Which itinerary to choose along the Route des Grandes Alpes®?

The Route des Grandes Alpes® links Lake Geneva to the Mediterranean, crossing the French Alps north-south or south-north, offering a great adventure by bike or e-bike. Following in the tracks of the professional cyclists on the Tour de France, head off to tackle the finest road passes, to plunge into the heart of grandiose landscapes and to experience an unforgettable cycling trip through the mountains! Here follows a wide range of questions and answers to help you choose your precise itinerary…

• How many kilometres to cycle per day?
• How to calculate your itinerary?
• Is it better to cycle north-south or south-north? 
• Is it possible to put together your own stages?
• Is it possible to spend a weekend cycling along the Route des Grandes Alpes®?
• Are the alternative sections of interest?
• Is it possible to avoid certain stretches that may be of less interest or busier with car traffic?

How many kilometres to cycle per day?

That’s often the first question that comes to mind. The reply depends on many factors such as: your level of fitness; how accustomed you are to tackling long distances and doing one stage after another without a break; and your capacity for dealing with significant shifts in altitude, riding at altitude, descending very steep slopes, avoiding difficulties along the way, dealing with the levels of traffic, etc.

For all these reasons, the Route des Grandes Alpes® is not recommended for novices to cycling trips. All of its sections and stages are classed as either ‘‘difficult’’ (coloured red) or ‘‘very difficult’’ (coloured black), according to the national criteria produced by the French supervisory ministries, calculated using four benchmarks (length, shifts in altitude, gradients and types of surface), to which we’ve added one extra criterion, concerning altitude above sea level. Of course, e-bikes allow a greater number (if not the greatest number) of cyclists to tackle this cycle route!

That’s often the first question that comes to mind. The reply depends on many factors such as: your level of fitness; how accustomed you are to tackling long distances and doing one stage after another without a break; and your capacity for dealing with significant shifts in altitude, riding at altitude, descending very steep slopes, avoiding difficulties along the way, dealing with the levels of traffic, etc.

For all these reasons, the Route des Grandes Alpes® is not recommended for novices to cycling trips. All of its sections and stages are classed as either ‘‘difficult’’ (coloured red) or ‘‘very difficult’’ (coloured black), according to the national criteria produced by the French supervisory ministries, calculated using four benchmarks (length, shifts in altitude, gradients and types of surface), to which we’ve added one extra criterion, concerning altitude above sea level. Of course, e-bikes allow a greater number (if not the greatest number) of cyclists to tackle this cycle route!
 

How to calculate your itinerary?

To help you prepare your journey, we provide a route calculator and a travel planner which acts as a basket into which you can place your selected stages, accommodation choices, etc as you go along. 

Is it better to cycle north-south or south-north?

Most cyclists choose to ride north-south. But the Route des Grandes Alpes® proves just as interesting tackled in the other direction. Did you know, for example, that the c.18,000m of positive shift in altitude on the main route are harder tackled in the south-north direction as the climbs that way are shorter?

Linking Lake Geneva to the Mediterranean, or the Mediterranean to Lake Geneva, the Route des Grandes Alpes® offers two totally different cycling adventures, but they’re both of equal interest.
 

Is it possible to put together your own stages? 

It’s precisely for that reason that we’ve thought more in terms of sections than stages. Don’t hesitate to cut them up, to put them together, to lengthen them or to divert a bit from the main route as you wish…  All the way along the Route des Grandes Alpes® and close to it, you’ll find enough good-quality service providers for accommodation, a nice place to eat and a place to recharge your e-bike battery if necessary… 

Remember, you’re tackling the route for your own pleasure, so adapt your itinerary accordingly!
 

Is it possible to spend a weekend cycling along the Route des Grandes Alpes®?

It isn’t necessary to have a week or ten days at your disposal to head off on the Route des Grandes Alpes®. Choose a starting point and an end point with an SNCF railway station to make such a trip easier. Here’s an example on the north-south route. From Cluses (in Savoie, French county no.74) to Bourg-St-Maurice (French county no.73) it’s 128km, involving 4167m of shift in altitude. So, count two days of riding for seasoned cyclists, three for the less experienced. 

Even if you only go on a short cycling adventure along the Route des Grandes Alpes®, it will always be intense!
 

Are the alternative sections of interest?

There are six alternative sections (‘‘variantes’’ in French) along the Route des Grandes Alpes®, laid out at various points along the way, widening the variety of landscapes and delights on offer… and they can sometimes serve as an alternative way round when some of the higher passes aren’t open. If you have the time, certain alternative sections even have further extensions that may be of interest. On the alternative section Le Grand-Bornand (Haute Savoie, 74) – Lescheraines (Savoie, 73), for example, you might tackle the summit of Semnoz Mountain (1660m) from the Col de Leschaux pass (897m).

The alternative sections along the Route des Grandes Alpes® are a bit like an augmented reality option!
 

Is it possible to avoid certain stretches that may be of less interest or busier with car traffic? 

Wishing to spare you certain sections that may prove rather too busy with motorized traffic, we deliberately propose some additional sections along the Route des Grandes Alpes®. Discover these new gems!

Example n°1: alternative section Val-Cenis (Savoie, 73) – Briançon (Hautes Alpes, French département, or county, no.05). 
Passing via the Susa Valley, then via the Col de l’Échelle pass (1762m), make the most of a foray into Italy before exploring the splendours of the Clarée Valley.

Example n°2: alternative section Val-Cenis (Savoie, 73) – Briançon (Hautes Alpes, 05). 
After tackling the Croix de Fer and Glandon passes, plus Le Bourg-d’Oisans (Isère, French département, or county, no.38), we propose that you continue on to L’Alpe d’Huez (Isère, 38), before taking the road to the Col de Sarenne pass (1999m), then redescending to Le Chambon Lake. It makes for quite an experience!

Don’t believe those who tell you that it’s all or nothing on the Route des Grandes Alpes®! Along the way, there are very many ways to trace your own route and make up your own itinerary.