ATC260A Touring Center Alps ARG
Today, our tour begins with a group “welcome briefing”; we’ll all meet on the terrace of our starting hotel for a welcome drink. After the briefing and answering any questions, our guests will receive the keys and paperwork for their motorcycles, and then everyone will head over to them. One more aperitif, and then it’s already time for dinner. After a short stroll through town, we’ll head to bed early so we can start tomorrow well-rested.
After breakfast, we set off for the “Berg Isel” ski jump in perfect motorcycle weather. It’s quite impressive to imagine jumping off this jump. We then head up a winding road to Kühtai (2,017 m), where we take a coffee break. Afterward, we continue along winding roads with excellent views to the “Gacher Blick” lookout point. We enjoy lunch at the restaurant with a view of the Inn Valley before returning to our starting point. A successful first day.
Today, the “Stelvio,” the queen of Alpine passes, is on our list. First, we drive through the Inn Valley toward the Reschen Pass; as we pass Lake Reschen, we see the church tower of the village of Graun, which was destroyed in 1950 due to the construction of a reservoir. Now in Italy, we wind our way through 49 hairpin turns up to the summit of the Stelvio Pass. After enjoying Bruno’s famous sausages, we continue into Switzerland over the Umbrail Pass, on to the Ofen Pass, and back to Seefeld. After the longest day of riding on the tour, we reward ourselves with a cold, traditional “Bootbeer.” We’ve earned this refreshment.
Today promises another day of beautiful weather. It’s perfect—after about an hour and a half, we stop at the Jaufen Pass to enjoy a cappuccino. We take in the stunning views as we descend to St. Leonhardt a then climb up to the Timmelsjoch. After reaching the top of the pass, at the toll booth, we stop for lunch. After eating, some of our guests visit the local motorcycle museum, which houses a vast collection of historic motorcycles. After heading down into the Ötztal valley, we return through the Inn Valley back to the hotel. Spa and wellness await our guests.
Today we’ll focus more on the sights. First, we’ll head to Walchensee, then down the famous Kesselberg route to Kochelsee. From there, we’ll pass through Oberammergau to Ettal Abbey and on to Linderhof Palace, the primary residence of Bavarian King Ludwig II. Then, we’ll head across Plansee to Neuschwanstein Castle for a quick photo stop, and finally return to Seefeld via the Lech Falls and Ehrwald. Thanks to careful planning, we were able to avoid today’s rain.
Our final day of riding takes us back to Bavaria. We set off on the short toll road through the Upper Isar Valley, also known as “Bavarian Canada.” After passing the Sylvenstein Reservoir, we cross the Achen Pass to Lake Achen. Following a coffee break, the Zillertal High Alpine Road awaits us with its magnificent views. Up here, we’ll take our lunch break before heading back down into the valley and then returning fairly quickly to our starting point. The final stretch takes us to the Edelweiss Bike Travel headquarters, where we’ll return our motorcycles. In the evening, we’ll have our farewell dinner and reflect on the past few days. Planning for next year has already begun. CU