transalp bike tour

Transalp - The King of All Alpine Bike Tours

The dream of crossing the Alps by bike isn't just reserved for pro bikers thanks to the many possible routes. So should you consider when planning your Trans Alpine (Transalp) route? How do you prepare? And what do the pros say about preparing for a Transalp?

The Right Preparation for a Transalp

First off all, you need to find the route that's right for you. You need to evaluate your endurance, your riding technique, as well as your ability to navigate in the mountains. The classic beginner's Transalp is the " Via Claudia Augusta " from Ehrwald to Lago di Garda. It's only about 13,000 ft (4,000 m) vertical gain in seven days. Beginner bonus: pushing or carrying your bike isn't necessary.

If you want to really push the boat out, Deuter athlete and bike legend Hans "No Way" Rey suggests you try the route from Schwangau to Lago di Garda. It's considered one of the hardest routes with a vertical gain of almost 42,000 ft (13,500 m) and a raft of technically difficult parts.

There's no limit to the creativity and level of difficulty you can find when putting together a Transalp.

On this most important topic, Deuter athlete and bike-pro Gerhard Czerner says: "The base for navigation should always be a map. I'd never go on a bigger tour without one. It never runs out of batteries and never has technical problems. A GPS device makes things easier if used additionally since you don't have to stop to look at it all the time. It's important to practice using it, though. So use it at home, get to know it's peculiarities and functions so you know how to use it when you really have to."

It is also important to consider weather conditions. Bad weather can be a spanner in the works. Have a plan B. 

Training Your Little Heart Out

One thing is certain: even the easiest Transalp is impossible without prior training. You spend hours on your bike, you have to master difficult passages, and sometimes you have to push your bike. Once you get up higher it becomes more difficult. In addition, you can't compare biking in your average mountains to biking at high altitude. Train your stamina as well as your muscular endurance and work on your technique .

And don't forget your bottom. It needs to be hardened, too. Seriously, the strain on your bum with the backpack and long days in the saddle over uneven terrain are not to be underrated!

Czerner suggests: "The most important thing is to spend lots of hours in the saddle. Six hours on your bike is commonplace during a Transalp. Your body has to get used to that. You should complement your evening rounds with long tours on the weekends and spend two or three days in a row biking. That means cutting down on rest between your rides. When you're on your Transalp it's important to ride without going all-out as opposed to your evening rounds."

Gear – Lightweight and Functional

The most important thing here is your backpack . It should be lightweight without reducing comfort. You will have to wear it for days on end. Be sure it has a good and compact fit as well as a well-thought-out back system. The Deuter Trans Alpine backpack is a fine choice. Of course, we're a little biased, but the fact that bike pros like Andi Heckmair , the godfather and inventor of the Transalp, and Gerhard Czerner, bike pro and expedition biker, were involved in designing the Trans Alpine helps back up our claim.

You shouldn't exceed 17 lbs (8 kg) when packing your backpack. Choose light and functional clothes. It's also useful to attach your tools, spare parts and pump to the frame of your bike or to store them in the dedicated tool compartments of your backpack. A first-aid-kit is also mandatory in your baggage.

"As little as possible, as much as necessary." This saying isn't just a lame proverb but imperative when packing for your Transalp.

"What you'll need for your transalp is very individual," says Gerhard Czerner. "It depends on your route, the number of days and where you'll spend your nights. Even more important is your comfort level. What some see as "just fine" may be too cold, too wet, too uncomfortable for someone else."

Now what are you still doing here? Get out there and starting training! 

Check out some pro packing tips from Gerhard Czerner here:

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High alpine bikepacking transalpine route over the Ötztal Alps (route and all info)

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Unique nature in the Ötztal, a challenging trail and the crossing of the second highest mountain range in Austria, the Ötztal Alps , are offered on this Bikepacking Transalp route.

The Tyrolean Ötztal fully corresponds to the common cliché of high mountains, an enchanting mountain landscape including alpine panorama, pretty mountain farming villages and winter sports areas dominated by tourism. Where the valley ends, the Ötztal Alps rise. These are, after the Großglockner, the second highest mountains in Austria.

This article includes

✅ The complete Bikepacking Transalp route as komoot tour for download (below). ✅ The complete tour as YouTube video – right here next 😉 ✅ My complete tour report as a detailed route description and with lots of great photos.

Bikepacking Transalp – YouTube Video

The start is at the foot of the Ötztal: at the settlement Ötztal-Bahnhof. The route then takes you on and off the Ötztal cycle path through the green valley. Offered are grandiose scenery and sleepy mountain farming villages. Now and then the path leads into the terrain and onto technically demanding trails. The crowning glory is then the crossing of the Ötztal Alps with a really spectacular view over the mountain landscape.

The community of Sölden offers a particularly challenging mountain bike trail along the Ötztaler Ache (mountain river) – more about this below and on the linked komoot trail and also in the video. Many parts of the trail I could ride well on my gravel bike – FYI, I had my Bombtrack Beyond 1 with 2.1 inch wide tires included. Some of the sections I had to push and carry as well. Overall, the entire route is super suitable as a gravel bike tour.

Bikepacking Transalp Route

The Bikepacking Transalp Route is a 2 day tour. At the end of day 1 you reach the Hochjoch Hospiz. This mountain hut offers a perfect view over the Ötztal Alps. In summer, the hut is catered and sleeping facilities are offered. In winter there is still a winter shelter open.

Day 1: Ötztal Cycle Path incl. some gravel passages and a challenging trail in the community of Sölden. The ideal Gravel Bike Tour! Hike through the Rofental valley to the Schutzhütte Hochjoch Hospiz at 2413 meters.

The map of the Bikepacking Transalp Route shows you the whole two-day tour of the Transalp by bike. The interactive map can be zoomed and you can download the GPX file directly.

Day 2: The Ötztal bike path is long behind us 🙂 The crossing of the Ötztal Alps to just behind the Italian border (South Tyrol) to the Shelter Schöne Aussicht – Rifugio Bella Vista – this is on the agenda for day 2. From an altitude of 2413 metres, the challenge is to climb to an altitude of 2842 metres – in technically very demanding terrain. On day 2 there are first some tricky climbing passages a few hundred meters down to a mountain stream. After the mountain stream, the trail continues along the slope of the Rofenberg to the Schöne Aussicht shelter.

Bikepacking Transalp Route described in detail

Ötztal cycle path incl. gravel and trails.

The Bikepacking Transalp Route starts in the settlement Ötztal near Haiming (the Ötztal cycle path starts in Haiming). The ride on the Ötztal cycle path itself is approximately 52 kilometres long. This involves ascending from 663 metres in altitude to as much as 1360 metres in Sölden.

Highlights and stages on the Ötztal Cycle Path are the following communities:

Scenically, the Ötztal Cycle Path is beautiful: You get to know nature up close and personal and the ride is a superlative experience. All the way to Sölden you roll mainly on asphalt and gravel. The Ötztal cycle path with the route variants I have built in results in the ideal Gravel Bike Tour. There is also the one or other steep climb where pushing is most definitely required 😉 Even if the legs are strong enough: There are some steep climbs where the tires have no traction anymore.

In the community of Sölden there is then a turnoff onto a mountain bike trail, which should definitely be taken. It is a black mountain bike trail. That’s what it says on a sign just before the trail. Of course I rode exactly this trail and it is also part of the Bikepacking Transalp route, which you can find above on the map and as GPX file.

At Vent in the Ötztal the bike tour is over for the time being and it starts a mountain hiking tour through the Rofental. The mountain hike starts in Vent: first you leave the village in a southerly direction along a wide footpath.

Now you reach Rofen and are at the foot of the Rofnerschlucht gorge. There are some sturdy wooden fences here. There I recommend to connect the bike, do the hike and then return to the bike the next day.

Here already an impression of the Rofnerschlucht:

Hiking and crossing the Ötztal Alps

The moderately difficult hiking tour can be started from Vent at the edge of the Ötztal. The valley hike leads from Vent, through the impressive Rofner Gorge first to the Hochjoch Hospiz (2413 m) and then up to the Schöne Aussicht refuge (2842 m, Bella Vista).

Both refuges are catered for in summer and then also offer overnight accommodation. The Hochjoch Hospiz also has a winter shelter (in which I spent the night). Overnight accommodation at the refuge Schöne Aussicht in winter you please check yourself (Homepage Schöne Aussicht) .

Once you have arrived here, you have already crossed the border to Italy and are now in South Tyrol.

Safety note: I strongly recommend that you leave your bike here and chain it up. With the bike in the luggage the medium-difficulty hiking tour becomes a high-risk climbing tour , because: Along the Rofen valley, a narrow mountain path later leads towards the Italian border. First to the Hochjoch Hospitz refuge (still doable by bike but actually a hiking trail) and then to the Bellavista mountain refuge (very difficult to do by bike).

Exactly where the video begins is a good place to plug in your bike:

Bicycle connected? Good – off we go on the valley hike:

This part of the route surpasses the Ötztal in terms of natural impressions but is actually a pure hiking route. So please really leave the bike in Vent. One can then undertake a day hike first to the Hochjoch Hospitz and then to the Bella Vista refuge. Both huts offer overnight accommodation. When you arrive at the Bella Vista refuge right on the Italian border, you can hike back and pick up your bike again.

First you hike through the impressive Rofner Gorge. Then you reach the Hochjochhospiz at 2413 meters. Here you can enjoy the view, take a break or as I did, even spend the night. In summer, the Hochjochhospiz is catered for and in winter, at least, there is still an open winter shelter .

A steel cable is stretched here in several places and it’s really going downhill. Rumour has it that one or the other enduro rider has already raced down the mountain here (that’s what someone said in a YouTube comment – whether it’s true?) but the spot is really only something for the very daring experts and full professionals!

On foot and without a bike, the section is moderately difficult and you can hike down just fine – using the steel cable, of course.

From the Hochjochhospiz, the mountain trail leads into a valley: there, the Hintereisbach can be crossed via a bridge. Over numerous hairpin bends , you then climb again upwards on the hiking trail until you reach the Hochjochfernertal.

From here, the hiking trail leads along the slope of the Rofenberg. Almost straight ahead and steadily slightly ascending, the hiking trail leads in the direction of the Schutzhaus Schöne Aussicht at 2842 meters.

This section of the path on the slope is also moderately difficult and can be done well without a bike, if you are sure-footed and only carry a rucksack.

Having arrived at the Schöne Aussicht refuge, you are already in Italy. Here it is worth taking a break to enjoy the mountain panorama and to strengthen yourself at the catered hut. Please do not rely on the hospitality: In October, when I was there, the hut was still open and catered. It is possible that there will be no catering in the off-season.

Arrived at the highest point of the tour, there are several options:

• Turn around and hike back to Vent to retrieve the locked bike. This takes about 4 to 6 hours
• Take the cable car down into the valley
• Daredevils can hike or ski down to the valley. However, the ski trail is, once again, not an easy gravel bike tour. For the slope you should have at least plus tires on your bike. Only then could you go all the way down. Please be very careful here too!

Note: The last slope of the ski slope is extremely steep and also has very loose gravel underground. If you have made it up to here by bike, you should get off and push at the latest now. MTB tires with a width around 2.1 inches lose control on the loose ground.

Once you have reached the bottom, the tour can continue, for example, via: Schnalstal, Vinschgau, past Lake Reschen over the Reschen Pass, along the Inn River, via Landeck and then to Lake Constance.

So I wanted to continue the tour quite relaxed. Unfortunately, the weather did not cooperate at the beginning of October: In Italy it had continuous rain and it became very cold. Therefore I drove to Landeck and took the train home from there.

What do you think of the Bikepacking Transalp Route in this article? You have questions about the tour presented here? Write me your comment – I like to answer 😉

Check out the overview page for even more gravel bike tours and suggested bikepacking routes and events .

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For many, the legendary term of “ Transalp ” stands for the ultimate outdoor experience . One could think that this is only something for well-trained endurance bikers. Sure, there are the most demanding routes with 2000 meters of altitude difference per day and energy-sapping stretchers.

But Slow Alps also offers gentler routes , for example on ancient Roman paths such as the Via Claudia Augusta , which can even be mastered by touring bike. Not to mention the use of the e-bike .

So you may rave about “Munich – Venice” , or more beautifully: from Marienplatz to St. Mark’s Square . This awakens a longing for faraway places and combines Bavarian beer bliss with passed Venetian charm .

But it doesn’t have to be over 500 km. How about from Garmisch to Lake Garda or in just 3 day stages from Lake Tegernsee in Bavaria to Val Pusteria in South Tyrol ?

In any case, a Transalp always turns into a culinary journey from beer, bacon, cheese and Kaiserschmarrn on the north side of the Alps to delicious antipasti, red wine, pasta , and Tiramisu in the sunny south – that much is certain!

}  Duration

Multi-day tour

  Character

Trekking, Mountain huts & Valley hotels

All Alpine regions

Spring, Summer, Autumn

Suitable for:

Pleasure Cyclist

Sports Cyclist

Adventure Cyclist

If this tour topic appeals to you, you can already reserve my availability for your planned travel period – without obligation.

In the blog posts under News, you might find one or the other specific example tour. Stored in the category “Tour reports”.

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Third phase online!

16th - 22th June 2024

The most fascinating and spectacular amateur stage race across Europe!

Spectacular trails, stunning passes, well-known stage locations, professional event structure and participants from over 30 countries making this event a unique and unforgettable experience.

In the last 20 years the TOUR Transalp has developed to one of the most famous and best known bicycle event. The fascinating alpine crossing is the absolute highlight for every amateur racing cyclist and provides an ideal communication platform for media and sponsors.

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TOUR Transalp: The anticipation rises daily

For almost two decades, hundreds of road cyclists have taken up the challenge of the TOUR Transalp – the legendary multi-day race across the Alps. Seven stages have to be mastered by the road bike: This year, that’s a total of 609 kilometers and 15,860 meters of altitude that the athletes have to cover between the start at Reschensee and the finish in Arco at Lake Garda. This means an enormous feat of strength, which is rewarded by unique panoramas and tremendous emotions.

For two years, the racing bike scene had to forgo the popular stage race due to the pandemic. But the wait will be over soon: in 17 days the starting signal for the 18th edition of the TOUR Transalp will be given at Reschensee. Here the first visual highlight is offered to the athletes already: the church tower rising out of the lake in front of the mighty backdrop of the Ortler mountain range.

The list of highlights is long. But for these unforgettable experiences, physical and mental efforts are necessary. Thus, on the 2nd stage, the thighs will burn and the weaker self has to overcome, while the 48 hairpin bends up to the notorious Stelvio will be pedaled off. At the same time, there is the purest Mecca for the eyes and the soul: seeing the spectacular views, which gain a whole new appeal with every bend, you will never get over a sense of wonder. But not only the popular alpine passes offer unforgettable impressions. The TOUR Transalp 2022 also takes little-known mountain roads and so the less high, but no less spectacular Passo Vivione promises not only a fabulous backdrop, but also new territory. Because the region between Lake Iseo and Bergamo has never been visited by the TOUR Transalp. Here, with Castione della Presolana, the premiere of a completely new stage destination will be celebrated in 2022. Every year, the organizers looking for exciting innovations that shape each TOUR Transalp into a unique event. “I am pleased to be able to present routes in 2022 that have never been part of the TOUR Transalp. This edition is an exciting experience even for old hands,” promises Marc Schneider, Head of Events Cycling at Delius Klasing Verlag.

After the long pause the mood of celebration will be high on every day of the TOUR Transalp 2022. Not only the participants are happy to finally be part of the seven-day road cycling event again. The organizers, too, can hardly contain their joy. “Every TOUR Transalp is something very special that I always look forward to. But after two cancellations due to pandemic, the euphoria, of course, is this year extremely high”, explains project manager Jan Leschinski joyfully. “The fact that all the preparations and the cooperation with the stage locations are also going so well further increases the anticipation.”

The mood is growing, the days are already being counted. So, it can be hoped for a great event with exuberant mood and unforgettable experiences.

All information about the route with detailed descriptions as well as the altitude profiles can be found at: https://tour-transalp.de/en/.

The entry fee for the stage race organized by TOUR Magazine and Delius Klasing Verlag is 1,049 euros. Professional timekeeping, course security, rescue team, catering, luggage and bike service, finisher’s jersey and much more are included in this starter package. U23 riders pay only 799 euros.

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First Ride Honda Transalp: The Travel Review

Photo: Zac Kurylyk

When Honda debuted the new Transalp at EICMA in 2022, after 10 years out of production, it was explicitly billed as a travel bike—and when I got a chance to finally test the machine, that’s what I did with it. I rode the Transalp from Los Angeles to Las Vegas via superhighway, back roads and dirt roads over four days. Here’s what I found out about Honda’s middleweight ADV, which is new to the US market this year:

The engine suits the job

Honda’s parallel twins have a reputation for non-offensive reliability. That’s certainly the story for the smaller CB500X (or NX500, as it’s known now) and the larger Africa Twin, and that’s the case here too.

The engine is hidden away behind some plastic, but maintenance shouldn’t be too bad. Of course, I didn’t have to wrench on anything on this tour, but such long-term ownership questions are always at the back of my mind. Photo: Zac Kurylyk

Unlike the aggressive torque curves of its close competitors (Suzuki’s 800 V-Strom or KTM’s 790/890 series), the Transalp has a more gentle climb. The horsepower curve is a very linear run to the top. This bike is made to rev, not to lug around at low speeds.

Image: Honda

In practical terms, that often meant I ran a gear low, if I was looking for instant on-tap power while street riding. It also meant that I had to really lay on the gas to overcome a strong headwind while cruising Route 66’s long desert sections at 80 mph. My fuel economy dropped from a respectable low-40s mpg to low-30s mpg, even as low as mid-20s at one point.

The Santa Monica mountains were the exact sort of riding the Transalp was made for. Photo: Zac Kurylyk

For long miles and long hours, the Transalp engine will haul you along at extra-legal speed without any unpleasant vibration. Photo: Zac Kurylyk

A comfortable chassis

The Showa suspension is very basic compared to what’s available on some other middleweight ADVs, but for users who stick to the bike’s intended purpose, it will match their needs well. Image: Honda

The saddle is easy to throw a leg over, and quite comfortable for all-day riding. Photo: Zac Kurylyk

The exhaust had a pleasant note. The low-mount design is another clue that this bike is not intended for hard-core off-road bashing. Photo: Zac Kurylyk

Easy livin’

It was easy to use the switchgear on the left-hand handlebar, but I will note that the hazard light button placement was too close to the signals. Everything else was very straightforward, with no arcane acronyms for the safety systems, something that other OEMs sometimes fall prey to. Photo: Zac Kurylyk

The brakes worked well, and the ability to change ABS settings quickly on-the-fly was much appreciated. If you turn ABS or TC off, they will re-set to minimal intrusion when you restart the bike. Note that *only* rear ABS can be completely disabled; there is always some level of front ABS enabled. Photo: Zac Kurylyk

The finer things

I found there was a lot of rear-end chatter on washboard ruts; with limited time for testing, I wasn’t able to get everything dialed in like I wanted, but I think completely disabling TC would have helped quite a bit. Photo: Zac Kurylyk

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TOUR Transalp 2024

TOUR Transalp

Sunday 16 Jun 2024 - Lienz

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