Ride Friday and Saturday, then head east as Sunday rain sweeps Switzerland

Friday is dry across the Alps, with hero dirt or dry trails almost everywhere. Saturday stays mostly fine, though rain reaches Bern, Biel, Zürich and the northern French Alps. On Sunday a wet band covers Switzerland, Ticino and the French Alps, while Austria, Slovenia and the Dolomites stay dry.

The east stays dry all weekend

Eastern Austria and Slovenia have no rain forecast on any of the three days, with highs in the high teens. Bikepark Schladming is the driest in the area at 72, with Saalbach Hinterglemm and Gerlitzen PROlitzen in hero dirt. Bikepark Maribor Pohorje is in the same shape and drains faster than most of our parks.

The Dolomites match it. Kronplatz, Cortina d'Ampezzo, Canazei and Falcade stay dry through Sunday. In Tyrol, Bikepark Innsbruck and Ischgl - Samnaun are dry too, with only a trace of rain at Brandnertal on Sunday.

Friday: dry across almost all the Alps, with hero dirt and dry trails from France to Slovenia.

Western and northern Switzerland turn wet Saturday

This is where the weekend goes first. Bern Gurten, Biel and Zürich Uetliberg each get around 14 mm on Saturday, and Bern and Biel around 31 mm more on Sunday. Both drain quickly, so they should recover faster than most once it stops.

Champéry and Morgins are the ones to avoid: around 30 mm on Sunday, on ground that holds water and dries slowly. Further up the Valais, Zermatt, Verbier and Crans-Montana stay dry until Sunday.

Central Switzerland and Graubünden: dry until Sunday

Central Switzerland sees only a few millimetres on Saturday, then around 10 to 20 mm on Sunday. Grindelwald-Wengen and Mürren-Schilthorn hold water more than almost any park we track, so expect them to stay soft. Saas-Grund, driest now at 82, takes around 57 mm on Sunday with gusts near 58 km/h.

Graubünden is dry on Saturday. On Sunday Disentis Sedrun gets around 28 mm, while Lenzerheide, Thusis and Poschiavo see only 3 to 6 mm.

Ticino: two good days, then a deluge

Friday and Saturday are close to dry, with Airolo at 81 and the rest in hero dirt. Sunday is the wettest day anywhere: around 50 mm at Airolo and around 60 mm at Arosio, Monte Tamaro and Ascona. Ascona and Monte Bar drain fast, but that is a lot of water.

Sunday: heavy rain across Ticino, Switzerland and the French Alps, while eastern Austria, Slovenia and the Dolomites stay dry.

French and western Italian Alps: south holds longer

Serre Chevalier, Les Orres and Les 2 Alpes stay dry through Saturday, then get around 8 to 11 mm on Sunday. All three are among the fastest-drying, sunniest parks we track. In the north, Les Gets and Morzine get around 5 mm Saturday and 25 mm Sunday, and Châtel dries slower than any of our parks.

Breuil-Cervinia, at 85, and La Thuile are dry until Sunday's 10 to 15 mm. Finale Ligure stays near dry but sees gusts near 50 km/h on Saturday.

Further afield

La Palma West in Spain is dry and warm at around 25°C, with strong wind Saturday. Germany turns cool and windy with light rain; Willingen is best. Whistler gets around 8 mm Friday and 26 mm Saturday before a dry Sunday. Rocky Mountain in New Zealand is muddy and holds water, so expect it to stay soft despite a dry weekend.

Our call

Ride anywhere in the Alps on Friday and Saturday while the ground is good. For Sunday, head east to Schladming, Saalbach, Maribor Pohorje or the Dolomites around Kronplatz and Cortina, which stay dry all weekend.