The Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift will cover a total of 1,175km, with 18,795m of climbing over nine stages, its longest distance ever. It starts off with three stages in Switzerland along the shores of Lake Geneva, before heading to France for a fourth-stage individual time trial around Dijon.
It's Stage 7 that's the queen stage, though, with a summit finish on Mont Ventoux. The eighth stage takes the race to Nice, with the final stage taking in four loops through the city and over the famous Col d’Èze.
Here's a stage-by-stage guide to the route and what to expect.
Stage 1: Lausanne to Lausanne
- Saturday 1 August
- 137km
The first stage of the 2026 Tour de France Femmes looks finely balanced between puncheurs and sprinters. But Marion Rousse, who heads up the Tour de France Femmes, reckons the steep 2.5km finale through the city roads away from Lake Geneva could favour the former.
Stage 2: Aigle to Geneva
- Sunday 2 August
- 149km
There are plenty of ups and downs on the Stage 2 route, which climbs out of Aigle, home of the UCI, before a series of short, sharp climbs in the mid-section. Rousse thinks the peloton will likely regroup for a sprint finish on the banks of the lake on the Quai du Mont-Blanc.
Stage 3: Geneva to Poligny
- Monday 3 August
- 157km
As the race heads into France, there's plenty of climbing from the start, with the 11.4km Col de la Faucille averaging 6.3%. More cols follow before the flat run-in to Poligny. One for a breakaway or will the sprinters triumph? With 2,400m of total climbing, there's plenty to play for.
Stage 4: Gevrey-Chambertin to Dijon
- Tuesday 4 August
- 21km ITT
The only time trial in the race covers 21km through the vineyards of the Côte d'Or. There's a 1.8km climb in the middle, with a 6.9% average gradient, plus a kicker to the apex at Corcelles-les-Monts, before a rolling downhill to the finish in Dijon. This is a time trial that favours riders who can climb, rather than the flat time trial specialists.
Stage 5: Macon to Belleville-en-Beaujolais
- Wednesday 5 August
- 140km
There's 2,850m of elevation gain on this lumpy stage into the Beaujolais wine region. The final 3km, 7.7% climb of Mont Brouilly is only 10km from the finish line and likely to split the field or force a solo winner from a breakaway.
Stage 6: Montbrison to Tournon-sur-Rhone
- Thursday 6 August
- 153km
There are more lumps on Stage 6, with Rousse highlighting the 8.6km, 5% climb of the Col de Lalouvesc as a point where a breakaway might go clear along the narrow descent.
Stage 7: La Voulte-sur-Rhone to Mont Ventoux
- Friday 7 August
- 144km
Don't let the size of the final climb fool you, there's plenty of climbing before the riders even get to the foot of Mont Ventoux in this queen stage of the 2026 race. Once they hit the giant of Provence, there's another 15.7km to go from Bédoin at an average 8.8%. Will it be one for the pure climbers, or will a GC rider triumph? This is also the stage chosen for the Etape du Tour de France Femmes.
Stage 8: Sisteron to Nice
- Saturday 8 August
- 175km
The longest stage of the 2026 Tour de France Femmes tops the Col de Toutes Aures before it follows the river Var into Nice. To spice things up, there are two nasty little climbs before the finish, with the Côte de la Ginestière hitting 13.6% only 6km from the finish on the Promenade des Anglais. Is this another stage that will favour a lone puncheur holding off a sprint finish?
Stage 9: Nice to Nice
- Sunday 9 August
- 99km
The final stage is a showcase for Nice, taking in four loops through the city and out to the famous Col d’Èze. But, rather than a smooth descent into the city, the final lap takes in a detour of 6km at 7.6%, which includes a kilometre-plus section at 12%. Another finish that favours a puncheur coming in alone?
