From London to Brindisi through France, Belgium, Luxembourg and Switzerland. Eurovelo 5 starts in the UK and ends in Italy for a total le
From London to Brindisi through France, Belgium, Luxembourg and Switzerland.
Eurovelo 5 starts in the UK and ends in Italy for a total length of about 3,900 km on the same route as the ancient Via Romea Francigena.
Canterbury
The official departure of the route is at Greenwhich, a well-known London suburb, location of the Astronomical Observatory, from which, by convention, passes the zero meridian.
The English section mostly runs smoothly between residential neighborhoods and countryside. An important stage is that of Canterbury, whose cathedral was a major stopover for pilgrims who went to Rome on this same road. Then you proceed to the white cliffs of Dover for boarding for France.
Once you land at Boulogne-sur-Mer, important crossroads for the Eurovelo network, the route continues towards Lille. This stretch is rather lively with a fast alternation of ups and downs with slopes around 9%. After passing Lille you go back to the plain and after about 30 km you cross the border with Belgium.
From here, you enter always more and more in the Flanders region until the magnificent city of Brussels, the capital of the country and home to many EU government bodies. It’s worth staying in the city so you can enjoy Belgian history, culture, beer and chocolate! Going further, you enter the Walloon region closer to Luxembourg.
The latter is a particular state in which is spoken a dialect in half between German and French. The nation takes its name from its homonymous capital where you arrive after having pedaled 45 km after the border. Luxembourg city is a curious contrast to ancient and modern buildings, however, which coexist harmoniously. Noteworthy is also the town of Schengen, here was signed the international agreement that allows you to move from a state to other of the EU without displaying documents.
Eurovelo 5 now plans another long stretch (about 340 km) in France until the Swiss border. The regions of Lorraine and Alsace are then crossed on flat paths and immersed in the greenery. Shortly before joining Switzerland you will also find the “Rhine Bicycle Track” and you will travel on it for a short stretch.
At this point the route crosses the Swiss Confederation from north to south, passing through Basel and Lucerne. The Swiss landscape is very green with woods and pastures alternating with watercourses and lakes, pedal in this landscape is a really enjoyable experience. Great challenge of the route is the 35 km climb necessary to crosses the Alps where slopes vary between 6% and 10%. After overcome this difficulty, you have now reached the Canton Ticino and you have to continue for Lungano.
Brindisi – Freddyballo (Wikipedia) CC BY-SA 3.0
The route crosses the Italian border to Chiasso and leads to the Pianura Padana in the direction of Milan and then from Pavia continuing to run down the boot to Fidenza from which the original route of the Via Francigena will go until Rome. After passing the Italian capital, Eurovelo 5 continues through Campania and Puglia until Brindisi along fairly busy roads, but that it leaves it whenever possible.
Please note: Not all route sections have been completed yet, we recommend that you check the Eurovelo official website for more information.