Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes 2026 Route stage 1: Vizille - Saint-Ismier

Sunday 7 June - The Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes opens with 146.2-kilometre hilly race featuring 3,160 metres of elevation gain. The last climb rises over 8.2 kilometres at 7.6% before the riders fly down a 7.6 kilometres descent to the line.

The Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes gets under way with a demanding opening stage featuring a challenging start. The road rises gradually in the opening kilometres, before an uncategorised climb of 5.5 kilometres at 4.3% begins at kilometre 8. After that, the road continues to drag uphill for around 10 kilometres at close to 3% on the approach to the intermediate sprint, which comes after 22.3 kilometres of racing.

Bienvenue en Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes!

The road continues to rise gently after the intermediate sprint before a short descent leads into a proper ramp: 2.4 kilometres at 9.4%. It marks the start of the Col de l'Arzelier, which totals 8.6 kilometres at an average gradient of 5.7%.

The riders then descend to the Drac and follow the river upstream towards Grenoble. Just before reaching the city, they leave the valley for two short climbs above the western bank. The first is the Col de Comboire (3.1 kilometres at 5.7%, uncategorised), followed by the Côte de Seyssins (2.6 kilometres at 6%).

After another descent back into the valley and 12 kilometres of flat roads, the riders tackle the Côte de Quaix-en-Chartreuse on the northern side of Grenoble. This ramp rises for 2.3 kilometres at 9.2% before the Col de Vence adds, with virtually no descent in between, 5.1 kilometres at 6%.

From the summit, the riders descend into the Isère valley, where the final climb of the day awaits on the other side of the river. The Côte de Rousset climbs for 8.2 kilometres at an average gradient of 7.6%. The road does not descend immediately after the summit, but a few kilometres later the riders finally begin the plunge towards Le Versoud. From there, a 7.6-kilometre false flat run-in leads to the finish.

The first three riders across the line gain time bonuses of 10, 6 and 4 seconds, while 3, 2 and 1 seconds are available at the intermediate sprint.

Fancy riding the route yourself? Download GPX 1st stage 2026 Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes 2026.

Stage 1 of the Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes starts at 11:00 and finishes around 14:50 - both local times (CEST).