Switzerland, Ticino, Switzerland
A cobbled historic switchback climb that predates the modern Gotthard highway entirely.
Length
13 km
In miles
8.1 mi
Driving time
24 min
Atlas rating
9.5 / 10
The run
Airolo to Gotthard Pass. Drive it in either direction, though the views usually favour the climb.
Season
Closed roughly October to May
Nearby
12 km away
Furka Pass
Bond film hairpins skirt the Rhone Glacier on this high, exposed Alpine crossing.
15 km away
Oberalp Pass
A high, wide open pass paralleling the scenic Glacier Express rail line.
18 km away
Grimsel Pass
Granite reservoirs and stark rock walls line this dramatic climb from the Bernese Oberland.
23 km away
Susten Pass
A flowing, beautifully engineered road beneath the Steingletscher ice cliffs.
41 km away
Klausen Pass
A historic race road with narrow forested switchbacks opening onto high pastureland.
47 km away
San Bernardino Pass
A smooth historic alternative to the motorway tunnel with long views into the Misox valley.
Longer journeys
55m
Furka Pass
Furka takes about fifty five minutes end to end, longer if you stop at the Belvédère, and it is open from roughly June to October depending on snow clearance. It is not dangerous if driven with sense, the road is wide and immaculately surfaced, but the drop below the Belvédère hairpin is real and the weather can close in fast above 2,000 metres.
1h 05m
Grimsel Pass
Granite, reservoirs and a surface that flatters every car.
1h 15m
Susten Pass
Built for the view rather than the shortest line, and the finest surface in Europe.