Following the positive rankings of Verona’s quality of life, another rating placed the whole Veneto on the podium of regions that have distinguished themselves for their cycling plans. In fact, with the Treviso-Ostiglia route, Veneto achieves third position at the Italian Oscar of Cycling this year.
The Oscar of Italian cycling
This year the Italian Oscar of Cycle tourism, born with the aim of stimulating administrations and enhancing the Italian routes, reaches the eighth edition. It was held last June 3, the World Bicycle Day, in Cesena, the winner of the 2022 Oscar with the Grand Tour of the Savio Valley. For this year, the jury – composed of important journalists, opinion leaders, sponsors and experts in the bike, environment and tourism sectors – has established the top three classified according to some criteria of excellence, including design, promotion, signposting and services.
Tuscany takes first place with the Ciclopedestrian Puccini, which extends from Lucca to Versilia and recreates the life of the composer from whom it takes its name; Sicily takes second place with the Sicily Divide, a 457-kilometer route that explores the region’s lesser-known areas, passing through various towns from Trapani to Catania; and Veneto takes bronze with the Treviso Ostiglia Cycle Path, a green cycle route obtained from a former military railway.
Over the years, the Oscar has been consigned to very different paths. Veneto, with this victory, reaches four podiums, the most recent in 2017 with La Ciclovia dell’Amicizia – Friendship Cycle route.
In addition to the top prize, three more awards were handed out. Journalists have recognized the Ciclovia Food Valley: an 80-kilometer route among the towns of Parma and Busseto Emilia, passing through some of the region’s most important food and wine areas. Legambiente also awarded the Abruzzo Trail a prize. It is a 700-kilometer route that intends to connect some of Abruzzo’s cultural and historical resources, including national parks, natural oases, and 71 municipalities, in a sustainable manner.
This year’s novelty is the participation of a foreign country. For the first time in the history of the Italian Cycling Tourism Oscars, a foreign location will be among the winners with the Italian Green Road Award 2023. Gran Canaria has differentiated itself by organizing urban mobility through a bike sharing system, making it a bike-friendly destination for everyone.
The Treviso-Ostiglia cycle path
The Treviso-Ostiglia cycle path runs for 70 kilometers, between the provinces of Treviso, Padua and Vicenza. It is a green cycle path built on a railway that crosses some beautiful landscapes of Veneto passing through a long-wooded line flat and mostly paved. Among the attractions that dot the path there are numerous villas, the Sanctuary of the Madonna di Tessara, the Rossato Oasis and the Sanctuary Antoniani Complex.
It is one of the major arteries of the Veneto cycle tourism and allows the branch to some important trails in the region: the Sile cycle path (Treviso – Jesolo), the Ezzelini Path (Asolo) and the Sant Antonio Path (Padua), the Brenta cycle path (Trento – Bassano del Grappa), the Bacchiglione cycle route (Padua – Colli Euganei – Vicenza), the Berica Riviera (Vicenza – Padua), the Tergola road (up to the Brenta Riviera) but also easily intercepts the Dolomites-Venice and the AIDA (Alta Italia da Attraversare – hight Italy to be crossed) a great national itinerary along over 900 km.
The study of Bank Ifis, “bicycle ecosystem”
As part of the Oscar of cycling tourism, the Bank Ifis presented its study “Ecosystem of the bicycle edition 2023”, which, in addition to the positive data of 2022, predicts a 15% increase in cycling tourism.
According to the Bank Ifis research, last year, 6.3 million people organized their holidays by bike, with 1.9 million claiming to be true cyclo-tourists. It is therefore a sector that has earned 7.4 billion euros, the majority of which has gone to the sectors of accommodation (1.4 billion), restauration (800 million), clothing (500 million), and leisure activities (300 million).
