Slovenia, including Monte Zoncolan

This cycle tour of Slovenia and neighbouring Italy will showcase the absolute best riding in the Julian Alps.

Messrs Roglic and Pogacar have certainly helped to put this beautiful nation on the map.

Our six days of riding will include the beautiful lakes at Bled and Bohinj before heading to the cobbled climb of Vrsic that climbs out of Kranjska Gora.

We’ll enjoy the beautiful Soca valley and move on to the highest and most challenging climb in Slovenia, the Mangart Saddle.

STOP PRESS! – Seeing the incredible time trial in the 2023 Giro that took the pros up Monte Lussari we’ve decided that we’re going to ride it too! Only recently paved for the Giro, this seriously tough climb is now open to cyclists, but only for going up! The obligatory descent is done by cable car! This is one of the most spectacular places you could ever dream of and is an exciting new addition to this trip.

The latter part of this trip will see us ride into Italy with brief sorties into Austria too.

Monte Zoncolan will be our final day challenge, with its 10 kilometres at a 12 per cent gradient –  a tough finale to this dramatically beautiful tour.

The Schedule

Saturday, August 29th

Collection of riders from Venice Airport, followed by transfer (90 minutes) to Cividale del Friuli.

Make up bikes and then a warm up ride in the pretty Brda region, just over the border in Slovenia, known as ‘the Slovenian Tuscany’.

Sunday, August 30th

Cividale del Friuli to Lake Bohinj – 120kms and 2600m climbing.

First climb if the day will be to Castelmonte before the forested climb to the border. A great descent to the Tolmin valley followed by the challenging climb to Soriska Planina. The day is completed with a swift descent into Bohinj and it’s spectacular lake.

Monday, August 31st

Lake Bohinj to Kranjska Gora – 110kms and 2200m climbing.

The steady climb of Pokljuka starts our day followed by a circuit of the ‘must visit’ Lake Bled. We’ll then head up the tranquil Radovna valley before arriving in Slovenia’s top ski resort of Kranjska Gora. From there we’ll tackle the classic climb of Vrsic with it’s famous cobbled corners.

Tuesday, September 1st

Kranjska Gora to Bovec – 100kms and 2600m climbing

Monte Lussari is first on the agenda, a very tough climb, first used in the Giro d’Italia in 2023 where Roglic sealed his victory. It’s a bikes only road and one that you are not allowed to descend! We use a cable car to get back to the valley with our bikes before moving onto the tackle to awesome Mangart Saddle. This is Slovenia’s highest and longest climb at over 2000m and offers incredible, panoramic views of the Julian Alps. A fast descent into Bovec completes our day.

Wednesday, September 2nd

Bovec to Passo Pramallo – 120kms and 2500m climbing

Passo Predel followed soon after by Sella Nevea. We’ll then head up to the beautiful Altopiano di Montasio, used as a tough summit finish in the Giro Donne. Our final climb of the day from Pontebba up to Passo Pramallo will certainly test us and we’ll stay the night nestled on the Italian/Austrian border.

Thursday, September 3rd

Passo Pramallo to Ovaro – 100kms and 2000m climbing

Today we head towards Zoncolan via a beautiful sortie into Austria. We climb the Plockenpass back into Italy followed by an opportunity to climb Zoncolan from it’s lesser know east side.

Friday, September 4th

The classic and tough ascent of Zoncolan’s west side is our big objective. Much famed by it’s use in the Giro d’Italia and it’s 10km at an average gradient of 12% will test riders to their limits. We’ll follow Zoncolan with the spectacular climb to the ‘Panoramic Road’ on Monte Crostis to provide a fitting finale to the tour.

Ovaro to Ovaro – 80kms and 2500m climbing

Saturday, September 5th

Transfers to Venice Airport

Who will enjoy this trip?

This is a trip that includes some very steep climbs, most notably Monte Zoncolan at the end of the trip. Many of the other climbs on the tour have more humble gradients but riders certainly need to be prepared for many hours of climbing! The trip is a spectacular combination of Slovenia and Italy, riders should be prepared for 5-6 hours of riding each day. As with all our trips, please drop us a line to discuss your riding level and to ensure that this trip will be an enjoyable on for you.

What’s included

• 6 days of fully supported rides (mechanical assistance, vehicle support, guides).
• 7 nights of accommodation, twin share, in a combination of Agriturismo and 3/4 star hotel accommodation.
• Breakfast and dinner are included on all days.
• Transfers to and from Venice Marco Polo Airport.
• Energy drink powder, bananas, and pastries are available at all times on the rides.
• Alpine Cadence bidon with a complimentary pack of bars and gels.

What we don’t include

• Travel insurance.
• Lunches.
• Flights.

Contact us to learn more or to book.

Travel information

Flights into Venice Marco Polo Airport on Saturday August 29th should land before 1400 to leave the airport at around 1500.

Departure from Venice Marco Polo Airport on the final Saturday of the trip should ideally depart at 12 midday or later.

Transfer time at the end of the trip is around 2 hours.

Talk to us before booking flights to ensure they work conveniently with our transfer times.

Please contact us to find out more or to make a booking.