Nestled between the Castelgrande and Montebello fortresses, Bellinzona's inner city still retains its Lombard character today. Handsome 18th-century townhouses with arcades and wrought-iron balconies, surrounded by welcoming cafés and restaurants, make a stroll through the old town into a real experience. Half of Bellinzona's population meets up at the highly colourful weekly market every Saturday. A climb up to the castles of Sasso Corbaro, Montebello and Castelgrande plunges you back into the Middle Ages. Together with the Murata defensive wall (part of the fortifications), the three castles belong to the UNESCO World Heritage Site. The first settlement on Castelgrande hill dates back to the Neolithic period (5500-5000 B.C.).

Leaving the city, you reach the northern periphery of Giubiasco and the river Ticino. It flows straight towards Lake Maggiore, while cyclists wind their way across the fertile Magadino Plain. Tomatoes, lettuces and sweet melons are just a few of the crops grown in this farming region. It is not only the many horses in this district that may remind you of the Camargue in France. There are also numerous marshes that have become a paradise for nature lovers. Guided tours afford fascinating insights into a plant and animal kingdom that is still largely wild.

Riding on Monte Ceneri is also a wild experience – luckily, the cycle lane is wide! There is a stench of exhaust and rubber as trucks and other heavies roar past you. Now and then, it's worth looking down at the Magadino Plain, Lake Maggiore, Tenero and Locarno, and the undulating valleys of the Verzasca and Maggia rivers. At the top of the Monte Ceneri pass, a commemorative plaque recalls the deceased racing cyclists from Ticino. Neat villages and interesting children's drawings painted on concrete make your progress easier and more agreeable, even though the landscape is sometimes dominated by industry and cars. The river Vedeggio is anything but dominant: in fact, maybe we should call it a stream? It emerges from the Val d‘Isone and cyclists meet it at Camignolo. It flows sedately past Lugano-Agno airport and, like the cyclists, looks forward to reaching beautiful Lake Lugano.