Torino-Nice Rally Route

Overview

The Torino–Nice Rally route is the connoisseur's Alpine crossing: roughly 700km from Turin to the Mediterranean at Nice, strung along the highest gravel roads in Europe — the Colle delle Finestre's 33 unpaved hairpins, the Strada dell'Assietta ridgeline, the Colle di Sampeyre, and the Via del Sale's vertiginous military road along the French–Italian border. James Olsen designed it as a friendly autumn 'rally' rather than a race, but the GPX is free and the route ridable all summer. Expect 15,000m+ of climbing on surfaces from smooth strade bianche to shattered wartime cobbles. The variable that catches people out is altitude weather: these cols hold snow into late June and catch storms in September, and the high military roads offer no shelter or water for hours — rifugio stops need planning, and Rifugio Don Barbera on the Via del Sale deserves booking. A gravel bike with 47mm+ tyres or a drop-bar MTB is the tool. Eight days is a strong pace; ten lets you eat properly in the Occitan valleys. Rail to Turin; return from Nice. Budget around £720 mixing rifugi and campsites. The final descent from the Col de Turini to the Mediterranean is the finest reward in Alpine cycling.

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Prefilled for 1 June 2027 — the next best-season window. Search on partner sites — opens in a new tab.