Bella Italia 2025 — 11 Days of Alpine Glory
Distance Conquered: 816.28 km*
Vertical Ascent Mastered: 18,826 m*
*One day lost to weather: ~81.6 km / 1,882 m
Tour Bases:
🏔 Bormio – Gateway to Stelvio and Gavia
🏞 Chiavenna – Alpine charm & Swiss border spins
🌊 Bellagio – Lake Como magic & legendary climbs
Climbs of Note:
- Stelvio (1 side in epic conditions) & Baby Stelvio
- Mortirolo & Gavia
- Maloja Pass & Spluga Pass
- Madonna del Ghisallo & Muro di Sormano
- New favourite: Alpe di Colonno ❤️
Day-by-Day Highlights
Day 1: Warm-up into the Valtellina Valley — fresh Alpine air, legs spinning, hearts ready.
Day 2: Torri di Fraele’s switchbacks + Bormio 2000 — espresso with a view.
Day 3: Stelvio Double plan derailed by snow, but one side delivered an EPIC ascent.
Day 4: Mortirolo grit + Gavia’s cloud-kissed summit.
Day 5: Swiss sampler — Bernina, Forcola di Livigno, Foscagno.
Day 6: Alpe Motta for the keen; Chiavenna cafés for the cruisers.
Day 7: Maloja Pass into St. Moritz — lakeside lunch luxury.
Day 8: Spluga Double — 72 hairpins, tunnels, waterfalls. Pure cycling theatre.
Day 9: Bellagio arrival — coastal spins or dolce far niente.
Day 10: Pilgrimage to Madonna del Ghisallo + brutal Muro di Sormano.
Day 11: Farewell loop around Lake Como — rolling hills, pastel villages, goodbye hugs.
Rider Voices
“This wasn’t just a cycling tour. It was like living a dream — a postcard written in sweat, switchbacks, and sunsets over Lake Como.”
“The goat climbs. The giraffe chats. The donkey feeds you. The Dream Team.”
Final Word
Bella Italia 2025 was more than kilometres and vertical metres. It was friendships forged on two wheels, mornings above the clouds, and evenings by the water. We climbed until our lungs whispered, we coasted until our hearts sighed.
Bravissimo, riders. Until 2026… Arrivederci Italia!
