightseeing as listed
• Maps and Bikestyle guide to the Giro d’Italia
• Bikestyle cycling jersey