Sella Ronda: four Dolomite passes in one loop, and how to pace them

The Sella Ronda is the most famous loop in the Dolomites: four passes around one massif of rock, the Sella group. The Alta Badia tourist board measures the classic road loop at 50.7 km with 1,674 m of climbing, with gradients mostly between 8 and 10%. None of its climbs is very long, but together they make a full day, and the views never stop. Here is how the loop rides from Canazei, how to pace four climbs in a row, and when to go to avoid the traffic.

The loop, pass by pass

Our track starts and finishes in Canazei, in Val di Fassa, and goes round anticlockwise, the direction the Alta Badia and South Tyrol tourism sites describe and the one the Sellaronda Bike Day advises. It comes out longer and hillier than the official loop, 62.5 km and about 2,000 m, so use the official figures for planning. The pass heights below are the Maratona dles Dolomites organiser's.

• Passo Pordoi, 2,239 m. The first and highest-starting climb, straight out of Canazei at 1,450 m, about 790 m of climbing to the top. It is the biggest climb of the day in this direction, so it is the one to ride gently.
• Down to Arabba and up Passo Campolongo, 1,875 m. The descent to Arabba has, in the Alta Badia board's count, more than 30 bends, but it is relatively smooth. Campolongo is the short one, a few kilometres of steady climbing from Arabba. Eat on the way down from the Pordoi and you arrive here with a full tank.
• Down to Corvara and up Passo Gardena, 2,121 m. About 7 km of descent drops you to Corvara in Alta Badia. Then through Colfosco to the Gardena, which the tourist board says reaches 13% in places, the steepest ramps of the loop. On our track this is the second-longest climb, about 8 km from Corvara.
• Passo Sella, 2,244 m. A short descent towards Val Gardena, then the last climb up to the Sella, the highest point of the loop. From the top it is downhill almost all the way back to Canazei.

How to pace four climbs

Most fit amateurs ride the loop in three to four hours; the Alta Badia board estimates 3 hours 10 minutes riding time. The trap is the first climb.

• Ride the Pordoi at endurance pace. It comes first and it is the biggest climb of the day in this direction. Keep it around 70–75% of FTP. If the Sella feels as good as the Pordoi did, you paced it right. Our gran fondo pacing guide covers multi-climb days.
• Treat the descents as feed zones. The South Tyrol tourism site warns that the loop offers little recovery. The descents are the recovery. Eat at the top of each pass and on the straighter parts of the way down, 60–90 g of carbohydrate an hour. See fuelling long rides.
• Gear for the Gardena. Most of the loop is fine on a 34×28, but the 13% ramps on the Gardena come late in the ride. A 32 or 34 sprocket is easier on tired legs; see gearing for climbing.
• Take a jacket. You go over 2,000 m three times and the South Tyrol site notes the weather can change. A gilet on every descent is worth its weight.

Passes of the Giro

The Pordoi is one of the Giro d'Italia's great Dolomite passes. The race first crossed it in 1940, when Gino Bartali led over the top with a young Fausto Coppi riding his first Giro. The Giro's own history counts 38 more crossings since 1947, 13 of them as the Cima Coppi, the race's highest point. The Sella has its own legend: on 3 June 1998 Marco Pantani crossed it with Giuseppe Guerini on the way to the finish in Selva di Val Gardena, where he took the pink jersey.

When to go

• Traffic. In summer the loop is busy. The South Tyrol tourism site calls it a busy route and advises starting early to avoid traffic and taking care on hairpins and long descents.
• Sellaronda Bike Day. The roads around the Sella massif close to motor traffic for the day. In 2026 the Val Gardena tourist board listed two Bike Days, on 6 June and 12 September, from 8:30 to 16:00. It is free, there is no registration and it is not a race; riders are asked to go anticlockwise and keep right. Check the tourist boards for next year's dates.
• The road. The Alta Badia board describes the asphalt as mostly good, with small potholes in places. Watch for them on the descents.
• Add a pass. From Canazei the Passo Fedaia below the Marmolada is close by, and our guide to the Dolomites by bike has more ideas.

Ride it in Moveee Indoor

The route on this page is the real loop from Canazei, with its height at every point. In Moveee Indoor your smart trainer reproduces the gradient of all four climbs and the descents between them, and the world around you is built from map data of the real place. What a loop like this teaches you indoors is how a long day adds up: whether you can ride the Sella as well as the Pordoi, and whether your eating on the descents keeps up.

The ride is saved with its power data, so you can see exactly how your power held from the first climb to the last. It runs in the browser and in the Mac and Windows apps. To ride it on another device, download the GPX above.

The short version

Four passes, about 51 km and 1,700 m of climbing round the Sella group, mostly at 8–10%. Ride anticlockwise from Canazei, take the Pordoi gently, eat on every descent and keep a low gear for the Gardena. Start early to beat the traffic, or ride it on a Bike Day when the roads are closed to cars.