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Valparola by bike
The passes

Three cols where the history of cycling has unfolded

Many pages of cycling history have been written on the Campolongo, Falzarego, and Valparola. Choose the route that is most suitable to your fitness and take a look at the elevation gain before making your call.

The bike route Places and locations

If you ride down from the Campolongo Pass, you reach the village of Arabba. Its inhabitants are also known in the area as "i glacei da Rèba" or "the frozen ones" because the place is mostly in the shade.

"Da Ciaulonch a Fauzare ruon con puoch plu de n vare", as the Ladins say. From Campolongo pass to Falzarego pass it only takes little more than one step.

Grind up the iconic switchbacks of the Dolomites

Val Badia, Fodom, and Ampezzo. Study the roads that connect the villages and plan in advance for their elevation gains.

Bike holidays in Alta Badia
Cyclists on the way to Passo Campolongo
View on the Sas dla Crusc form Passo Valparola
Street from Corvara to Campolongo pass

Campolongo pass

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from La Villa
from Arabba

The Campolongo pass connects the villages of Corvara and Arabba. From the first switchbacks, you can admire the Sassongher, the striking peak that dominates the scene in Corvara. This is where the Maratona starts, and its first kilometres are perfect for warming up the legs.

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The street between Passo Falzarego and Passo Valparola
Old galleries Falzarego Pass
Ascent to the Falzarego Pass

Falzarego pass

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from La Villa
from Arabba

The beauty of the Falzarego is well known in the cycling community. The road is not steep and always allows you to admire the scenery with every pedal stroke. You'll also cycle through an area where tragic battles were fought during World War I.

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Cyclists on the Valparola Pass
Road bike Alta Badia
With the bike on the Valparola pass
Valparola pass with his lake
View from Passo Valparola

Valparola pass

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from La Villa
from Arabba

You will not forget the final stretch of the Valparola before the col – its last 100 meters are between 12% and 15%. Cyclists call this segment "from stone to stone" because there is nothing you can do other than moving slowly, from one stone to the next. However, the view of the Dolomites mountain range at the top pays you back for all your hard work.

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Descent by bike

Campolongo pass

N 46° 30’ 46.91” E 11° 52’ 34.47”
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Length: 5.8 km
Max gradient: 13%
Average gradient: 6%
KOM Giro d'Italia: 14 minutes, 13 seconds

The Campolongo isn't the hardest pass you can tackle on a bike. And its pastoral and rural setting – with fields and cow herds – make you feel at peace. The relatively easy gradients also help you to enjoy the fresh mountain air without suffering oxygen deficit. Climbing up from Corvara, the slopes reach a maximum steepness of 10%, but only for a short time. After the Golf Club, the road straightens again and the incline reduces to 7-8%.

Falzarego pass

N 46° 31’ 8.04” E 12° 00’ 33.84”
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Length: 10.5 km
Max gradient: 11%
Average gradient: 6%
KOM Giro d'Italia: 28 minutes, 59 seconds

The Falzarego has a constantly steady climb, its slopes rarely reaching 10%. After the junction with the iconic Passo Giau, the Falzarego road snakes up through a series of switchbacks in the shade of the forest. Above the woods, a series of straight roads allow cyclists to admire the Sass de Stria mountain, another area of poignancy that was on the front line from WWI. The last 4km of the Falzarego are more challenging, and the road passes through two evocative tunnels. At the end, the Lagazuoi and the crossroad to the top await.

Valparola pass

N 46° 31’ 54.08” E 11° 59’ 19.82”
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Length: 1.1 km
Max gradient: 15%
Average gradient: 8%
KOM Giro d'Italia: 3 minutes, 29 seconds

The last kilometre is short but brutal. It comes at the end of the day, when your legs are tired from the other cols. Its ramps reach a maximum gradient of 15%, and the last 100 meters (the notorious 'from stone to stone') can bring cyclists into a very dark place. It seems like the road will never end. But at the top, the pain vanishes – and pedalling in the Dolomites becomes rewarding again.