Everyman race of the Tour de France 2026: Start of registration for the spectacular queen stage to Alpe d'Huez

Next year, a new ascent variant to Alpe d'Huez will celebrate its premiere at the Tour de France. The queen stage leads from Bourg d'Oisans over 170 kilometres to Alpe d'Huez on the day before the arrival in Paris. The route includes the four Alpine passes Col de la Croix-de-Fer, Col du Télégraphe, Col du Galibier and finally the Col de Sarenne shortly before the stage finish in the Alpe d'Huez ski resort. This spectacular route to the stage finish does not include the famous 21 hairpin bends. This ascent variant is reserved for the pros on the 19th stage. Next year, Alpe d'Huez will be the stage finish of the Grande Boucle twice for the first time (information on the professional route can be found at here). A total of 5400 metres in altitude have to be mastered.

Amateur cyclists can try their hand at a super tough cycling marathon on the same route. The race for everyone on closed roads with timekeeping will take place on Sunday, 19 July 2026. Pre-registration runs until Monday, 3 November 2025 (2 pm). The procedure is new. In previous years, the coveted starting places were allocated just a few hours after the route presentation. This year there will be around 16,000 starting places. All information about the event and registration can be found on the event website (https://www.timeto.com/de/event/l-etape-du-tour-de-france). Unlike in previous years, when the start and finish were sometimes far apart, starting next year will not be a logistical challenge (you can find last year's TOUR experience report here).

From the finish, the famous 21 hairpin bends lead back to the starting point at the foot of the climb. If you want to see the pros, you should treat yourself to a week's holiday. On 24 and 25 July, one of the men's mountain stages around Tadej Pogacar and Jonas Vingegaard will finish in Alpe d'Huez.

According to organiser ASO, the route is the most difficult in recent years. The Tour de France's Tour for Everyone race has been taking place since 2007. Legendary climbs such as Mont Ventoux or Tourmalet were the challenges in the past. There will also be an opportunity for amateur cyclists to take part in the upcoming Tour de France Femmes. The women's Tour for everyone will take place on 6 August 2026 and leads up Mont Ventoux. You can find information about this event here here.