Day 1: Salzburg (AT) - Bruck (AT)
After an official welcome, the teams set off on the route. At first, we ride very leisurely along the Salzach out of Salzburg. Through Puch and Hallein, the route mostly follows the river closely on the well-known Tauern cycle path, which can occasionally be busier with cyclists. The Lueg Pass is the first minor challenge, but it soon becomes flat again as we continue through Werfen and Bischofshofen. We ride through the Pongau along the river and reach Bruck an der Großglocknerstrasse, where we stop for our first overnight stay.
Track 2 leaves the Salzach Valley at Bischofshofen and travels along the Hochkönig massif to Maria Alm at the Steinernes Meer. From here, it is not far to Lake Zell, which we bypass on the eastern side with a beautiful view of Zell am See. A short time later, we reach our first stage destination in Bruck.
Route character: gently hilly (Track 1), very hilly (Track 2)
Day 2: Bruck (AT) - Lienz (AT)
The second day already holds the queen stage for us. Today we ride on the Großglockner High Alpine Road and one of the most beautiful panoramic roads in the world! The first kilometers are still relatively flat, before the long, strenuous climb begins from Fusch, adorned with some hairpin bends. The overwhelming mountain scenery of the Großglockner offers us constant moments of happiness, provided the body can process these impressions. After reaching the Fuscher Törl pass at 2,428 m, we first descend a little, before a climb leads us to the Hochtor at 2,504 m. From this highest point of the tour, a long and challenging descent brings us down into the Drau valley. Here, perfect brakes and good cornering are required. Before reaching the stage destination, another demanding climb of 260 meters must be tackled at Winklern via the Iselberg Pass. On this day, there is no separate Track 2.
Route characteristics: very mountainous (Track 1 & 2)
Day 3: Lienz (AT) - Villach (AT)
From Lienz, we follow the Drau Cycle Path along the river for a while. At Oberdrauburg, we cross the mountain range that takes us into the Gail Valley. We now follow the Gail River for the rest of the day until we reach our destination in Villach.
Track 2 crosses the hills from the Gail Valley back into the Drau Valley and reaches Villach from the west on the river cycle path that runs directly along the Drau.
Route character: hilly (Track 1 & 2)
Day 4: Villach (AT) - Klagenfurt (AT)
Shortly after leaving Villach, we reach the Faaker See. Apart from a few hills, the route through the beautiful Carinthian lake area is basically quite flat. Later, we arrive at the beautiful Wörthersee and cycle its entire length from west to east. The lakeside near Klagenfurt offers another great opportunity for a stopover right by the lake before we continue on to the hotel.
Before Track 2 reaches the Faaker See, we first take a short trip to Italy and Slovenia. We pedal through the Gail valley to Arnoldstein and reach Italy a short time later. The road continues uphill as we turn east before Tarvisio and reach Slovenia after a while. Although Kranjska Gora is not directly on the route, but it is worth a short detour, or you turn off at Podkoren towards the Wurzen Pass, and later also reach the Faaker See. While Track 1 runs along the northern shore of Wörthersee, Track 2 crosses a few hills south of the lake before the famous lake lies ahead of us.
Route character: gently rolling (Track 1), hilly (Track 2)
Day 5: Klagenfurt (AT) - Ljubljana (SL)
We leave Klagenfurt heading east. Near Bad Eisenkappel, the ascent to the second proper Alpine pass of the tour begins, the Seebergsattel. Dreamlike landscapes and numerous switchbacks take us up to the 1,215-meter-high pass, which forms the border with Slovenia. The only place to stop on the pass is often not open and should therefore not be relied upon when planning the teams' rest strategy. Motorcyclists can be expected at any time, both during the ascent and descent. The descent over 25 km takes us leisurely through the Kokra Valley to near the beautiful city of Kranj, which is definitely worth a short detour if time allows. The route then flattens, and we quickly reach the outskirts of Ljubljana. The hotel is located north of the city center, so we can avoid riding through the bustling city on our bikes.
For Track 2, another very demanding day awaits today. Before we cross the Seebergsattel, we still have two substantial passes ahead of us: the Užnik and the Schaidasattel.
Route characteristics: mountainous (Track 1 & 2)
Day 6: Ljubljana (SL) - Salzburg (AT) (Transfer day)
After breakfast, a shuttle bus takes us back to the tour starting point, from where everyone continue their individual journey home.
