If you’re staying in Bormio and want to climb the two most famous sides of the Stelvio Pass in one day, this is the loop for you.
This ride takes you through both Italy and Switzerland. It also takes you down some unforgettable descents: the incredible Umbrail Pass of the Swiss Alps and the Stelvio back to Bormio.
It’s a long, but massively fulfilling, day in the saddle.
All metrics in this article are approximate.
Umbrail Pass – Stelvio Loop highlights
Hitting the summit of the Stelvio not just once, but twice in a day!
The descent of the Umbrail Pass is out of this world.
Descending the Umbrail Pass with Stelvio Pass on horizon
View from the Stelvio Pass looking towards Prato
Umbrail Pass summit signRoute notes
1. Climb the Stelvio from Bormio: 0-22 km
Get all the details of the climb from Bormio in our guide. We set off at around 6am and it was cold in Bormio and freezing at the summit. The rule of thumb is that you lose 1°C for every 100m of climbing (so around 15°C different between valley and summit).
The upside of setting out early was that we had the road to ourselves.
On the way up the Stelvio from Bormio, before the ladder of switchbacks
Alpine valley after the switchback section – time for a short breather!
View from the WW1 monument2. Descend the Passo Umbrail to Santa Maria Val Müstair, Switzerland: 0-22-39 km
From the Stelvio mountain pass, drop down 3km back to the neglected gaggle of buildings and take the right-hand turn over the Italian border to the Umbrail Pass. At 2,501m, it’s Switzerland’s highest pass and, were it not for the adjacent Stelvio, it would probably be more famous than it is.
You pass through the security checkpoint and there’s a simple but beautiful war monument on the righthand side.
From here, you fly down never-ending switchbacks through green meadows surrounded by towering peaks. If your eyes dart up from the road, you’ll see the buildings on the Stelvio Pass high above. It’s amazing how quickly you lose all that elevation you struggled to gain such a short time ago!
Despite not being as famous as the Stelvio, it’s a superb road with beautiful scenery. The upside of being less famous is that it attracts less people. We found the surface in good condition – surfacing was only completed in 2015 and, other than for one section they were in the process of repairing, it was a nice ride.
From the exposed switchbacks at the top, you ride down and through an Alpine valley, complete with livestock and stone bridges crossing a roaring mountain stream. Below around 2,000m you’re into forest and it’s time to settle into the rhythm of descending the sweeping bends. Enjoy it; this is what you earned on the way up!
Just before you get into Santa Maria, there are some fabulous views of the town huddled in the bottom of the open valley.
At the top of the Umbrail Pass, looking back to the Stelvio Pass on the horizon
Sunny descent down the Umbrail Pass to Santa Maria val Müstair
Santa Maria val Müstair viewed from the Umbrail Pass road3. Santa Maria Val Müstair to Prato allo Stelvio: 39-60 km
From Santa Maria Val Müstair to the bottom of your final climb up the Stelvio it’s around 21 km of easy riding through the Müstair valley. Navigation-wise, it’s very easy too: you join the 2B in Santa Maria. This turns into the SS41 and it takes you all the way until you turn off for Prato allo Stelvio in Glorenza Clurns.
During this section you pass through various small, picturesque villages (and also the border back into Italy).
If you’re feeling in need of a break, this would be a good time for a light bite as you’ll still have a few kilometres to digest your food before hitting the last climb of the day – the small matter of the Stelvio for the second time.
Village in the Müstair Valley, Switzerland
Müstair valley road
Heading towards Prato and the Stelvio3. Climb the Stelvio from Prato allo Stelvio: 60-85 km
In Prato allo Stelvio you turn right, onto the SS38 which will take you to the top of the Stelvio Pass and all the way down the other side into Bormio.
You can get all the details of the Stelvio climb from Prato allo Stelvio in our guide.
Lower reaches of the Stelvio from Prato
Ladder of switchbacks to the Stelvio Pass from Prato
Enjoying the view!4. Descend the Stelvio to Bormio: 85-107 km
From the top of the Stelvio, it’s a fast descent down to Bormio. Don’t forget to be ready for the tunnels – when we were there some of them were controlled by traffic lights.
You’ll be feeling cold and tired by this point. We’d highly recommend putting on all available layers (we even ended up going to buy additional gloves before one of our descents!) and if you can have someone meet you with some extra clothes, so much the better.
The descent requires concentration and energy; you’ll want to have kept yourself properly hydrated and fuelled on the climb.
Spectacular views down Stelvio Pass road towards Bormio
Basic restaurant near Umbrail Pass turn
Be ready for the tunnels!Café stops
There are a fair number of restaurants, bars and cafés along this stretch between the Umbrail Pass and Stelvio.
Re-fuelling is much more limited once you’re on the Stelvio Pass – our guides of the climb from Bormio and from Prato contain further details. We didn’t see any refreshment stops on the Umbrail Pass.
Accommodation
We rode the Stelvio from Bormio. You can find out more about our stay and other hotel suggestions too in our article on the best places to stay to ride the Stelvio.
Tips
Read both our FAQs on cycling the Stelvio and our tips for cycling in Italy before you set out.
As you’ll appreciate, the Umbrail Pass and Stelvio descents are potentially dangerous. In many places there are no, or very low guardrails, despite dangerous vertical drops of hundreds of meters. Take care (and remember lights for the tunnels on the descent down to Bormio!).
Remember your passport – just in case the border guards ask!
You can check the Stelvio webcam here and the Umbrail webcam here.
Have you done this Umbrail Pass loop?
We’d love to hear from you – comment below!
Don’t miss our other guides to rides in the area: see the related rides section above or check these: Stelvio (from Bormio), Stelvio (from Prato), Bernina Pass loop, Mortirolo and Gavia loop and Cancano lake.
Check out our ultimate guide to cycling Bormio and other articles on Italy, below.
Please support Epic Road Rides
A huge amount of time and effort goes into the article you’ve just read, all with the aim of helping you!
If you found what you’ve read useful, I’d really appreciate it if you dropped something in the tip jar here.
It’s a way you can say thank you and help us carry on creating top quality content with no annoying ads and no pay wall.
Looking for an organised cycling trip?
If you want someone to help you plan and book your cycling holiday, fill out this form. We aren’t a tour operator/agent but we work with lots of people who are and will do our best to put you in touch with someone that can help (within 24 hours wherever possible)!
Clare Dewey is a cyclist with a passion for travel. She set up epicroadrides.com in 2018 to help make it easy for cyclists to explore the world by bike. Today her mission is still inspiring cyclists to discover new places on two wheels – and doing what she can to make sure they have the best possible time while they’re there. Clare has visited 50+ destinations around the world, many of them by bike.
The contents of this website are provided for general information purposes only. It is not intended to amount to advice and you should not rely on it. You should carry out your own due diligence and risk assessments and take professional advice. Views expressed by interviewees or other users of this website do not necessarily represent our views. We make no representations, warranties or guarantees, whether express or implied, that the content on our website is accurate, complete or up to date. If you use any information or content on this website, download from, or otherwise obtain content or services through our website, it is entirely at your own discretion and risk. Epic Road Rides Ltd disclaims all liability and responsibility arising from any reliance placed on the information and content on this website. Find out more here.
Yes. Remember your passport! You are going into Switzerland.
Absolutely! Were you stopped?
You don’t need a passport – both Italy and Switzerland are in the Schengen zone. There was a customs check going towards Prato but we whizzed through on bikes. No customs or anyone at the top of Umbrail.
Just got back from Stelvio area and heres my thoughts on The Stelvio loop.
Stayed in Bormio at The San Lorenzo Hotel, fantastic hotel, great staff, really good breakfasts, bike store with tools, bike wash etc, would thoroughly recommend it.
We did the Stelvio loop, what a day! Set off from Bormio, as described its a tough climb but easily doable, not any cafe or refreshment stops open on the way up. Got to The Umbrail Pass turn off and it started raining, descended down The Umbrail and it was wet, foggy and pretty grim. Stopped halfway down freezing cold and hungry to have Goulash soup, this was The Hotel Alpenrose.
Carried on down into the valley where the sun was shining and we had a beautiful ride down the valley to Prato. Had a brew and a cake and started off up the other side of The Stelvio. This is where it got interesting, it started to rain and the higher we went the harder the rain, it was also getting colder. We were a party of 4 and stayed together but the previous climbing and the weather were making us slow. We got approx 6km from the summit but decided that in worsening weather, time until it got dark and our own fitness we should turn around and head for Prato. We knew that this would mean we couldnt get back to Bormio as that was directly over the Stelvio. We descended back to Trafoi where we sought sanctuary at The Hotel Bellavista. Bravo to them, they gave us blankets and ordered us a taxi for us and our bikes. A couple of hours later and 230 euros lighter we were back in Bormio. Lessons we learnt:
You can be really fit, have all the correct gear ( which we did, rain jackets, leggings, full gloves etc) but the weather must always be respected. We later learnt it was snowing at the top of The Stelvio.
If you are riding unsupported it might be a good idea to have a back up plan and a taxi firm that will rescue you if you get into difficulty.
Also learnt that although we didnt complete the ride it was one of the best days on a bike for drama, scenery and a life experience.
Hi Ian, thanks so much for sharing your experience. The mountains here are serious and, as you say, the weather must be respected; you did the right thing to turn around, though that can be a difficult decision to make. So pleased it was still one of your best days on a bike. Sounds like it was memorable to say the least!