Tour Type
Giro d'Italia REK
Riding Level
Avid
Location
Albania and Southern Italy
Duration
12 days | 11 nights | 9 stages
Length
1,058 + km
Climb
13,150 + m
Join Grand Tours Project as we return to the 108th Giro d’Italia for an incredible cycling adventure. Starting with the Grand Partenza in Albania, the tour crosses the Adriatic Sea to Italy and winds through the warm regions of Puglia, Basilicata, and Campania and zigzag through the Apennines into the Renaissance heartlands of Abruzzo, Marche, Umbria, and Tuscany. Fully supported and expertly guided, this tour captures the essence of the Giro’s beauty and challenge.
“There is nothing quite like riding on the full route of the Giro d’Italia, with thousands of supporters on the road cheering us on and the peloton only an hour or two behind us.” Keith Tuffley, Founder of Grand Tours Project and the mind behind the “Ride Every Kilometre” concept.
Ride. Every. Kilometre. of each stage in the morning ahead of the professional racers. Yes really! Grand Tours Project has now successfully run these tours for several years.
Start your Giro Ride Every Kilometre adventure in Albania, a land of contrasts and rich history. Though just across the Adriatic from Italy, Albania remains an enigmatic destination. Once part of the Ottoman Empire, it endured decades of totalitarianism before emerging as a modern, secular, and increasingly prosperous nation. Its landscapes tell stories of past cultures – Greek, Roman, Turkish, and Russian – while its wild interior boasts rich biodiversity, including the Vjosa River, Europe’s first Wild River National Park.
After exploring northern Albania, the challenge continues as we cross to Italy for Week 1 of the Giro d’Italia. The route combines flat, rolling, and mountainous stages, taking you through Puglia, the wild Apennines, and into Tuscany. This is your chance to test your fitness, push your limits, and discover an Italy you’ve never seen before – all with full support from Grand Tours Project.
We’re offering the opportunity for fit amateur cyclists to “Ride Every Kilometre” of stages 1-9, on the same day as the race ahead of the caravan and pros. We’ll be riding through some beautiful and spectacular regions of Italy with a VIP Finish and Podium access along the route.
And if this is not enough of a challenge, we offer guests the opportunity to complete the entire Giro d’Italia. If this is for you, contact us for further details. Riding on the race course just a few hours before the pros makes this an unforgettable experience.
*For shorter options of this week, enquire and request the full information.
If riding every kilometre sounds a bit much, then you may wish to join us for a more relaxed option involving 60-100km of riding each day – our Giro “Experience” tour.
The Grand Tours Project team will meet you at Tirana Airport and transfer you to your hotel on the Adriatic coast in Durrës. The second largest city in Albania and the oldest with 2,500 years of recorded history.
After checking into the hotel, the team will help to set up and adjust the bikes before setting off on a Welcome Ride – to test the bikes, stretch the legs and see some of coastal Albania. A tour briefing will take place before your first dinner in Albania.
Are you ready? Not an arduous day in the saddle but not easy either. After an early breakfast and check out, you will ride from the Giro start in Durrës and follow the official route to Albania’s capital, Tiranë / Tirana. There is one distinct climb to Gracen, a village in central Albania before heading to Tirane. Time to relax and watch the pros arrive before heading to your hotel.
Today’s ride is very different and although short, you will be able to compare your Strava time against the pros. An early ride to avoid the road closures riding the full ITT course in Tirane and mount the official Winners’ Podium. Then back to the hotel to change and explore Tirane before heading to the Giro VIP Hospitality enclosures to watch the race and enjoy the atmosphere up close. After the winner’s presentation, the team will transfer you to your hotel in Vlorë.
The final REK ride in Albania looks stunning – coastal scenery, beautiful roads, pine forests and the Albanian hinterland. The toughest climb in Albania is Qala e Llogarasë at 1030 m. Mainly treeless, the views of the coast from along the ridge of the Ceraunian Mountains are stupendous and never to be forgotten. Enjoy. Back in Vlorë, cross the official Giro Finish, mount the podium and then join the fans in the VIP Hospitality areas to cheer on the riders. After the presentations, the team will transfer you to your hotel for the final night in Albania.
Today we’ll board a ferry crossing to Italy. From there, a transfer will take you directly to your hotel near Alberobello, ensuring a smooth and scenic journey across the Adriatic and into the heart of southern Italy. If there is time, set out on a short ride to stretch the legs and test the bikes. Back at the hotel, we will meet for pre-dinner drinks to discuss the logistics for the coming week.
Straight after breakfast, you are on the road riding along the heel of Italy to Lecce. Classic southern Italian scenes – small and pretty traditional villages and sun-bleached rustic countryside growing tomatoes, oils, grapes, almonds and wheat. It’s flat and spring weather so a tranquil start to the Giro REK Week 1. The end in Lecce should be an explosive sprinters’ finish for the pros and you will choose to stay and watch or you can be transferred to the next hotel so you can have a good rest for the next stage.
Another gorgeous ride and nothing too strenuous, just stay ahead of the caravan and the race. Depart from Ceglie Messapica, a beautiful stone town of narrow streets with white washed buildings on a hill and pass through classic southern Italian countryside from Puglia into Basilicata, the ‘arch’ of the Italian boot. Matera is another UNESCO Heritage Site and retains its ancient beauty of caves, rock churches and stone buildings.
Continuing the theme of flat and rolling terrain, the race starts in the Apeninnes at Potenza, Basilicata at 819 m – the highest regional capital in Italy. The route stays high in the countryside before dropping down to Scorzo in Campania, before reaching the Tyrrhenian coast and heading north passing the giant, Vesuvius, into gloriously chaotic Napoli.
Today is your first mountain day. Starting from central Italy, Castel di Sangro and remaining in the Apennines mountains, you will ride to Roccaraso Ski Resort at 1,246 m and then pass by the wild mountains of Parco Nazionale della Maiella before turning back inland and the Apeninnes, over Forcella Pass and finally into Tagliacozzo, Abruzzo and one of the most beautiful villages in Italy – I Borghi più belli d’Italia. But no time to appreciate the beauty, a 2 hour transfer will take you to the Adriatic coast.
Returning to the Adriatic coast, you will start from the sea resort town of Giulianova. Maybe you managed a swim from one of the extensive sandy beaches the evening before. Departing from the coast you will ride back into the Apennines and the stunning Parco Nazionale dei Monti Sibillini, named after the ancient Prophetess Sybil. Then a roller coast ride to Castel Santa Maria, an old village perched above the surrounding hills and then Gagliole before finishing a big day in the saddle at Castelraimondo in the Marche region.
Continuing the journey north, today’s ride starts in the scenic region of Umbria. Think old Roman and mediaeval villages and towns in rolling hills into Tuscany and the world-famous city of Siena. A day of pleasant riding after the Apennines but still a long day and accumulated elevation PLUS in remembrance of Giro’s origins, and some strade bianchi – white roads…gravel! Cross an official Giro Traguardo and mount the Giro Winners’ podium on this awesome stage celebrating an epic week!
Six stages of the Giro d’Italia, one of Italy’s largest sporting events. A diverse week of flat, hilly and mountainous riding, passing from the heel of Italy to Napoli, zig zagging up the Apennines to finish in beautiful Siena.
The GTP team will support and encourage you to complete your goal to Ride Every Kilometre. If you don’t, no problem, you will have tasted a small part of what the pros experience and you can always return and test yourself again in future Tours.
The team will assist you in checking out and take you to Florence Airport for your flight home or to your next destination.
You don’t need to be an elite athlete, but you must be fit and strong, and be ready for back-to-back long days in the saddle. We will start early and sometimes not finish till 4:30 pm, just one hour ahead of the race leaders. However, we will always ensure we have enough time on the route each day for coffee, lunch and photo stops.
As “Official Tour Operator” of the Giro d’Italia, we have special access to the race route, so we will have our support vehicle with us the whole distance, all the way to the finish line each day.
Check out this 2024 story from one of our guides to be convinced!
What’s Not Included?
Giro d'Italia REK
Giro d’Italia 2025: “Ride Every Kilometre” Week 2 – Tuscany to Northern Italy
Giro d'Italia REK
Giro d’Italia 2025: “Ride Every Kilometre” Week 3 – ITALIAN ALPS & ROMA
Giro d'Italia REK
GIRO D´ITALIA 2025: THE ULTIMATE RIDE EVERY KILOMETRE – 21 STAGES
Giro d'Italia Experience
Giro d’Italia 2025: Grande Partenza “Experience” – Albania Escape
Giro d'Italia Experience
GIRO D’ITALIA 2025: “Experience” Week 1 – Southern Italy, Apennines & Tuscany
Giro d'Italia Experience
GIRO D’ITALIA 2025: WEEK 2 ‘EXPERIENCE’ – TUSCANY, Emilia Romagna & Veneto
Giro d'Italia Experience
GIRO D’ITALIA 2025: WEEK 3 “Experience” – ITALIAN ALPS
Spectator Experience
Giro d’Italia – VIP Spectator Experiences
