Top of the Alps

We'll make time to visit one of the famous King Ludwig's Linderhoff, his private retreat near Garmisch. We'll begin encountering some gentle sweepers and then increasingly challenging passes as the snow-topped Bavarian Alps give way to the Austrian Alps. We'll end Day 2 unwinding in the charming, cozy ski resort town of Lech, 1300m high in the Alps.

Once across the Swiss border, we can enjoy the quiet, forested area around Walensee Lake, before scaling our first major pass of the day—the Klausen. From there we'll continue west through Altdorf, made famous by the legend of William Tell, and then south toward Andermatt, Swiss motorcycle motherland and our base for two nights. Andermatt is a charming village in the heart of the Swiss Alps which has been welcoming visitors for more than a century.

Most Alpine motorcycle experts consider the Andermatt region in Switzerland and the Dolomites of Italy to be the "must ride" roads of the Alps. It'll be a hard choice which direction to ride today. There's the architecturally impressive Sustenpass road to the north and Grimsel and Furkapass to the west. South of Andermatt there's Nufenenpass, at 2500m the highest pass in Switzerland. Gotthard Pass, with its breathtaking views awaits us further south. Not far from our base there is also the Great Aletsch Glacier, the largest glacier in the Alps and UNESCO World Heritage site, accessible by cable car. Gotthard region is truly unique and offers a lot of possibilities both for bikers and nature lovers. You can also ride to Zermatt, the village at the foot of the Matterhorn, the most photographed mountain in the world.

First we'll scale Oberalppass, widely regarded as the pass with the finest sequence of sweepers. Next, we'll head south toward Italy and ride the less well- known but equally enjoyable Lukmanierpass. After lunch and a short break, we'll be ready to test our riding skills on Passo del Bernardino and then Splugenpass, with one end in Italy and the other in Switzerland. After a short ride through Italy, we'll reenter Switzerland via the spectacular Maloja Pass, passing the ski resort town of St. Moritz and south over the Berninapass to the Italian tax-free paradise of Livigno, our base tonight.

After breakfast, we'll ride north a few kilometers through Switzerland's Ofenpass before dropping back down into Italy through the Umbrail Pass. Our next challenge, Stelvio Pass, will make these first two seem like mere warm-ups. At almost 2800 m, Stelvio is one of the two highest rideable mountain passes in the Alps! And what a ride it is-- switchbacks galore, and, if you dare look up from the road, some of the most beautiful high mountain panoramas in the world. The route to our last major pass of the day, Passo di Gavia, inspires with its lakes, narrow chicanes, and wildness. We will end our day in the middle of the fabulous Dolomites.

This high altitude playground for motorcyclists and bicyclists exists today because of the road building efforts of Italian and Austro-Hungarian forces along what was a bitterly contested front through here in WWI. We'll end our day across the border in Austria in the medieval town of Lienz and say good bye to the Dolomites, the ultimate riding destination.

Running through the heart of the Hohe Tauren National Park to Austria's highest peak, Mt Grossglockner (3798m), this classic twisty throws 36 curves into your path over 48 km up to an altitude of 2504 m! Once off the mountain, anyone looking for some exposure to Austrian culture and history may detour to medieval Salzburg for a coffee and bit of exploration. From here, much our ride back to Munich will be through the spectacular Alpine foothills of southern Bavaria. The German Alpine Road, Grande Dame of Germany's scenic byways, will carry us over a landscape dotted with castles, baroque churches, viaducts, and abbeys. By late afternoon, Munich will greet us once more. That evening, we'll meet for our farewell dinner.

If you have an afternoon flight planned, you can walk the Old Town and enjoy the local sites and tastes once more before returning home filled with great memories.