Tours de bicicleta perto d'água

The Bodensee: the soul of Europe. The area around the shimmering silver-green «Swabian sea» is an ancient cultural landscape. Despite its lively lakeside scene, Thurgau remains a serene slice of countryside with castles and extensive orchards.

The River Limmat winds steadfastly westward, the monastery looks on unperturbed. The Aargau mega shopping mile is only touched at its perimeter. Always following the Limmat, you reach the spa town of Baden.

The Rhine Route follows the Alpine river from mountain source to the large Rhine port at Basel. A vastly varied trip through diverse landscapes hewn by the mighty river over the ages.

On their tour around the lake of Geneva, cyclists will be rewarded for their efforts by the stunningly beautiful landscapes. 200 km of marked trails lead through 5 regions in 2 countries: Geneva, Pays de Gex, the cantons of Vaud and Valais, as well as the Chablais Haut-Savoyard.

At Ponte Brolla the force of the River Maggia has cleft the rock, gouging out and polishing the gneiss. Life was hard in the Maggia Valley, the Ticino’s longest valley. Solace was provided by the church, as testified by edifices of religion and foreign governors.

The Aare Route follows the river from the small glacier lake on the Grimselpass until it joins the Rhine. After a racy stretch down the pass road, it passes the Aareschlucht (gorge) and deep lakes on the way to the Mittelland region.

The Glatt and the cycling path wind through the flat Zurich Unterland, unnoticed by the thriving busy residential and industrial settlements, seen only by the unavoidable airborne mass of giant silver-aluminium «birds».

The capital Sion shows its historic castles, churches and mansions. The lower Rhonetal is dominated by the high-alpine scenery of the Dents du Midi. A world of fertile fruit orchards and vineyards.

You can discover the source of the Rhine twice within a radius of 270 kilometres. In between you can explore two Alpine passes, deep gorges and the frontiers of three linguistic regions.

The pleasant ride along the varied Mittelland Route is mostly on traffic-free paths, along lakes and rivers, through wide plains and peaceful valleys, towns and villages, industry and agricultural land.

Through Piano di Magadino, the Ticino’s vegetable garden, then amidst European camping guests on the lovely lakeside promenade to Locarno, a happy mix of the German holiday dream, Ticino business people and Swiss German Italianità.

The green fairy (absinth) floats through the Val de Travers, the Areuse pushes spectacularly through a gorge, the view to the lake opens, Neuchâtel: above the thousand-year-old castle, below the lively old town and at the harbour a touch of the Mediterranean.

Lac de Neuchâtel: chirping in the reeds, waves lapping at the gentle shore, the Jura shimmering in the distance. Over 100 species of birds breed in the Grande Cariçaie, the 40-km-long marsh and reed belt along the southern shores of the lake.

The lake of Pfäffikon is a recreation area for all those who love nature. The lake with its reed belt is of national significance. The highlights of this bike tour are the Roman castle, the Robenhauser moor, and the Juckerhof farm in Seegräben.

The Rhone Route runs through the magnificent mountain scenery of the Valais on charming, quiet paths along the Rhone. It leads along the famous palm-lined promenades of Lac Léman and the picturesque Lavaux vineyards and ends at cosmopolitan Genève.

A peaceful ride beside the small Chatzen and Büsisee lakes, on through the Furttal valley of the Limmat, the bathing spot Baden, and on to marvel at the Gothic stained glass windows in Königsfelden and yellow irises of the River Aare floodplain, followed by a leisurely ride on the Aare dam to Aarau.

Crystal-clear Upper Engadine lakes, crowned by imposing snow-capped summits, elegant beauty and substantial wealth in St. Moritz, the icy, rushing Inn, fresh mountain air and the traditional decorative sgraffiti on Engadine windows.

The lovely landscape along the long ribbon of the Untersee appealed to Napoleon, the richly-decorated town of Stein am Rhein attracts thousands of visitors every year, as does Europe’s mightiest waterfall, the Rhine Falls near Schaffhausen.

The tour begins in the medieval Zähringer town of Murten with its historic Old Town of national importance and numerous arcades. The wall encircling the town was built between the 13th and 17th centuries and is one of the best-preserved fortifications in Switzerland.

Through fertile, richly-yielding Piano di Magadino, lively Locarno on Lago Maggiore and the gardens of Pedemonte, to the romantic Valle Maggia. The powerful river has split, dug out and polished the light-grey gneiss.

Always following the Aare, an interesting interplay of gabled houses, irises, cement factory, golden oriels, Synchrotron and duck paradise. Like the waters, we travel through water meadows, gullies, past reservoirs, along the Reuss, Limmat and Rhine.

The Bündner Herrschaft, Graubunden’s fertile garden and winery lies on a mound of slate detritus. Also the home of Heidi, Peter and Alpöhi (Heidi’s grandfather).

From Aarau the way leads to the idyllic Suhrental river valley; with views of the Alps spotted south and Jura chain north. Through rich orchards and fertile fields alongside Lake Sempach, this stage finally takes you to Lucerne.

Starting in the Bad Zurzach wellness oasis, the stage leads to Koblenz, the historic old town with 4 bridges close to the Klingnau reservoir. The Rheinfelden destination - Switzerland's oldest Zähringer town - follows soon after the picturesque little town of Laufenburg.

The Lakes Route takes you on a trip right across picture-postcard Switzerland. From Lac Léman to the Bodensee, passing 10 larger and smaller lakes and offering stunning views over water in the Alps and Alpine foothills.