The 2026 Tour de France route explained

The 2026 Tour de France will feature back-to-back finishes at Alpe d’Huez in the final days of the race, as well as major new climbs in the Pyrenees and Alps.

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The 2026 tour to France will feature backto back finishes at Alp Duets in the final days of the race as well as major new climbs in the Pyrenees and Alps. After weeks of speculation and rumor, the route was formally presented in Paris on Thursday by race director Christian. The tour gets underway with a team time trial in Barcelona on Saturday, July 4th, and concludes in Paris on Sunday, July 26th. There is a total of 54,450 m of climbing across 21 days with eight mountain stages and five summit finishes in a tour that will visit the Pyrenees, the Massive Central, Devoge, Dejura and the Alps. The summit finishes will be at the gi on stage six, plateau deleon on stage 15 andier melet on stage 18 ahead of the backto back finales on Albu. Stage 19 will see the race climb the Alp by a traditional route taking the famous 21 hairpins but a day later the race will climb to Albu by the way of the Karen for a new summit finish. It’s a course that will surely appeal to both four-time winner today Pagotcher and twotime champion Yonas Fingle, but it might meet with a more muted response from Remco Aanipool given the relative dir of time triing. There is just one individual test on the course, the 26 km time trial to Tono Leban at the beginning of the third week. The 19 km open team time trial in Barcelona meanwhile will see times taken individually at the finish at top Monik. Despite Gvenu’s threat to remove sprint stages from the tour, the fasten will have several opportunities in 2026. Though the mountainous start means they will have to survive some Pyreneian climbs before the first chance of a mass finish in Po on stage 5. In total, there are seven possible sprint stages on the route. Week one, the Grande Park in Barcelona was unveiled last year and the 2026 tour will begin with a team time trial with a twist in the Catalin city. Times will be taken individually at the finish, which means teams will essentially be providing a high-speed leadout for their captains ahead of the final climb to Monik. On week is climbed a number of times in the final of stage two which should provide an early springboard for skirmishes between Pagachio and Vingugu much like the Baskin Italian star tours of 2023 and 2024. The tour crosses into France by the way of the Ketus on stage three marking an early entry into the Pyrenees and the finish at Desong comes at top a short steep climb of 1.7 km. Stage four through the Aries features the Kodur, though the climb is perhaps too far from the finish with 34 kilometers to inspire Fzone among the GC men. After the flat run to Po on stage five, the tour re-enters the Pyrenees for the first fullblown mountain stage of the race. Stage six combines with the old and the new with the kulaspa and the kural proceeding the new summit finish on the long but steady climb 18.7 km at 4% to the spectacular dei. The following two days to Bordeaux and Berak should appeal to the sprinters while the opening week concludes with a rugged stage nine through the toel. It should be a day for the break, but in the Pagasher Wingor era, every day is a GC day. And with 3,300 meters of climbing, including the asense of Sukum and Mesu, there could be surprises, week two. After the first rest day detour resumes on Bastil, they would a stage through the massive central that promises fireworks. The K deul Perol and Ketus all feature ahead of the finish at the ski station of Leur where Vingo so dramatically beat Patcher in 2024. Two days ostensibly for the sprinters follow to Ne and Shalon before the tour’s longest leg from D to Belor on stage 13. The climb of the bottom delas comes in the middle of the 205 km stage and might be the platform for the GC men to go on the offensive. The tour remains in the vo on stage 14 with the kipage paral proceeding to finish at Lstein where Tibopino signed off on his tour career in 2023. The climbing continues on stage 15 as the tour reaches the Jua. After taking in the Koda Quazette, the riders tackled the tough new summit finish at Patles, which is 11.3 kilometers at 9.1%. Week three, the tour’s lone individual time trial comes after the second and final rest day. The 26 km test along the shores of Lake Geneva is a rolling one and should suit Remco even a pool. Don’t they all? But cumulative fatigue will play a significant role at this point, too. Stage 17 to Vu will be a classic battle between the break and the remaining sprinters before the tour begins its mountain finale on stage 18 to Marlet. The place will forever be synonymous with Lio Kenya unfinished symphony on the 1971 tour. The summit finish at 7.1 km at 6.7% will be a prelude to a more demanding fair over the following 2 days. At just 128 km in length, stage 19 is likely to be an explosive one. The climbs of the Kulayak and the Kuno come immediately after the start. While the short Koro precedes the classic finale on Alp with its 13.8 km at 8.1%, it returns for the first time in 4 years. The terrible beauty of this year’s visit is that the writers must do it all again the following day, albeit from the other side. Stage 20 is the most demanding on the entire tour with four mighty mountain passes on the menu. The 171 kilometer light begins with the 2,000 m high K and then takes in the Kle. The highest point of the tour follows as the race hits the 2,642 m top of the Kibia. After a sweeping descent, the race climbs the Karen at 12.8 km at 7.3%. From the summit, there is a 15 km section of rugged plateau roads towards a finish at alduz, including a 3.7 km cake to the line. Just like in 2025, three ascents of the bit provide the finale to the tour on stage 21. Though a concession has been made to sprinters as there will be an additional lap of the Jean before the finish. So, what are your thoughts on this parkour? Do you like it? Do you hate it? Who’s going to win? Who’s going to crack? Let us know in the comments. [Music]