In every country in Europe, you can cycle up the highest mountain road or even reach the highest point in the country. Europe's diversity offers a variety of landscapes, interesting cultural identities, different languages - and a consistently friendly and open attitude towards cyclists. This applies from Albania to Cyprus, from Portugal to Finland, from Luxembourg to Bosnia-Herzegovina and from Lithuania to Wales.

Whereas the original interest was in asphalt passes that can be ridden on a road bike, this has changed over time with increasingly exotic destinations for gravel biking. A few destinations in the Alps have also been tackled by mountain bike, allowing much higher goals to be achieved there than on regular asphalt pass roads.

Determining the highest mountain roads in each European country is associated with certain uncertainties: What actually counts as Europe? Which countries does this include? And what is a road that can be conquered by bicycle?

Here, Europe follows the geographical definition of the European mainland plus Great Britain, Ireland, Iceland and the Mediterranean states of Malta and Cyprus. Although the latter may be geographically located in Asia, it is included here because of its strong European influence and as a member of the EU. In Turkey, the western part (Thrace) is included. In Kazakhstan, a small corner west of the Urals may also be considered part of Europe, but this does not correspond to common usage. And given the current geopolitical situation, it does not matter where the European border runs in Russia. Like Belarus and Ukraine, the country is currently inaccessible (to Western-European citizens). And for those who like to get really nerdy: tectonically, the western part of Iceland actually belongs to America

When determining the countries, the United Kingdom's regions of Scotland, England, Wales and Northern Ireland were considered separately. In the Balkans, Kosovo was counted as an independent destination, even if the Serbs certainly see it differently. Overseas territories of European states, on the other hand, are not taken into account (Faroe Islands, Gibraltar, Madeira, Azores).

The definition of a mountain road is also difficult. In the Balkans in particular, there are a number of roads that can hardly be described as paved, but where road construction is progressing rapidly. The transition from asphalt to gravel is often fluid. In some 'flatter' countries, it is even possible to ride directly to their highest points (Benelux, Baltic States, Denmark), even if this sometimes ends up in a meadow.

In some cases, the highest road was not reached (Iceland, North Macedonia). But in many cases, this is simply not known for certain. Ultimately, it all comes down to definition. The result is an illustrious overview of exactly 50 countries with their respective highest points.