2026 Giro d'Italia route revealed which will delight Sprinters

Bulgaria hosts the start of a Grand Tour for the very first time in its history, with the 2026 Giro d'Italia starting on May 8th in Nessebar and finishing in Rome on May 31st, 2026.

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Next year's race features a longer 40 km time trial, seveal mountain stages in the Alps and Apennines and summit finishes atop legendary climbs including Blockhaus, Corno alle Scale, Pila, Cari, Alleghe and Piancavallo. The mountain top finish in Cari takes the race briefly into Switzerland.

It will also be a great race for Sprinters and theire Sprint Trains with many flat stages, and chances for breakaway specialists to bag a stage win too.

Bulgaria Start

A special Grande Partenza starts in Bulgaria, the eastern-European nation will host the start with three stages, that will also delight the Sprinters on stages 1 and 2.

Into Italy

On the first rest day, riders fly to southern Italy before two hilly stages into Cosenza and Potenza which could see the first attacks in the fight for the Pink Jersey, as the race heads north. towards the mountains.

Stage 6 is a classic sprint stage into Naples, before the first big mountain stage finishing atop the mightly Blockhaus on Friday May 15th. Stage 8 is also the longest stage of the Giro at 246 km, a Coastal run through Sperlonga and Gaeta, then into Abruzzo. Blockhaus climbed from Roccamorice, the hardest side: final 10 km consistently around, or above, 10%.

Stage 8 is another stage for the Sprinters into Fermo.

The first week rounds off with a mountain top finish in Corno alle Scale on stage 9 which could also show signs of who the GC favorites are. A flat start with increasingly rolling terrain into the Tuscan-Emilian Apennines, ending uphill at Corno alle Scale. The Final climb alternates steep ramps with easier stretches.

2026 Giro d’Italia Second Week

The second week starts with a completely flat 40km individual time trial, expected to be extremely fast with winding bends curves around Viareggio and Torre del Lago Puccini and straight coastal section where top specialists will hit 60 km/h.

Sprinters will once again be delighted with 2 stages into Novi Ligure and Verbania as the race heads north into the Alps.

Stage 14 is a brutal stage with over 4,000 m of climbing. Riders traverse Aosta's "balconies" with a summit finish in Pila, one mountain stage that should be quite brutal.

Stage 15 will delights fans and Sprinters with a classic flat stage finishing in Milan.

2026 Giro d’Italia Third and Final Week

If the GC competition hasn't been decided yet, it will all become clear with a tricky uphill finish in Andalo on Stage 17 and then two mountain top finishes. The second of those to Alleghe (Piani di Pezze) on stage 19, the Queen Stage, is a brutal day in the Dolomites featuring theascents of the mightly Passo Giau (Cima Coppi, 2236 m) and Passo Falzarego and over 5,000m of climbing!

The final mountain stage of the race will feature a double ascension of Piancavallo on Stage 20 where Tom Dumoulin battled to stay in the pink jersey in 2017.

Sprinters once again will be delighted with a classic sprint finish into Rome on Stage 21 on May 31st, 2026.

2026 Giro d’Italia Stage List

Stage	Date	Start → Finish	Distance	Type
1	Fri, May 8	Nessebar → Burgas	156 km	Flat
2	Sat, May 9	Burgas → Veliko Tarnovo	—	Rolling
3	Sun, May 10	Plovdiv → Sofia	—	Sprint
4	Tue, May 12	Catanzaro → Cosenza	—	Medium Mountain
5	Wed, May 13	Praia a Mare → Potenza	—	Medium Mountain
6	Thu, May 14	Paestum → Napoli	—	Flat
7	Fri, May 15	Formia → Blockhaus	—	High Mountain
8	Sat, May 16	Chieti → Fermo	—	Rolling
9	Sun, May 17	Cervia → Corno alle Scale	—	High Mountain
10	Tue, May 19	Viareggio → Massa	40 km	Individual Time Trial
11	Wed, May 20	Porcari → Chiavari	—	Flat
12	Thu, May 21	Imperia → Novi Ligure	—	Medium Mountain
13	Fri, May 22	Alessandria → Verbania	—	Rolling
14	Sat, May 23	Aosta → Pila	—	Summit Finish
15	Sun, May 24	Voghera → Milano	—	Flat
16	Tue, May 26	Bellinzona → Carì	—	High Mountain
17	Wed, May 27	Cassano d’Adda → Andalo	—	Medium Mountain
18	Thu, May 28	Fai della Paganella → Pieve di Soligo	—	Rolling
19	Fri, May 29	Feltre → Alleghe (Piani di Pezzè)	—	High Mountain
20	Sat, May 30	Gemona del Friuli → Piancavallo	—	Summit Finish
21	Sun, May 31	Rome	—	Flat / Ceremonial

2026 Giro d’Italia Stage Difficulty Calendar

2026-giro-difficulty-chart

2026 Giro d’Italia Key Difficulty Notes

- Total climbing: 49,150 m across the race
- Mountain block: Blockhaus (Stage 7), Corno alle Scale (Stage 9), Pila (Stage 14), Carì (Stage 16), Piancavallo (Stage 20) – all decisive GC battlegrounds
- Time trial: Stage 10, 40 km pan-flat ITT in Massa – crucial for GC riders
- Sprint opportunities: Six clear sprint stages (Stages 1, 6, 15, 21 plus Napoli, Milano, Rome finales)
- Queen stage: Stage 20 to Piancavallo, expected to be the hardest with massive altitude gain

2026 Giro d’Italia Strategic Outlook

- GC riders must balance the ITT against brutal summit finishes.
- Sprinters get multiple chances but must survive the Dolomites.
- Breakaway specialists will thrive in rolling mid-week stages.

2026 Giro d’Italia Key Takeaways

- Total climbing: ~49,150 m across the race.
- Stage 7 (Blockhaus): First big spike, early GC test.
- Stage 14 (Pila): Mid-race summit finish, another huge jump.
- Stage 20 (Piancavallo): The queen stage, hardest climbing load of the Giro.

Recovery windows: Flat sprint stages (6, 15, 21) and the ITT (Stage 10) provide relative relief.