I’m actually always out and about on foot — every year I go on a hiking tour lasting several days. But this time my friend and I wanted to cycle to Venice. On May 26, we start on the “sporty variant” from Bad Tölz.
Day 1: Bad Tölz — Schwaz
The first pedal stroke — and it’s pouring with rain. Endurance test for our rain gear: jacket, trousers, gaiters — all in use. We are undeterred and follow the Isar, which glistens in turquoise-blue waves on sunny days.
Across the Sylvenstein bridge, we imagine the glistening reservoir and dream of the panoramic view of the Karwendel. The path runs gently up and down along the water before the first long climb to Achenkirch. It briefly feels like the start of a mountain bike tour, but soon we are rolling downhill again in a relaxed manner. Then the highlight: the cycle path directly on Lake Achensee. And suddenly — rays of sunshine! The water shines turquoise blue like in the Caribbean. Our spirits rise and our clothes begin to dry. In Maurach, the grasses dance in the wind and we breathe in the scent of the flower meadows. Then we suddenly discover white steam between the trees — shortly afterwards the historic Achensee steam train rattles past. Now it’s a rapid descent: curve after curve on the old toboggan run to Jenbach. We cycle the rest of the stage flat along the Inn until we happily reach our destination of Schwaz.
Day 2: Schwaz — Innsbruck — Mühlbach
The morning greets us with sunshine and pleasant temperatures — perfect conditions. We set off towards Innsbruck a little later than planned, true to the motto: “We’ll easily make up for it.” And indeed — we jump on the train to Brenner at the last minute. Convenient: the ticket is included in the travel package for our customers.
Once at the top, we are greeted by cool mountain air. The rain jackets are quickly pulled on again. We roll effortlessly downhill on the perfectly maintained cycle path, while the traffic jams on the Brenner highway. How good that we are on two wheels! The deeper we go, the warmer it gets. Layer after layer goes into the rucksack. We make a short stop in Sterzing — a picturesque town square, the striking Zwölferturm tower and a touch of South Tyrolean romance. The route continues along beautiful cycle paths through flowering meadows and quiet villages to Mühlbach. The day ends there like a picture book: ice cream sundaes under palm trees, a rippling fountain and sunshine on your skin.
Day 3: Mühlbach — Toblach
Today’s stage starts with a wonderful cycle path along the Rienza. We glide past flowering meadows and dense forests, pass through shady tunnels and discover an idyllic rest area right by the river — with hammocks and a sea of purple flowers. A perfect place for a lunch break.
Before the thunderstorm reaches us, we quickly get back on the pedals. It’s uphill for a while towards Dobbiaco — not as strenuous as expected after all. In the meantime, we already have the breathtaking mountain world of the Dolomites always in view, a paradise for nature lovers. As soon as we arrive at the hotel, it starts to rain. So let’s head into the cozy room, where lots of wood and glass create a feel-good atmosphere.
Day 4: Dobbiaco — Pieve di Cadore
The fourth stage from Toblach via Cortina d’Ampezzo to Pieve di Cadore is my personal favorite. First, we make a pit stop at the bike workshop of our partner Funactive — a free service for our customers included in the tour package. A gravel path then leads us to the mysteriously glittering Dobbiaco Lake. The forest soon thins out and opens up a view of the Dolomites — the perfect photo stop! New spectacular views surprise us again and again: the turquoise Dürrensee seems like a piece of the Caribbean in the middle of the mountains. The route continues through rock tunnels and along panoramic paths high above the valley to Cortina d’Ampezzo. We then cycle along perfect cycle paths amidst the scent of flowers and grasses to Pieve di Cadore, a quiet mountain village, where we enjoy the view of Lago di Cadore, a bright blue reservoir, from our hotel.
Day 5: Pieve di Cadore — Conegliano
On the fifth day, the route descends briskly downhill on quiet serpentines into the valley. We follow the turquoise Piave, cool our feet in the river and enjoy the view of the sparkling, crystal-clear water. Later, we reach Lago di Santa Croce — and suddenly there’s a lot going on: kitesurfers are whizzing across the lake. After a short snack, we cycle on, first uphill on a pass road, later downhill on beautiful paths. If you raise your eyes, you will discover an architecturally impressive ensemble of bridges boldly spanning the air. After crossing the picturesque old town of Vittorio, a few kilometers later we are suddenly immersed in a different world: rolling hills, endless vineyards — we cycle “surrounded by wine” to Conegliano. With so many inviting restaurants to choose from in this charming little Mediterranean town, it’s hard to make a choice for dinner. In the end, the choice falls on an excellent pizzeria, as it does every day.
Day 6: Conegliano — Mestre / Venice
The last stage leads from Conegliano to Mestre, the mainland off Venice. It’s going to be hot today, so we cycle quickly through villages, fields and vineyards, past Treviso. Actually worth seeing, but we want to get to our destination. The last few kilometers run through the Venetian plain. When we finally arrive in Mestre, we go to the hotel — shower, change and take the streetcar to Venice.
Then the crowning finale: Rialto Bridge, St. Mark’s Square, Doge’s Palace — water everywhere, the typical gondolas everywhere. For the grand finale, we celebrate our tour success with a delicious lavender ice cream.
Conclusion & learnings
Our most important findings:
- The saddle has to fit, otherwise the fun suffers
- Buttock cream e.g. from Sixtus: Never used before, now indispensable
- Check the altitude profile (e.g. with Komoot), so you can better manage your strength
- Check the weather forecast so that you can avoid thunderstorms by starting earlier, for example
- Spare tube, tire levers & multitool in your day pack — small but worth its weight in gold
If you want to retrace the tour, you can choose between different variants:
- Sporty (9 days)
- with CHARME (9 days)
- Road bike (9 days)
- cozy (12 days)
Click here for the tour options: www.feuer-eis-touristik.de/muenchen-venedig