Hotels for Giro d'Italia 2027

A three-week race decided one stage at a time, with climbers, sprinters and rouleurs all chasing the leader's pink jersey. Crowds gather roadside for free, often hours before the riders pass, picnicking on verges or crowding round cafe televisions in between. The final stage typically brings a processional feel before a fast, tactical finish, with teams committing everything for one last chance at glory. Expect flags, klaxons and a carnival strung along the route rather than packed into a single arena.

The Giro d'Italia is one of cycling's three Grand Tours, alongside the Tour de France and the Vuelta a Espana, and is prized by many riders as the most beautiful of the three. First held in 1909 and organised by the newspaper that became La Gazzetta dello Sport, the race is run over three weeks each May, its overall leader wearing the famous pink jersey, the maglia rosa, whose colour echoes the pink pages of that founding newspaper.

The route changes every year and traditionally features punishing mountain stages in the Alps and Dolomites, where the great climbs of the Stelvio and the Mortirolo have written much of the sport's history. Italian heroes such as Fausto Coppi are woven into its legend, while the Belgian Eddy Merckx won the race five times.

In recent editions the corsa rosa has ended with a celebratory final stage through the streets of Rome, sweeping past the Colosseum and the Roman Forum.