Tremola Road

The Tremola climbs from Airolo to the Gotthard summit in twenty-four hairpins over about thirteen kilometres, and it is surfaced in granite setts throughout - the largest surviving cobbled road in Switzerland, protected as a monument of national importance. Built in the 1830s and rebuilt in the 1950s, it was the main southern approach until the modern road took a straighter line above it, and the old route was then left as it was rather than resurfaced. Driving or cycling it is slow and noisy on the setts, which is the point. The name means trembling, said to refer to the effect of the surface. It closes with the pass each winter and is used for classic-car and cycling events.

What you actually see

• Twenty-four cobbled hairpins - granite setts the whole thirteen kilometres.
• A protected road monument - the largest cobbled road left in the country.
• The old main route - superseded and then simply left alone.
• Slow, noisy going - the surface that gave the road its name.

When to go

June to October. Half a day.

Honest expectations

It closes with the Gotthard pass for winter. The setts are hard on cars and bicycles alike and it is genuinely slow. Motorcycle traffic is heavy on summer weekends. There are no facilities between Airolo and the summit.

Nearby

The Gotthard summit and its museum are above; Airolo is below.