The Rhine is one of the major European rivers. The river begins in the Swiss canton of Graubünden in the southeastern Swiss Alps. It forms part of the Swiss-Liechtenstein, Swiss-Austrian, and Swiss-German borders. After that the Rhine defines much of the Franco-German border, after which it flows in a mostly northerly direction through the German Rhineland. Finally in Germany the Rhine turns into a predominantly westerly direction and flows into the Netherlands where it eventually empties into the North Sea. It drains an area of 9,973 sq km and its name derives from the Celtic Rēnos. There are also two German states named after the river, North Rhine-Westphalia and Rhineland-Palatinate.
Strasbourg is the prefecture and largest city of the Grand Est region of eastern France and the official seat of the European Parliament. Located at the border with Germany in the historic region of Alsace, it is the prefecture of the Bas-Rhin department.
Alsace is a cultural region and a territorial collectivity in eastern France, on the west bank of the upper Rhine next to Germany and Switzerland. In January 2023, it had a population of 1,921,014. Alsatian culture is characterized by a blend of Germanic and French influences.
Belfort is a city in the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region in Northeastern France, situated between Lyon and Strasbourg, approximately 25 km (16 mi) from the France–Switzerland border. It is the prefecture of the Territoire de Belfort department.
EuroVelo is a network of currently 17 long-distance cycling routes criss-crossing Europe, in various stages of completion. When completed, the EuroVelo network's total length will almost be 90,000 km (55,923 mi). As of November 2022 more than 56,000 km (34,797 mi) were in place. EuroVelo is a project of the European Cyclists' Federation (ECF).
The Gotthard Pass or St. Gotthard Pass at 2,106 m (6,909 ft) is a mountain pass in the Alps traversing the Saint-Gotthard Massif and connecting northern Switzerland with southern Switzerland. The pass lies between Airolo in the Italian-speaking canton of Ticino, and Andermatt in the German-speaking canton of Uri, and connects further Bellinzona and Lugano to Lucerne, Basel, and Zurich. The Gotthard Pass lies at the heart of the Gotthard, a major transport axis of Europe, and it is crossed by three traffic tunnels, each being the world's longest at the time of their construction: the Gotthard Rail Tunnel (1882), the Gotthard Road Tunnel (1980) and the Gotthard Base Tunnel (2016). With the Lötschberg to the west, the Gotthard is one of the two main north-south routes through the Swiss Alps.
Sarrebourg is a commune of northeastern France.
The Elbe Cycle Route is part of an international network of cycling routes all over Europe. It is integrated in the system of currently 37 river cycling routes in Germany and by far the most popular route for cyclists in this country.
EuroVelo 12 (EV12), the North Sea Cycle Route, is a 5,942 km (3,692 mi) long-distance cycling route circuit around the coastlines of the countries that border the North Sea: these countries are England, Scotland, Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands and Belgium.
EuroVelo 6 (EV6), named the "Rivers Route", is a EuroVelo long-distance cycling route that runs along 3,653 km (2,270 mi) some of Europe's major rivers, including much of the Loire, some of the Saône, a short section of the upper Rhine and almost the entire length of Europe’s second longest river, the Danube — from the Atlantic coast of France to the city of Constanța on the Black Sea.
Rhinau is a commune in the Bas-Rhin department of Grand Est in north-eastern France.
LF-Routes are long-distance cycling routes that form a network in the Netherlands and Belgium. The routes, criss-crossing both countries, are primarily intended for recreational multi-day bike tours, such as cycling holidays. Some routes are also part of a wider international network.
Long-distance cycling routes are designated cycling routes in various countries around the world for bicycle tourism. These routes include anything from longer rail trails, to national cycling route networks like the Dutch LF-routes,the French Veloroute or the routes of the British National Cycle Network, to the multi-state routes of the United States Bicycle Route System, to the multi-country routes of the EuroVelo network in Europe, the longest of which is over 6,800 km (4,200 mi) in length.
A national cycling route network is a nationwide network of designated long-distance cycling routes found in various countries around the world for the purposes of bicycle tourism. They are often created and maintained by the government of the country, or at least with the backing or co-operation of the government of the country. Some of the routes in these national networks can be part of international long-distance cycling routes, such as the EuroVelo network of European cycling routes.
The Swiss National Bike Routes are the national cycling route network of Switzerland. There are currently 9 such long-distance cycling routes criss-crossing the Swiss nation and these were established mainly to promote bicycle tourism.
EuroVelo 7 (EV7), named the Sun Route, is a 7,409 km (4,604 mi) long EuroVelo long-distance cycling route running north–south through the whole of Europe from the North Cape in Norway to the island of Malta in the Mediterranean Sea. The route passes through nine countries, and from north to south these are: Norway, Finland, Sweden, Denmark, Germany, Czech Republic, Austria, Italy, Malta.
EuroVelo 2 (EV2), named The Capitals Route, is a 5,500 km (3,400 mi) long EuroVelo long-distance cycling route running from Galway, Ireland to Moscow, Russia. This east-west route passes successively through seven countries – Ireland, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Germany, Poland, Belarus and Russia – and visits all their capital cities.
EuroVelo 3 (EV3), named the Pilgrims Route, is a EuroVelo long-distance cycling route running 5,122 km (3,183 mi) running from Trondheim in Norway to Santiago de Compostela in Spain. This north-south route travels through Europe passing successively through seven countries: Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Germany, Belgium, France and Spain.
EuroVelo 5 (EV5), named the Via Romea Francigena, is a 3,900 km (2,400 mi) long EuroVelo long-distance cycling route running from Canterbury to Rome and ending at the Italian port of Brindisi. The route crosses Europe passing successively through six countries: UK, France, Belgium, Luxembourg, France again, Switzerland and Italy.
Grand Est is an administrative region in Northeastern France. It superseded three former administrative regions, Alsace, Champagne-Ardenne and Lorraine, on 1 January 2016 under the provisional name of Alsace-Champagne-Ardenne-Lorraine, as a result of territorial reform which had been passed by the French Parliament in 2014.
