Western Europe is very cyclable. With a high density of paved roads and accommodations, it is easy to travel long distances by bike. From May 1st onwards, I gave it a shot and started cycling in the direction of Rome. This post enables me to keep track of the journey and maintain a photo album.

Me at the Switzerland / Liechtenstein / Austia tri-border area Me at the Switzerland / Liechtenstein / Austia tri-border area

Routing

There are multiple roads that lead to Rome. One of the routes is designed in 1991 by Cycling Europe. Another one is the Eurovelo5, which is co-funded by the COSME programme of the European Union. However, routing is not something that is fixed. You need to have available accommodation across the route, you might want to see specific things.

In my opinion, it is best to use these routes as a guideline, but plan the individual legs using cycle.travel. Cycle.travel is a very good bicycle route planner that takes a couple of things into account:

  • Existing cycling routes, for example: it takes the EV5 when convenient.
  • Traffic information: It uses traffic data to determine which roads are not busy.
  • Better scenery: It analyses landforms and prefers scenic roads.

My journey My journey

Gear

For me, it is about the journey and not about sport. You won’t get better scenic views or better weather if you are riding a 3000+ euros bike. I am cycling on a 13-year-old city bike with an 8-speed internal gear, which has a packed weight of 40 kilos in total. Even climbing 1500 meters in one day in the Alps is doable.

Quality of roads

Belgium and Italy are the worst in terms of bicycle-friendliness. Even in Belgium, with their fully developed EV5, you will find “paved” roads with enormous holes in it that become dangerous if you oversee them. Italy it as you’d expect it. Dedicated bicycle lanes are rare. So it is either riding the main road together with trucks, or choosing an unpaved road. The latter roads are not recommended, as you don’t know their quality on beforehand. Multiple times, I had to cycle all the way back because the road was inaccessible due to mud or overgrown plants.

Accommodation

Most of the overnight stays were in hostels and bed-and-breakfasts. During national holidays or long weekends, it becomes a struggle to find a place to stay. Hotels and hostels tend to sell out or become heavily overpriced. I tried to stay within a total budget of 56 EUR per day, which is possible, but not very comfortable. It means that you have to stay at campsites when hostels are fully booked and go through Switzerland really quick. Due to the weather conditions, I only stayed at a campsite once. For the hostels, I paid between 25-35 EUR (50 in CH), mostly including breakfast.

Photo album

The following pictures give an impression of what to expect during this journey.

76 km - The Maas river near Namur, Belgium 76 km - The Maas river near Namur, Belgium

204 km - Landscape in the Ardennes, Belgium 204 km - Landscape in the Ardennes, Belgium

265 km - Luxembourg, Luxembourg 265 km - Luxembourg, Luxembourg

463 km - Vosges, Regional Park 463 km - Vosges, Regional Park

590 km - Colmar, France 590 km - Colmar, France

636 km - Mulhouse, France 636 km - Mulhouse, France

788 km - Diessenhofen, Switzerland 788 km - Diessenhofen, Switzerland

950 km - Rhine at the Switzerland / Austria border 950 km - Rhine at the Switzerland / Austria border

983 km - Swiss Alps 983 km - Swiss Alps

1104 km - Splügenpass at 1000 meters altitude 1104 km - Splügenpass at 1000 meters altitude

1127 km - Splügenpass at 2100 meters altitude 1127 km - Splügenpass at 2100 meters altitude

1153 km - Italian (sunny) side of the Splügenpass 1153 km - Italian (sunny) side of the Splügenpass

1200 km - Como lake, Italy 1200 km - Como lake, Italy

1225 km - Courtyard in Colico, Italy 1225 km - Courtyard in Colico, Italy

1232 km - Ferry in Menaggio, Italy 1232 km - Ferry in Menaggio, Italy

1380 km - Brescia, Italy 1380 km - Brescia, Italy

1437 km - Garda, Italy 1437 km - Garda, Italy

1580 km - Ducal Palace, Mantua, Italy 1580 km - Ducal Palace, Mantua, Italy

1625 km - Rocchetta Mattei, Bologna, Italy 1625 km - Rocchetta Mattei, Bologna, Italy

1637 km - Suviana Lake, Italy 1637 km - Suviana Lake, Italy

1689 km - Tuscany, Italy 1689 km - Tuscany, Italy

1809 km - Barberino di Mugello, Italy 1809 km - Barberino di Mugello, Italy

1844 km - Florence, Italy 1844 km - Florence, Italy

2014 km - Fabro, Italy 2014 km - Fabro, Italy

2317 km - Spanish steps, Rome, Italy 2317 km - Spanish steps, Rome, Italy

2317 km - Galleria nazionale d'arte moderna e contemporanea, Rome, Italy 2317 km - Galleria nazionale d’arte moderna e contemporanea, Rome, Italy

2317 km - View from Villa Borghese, Rome, Italy 2317 km - View from Villa Borghese, Rome, Italy

Final thoughts

The combination of having one greater goal, being active and performing a daily routine makes you feel extremely healthy. Both mentally and physically.

The most relaxing part is that there is no negative sentiment against regular cyclists. You can both reach destinations that are in the middle of nowhere and park in a crowded historic city center. Something that is impossible with public transport or a car.