Uk to Furka - Routes wanted from Ypres

DaveC22

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Hi guys. Im planning to do a trip to The Furka pass from the uk. After the tunnel ill be spending the first night in Ypres. Any one have suggestions for routes to Furka from Ypres avoiding motorways and tolls, bike friendly cafes, hotels etc. I have 1 week for the round trip back to UK.
Cheers.

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Title edited and moved from trip reports.

Richard
 
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I think the highlighted route there should be the black forest or romantic strasse route or part of. Done a few times (but in a day and a half from Switzerland) on the way back to the UK.
It's pleasant to ride and flowing enough to make some decent progress. Join through the Ardennes maybe.

Screenshot 2026-05-06 at 08.59.27.jpg

That leaves you enough time to ride around passes in Switzerland, and still have a relatively fast-ish ride from/to the UK.
Done it a few times.

Or you can go through the Vosges themselves, taking more time and doing a non-stop loop.
The Swiss rollercoaster takes one day to ride, so it can be on single stop in Switzerland and a slightly more interesting/curvy route to/from the UK. Depend on how much time you want to spend where. But plenty of options.

Word of advice: you really want to be able to jump on the motorway in Switzerland, as clearing some areas on Swiss "A or B roads" at the bottom of the valley can be both dull and very slow. Don't exclude motorways completely.
 
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If you only have a week to get there and back mate it’ll be long days.

So many variables, if you PM me we can have a chat.

I know the area well, with limited time I’d go East towards Cologne then SE towards Trier on motorway, then go through the black Forrest N to S on good roads, staying on the southern end of Forrest at the Swiss border.

Then hit the passes.

Reverse on way back.

No tolls to pay.

You could have mega long days on A roads, but with such limited time, and if the Swiss passes are your target, this route is a decent compromise I’d say.

You should get 2 days on target as it were then head back. 👍🏽

Either way, don’t overthink or over plan or over pack.

Have great time
 
What part of “I’m planning” involves other people telling you lengthy journeys, along with bikermate digs, scran and (for all we know) petrol stations along with ‘stuff to see and do’? :D

:beerjug:

Why go to Ypres from the Chunnel, when your destination is the Furka pass?

You have little enough time as it is, if you intend to avoid motorways. Avoiding them, means a journey (one way) of about 1,000 kms, call it 650 miles, between Calais and the feckin’ Furka, without the detour to Ypres.

PS When is the trip ‘planned’ to be?
 
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Wapping said:
What part of “I’m planning” involves other people telling you lengthy journeys, along with bikermate digs, scran and (for all we know) petrol stations along with ‘stuff to see and do’?

:beerjug:

Why go to Ypres from the Chunnel, when your destination is the Furka pass?

You have little enough time as it is, if you intend to avoid motorways. Avoiding them, means a journey (one way) of about 1,000 kms, call it 650 miles, between Calais and the feckin’ Furka, without the detour to Ypres.

PS When is the trip ‘planned’ to be?
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There's always one brave keyboard warrior. No doubt a face to face would end in the old "i was only joking mate" as flight outweighed fight.
 
Oh, and I put a little smiley face on it, too.

Which doesn’t really answer the question as to why you detour to Ypres, when you leave Calais, enroute for Switzerland, avoiding motorways.

Are we to assume the week’s round trip includes whatever time you spend getting to and being in Ypres?

But hey, here’s a route, avoiding motorways and reasonably twisty:


IMG_8518.jpeg

Pick a spot about halfway along and ask Google maps to give you the hotels. Pick one that suits your budget and expectations.

When are you off?
 
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Me? I’d decide what was most important on my holiday.

Ypres?

The non-motorway, twisty roads, to Switzerland and the Furka pass in particular?

Riding the Furka in whatever direction(s)?

The non-motorway, twisty roads, back from Switzerland?

And compare each varying in importance item with the time available and the distances involved.

If I decided that the ride down to the Furka trumped the lot, I’d consider how far I’d ride each day on lesser roads. 300 miles is certainly possible, assuming you don’t dawdle seeing and doing ‘stuff’ all through the day and / or don’t leave at 11:00, linger over coffees in biker friendly cafes and don’t sit down for the four course special at lunchtime, all while expecting to be slipping into the pool at your biker friendly hotel by 15:00.

Maybe it’s the Furka pass that’s key and you want to maximise your time there?

Maybe there is a special event that means that Ypres has to come straight after Calais and before you do anything else?

Really, there are so many variables in your plan, you maybe need to give the forum a bit more of a guide and / or start to plan something out for yourself. It really is part of the fun and a bit of independence over “Tell me how and where to go, thanks”.

PS 300 miles is Stoke on Trent to Dundee. Would you ride that in a day, avoiding motorways….. and then repeat the operation the next day and repeat it again (twice) within the week?

PPS Can we assume your week’s round trip excludes the journey time from Stoke on Trent to the coast of mainland Europe and back?
:beerjug:

One last thought. A very quick look at a half decent map or even Google maps, will show that the immediate south of Ypres is a congested mess, where you may well collide with Lille, Lens and Tournai. At least consider taking the motorways there; nobody will ever know.

IMG_1989.jpeg
 
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Guru Gora said:
if you PM me we can have a chat.
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Unfortunately, the OP has not subscribed to the forum. It’ll have to be smoke signals, semaphore or runners with cleft sticks. If it’s after dark, an Aldis lamp might be handy.
 
From Stoke, he has my sympathy. Worse than Blackpool
 
Wapping said:
Unfortunately, the OP has not subscribed to the forum. It’ll have to be smoke signals, semaphore or runners with cleft sticks. If it’s after dark, an Aldis lamp might be handy.
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He’s certainly a touchy furka ! 🤔😜
 
You lot scared him off.
 
DaveC22 said:
Hi guys. Im planning to do a trip to The Furka pass from the uk. After the tunnel ill be spending the first night in Ypres. Any one have suggestions for routes to Furka from Ypres avoiding motorways and tolls, bike friendly cafes, hotels etc. I have 1 week for the round trip back to UK.
Cheers.

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Title edited and moved.

Richard
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What’s a bike friendly cafe ? Does your bike have a penchant for a flat white ?
 
Not sure if your week is 7 days, or a week off work with the weekend at each end giving 9 days.

I have gone via Black Forest and via the Vosges in the past, either way you end up with a bit of clutter to work through at some point, to predominantly avoid motorways you need 2 days from Ypres to have a nice ride, assuming to Ypres was your first day, you have now used 3 of your 7/9, you could then take 2 or 3 days to get home, leaving you between 1-4 days in Andermatt, assuming decent weather then 3 days is plenty for some good ride outs from Andermatt;

Here is a route I smashed together in 10 mins, gets you off motorway quite early and takes you through the Ardennes and then into Luxembourg, down to the Black Forest and from there to Andermatt, play with it, drag it about a bit, decide where you might wanna stop;


And a way back taking in a bit of the Vosges and mainly avoiding motorways over an easy enough 2 days to get to Saint Quentin (Hotel Le Florence is great for a 1st / last night)


Again you can piss about, make it faster / slower, possibly tweak it to get home in 2 days, or zig-zag a bit more in the Vosges and make it a 4 day return, the options are endless, personally I take a longer route out and shorter one back, and often, after the Alps places like the Vosges and Black Forest can seem a little bit of an anti-climax, even more so the Ardennes, but heading out having been used to British roads once you get onto that road to Montherme it is bloody heaven, ridden it maybe a dozen times now and it is always great (weather permitting of course)

A lot depend on if you have 7 or 9 days to play with, but for Andermatt you have the figure 8 loop, and a couple of other day out options, 3 full days there should give you a good chance of covering some ground, even if one is a washout, I have been lucky and in the 7-8 days I have spent riding in / around the area on 3-4 trips I have only had a couple of cold / damp days, and mainly great weather.

Some ride outs;





https://www.myrouteapp.com/route/open/6930199

https://www.myrouteapp.com/route/open/837195

Er, sure you cannot make it 2 weeks?
 
DaveC22 said:
….. bike friendly cafes, hotels etc.
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All the OP needs now is the bike friendly cafes, hotels etc. and his planning will be complete :D

He may though needs to clarify what ‘etc’ embraces. Car parks? Views? Shopping centres? Hospitals? Cake shops?

:beerjug:

PS Here’s some tips:

Key Sights & Tips
  • James Bond Bend: Stop for a photo at the iconic Goldfinger hairpin turn.
  • Hotel Belvédère: Known for its appearance in Goldfinger, this abandoned hotel is a popular spot near the top.
  • Rhone Glacier: Access the glacier grotto near the hotel.
  • Best Time: Go in summer for the best weather, though it can still storm; always check local forecasts.
Route Continuation
The Furka Pass is often combined with the neighboring Grimsel Pass (via Gletsch) or the Nufenen Pass for a full day of riding or driving
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Ypres to Furkapass?
Follow the Belgian border, via Bouillon and the twisty roads. Then down through the Vosges past Besancon.
As has been said. Time is tight if this is a 1 week round trip. Is that from Ypres…or from UK?
Furka is superb. But Swiss are red hot on speeding with heavy fines, so factor in NOT making significant progress once over the border.
This https://www.coldebussang.com/ could be on your route, biker orientated accommodation. Though imo, a little basic. It does have covered parking from memory. Watch for the speed camera near to the entrance!
 
JonnyBravo said:
Love it when people post MRA routes - literally a quick tap - app opens on your phone and you can review the route in detail.
App is worth every penny.
My go to.
Garmin days are long gone.
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It is well worth the effort of planning routes. Esp folks who have one week away, why not make sure you get the best roads?
I use an ipad to view googlemaps (and streetview etc) for detail, and have MRA route planner open alongside.
2 weeks to my next foray…funnily enough, down the French/Belgian border and in to the Vosges..
 
J biker said:
It is well worth the effort of planning routes. Esp folks who have one week away, why not make sure you get the best roads?
I use an ipad to view googlemaps (and streetview etc) for detail, and have MRA route planner open alongside.
2 weeks to my next foray…funnily enough, down the French/Belgian border and in to the Vosges..
Click to expand...
I’m just about to do that trip… hopefully to the Jura… we leave the uk on 23rd May
 
I’m planning on heading to the Ardennes, then follow the River Meuse to Epinal… then across to Vosges…then turn right to the Jura….


That’s errr my planning so far
 
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