The eight-day tour on the Routes des Grandes Alpes leads from Thonon-les-Bains on Lake Geneva to Menton near Nice, over more than 20 Alpine passes. It offers spectacular rides such as over the highest drivable pass in Europe, the Col de l'Iseran, to the highest paved point, the Cime de la Bonette at 2860m above sea level, as well as over small, dreamy passes such as the Col de Turini.

On the first day's stage, you can see the imposing Mont Blanc and other four-thousand-meter peaks in the French and Swiss Alps. And so the fauna and flora are high alpine for the first few days and then change from alpine to Mediterranean each day. And at some point the Mediterranean peeks out from between the hills behind Menton, long after the increasing warmth has already announced the approach of the coast.

The return journey takes you over the mighty and imposing Gorges du Verdon and other, this time small and dreamy, mountain passes and, above all, through fields of lavender and sunflowers that will hopefully be in bloom. If you don't plan the tour too late in the summer, you will be able to enjoy the scent of fresh lavender. As you head north again, the route becomes more alpine, which also means more winding and hilly terrain. A delight for anyone who loves curves.

It is no coincidence that the route is one of the most beautiful, if not the most beautiful, multi-day tours in Europe. The tour is designed for eight days of riding. I met bikers who rushed through the same tour in two or three days. That's a real shame, because you can't enjoy the views, the beautiful areas and also some of the cultural highlights. It's worth taking enough time for it and perhaps planning an extra overnight stay in one place or another to get to know the region, the people and the culinary specialties better.

On the approximately 1630km long tour we cross 38 passes and drive through several deep and impressive gorges. It is a tour that you simply cannot get enough of and that calls for a repeat.