Tour of the Alps 2026 route - Stage-by-stage guide

The opening stage has been rated the least difficult of the five by the race organisers. The 144.3km stage begins and finishes in the city of Innsbruck, which hosted one of the most attritional editions of the World Championships back in 2018.

There is an 18km loop in the second half of the stage, which the riders will tackle twice. The circuit features an ascent to Götzens, which is 4km at 7% with sections in the double digits, providing an opportunity for attacks.

Following the crest of the climb, the road continues to drag to Axams, and on the second lap, there will be an intermediate sprint where bonus seconds can be scored. 

The final 20km feature the descent before a flat run-in to the finish and could present a potential opportunity for the fast finishers to shine.

Stage 2 features the only summit finish of the race, at the end of 147.5km of attritional racing. The stage begins in Telfs and features three categorised climbs in total.

The first of which is the most difficult climb of the stage, the category 1 ascent at Pillerhöhe, which is 9.2km at 6%. The summit comes with over 100km to go, which reduces the significance of the climb, but it can still sting the legs. 

Next up is the shallower category three Reschenpass, which is 15.8km at 3.4%. A section of false flat follows, before the route descends in steps towards the summit finish. 

With 7.5km remaining, there is a bonus sprint at Goldrain/Goldrano, and shortly after, the final climb begins.

The climb to Martell is 6km in length and averages 8%. However, the climb plateaus inside the final 500m with a downhill section before one last sharp kick to the finish.

The first climb of the day is the category one ascent to Hofmahdjoch/Passo Castrin. It’s a lengthy one at 22.2km in length with an average gradient of 5.7%. Such is the length of the climb that the summit marks the highest point of the entire Tour of the Alps.

A long descent follows, before valley roads, which takes the peloton to the foot of the second category ascent to Andalo. This climb is another lengthy one at 14.4km in length, with an average gradient of 5.4%. 

The remainder of the stage features plenty of rolling terrain. Most notably, there is a bonus sprint at the top of an uphill section to Tenno with 16.5km remaining. 

For those looking to win the stage, a descent takes the riders to the final few kilometres which are flat on the run-in to Arco.

Featuring 3,600m of elevation gain, stage 4 is the queen stage, and that fact will be made clear to the riders very quickly when they depart from Arco. 

The first-category Passo Bordala is situated in the opening kilometres, and should see a strong battle for the breakaway on its 14.8km slopes at 6.9%.

Around halfway through the stage is the Passo del Redebus, another first-category test, which is 12.9km in length at 6.8%. From here, the climbing eases, but a punchy and tricky finale awaits the riders.

Those who remember the 2021 European Championships when Sonny Colbrelli outsprinted Remco Evenepoel to victory will recognise the finale of this stage. 

It’s a punchy and technical run-in to Trento with a short, sharp climb to Bovo that features bonus seconds at the crest, which comes inside the final 10km. 

A twisty downhill and flat final few kilometres follow to the finish line in Trento in what should be a race-defining stage. 

The 2026 Tour of the Alps concludes with the shortest stage of the race, a 128.6 stage from Trento to Bozen/Bolzano, which heats up in its second half. 

The first 80km of the stage features the second category Alta di Caldaro and plenty of valley roads. 

It’s inside the final 50km when the riders pass the finish line for the first time, where the route gets particularly challenging.

The finale includes a 19km circuit, which will be tackled twice and features the first category climb to Nobls/Montoppio. The climb is a stern test that is 12.7km in length with an average gradient of 7%. 

To make things harder, the climb continues to rise over the summit to Oberglaning/Cologna di Sopra, and on the second ascent, there will be an intermediate sprint where an important opportunity for bonus seconds awaits.

From here, the road rapidly drops towards the finish in Bozen/Bolzano, where the 2026 Tour of the Alps will come to a close.