Italy Coast to Coast - L'Adriatico al Tirreno, September 2025

A welcome return to cycling adventures in Europe, but sadly missing my usual companions Jan and Heyddie.

Organised by Tyneside company, Saddle Skedaddle, this was a seven-day cycle tour from Riccione on the east coast of Italy, crossing the Apennines to reach the Tyrrhenian Sea, part of the Mediterranean just north of Rome. There were five others in the group, all capable cyclists and Skedaddle regulars, who proved to be very good company along the way.

Day 0

 

Ryanair (yuk…) Stansted to Bologna, then a two-hour transfer to Riccione for a two-night stay at the Club Hotel https://www.clubhotelriccione.it/en. A classic Italian seaside resort close to Rimini with the serried ranks of deckchairs laid out for ‘fly and flop’ clients, absolutely not my scene, but some great restaurants offering fresh seafood, notably La Bottega del Pesce.

Riccione

 

Day 1 

 

For a ‘warm up’ loop taking us to San Marino, we left Riccione to explore the hills of Emilia Romagna, enjoying quiet lanes through olive groves and vineyards. We passed through Verruchio, marked with its prominent medieval castle and today besieged by locals as a festival of some sorts was in progress, to reach Europe’s smallest republic, San Marino, the origins of which trace to 4^th century CE. To reach the city involved an ascent of some 500m in the heat and humidity, the road getting busy with traffic in the upper reaches. 

Approaching San Marino

 

The city is situated on the slopes of triple summited Mount Titano, a limestone mass reaching 739m. San Marino citizens, the Sammerinesi, comprise 80% of the population, and live with a parliamentary government, elected every five years and led by two ‘captains regent’ as heads of state. The independence of the Republic was assured by its isolation and its mountain fortresses despite numerous encroachments over the years. Interestingly, San Marino remained neutral during WWII.

 

There was a festival in San Marino too, so streets were full of gaping tourists. The retail offerings here were a tad unusual too…many offering crossbows, arrows and air rifles of all kinds, plus a shop devoted to selling all manner of rubber ducks! An informal lunch, then a long descent back to the coast at Riccione, with some sketchy surfaces on the top sections and, as was to become a theme for our entire journey, many impatient Italian motorists clambering to get past us.

 

In all, 76km with 1190m of ascent. Moving time 4h.

 

Day 2

 

South from Riccione to Urbino was our objective today, 63km with 1398m of ascent, first hugging the coast to Parco Regionale del Monte Bianco before heading inland. Rolling hills and valleys took us into Marche and the foothills of the Apennine Mountains, heralded with a brutal climb at about 20km, Pedrosa da Montefiore Conca, a distance of 2.2km averaging 11.5% with a maximum of 17.3%. 

A short break after that exertion, then further climbs to the hill towns of Tavoleto, Mondaino (picnic lunch here) and Montefabbri. A further climb on to a high plateau with extensive views and some rather strange statues (a jumping horse, a rooster and a goose) before one final pull (including Salita Pallino – 1.1km averaging 9.5% and a maximum of 11.8%) to reach our destination of Urbino. Entry to the town involved a hair-raising descent down the very steep cobbles of Via Raffaelo. Thank goodness it was a dry day!

Urbino is a very attractive walled city, situated and best known for the 15^th century Palazzo Ducale (which houses the Galleria Nazionale delle Marche, one of the most important collections of Renaissance art in the world), the University of Urbino founded in 1506, and house and monument of the great artist Raphael (1483-1520). The city lies in an area classified with medium-high seismic risk, an earthquake last affecting the area in 1998.

Moving time today: 3h 49m. Overnight at the centrally located Albergo Italia Urbino https://www.albergo-italia-urbino.it/en/default.aspx with a splendid dinner in a local restaurant. I really liked Urbino and could have stayed here for a couple of days.

Day 3

 

From the Marche region we kept on our southerly track to enter the wooded landscape of Umbria, first with a steep descent down some more cobbles. The exit from Urbino then involved a tight, precipitous descent followed by an immediate and horrible climb with rush hour traffic desperate to get past us in the narrowest sections. This was 0.6km of purgatory, the Santa Fantasma (per Sogesta), with an average slope of 12.5% and one ramp hitting 23%.

 

We passed through steeply wooded areas dissected by plunging ravines, with one steep segment into Moria (2.7km averaging 8.5% and peaking at +13.7%), picnic lunch in Cantanio, and the rest of the day spent on a long steady climb before an upland valley approach to reach Gubbio, a delightful town with narrow cobbled streets in the province of Perugia. The final 10km descent into Guggio was on perfect tarmac with wide sweeping bends – the surface recently refreshed as the Women’s Giro d’Italia passed through here earlier in the year.

Gubbio has a medieval feel, the dark grey stone of the houses in the centre dating to the 14^th and 15^thcenturies. Overlooked by Mount Ingino, accessible by the Funivia cable car (actually, just a little wire open basket that you stand up in!), the town has a 12^th century Duomo, and a 1^st century BC Roman theatre nearby. The grandest building is the Palazzo dei Consoli, 700 years old, housing the main arts and history museum, and with an 80m tower. The town is famous for its truffles and is of great interest to geologists for a sedimentary layer enriched in iridium, formed by infalling debris from the gigantic meteor impact probably responsible for the mass extinction of the dinosaurs.

Hotel Villa Montegranelli

 A quick gelato in Gubbio, then dinner and overnight at Hotel Villa Montegranelli, just south of the town https://www.hotelvillamontegranelli.it/en/ The cacophony of local hunting dogs in numerous kennels around us was a notable, if somewhat annoying, feature.

 

80.9km and 1479m of ascent today. Moving time 4h 39m.

 

Day 4

 

Still in the Umbria region, we continued southwards to Assisi, an ‘easier’ day with just 60.8km and only 859m of ascent. Our main climb took us to the watershed between the Adriatic and the Tyrrhenian Sea near Casacastalda, 7.6km at an average of 3.5% but still managing to offer one ramp at 13.1%. 

Assisi is a UNESCO World Heritage site, reached on quiet country lanes and generally enjoyable descents, and we admired the majestic Basilica di San Francesco on the busier final approach to this spiritual centre. Assisi is the birthplace of the Latin poet Propertius, St Francis (born c. 1181, the founder of the Franciscan order and patron saint of Italy) and St Clare of Assisi.

  

 

The city was badly damaged by a 5.5 magnitude earthquake in 1997, but reconstruction has been swift. UNESCO World Heritage status was granted in 2000. The many cathedrals, churches and temples in Assisi are complemented by two medieval castles which overlook the area, the largest Rocca Maggiore. Predictably, the town was swamped with coachloads of tourists, like us suffering in 30⁰C of heat, but it was a pleasant town for a short wander and some lunch. Found time to visit the tomb of St Francis too.

 

Overnight at BV Grand Hotel Assisi https://www.bvgrandhotelassisi.com/ just to the south of the centre, mainly occupied by large groups of pilgrims from around the world. Truly underwhelming dinner and service. 

 

Moving time: 2h 58m.

 

Day 5

 

Now on a south-westerly track, this was the longest stretch of the tour with 100.5km and 1389m of climbing. Initially, 20 kms of steady pedalling via cycleways, some with gravel sections, and some awkward little switchbacks over drainage channels to the medieval village of Bevagna complete with a Roman bridge. 

From here a steady climb took us through fields of sunflowers, then up into olive groves and vineyards, and finally past stands of oak trees to a plateau with extensive views in all directions. And then, an unexpected challenge loomed…described by our guides as ‘a dangerous descent’, we turned in the direction of the hilltop town of Todi. First a sharp ramp to 12.6% immediately followed by a very steep descent, almost -15% in places on a heavily damaged road surface…ruts, holes, adverse camber and tight hairpin bends. Horrendous. Not to mention a final hot climb (max 14%) into the town itself. 

The demanding approach to Todi 

A nice lunch in the town’s piazza was a just reward for the effort.

Todi, a very attractive hill town, despite the arduous approach!

 

A steep cobbled descent from the centre brought us down to the valley of the Tevere river and eventually the Lago di Corbrara, where we crossed under the dam at the far end of the lake to reach Orvieto after two more climbs. The final uphill haul to Orvieto demanded our attention, with many close passes by huge trucks and the usual flow of impatient van drivers eager to get home after a day’s work. Very unpleasant. Perched on the flat summit of a large butte of volcanic tuff (consolidated ash), the city rises dramatically above the almost-vertical faces of tuff cliffs that are completed by defensive walls built of the same stone.

Final approach to Orvieto

Duomo di Orvieto

 

Established in the Etruscan era (900 BC - 27 BC, after which the Romans established control), Orvieto is famed for its Gothic cathedral, the Duomo di Orvieto founded in 1270, and its cuisine as part of the slow food movement. Overnight stop at Hotel Virgilio https://www.orvietohotelvirgilio.it/ right next to the Duomo…a great spot, and we sunk a well-earned beer or two as we watched a huge pilgrim group (c.1,300 souls from the Lake Como region) exit the cathedral after Mass. 

 

Great dinner in local trattoria and an enjoyable sampling of Decugnano Dei Barbi, an Orvieto Classico Superiore, and its red equivalent.

 

Moving time: 5h 36m. 

Day 6

 

Our penultimate day, 83.3km with 1387m of ascent, took us to Montemerano, through the region of Lazio into Tuscany. A day of rolling hills, deep volcanic canyons and natural hot springs.

 

Our start involved another ridiculously steep cobbled descent, max -13%, to exit Orvieto, not helped by locals in tiny Fiats trying to squeeze past. Then, up and over a 15km climb on good surfaces with nice views back to Orvieto, before descending to Lago di Bolsena, the largest volcanic lake in Europe formed when a circular area collapsed after the depletion of the underlying magmatic chamber that fed the whole volcanic district. Roman records show activity last occurred in 104 BC, but the area has been dormant since then. A chilled coffee stop on the lakeside in Bolsena town. 

View back to Orvieto

Bolsena

 

After traversing the northern shoreline of the lake, a 10km climb up the crater’s western rim took us to the day’s highpoint at about 40km before dropping down to Pitigliano for a pizza stop in this spectacularly situated town, albeit with temperatures now north of 31⁰C. 

Pitigliano

 

We’re now in the southernmost part of Tuscany (the province of Grosseto). The town was home to a long-lived Jewish community, mostly made up by people fleeing from Rome during the Counter Reformation persecutions in the 16^th and 17^th centuries. Pitigliano has a series of cuts into the tuff rock, some up to 10m in depth, used to channel water and some used for steps. A charming town with many small artisans working away on pottery, jewellery and wood carvings in tiny workshops.

 

The final lumpy stretch to Montemerano, busy at times, took us through crags of volcanic rock, intersected by deep valleys with thermal springs. And there was a final sting in the tail to be addressed…the infamous Mur di Valle Focosa (Ss74 on Veloviewer), a stupidly steep climb over 1.5km, averaging 10.5% and with one ramp peaking at 19%...needless to say, the Prez took a view on his longevity and walked 200m of the steepest section. Personally disappointing but the sensible choice! 

Our hotel was below the small hill village of Montemerano, classified as one of the most beautiful of Italian villages, the I Borghi più belli d'Italia, with walled fortifications which have surrounded the village since the 13^thcentury. None of us had the energy to ride up to see it though!

 

And just 6 km north of the village are the Terme di Saturnia, cascades of sulphur rich thermal spring waters at 37.5⁰C, but unfortunately no time to visit these.

Overnight at Villa Acquaviva https://www.villacquaviva.com/en, with an underwhelming dinner at the nearby companion restaurant of Osteria La Frasca. The local red wine, Morellino di Scansano DOCG (mainly Sangiovese) was adequate.

 

Moving time: 4h 30m

Day 7

 

Our final day! A relatively easy one, 72.8km with just 615m of climbing and a long flat finish to Porto Ercole. A cool start with a short descent followed by a steady 25km ascent to Scansano gave us magnificent views over the Tuscan heartlands. Thankfully little traffic and decent surfaces for most of this climb.

                                                                                                    Final day!

                                                                               Scansano

First view of the Tyrrhenian Sea

Coffee in Scansano, then an easy 30km descent through vineyards and olive groves down to the coast, and finally on to a narrow causeway to the peninsula of Promontorio dell’ Argentario to reach Porto Ercole (‘Port Hercules’) on the shores of the Tyrrhenian Sea. Lunch overlooking the sea in Gianella, then a short ride to our hotel. 

Moving time: 3h 45m

 

The peninsula was an island in the past, but the sea currents and the Albegna river joined it with the mainland through two so-called tomboli (stretches of land), the Tombolo of Giannella and the Tombolo of the Feniglia.

                                              The team, with guide Davide (R) enjoying a celebratory beer in Porto Ercole

...and our tour leader Mirko breathes a sigh of relief too!

Overnight at Porto Ercole Resort & Spa https://www.apointhotelsresorts.com/hotel-5-stelle-porto-ercole

This was a decent hotel and we enjoyed an excellent final dinner, accompanied by Bianco di Pitigliano DOC and the excellent Sangiovese/Merlot blend in the Tenuta di Gramineta from the Maremma region of Tuscany. Speeches and a rendition of ‘The Lion & Albert’…don’t ask!

Day 8

 

Uneventful flight back from Rome (1.75h transfer from Porto Ecole) to Stansted on Jet2. Far nicer than Ryanair, but BA Club still preferred!

 

Summary

 

A good sense of achievement to cross Italy from east to west, with some stunning hill towns and pleasant hill country. But some very steep sections, a lot of idiotic drivers and poor road surfaces took the edge off the trip for me. This route would have been very daunting, in fact downright dangerous, in bad weather.

Our Skedaddle guides Mirko and Davide were first class (and kudos too to the Skedaddle HQ team who were very helpful when booking the trip), and the group – Simon, David, Verity, Andrew and Jed – were great company on the hill and at leisure. Grazie mille!