If Bike Touring in Italy near Bolzano be sure to take a ride down or up the Val Venosta Valley bike path.  The bike path follows the old Roman road, Via Claudia Augusta, and is about 65 kilometers long. There is a train service that will shuttle you and your bike up the valley to the small village of Malles Venosta.  If you are planning on riding the classic bike route from Bolzano to Passo Stelvio the bike path will take you up to the base of the climb from Prato Stelvio.

 

BIKE TOURING THE VAL VENOSTA FROM MALLES TO MERANO

BIKE PATH ITALY: Val Venosta Bike Path (or Radweg Vinschgau) Radweg Vinschgau
START POINT: Malles Venosta
FINISH POINT: Merano (330 m)
LENGTH: 65 km
TIME TO RIDE: 4 to 5 hours
ELEVATION GAIN: 120 meters of climbing, 1200 meters descending
TYPE OF SURFACE: asphalted cycling track, short sections on side roads, and two sections are not paved.
TRAIN AND BIKE: Train from Bolzano to Merano, Val Venosta has a regional train with limited bicycle space that stops in: Malles, Oris, Lasa, Silandro, Castelbello, Naturno, Merano.

BRINGING YOUR BICYCLE ON THE TRAIN

To carry your own bike on trains in South Tyrol you need an additional ticket. Please mind that regional trains are equipped for the transport of 15 to 18 bicycles.  If the on-board bike capacity is full, boarding of additional bicycles may not be allowed, you will need to wait for the next train.  

In the period May / end of October, in the train stations of Merano, Marlengo and Lagundo, boarding the Val Venosta train with bicycles is not allowed in the hours 8:00 - 13:00 and 15:00 - 17:30.

At Merano train station,  you can load your bike on a truck offering transport service for bicycles up to the Malles train station. You can elect to pick up your bike in one of the train station bike rental locations at Naturno, Laces, Silandro, Spondigna or Malles.

HIGHLIGHTS OF THE VAL VENOSTA

• Merano Spa's
• Lake Resia
• Trauttmansdoff Castle Garden
• Typewriter Museum
• Church of St. Prokulaus
• Messner Mountain Museum
• Marble Capital
• Coira Castel
• Glurns
• Malles

val venosta ROUTE NOTES:

If you take the train up the valley to Malles Venosta the path starts just outside the station and is well marked. From this point the bike path sits at 1200 meters elevation and you ride down the valley to just over 200 meters so most of the route is downhill, there are a few short ramps to climb up and there are two sections of gravel but the route is very easy to ride.

If you are riding up from Merano the hardest section is between the towns of Lagundo and Tell, where you have a 1 km climb. The remainder of the route is very pedal-able.

The route is marked with typical bike signs, you will need to leave the path to reach many of the towns and sights along the route.

In the town of Castelbello you will see one lovely Castle above the route.  Here there is a public rest room and just across the street in front of a bar is a water fountain.

Most of the route is along the river and through the apple orchards.

BIKE PATHS THIS ROUTE CONNECTS TO:

At Merano: Val d’Adige bike path to Bolzano (Via Claudia)
At Merano: cycle track Val Passiria to S. Leonardo
At Malles Venosta: Bike route to Passo Resia and Nauders / Landeck (Austria)