Ultimate cycling challenges 2025:
12 of the world’s best cycling events for your road cycling bucket list

3. RBC Gran Fondo Whistler

Our view

The Whistler Gran Fondo typically sees 5,000 participants, making it the largest Gran Fondo in North America. Normally a place associated with mountain biking, this event really puts a shine on the quality road cycling in the area.

The gran fondo crosses the iconic Lions Gate bridge before travelling along the world-famous Sea-to-Sky highway descending towards the Pacific Ocean before rising again up to Whistler in what can only be described as one of the best road cycling events in 2025.

Conclusion

A rare chance to ride an award-winning Gran Fondo in an incredible setting. This is up there amongst the top road cycling events you could choose for 2025. Prefer to experience the Sea-to-Sky highway at a more leisurely pace? Check out this cycling itinerary from Vancouver to Prince Rupert.

Opportunity to cycle the iconic Lions Gate Bridge in Vancouver

If you’d like a nice reminder of your sportive, these beautiful GPX-based prints are a great idea. More details at the bottom of this article!

Example Bilbao to Barcelona ride

Example LEJOG ride

European cycling challenges (inc. UK)

Here’s a look at some of the best cycling events in Europe in 2025.

4. Trans Pyrenees race

Our view

The Trans Pyrenees is one of the most well-known cycling challenges in Europe: a self-supported, ultra-distance cycling event which takes the form of a 1,074 kilometre route (27,000m of climbing) from the Atlantic Coast to the Mediterranean. It includes some of the most mythical and challenging cols in the Pyrenees such as the Pailhères, Peyresourde, Tourmalet, Luz-Ardiden, Aubisque and Marie Blanque.

Starting in the Basque city of San Sebastian, the route takes an easterly route through some spectacular remote scenery in the Pyrenees, ending in the far north eastern corner of Spain near its border with France in the town of Llançà.

This is not a traditional sportive as it takes the form of a self-supported, bike packing challenge where all competitors have to follow the official route and find their own food and drinks.

Note: this is a different event to the new 1,500km self-supported Trans Pyrenees event run by the same team as the Transcontinental Race. That route goes from the Bay of Biscay to the Balearic Sea and back again – both are great options for multi day cycling events 2025.

Conclusion

This is a classic bike ride challenge that will attract the fittest of ultra endurance riders and those who are able to climb – certainly not a cycling challenge for beginners.

If you’re interested in riding across the Pyrenees outside of the Trans Pyrenees race, read our article on Trans Pyrenees route to experience this as a cycling holiday. You might also like our Raid Pyrenees article.

5. Tour du Mont Blanc

Our view

Referred to as “the world’s toughest one day bike race”, there is only one word to describe one of the most popular long distance cycling events in France – brutal.

Starting at 5am in the French ski resort of Les Saisies, you have the daunting challenge of 330 kilometres (210 miles) with 8,300 metres of elevation to complete in just one day!

The route, which circles Mont Blanc, runs clockwise through the Chamonix valley and the Col de Forclaz before a long descent into Switzerland. There’s then a long climb up the Col du Grand St Bernard which takes you over the Italian border into Aosta. Having climbed the Col du Petit St Bernard you are back in France heading for Bourg St. Maurice and after another col, the Cormet de Roselend, there is a final ascent back to the starting point.

Conclusion

If you are looking for a double century cycling challenge in 2025 that’s going to push you to the limits (and beyond!) then this is the one!

 

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6. Transcontinental race

Our view

The Transcontinental Race describes itself as “the definitive self-supported bicycle race across Europe”, and it’s one of the ultimate cycling challenges you can complete – it’s considered one of the great bucket list cycling events.

It is an epic endurance race spanning the breadth of the European continent on open roads across several countries.

The course is altered each year. In the 2024 edition, the route began in Roubaix in France, and ended in Istanbul in Turkey. 2023’s race ran from Geraardsbergen, Belgium all the way to Burgas, Bulgaria.

There are multiple checkpoints that the riders must pass through for their ride to be counted. Similar to other endurance races, this is a totally self-supported challenge, with the rider choosing how long to stop to rest and being responsible for sourcing their own food and drink.

Conclusion

The Transcontinental is often viewed as the ultimate endurance challenge, and without doubt, it’s one of the best cycling challenges 2025 will have to offer anyone.

You can read our Q&A with former Transcontinental winner, Emily Chappell, here.

7. Land’s End to John O’Groats (on the Deloitte Ride Across Britain event)

Our view

LEJOG is often referred to as the ‘Daddy’ of all cycling challenges in the UK, and is a rite of passage for many road cyclists. It starts at Land’s End in south west Cornwall and ends at John O’Groats in northern Scotland. There are many different routes, with the shortest being around 900 miles, but if you decide to avoid major roads and add on the additional mileage to your accommodation each evening, most participants complete around 1,000 miles on the challenge.

Often, people who enter LEJOG are aligned to a charity as part of a charity cycling challenge. It’s been completed on lots of different sorts of bikes from conventional road bikes, to fixed gear bikes, tandems and even a penny farthing! Some even walk the route.

Of course, you can ride Land’s End to John O’Groats (LEJOG) in the UK at any time of year, but the Deloitte Ride Across Britain makes an event out of the LEJOG route.

The Ride Across Britain (“RAB”) is billed as the challenge of a lifetime and this 9 day marathon covers 980 miles through some of the best and beautiful landscape you will find. The event is extremely well organised and fully supported. All you really need is your bike as food, drinks, mechanical and medical support plus a tent for each night is provided. The event has also started to develop as a corporate charity challenge.

Since 2022, RAB has switched to become a bi-annual event.

Conclusion

LEJOG is probably the biggest UK endurance challenge, a truly epic challenge that’s sometimes beset by adverse weather and is guaranteed to push every participant to their physical and mental limits.

If you’re interested in reading more about LEJOG, this in-depth article on LEJOG shares what to expect and a lot of useful information.

Milepost sign at John O Groats in Scotland

 

8. Coast to Coast challenge

Our view

Much more achievable than riding south to north on LEJOG, the Coast to Coast Cycle Challenge takes two days to traverse England from the west coast in Whitehaven, Cumbria, to Whitley Bay, Tyne & Wear, on the east coast.

The route of 225 kilometres from the Atlantic Ocean to the North Sea takes you across some of the best scenery the country has to offer as well as giving you the opportunity to track along the ancient fringes of Hadrian’s Wall.

Day one takes in the super steep ascents of both Hardknott and Wrynose passes in the Lake District as you cover the first 105 kilometres to the overnight stop in Alston. The following day tracks through the Northumberland National Park as you head towards and then bypass Newcastle upon Tyne before finishing at the lighthouse at Whitley Bay.

As with LEJOG there are other (west to east) routes that you can take to fulfil one of the most popular UK cycling challenges around. Also, many people do it with different charities/travel operators or DIY outside of an official event. If you are really up for a challenge, then why not do it all in one day?

Conclusion

The Coast to Coast is a more manageable UK endurance challenge than LEJOG, while still being a fantastic event to be part of. If you want to take your first steps into completing bike challenges, before hitting the really epic cycling events, this is a great starting point.

Rest of the world

Here are some of the best cycling races and events around the rest of the world.

10. Cape Town Cycle Tour

Our view

This Cape Town cycling event has now become one of the largest timed cycling sportives in the world. Formerly known as “The Argus”, the event attracts more than 35,000 cyclists from all over the globe each year and concludes an eight-day ‘Lifecycle week’, and is a city-wide celebration of all things cycling.

This extremely popular event takes in 109 kilometres (1,220 metres of elevation) of scenic beauty as it loops around the Cape.

Starting in the city centre, the route circles the Cape Peninsula; it starts and finishes close to Table Mountain, which is one of the seven natural wonders of the world.

After the start, the route makes its way southerly down the west coast to Smitswinkel before turning north and west towards Scarborough and the Atlantic coastline before encountering the two climbs of Chapmans Peak and Suikerbossie. The sportive finishes with a downhill run into the Green Point area.

This cycling event in the western Cape is renowned for first class planning. The route has no less than 16 refreshment stations and 2,500 volunteers at hand to ensure it passes off smoothly and efficiently.

2023 introduced a shorter out-and-back route at just 42 kilometres, if you don’t feel like traditional route is for you. This remains an option for 2025.

Conclusion

A long-established, very well-organised event in an iconic location.

Stunning Cape Town, South Africa

 

11. Taiwan KOM Challenge

Our view:

Note: as of November 2024, the organisers have not yet announced details for the 2025 event, so the information here is based on previous events. It was a similar situation last year – the event is not organised as far in advance as other cycling events around the world.

Staged every October, the KOM challenge is quickly becoming one of the most talked about cycle challenges in the world.

Starting at Qixingtan beach by the Pacific Ocean at zero metres altitude, the 105 kilometre route takes you along severe uphill gradients (the last 8 kilometres see inclines between 17% – 27%) and through the majestic Taroko gorge before topping out at the peak of Mount Wuling at 3,275 metres.

The event is staged in the cycling ‘off season’ and attracts a number of professional riders. In 2017 the Italian Vincenzo Nibali broke the course record, adding afterwards that it had been the longest and hardest climb of his life. His record was broken by three minutes in 2023 by the winner of the race, Benjamin Dyball of Australia.

Conclusion

If you want iconic cycle challenges in 2025, something quirky and unique, then this is the perfect one for you.

This article contains more information on the Taiwan KOM Challenge and this article has more general information on cycling in Taiwan.

12. Amy’s Gran Fondo

Our view

Amy’s Gran Fondo has very quickly established itself as one of the most popular mass-participation bike rides in Australia.

It attracts more than 10,000 riders from all over the world, with a particular emphasis on rider safety and ensuring that the event caters for cyclists of all abilities.

The event starts and finishes in Lorne, Victoria and is a closed road granfondo held arguably on one of the most picturesque destinations on the planet – the Great Ocean Road.

As part of the UCI Gran Fondo Competition, the long route takes in 130 kilometres and 1,900 metres of vertical elevation. There’s a shorter 45 km route if you don’t want to try the full fondo, and a family event for just 13 km encourages cyclists as young as 6 to try their first big event.

Conclusion

Amy’s Gran Fondo is one of the premier Australian cycling events, with the highlight being the opportunity to ride the Great Ocean Road.

(For anyone looking to ride in the region, check out our guide to the area, here. For those looking for something even more challenging, check out the Peaks Challenge Falls Peak!)