The engine settles into a low hum as the road unwinds ahead, a ribbon of asphalt curving around a mountainside where the valley drops away into a sea of cloud. The wheel feels alive in your hands, transmitting the texture of the tarmac, each corner a question that demands an answer of steering and nerve. Europe’s great driving roads are not simply transport corridors. They are sculptures in the landscape, built by engineers who understood that the journey matters as much as the destination. From Alpine passes to coastal highways, here are the roads that every driver should experience at least once.
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Grossglockner High Alpine Road, Austria
Austria’s Grossglockner High Alpine Road climbs to 2,504 metres through the Hohe Tauern National Park, offering 48 kilometres of hairpin bends and mountain views. The road has 36 turns, each one numbered, and the climb takes you past waterfalls, glaciers, and the Pasterze, the longest glacier in the Eastern Alps. The toll is 40.50 euros for a car, and the road is open from early May to October, weather permitting. The highest point is the Kaiser Franz Josefs Hohe visitor centre, where a viewing platform looks across to the Grossglockner, Austria’s highest peak at 3,798 metres. The road was built in the 1930s as a scenic tourist route and remains one of the finest mountain drives in Europe. Marmots sun themselves on the rocks beside the road, and the air at the summit is thin and cold even in August.
Stelvio Pass, Italy
The Stelvio Pass in the Italian Alps is the highest paved road in the Eastern Alps at 2,757 metres, and it is a bucket list drive for anyone who loves corners. The northern approach from Trafoi features 48 hairpin bends in a continuous sequence, each one tight enough to require first gear in a standard car. The road was built between 1820 and 1825 to connect the Austrian Empire with Lombardy, and its engineering is a monument to ambition. The pass is open from June to October, and the drive demands concentration and mechanical sympathy. Overheated brakes and clutches are common, and experienced drivers use low gears to manage the descent. The view from the summit is a panorama of peaks stretching into Switzerland and Italy, with the Ortler massif dominating the skyline. Motorcyclists consider the Stelvio a rite of passage, and the car park at the top is a showroom of exotic machinery on summer weekends.
Atlantic Road, Norway
Norway’s Atlantic Road, the Atlanterhavsveien, is an 8.3 kilometre stretch of highway that jumps between islands along the western coast. The road crosses eight bridges, the most dramatic being the Storseisundet Bridge, which curves at an angle that creates the illusion of a road that ends in mid air. The road opened in 1989 and was voted the Norwegian Construction of the Century. The weather on this coast changes by the minute. A sunny day reveals turquoise water and green islands. A storm sends waves crashing over the road, and the experience of driving through spray with the North Sea at full rage is unforgettable. The road connects the islands of Averoy and Kristiansund, and there are plenty of places to pull over and watch the fishing boats work the channels. Allow an hour for the drive itself and a full afternoon for the stops and photographs.
Furka Pass, Switzerland
The Furka Pass in Switzerland connects the Rhone Valley with the Reuss Valley, climbing to 2,429 metres through a landscape of bare rock and glaciers. The road was made famous by the James Bond film Goldfinger, in which Sean Connery’s Aston Martin DB5 drives the pass with a Ford Mustang in pursuit. The road has 32 hairpin bends on the eastern side and offers views of the Rhone Glacier, which has retreated dramatically in recent decades. The Furka Steam Railway runs alongside the road, and the sight of an old steam locomotive climbing through the Alpine landscape is a photographer’s dream. The pass is open from June to October, and the driving is demanding. The bends are tight, the surfaces can be uneven, and the weather can change from sun to snow in an hour. The reward is one of the purest Alpine driving experiences in Europe.
Transfagarasan Highway, Romania
The Transfagarasan Highway crosses the Carpathian Mountains at 2,042 metres, connecting the regions of Transylvania and Wallachia. The road was built in the 1970s as a military route by Nicolae Ceausescu, and its 90 kilometres include tunnels, viaducts, and the longest road tunnel in Romania. The highlight is the sequence of S bends climbing to the Balea Lac, a glacial lake at the summit where a small hotel offers refuge from the elements. The road gained international fame after being featured on Top Gear, where Jeremy Clarkson called it the best road in the world. The Transfagarasan is open only from late June to October due to snow. The driving is spectacular, with long sweeping corners on the northern side and tight hairpins on the southern descent. Bears live in the surrounding forests, and sightings are common in early morning and evening.
Which driving road calls to you? The Alpine hairpins of the Stelvio or the Atlantic crossings of Norway?
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