City to city
The A6 and A7 take about nine hours. The Route Napoleon version takes three days and is one of the great European drives.
Direct route
518.8 mi
Scenic route
910.3 mi
Days to enjoy it
5 days
Great roads on route
7
Checked by the Drivers Atlas desk
Scored and written by the Drivers Atlas editorial desk, drawing on driven routes across the UK and Europe, mapping data and member road reports. Distances are planning estimates. The road list is drawn from the scored Atlas library inside this corridor. How we score roads.
Last reviewed 10 April 2026
The detour
The fast way
Motorway and trunk road for most of it, one fuel stop, nothing you will remember. Useful when the drive is a means to an end.
The good way
About 7 hr 59 min of that is spent on the great roads themselves, which is where the whole difference lies.
On the way
01 · France
A looping summit road above 2800 metres that circles the peak itself for maximum theatre.
14.9 mi · Rating 9.7 / 10
02 · France
The spine of the Route des Grandes Alpes, a relentless climb to one of driving's holiest summits.
11.2 mi · Rating 9.6 / 10
03 · France
The roof of the Route des Grandes Alpes, a stark granite amphitheatre above 2700 metres.
9.9 mi · Rating 9.6 / 10
04 · Italy
The road from the Italian Job, hairpins to a lake plateau at 2600 metres.
12.4 mi · Rating 9.6 / 10
05 · France
Cliff hugging ledge road staring straight down into Europe's grandest limestone canyon.
14.9 mi · Rating 9.6 / 10
06 · Switzerland
Three of the best passes in the Alps stitched into one loop back to the same valley.
74.6 mi · Rating 9.6 / 10
07 · France
Hairpins through larch forest give way to the lunar Casse Deserte, a surreal high altitude finale.
20.5 mi · Rating 9.5 / 10
Either end
More routes