Theme
Alpine passes
Drives that climb above the treeline — Brenner, Gotthard, Großglockner. Big elevation, big views, peak-season traffic to plan around.
Indexed routes
2
Total distance
442 km
Countries
2
Avg distance
221 km
When to drive
Late June through mid-September
High passes are seasonal: Großglockner, Stelvio, and Furka close November to May. Brenner and Tauern stay open year-round but can require winter tyres or chains. Late August traffic is the heaviest of the year — book overnights early.
Driving difficulty: Demanding
Routes in this theme
Cities anchoring this theme
Most-anchored origin and destination cities across the curated routes — sorted by how often each appears.
FAQ
- Do I need winter tyres?
- In Austria, Switzerland, and most of northern Italy, winter tyres are mandatory November–April when conditions warrant. Even outside that window, snow and ice on high passes are realistic from October to May. Carry chains for Großglockner and Stelvio.
- Are the high passes open in winter?
- No. Großglockner Hochalpenstrasse closes early November and reopens in May. Stelvio, Furka, and Susten follow similar windows. Brenner (A13 / E45) and the Tauern Autobahn stay open with winter equipment but can close briefly for snow clearance.
- Vignette or toll?
- Switzerland and Austria require an annual or 10-day vignette for motorways. Italy uses distance-based tolls; expect significant cost on the A22 Brenner corridor. Slovenia is vignette-only. Plan for a mix of payment systems on most cross-border alpine routes.
- How long should I plan for the drive?
- Climbing speeds on hairpinned passes drop the average to 35–50 km/h. Add lunch and viewpoint stops and a 200 km alpine day takes a full afternoon. Plan overnight stops; alpine driving fatigue is real, especially on right-hand-drive cars facing left-hand corners.