Cycle routes in Switzerland: which way and when
Switzerland: 9 routes with wind, rain and heat by month. The best month is most often September (8/9); data: ERA5 2006–2025.
Routes
| Route | Length | Best months | Best way |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lakes Route | 502 km | September | either |
| Alpine Panorama Route | 467 km | September | either |
| Mittelland Route (Romanshorn – Lausanne) | 379 km | September | either |
| North-South Route | 356 km | September | either |
| Rhone Route - Andermatt-Geneva (Chancy) | 345 km | August–September (peak September) | either |
| Aare Route | 310 km | September | either |
| Jura Route | 273 km | September | either |
| Graubünden Route | 250 km | August–September (peak August) | either |
| EuroVelo 6 - Atlantic-Black Sea - part Switzerland | 153 km | September | either |
Other routes through Switzerland
| Route | Length | Best months | Best way |
|---|---|---|---|
| EuroVelo 5 - Via Romea Francigena | 3,258 km | September–October (peak October) | either |
| EuroVelo 15 – Rhine Cycle Route | 1,346 km | September | either |
| Lake Constance Cycle Path | 261 km | September | either |
| Ciclovia Svizzera mare (Locarno – Novara) | 157 km | September–October (peak September) | either |
How to read the numbers
Wind is the 10 m wind of a 25-km grid cell, daytime hours 9:00–18:00 local solar time; at saddle height in a sheltered valley it is weaker, on a coast or ridge stronger. A positive value is a tailwind. ERA5 slightly over-counts days with ≥ 1 mm of rain (by about 5–7 percentage points) and underestimates daily highs by 1–2 °C. Good day = less than 1 mm of rain between 9:00 and 18:00 (riding hours, local solar time) and a high between 10 and 30 °C; rain at night or in the evening does not spoil it.