I’ve just sat down at the dinner table with a plate full of cheese and I have zero pangs of guilt. I take a big gulp of my delicious wine and marvel at the various types of Swiss cheese in front of me. It’s been one hell of a day. Less than six hours ago I was riding up one of the greatest hairpin-cobblestone combination climbs in the world. I can still feel the vibrations in my wrists from when my bike was clattering over the jagged stones like a speedboat on choppy water. ‘You feeling okay?’ I snap out of my cobblestone reflections and smile at Elke (from Belgium) sitting next to me. ‘Mate, I’m on top of the world!’ I reply. She laughs and puts her arm around me. ‘You should say something to the group!’ she says. I hesitate. ‘C’mon. We’ll do it together.’ She grabs my hand and pulls me up in front of everyone.
It’s my fourth day in Switzerland and, so far, I have ridden up endless mountains, through roads between giants, crossed lands of another world and rode next to glaciers and eternal rivers. Sharing this two-wheeled epic adventure across Switzerland with me are 18 sensational and diverse women from around the globe. We’ve all been invited by Switzerland Tourism to partake in a 100% Women initiative, which aims to provide more opportunities for women in outdoor sports and inspire them to get involved in new sporting opportunities. Over the course of six days, we get out of our comfort zones and embark on an adventure that sees us on road bikes, gravel bikes and MTBs in one of the world’s most perfect cycling playgrounds.
Pedalling for progress
According to a 2022 survey conducted by the Swiss government, a total of 1.25 million women in Switzerland regularly cycle or go mountain biking in their free time. If you’ve ever been to this cycling paradise you’ll understand why you would want to spend all your free time outdoors. It’s no surprise cycling tourism in Switzerland has generated an annual turnover of three billion Swiss francs in 2021 alone. Swiss Tourism has taken a strong step forward in gender equality by helping get even more women from all around the world into cycling by promoting competitive female-only cycling packages in Switzerland. Since its inception some three years ago, the 100% Women Initiative has focused on hiking and mountaineering. 2023 has been announced as the year the 100% Women Initiative focuses on promoting cycling to a female audience.
On 8 March, International Women’s Day, Switzerland Tourism launched over 50 guided female-only cycling packages for 2023 with the help of key Swiss tourism partners. These packages, published on the 100% Women’s Travel Hub, showcase Switzerland’s diversity as a national and international cycling destination, demonstrating the accessibility and appeal of its many roads and trails, whether for road cycling, mountain biking, gravel biking or e-biking. All these packages are bookable immediately and take place over the Swiss cycling season, which begins in the European spring. The options range from one-day to multiple-day trips and include beginner cyclist, training, cycle and flop, e-biking, technical and racing packages.
If you’ve ever been to this cycling paradise, you’ll understand why
